The upcoming Street Fighter V won’t be coming out until the next spring. Fortunately, Capcom and Sony have teamed up to make the wait for the next installment of the popular fighting series feel a lot shorter as Ultra Street Fighter IV is being ported to the PlayStation 4. The remastered version features all characters, stages and DLC packs from the game in addition to fixing the input lag issue that plagued the PS3 release.
If you are planning to buy Ultra Street Fighter IV, you should also invest in an arcade stick and/or fight pad if you want an authentic experience. Below, you can find our list of recommended controllers to get along with the PS4 fighting game.
Controlling Ultra Street Fighter IV
First let’s take a look at how Ultra Street Fighter IV controls. The game is a 2D fighter that six different basic attacks: Light Kick, Medium Kick, Heavy Kick, Light Punch, Medium Punch and Heavy Punch. With the DualShock 4, you will need to use the shoulder buttons in addition to the four face buttons, which is not exactly the most efficient way to play the videogame (especially if you are planning to play competitively).
Fight Pads
There are two major fight pads currently compatible with the PlayStation 4. The first is the Mortal Kombat X Fight Pad, which uses six face buttons (X, Triangle, Square, Circle, L1 and R1). With that said, there is reportedly some quality issues with the PDP controllers. If you are still interested, you can buy one from Amazon with this page. A better fight pad to consider buying is the Hori Fighting Commander 4 Controller, which is built more solidly when compared to Mortal Kombat X Fight Pad. The gamepad has the same six face button layout. It also differentiate itself from the competition by having a rotatable directional pad and turbo settings. Not to mention that you can also change the D-pad to function as either a left stick or right stick if you want to use it for other games aside from Ultra Street Fighter IV and other similar 2D fighters. You can purchase the Hori Fighting Commander 4 Controller with this link.
Mad Catz Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition 2
If you want to play the upcoming PS4 fighting game like you normally would in the arcades, there are some arcade sticks that you might want to check out as well.
The first is the Mad Catz Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition 2, which features eight action buttons (meaning the L1, L2, R1 and R2 buttons have been moved to the same location as the X, Triangle, Square, Circle face buttons). You can also customize the joystick to function as a left or right analog stick if you want to use it with games other than 2D fighters.
The fight stick is made using genuine Sanwa Denshi parts in addition to having a Vewlix-style design to add authenticity and durability to your experience. Last but not least, the product also comes with a storage compartment for the included ProCable in addition to metal posts for use with shoulder straps.
Mad Catz has two variations of the TE2, one of which is a standard color while the other features artwork from the fighting game. You can check out the two with the following pages: Mad Catz Ultra Street Fighter IV Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition 2 and Mad Catz Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition 2.
Hori Real Arcade Stick
There is another brand of fighting sticks you should check out for Ultra Street Fighter IV. The Hori Real Arcade has the same button layout as the Mad Catz Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition 2. It is also built using authentic arcade parts with the Hayabusa stick level and Kuro buttons. Not to mention that the stick can be changed to function as either the left or right analogs while the carry handle and large internal compartment makes it easier for transport.
With that said, the Hori Real Arcade does have the edge over the Mad Catz Arcade FightStick Tournament Edition 2 when it comes to being able to use turbo. So, if you are interested in that feature, you might want to check out the two compatible PS4 sticks with the following pages: Hori Real Arcade Pro 4 Kai and Hori Real Arcade Pro V.5. Ultra Street Fighter IV is coming out on the 26th of May. The PS4 port is exclusive to the PlayStation Store as you won’t be able to buy it on a physical disc. If you are interested in playing the fighting game with the best possible controls, you should check out the above-mentioned fight pads and arcade sticks.