I made 2 hitbox controllers from scratch

They are arcade sticks that, instead of using a joystick with 4-directional switches, use 4 buttons for the directions. They are often called "Hitbox" because that's the brand that popularized them. Some people also call them "all-button controller" or "stickless controller". The advantages are ergonomics (many people have developed carpal tunnel syndrome from traditional joysticks) and economy of motion (it's easier to press 4 buttons with 4 fingers than move the entire wrist/forearm to move a joystick).

It's pretty much like using a keyboard for fighting games, but you only have the buttons that you actually use, the keys are large buttons, and there are no issues with pressing many simultaneous buttons (many keyboards have problems with that). People also often use PCBs that are compatible with PS5 or other consoles, and also SOCD cleaners (which is a piece that helps configure which inputs should be sent if you press "Simultaneous Opposite Cardinal Directions").

They've been gaining more and more popularity over the last few years. If you are good at typing, you may be more comfortable playing fighting games with this than with a traditional joystick or even a gamepad.

I was curious too so I looked it up. Apparently, the 3 buttons on the left are I suppose left, down and right, and the others are for attacks. It's a specialized keyboard for fighting games.

I love these. I wish there were fighting game and arcade stick communities on lemmy but it doesn't seem to have a big demographic here.

Any layout will come down to personal preference and the best thing about making something completely DIY is you can customise it to your liking.

The layout I made was the standard template most controllers use now and I wanted to stay close to that so the muscle memory easily carries over to using other controllers. Frankly, I don't find it interferes much with reaching LP or MK quickly. I tend to rest my fingers across the upper row and come down as needed for kicks.

Resting the hand on LP and MK would make an odd position for twisting to get to other buttons. Also it would put the pinky finger farther away from the drive impact shortcut (right most upper button).

For anyone planning to use a hitbox controller I'd recommend printing the template on a page and seeing how your hand rests and if you want yo change button positions. Or if you've ordered the buttons then I'd recommend cutting holes in a cardboard box to test fit your button layout and test what you like. On the upper controller in my picture I've moved the jump button further down so it is more comfortable under my thumb.

Thanks. Made the cases from scratch with wood and covered them in vinyl wrap. On the controller with 8 action buttons I used the lid of a wooden box but then had to carve out spaces for connectors and make the base by hand.

smallcab.net

French site that delivered to the UK pretty quickly. They're Seimitsu buttons.

I used a . This one has pins pre-soldered and a wiring harness included to make things easy. It works with . This site also mentions other boards you can use.

I've started going to local events now so I've got a Brook Wingman FGC stick to use with PS5 and I might just embed that inside the hitbox now.

I'll make a detailed guide to show their whole process, there seems to be interest for that.

This picture should make it clearer. One controller has multiple USB ports because there's a USB hub embedded inside it. . The little box in the top right corner is .