Quarter circle, punch.

Three words that built the foundation of every single fighting game for two generations. Get in the comments if I’m wrong, but it wasn’t until Super Smash Bros. that a fighting game truly peeled away from the control scheme laid down by the Street Fighter series. 3D games and more combo-centric titles had evolved and iterated on it, but anyone familiar with Street Fighter can find a comfortable Ryu-style character in any new game they might try.

So, it came as a huge surprise to see Street Fighter 6 adopt Smash-like inputs in the form of a new layout it calls modern controls. And honestly – after trying them – they are not only welcome, but an exciting addition. Another small shock ran through my fighting game instincts when I realized that the Modern Control Type is the game’s default on startup!

Furthermore, SF6 offers an even gentler entrance for truly new players: the Dynamic Control Type. See, Modern controls play much like Smash, asking only that the player press a kick or punch button and one of the cardinal directions to initiate a special, but Dynamic will have the CPU add combos and Drive attacks without the player needing to do any sort of coordinated input!

Making it all the more cohesive, Capcom has added trade-offs in damage and moveset size that favor the Classic Control Type. I think it’s implemented so gracefully that most players will use Dynamic and Modern as warm ups before graduating to the more liberating and rewarding Classic controls. This is further enforced by letting the player alter which control type each character defaults to on selection. Meaning that Capcom expects you to know how much assistance you desire based on how well you know the individual fighters!

Well, I’m a convert. I’ve decided to use Modern like training wheels with the goal of moving up to Classic as soon as possible. Hopefully with at least 3 characters. If I never take Zangief off Modern, meh. I’ve only ever played him on a lark, anyway. But what about you? Are you using Modern or Dynamic controls? Tell us why and weigh in on what Capcom has done with Street Fighter 6 down in the comments or over at the Boss Rush Discord.

Featured Image: Capcom

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