Bowser Controller Grip and Movement Methodology
**Correction: In previous versions of this writeup, I was using extremely unconventional terms to refer to the different mechanics behind what is commonly known as Crouch Cancelling. CC is composed of two independent mechanics, the Crouch knockback reduction, and the ASDI down portion. For the purposes of this writeup, I will refer to ASDI-down as "Ground Cancelling" aka GC, and the Crouch knockback reduction as CC. Thank you to /u/cagliostro9 and /u/Bones_Zero for talking me through the common naming conventions for the mechanics.**
In the Bowser discord, we've been toying with different ideas for what the ideal controller grip for Bowser might be. This might seem like an easy question, but in fact there's a lot of room for movement optimization with unconventional controller grips. The conventional controller grip involves only two actionable fingers on the face of the controller, and an additional two on the triggers. If you can hold the controller in such a way that you have more actionable fingers on the face of your controller, you can open up actionability for many important techniques that you otherwise wouldn't have simultaneous access to. By having access to a jump button, the A button, as well as the C-stick at the same time, you would be able to utilize GC and Z-powershields in ways that you can't do with only one actionable finger on the right-side face of the controller.
A separate but tangentially related conversation with Bowser labbers in the Discord server concerned what would be a theoretically ideal approach to learning movement. Right now, the most common learning route is to practice your stage movement with traditional grip methods, then learn situations where buffering GC, holding A for Z-powershielding, or CCing would be beneficial as-needed. An alternative was suggested though to learn the movement in the opposite direction-- begin by defaulting all movement options to the variation that allows the most actionability of advanced defensive options, then selectively choose not to perform different ones depending on what is called for in the situation. For example, with this methodology you would always buffer GC whenever possible as a general rule, but you would learn to make an exception for when Peach is using a Dsmash. This kind of learning would have the obvious benefit of making your technical requirements lower than normal during high-intensity situations where for most players it would increase. This could prove problematic for very technical or weird characters like Yoshi or Ice Climbers-- the increased APM necessary for learning movement in this way is likely unreasonable, so a traditional grip is probably more competitively viable. For a really slow character like Bowser though, it would be much more doable as even if his necessary APM requirement increased dramatically, he still would not require more than some of the top tier characters.
Here is a list of basic techniques with their basic normal input, followed by the ideal input I would like to have available to me as a player.
Jumps:
Normal:
- Just click jump
- During the jumpsquat animation, buffer the input for the aerial drift direction you want
- Hit the C-stick in the direction of the aerial attack you want to perform
- L-cancel the aerial during the final 7 airborne frames.
Adjusted:
- Click jump to begin the jumpsquat animation
- Hold down on the analog stick frames 2-7 of jumpsquat to buffer GC and position for CC
- Use frame 8 of jumpsquat as your leniency frame to move the analog stick position to the desired aerial drift direction
- Begin buffering GC with the C-stick rather than the analog stick partway through the jumpsquat animation
- Once airborne, roll the C-stick direction to input the aerial of your choice
- Roll the C-stick position back to down for the GC buffer on landing
- Click and hold the A-button during landing lag to buffer the input, allowing for Z-powershielding while grounded.
- Light press L-cancel to not trigger the tech window
Wavedash:
Normal:
- Click jump
- Put the analog stick in the direction you want for the airdodge
- Hard press a trigger in order to input the airdodge
Adjusted:
- Hold down with the analog stick to buffer GC and position for CC if needed
- Near the end of jumpsquat, roll the analog stick input from straight down to the desired wavedash angle
- Simultaneously begin buffering GC with the C-stick and hold it during the remainder of the animation
- During the 10 frames of waveland lag, roll the analog stick back to downwards to position for CC if needed
- At the end of the animation, roll the analog stick again to full horizontal to get a dash out of the waveland
- Do this input even sooner in order to buffer walk out of waveland lag to trigger a Koopadash
- At any point during this process, begin clicking and holding the A button so that you have Z-powershield actionability
Dashdancing:
Normal:
- Just tap back and forth on the analog stick to trigger repeated backdashes
Adjusted:
- Tap back and forth to trigger repeated backdashes
- During the dash animation, begin buffering GC with the C-stick as it cannot trigger an attack
- For foxtrots roll the analog stick input down from horizontal to position for CC if needed
Uspecial OoS
Normal:
- Hold shield
- Tap jump then click the B button to cancel jumpsquat with an Uspecial
Adjusted:
- Slight lightshield as-needed to avoid shieldpokes
- Click jump then click the B button on second frame of jumpsquat to minimize vulnerability
- Flick the analog stick from fully upwards for the Uspecial input to straight down to buffer GC and position for CC
- If you want to move with Uspecial, just GC with the C-stick instead of positioning for CC with the analog stick
Obviously this isn't every movement technique in Melee. As a general rule, though, the idea is that I want to be positioned with the stick to CC whenever possible, and if that's not possible I want to be positioned to just GC with the C-stick. Separate from that, I want to have the A button buffered to allow for Z-powershielding while grounded. The best way to begin buffering these inputs is to always assume they should be buffered. If you need to Z-powershield on reaction and you're not ready for it, you might need to input an attack or a movement technique like a wavedash or jump in order to get the A-button clicked to make it an available option.
Now let's talk about the analog stick for a brief moment. Certain players claw grip with the left side of their controller to give them more analog control. In this case, they would use the thumb and pointer fingers to hold the stick on either side, then their middle or ring finger to use the L trigger. Advantages other than increased precision in aerial drift control would be in speeding up inputs like run cancel Utilts, as you can use one of your fingers as a "bumper" to stop the stick from fully going in the direction, preventing a Smash attack input.
With all of this in mind, I think the ideal controller grip, and the one that I will personally be using, will be this:
Left trigger - Left middle
Analog Stick - Left thumb and index
D-pad - Left thumb
Right trigger - Right pinky
Z button - Right ring
X button - Right middle
Y button - Right middle
A button - Right index
B button - Right index
C-stick - Right thumb
This grip is likely to cause serious hand issues over long periods of use if done improperly. To minimize hand and wrist strain, I recommend fully resting the controller on your lap during play. I think it's also important to note that once it becomes commercially available, the Smashbox or B0XX are going to be, by far, the superior ergonomic options for doing this kind of tech consistently, and so I will be switching to one as soon as I am able.
In the Bowser discord, we've been toying with different ideas for what the ideal controller grip for Bowser might be. This might seem like an easy question, but in fact there's a lot of room for movement optimization with unconventional controller grips. The conventional controller grip involves only two actionable fingers on the face of the controller, and an additional two on the triggers. If you can hold the controller in such a way that you have more actionable fingers on the face of your controller, you can open up actionability for many important techniques that you otherwise wouldn't have simultaneous access to. By having access to a jump button, the A button, as well as the C-stick at the same time, you would be able to utilize GC and Z-powershields in ways that you can't do with only one actionable finger on the right-side face of the controller.
A separate but tangentially related conversation with Bowser labbers in the Discord server concerned what would be a theoretically ideal approach to learning movement. Right now, the most common learning route is to practice your stage movement with traditional grip methods, then learn situations where buffering GC, holding A for Z-powershielding, or CCing would be beneficial as-needed. An alternative was suggested though to learn the movement in the opposite direction-- begin by defaulting all movement options to the variation that allows the most actionability of advanced defensive options, then selectively choose not to perform different ones depending on what is called for in the situation. For example, with this methodology you would always buffer GC whenever possible as a general rule, but you would learn to make an exception for when Peach is using a Dsmash. This kind of learning would have the obvious benefit of making your technical requirements lower than normal during high-intensity situations where for most players it would increase. This could prove problematic for very technical or weird characters like Yoshi or Ice Climbers-- the increased APM necessary for learning movement in this way is likely unreasonable, so a traditional grip is probably more competitively viable. For a really slow character like Bowser though, it would be much more doable as even if his necessary APM requirement increased dramatically, he still would not require more than some of the top tier characters.
Here is a list of basic techniques with their basic normal input, followed by the ideal input I would like to have available to me as a player.
Jumps:
Normal:
- Just click jump
- During the jumpsquat animation, buffer the input for the aerial drift direction you want
- Hit the C-stick in the direction of the aerial attack you want to perform
- L-cancel the aerial during the final 7 airborne frames.
Adjusted:
- Click jump to begin the jumpsquat animation
- Hold down on the analog stick frames 2-7 of jumpsquat to buffer GC and position for CC
- Use frame 8 of jumpsquat as your leniency frame to move the analog stick position to the desired aerial drift direction
- Begin buffering GC with the C-stick rather than the analog stick partway through the jumpsquat animation
- Once airborne, roll the C-stick direction to input the aerial of your choice
- Roll the C-stick position back to down for the GC buffer on landing
- Click and hold the A-button during landing lag to buffer the input, allowing for Z-powershielding while grounded.
- Light press L-cancel to not trigger the tech window
Wavedash:
Normal:
- Click jump
- Put the analog stick in the direction you want for the airdodge
- Hard press a trigger in order to input the airdodge
Adjusted:
- Hold down with the analog stick to buffer GC and position for CC if needed
- Near the end of jumpsquat, roll the analog stick input from straight down to the desired wavedash angle
- Simultaneously begin buffering GC with the C-stick and hold it during the remainder of the animation
- During the 10 frames of waveland lag, roll the analog stick back to downwards to position for CC if needed
- At the end of the animation, roll the analog stick again to full horizontal to get a dash out of the waveland
- Do this input even sooner in order to buffer walk out of waveland lag to trigger a Koopadash
- At any point during this process, begin clicking and holding the A button so that you have Z-powershield actionability
Dashdancing:
Normal:
- Just tap back and forth on the analog stick to trigger repeated backdashes
Adjusted:
- Tap back and forth to trigger repeated backdashes
- During the dash animation, begin buffering GC with the C-stick as it cannot trigger an attack
- For foxtrots roll the analog stick input down from horizontal to position for CC if needed
Uspecial OoS
Normal:
- Hold shield
- Tap jump then click the B button to cancel jumpsquat with an Uspecial
Adjusted:
- Slight lightshield as-needed to avoid shieldpokes
- Click jump then click the B button on second frame of jumpsquat to minimize vulnerability
- Flick the analog stick from fully upwards for the Uspecial input to straight down to buffer GC and position for CC
- If you want to move with Uspecial, just GC with the C-stick instead of positioning for CC with the analog stick
Obviously this isn't every movement technique in Melee. As a general rule, though, the idea is that I want to be positioned with the stick to CC whenever possible, and if that's not possible I want to be positioned to just GC with the C-stick. Separate from that, I want to have the A button buffered to allow for Z-powershielding while grounded. The best way to begin buffering these inputs is to always assume they should be buffered. If you need to Z-powershield on reaction and you're not ready for it, you might need to input an attack or a movement technique like a wavedash or jump in order to get the A-button clicked to make it an available option.
Now let's talk about the analog stick for a brief moment. Certain players claw grip with the left side of their controller to give them more analog control. In this case, they would use the thumb and pointer fingers to hold the stick on either side, then their middle or ring finger to use the L trigger. Advantages other than increased precision in aerial drift control would be in speeding up inputs like run cancel Utilts, as you can use one of your fingers as a "bumper" to stop the stick from fully going in the direction, preventing a Smash attack input.
With all of this in mind, I think the ideal controller grip, and the one that I will personally be using, will be this:
Left trigger - Left middle
Analog Stick - Left thumb and index
D-pad - Left thumb
Right trigger - Right pinky
Z button - Right ring
X button - Right middle
Y button - Right middle
A button - Right index
B button - Right index
C-stick - Right thumb
This grip is likely to cause serious hand issues over long periods of use if done improperly. To minimize hand and wrist strain, I recommend fully resting the controller on your lap during play. I think it's also important to note that once it becomes commercially available, the Smashbox or B0XX are going to be, by far, the superior ergonomic options for doing this kind of tech consistently, and so I will be switching to one as soon as I am able.
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