Could the PC version of SF4 be tourney legal?

[arstal]

If it's arcade perfect? If it isn't, then never mind.

The reason why I think this might be a good idea is because it's the only console where PS3 and 360 sticks will both work- this would avoid the console fanboy wars SCIV had. Yes, there's a can of worms with PC versions, but if it can run on a laptop, all you'd need is two USB slots for sticks and the game and everyone can play.

Note I'm saying could it be, not that it should be.

If the specs allow it to run on a reasonably priced laptop, then it would be even better.

[Shade]

I see no reason why not, actually. Only time will tell.

[SaBrE]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows or some some other random program/virus/spyware/glitch/whatever causes me game to slightly pause/slowdown/framerate dip or maybe even just downright crash.

on top of that, would you really think a tourney like evo, or any other major would want to invest in a bunch of laptops? then having to do some serious maintenance prior to tourneys so all the randomness that pc's provide, can be minimized (not completely gone).

You also mention bigger variety in sticks. You are right in that aspect. But it's really flawed. One of the biggest issues I have with console tourneys is swapping out sticks/pads after every match, and constantly re configuring. It causes tourneys to last longer. Now change this thought from console to pc, and now you have an even longer time to swap, dragging the tourney even longer. why you ask? The first thing is that you gotta let the stick/pad/kb install. Then theres some sticks/pads/kb that just don't like installing on certain rigs for whatever reason (example hori fs3 stick). Also, you might start getting driver interference from drivers from other sticks that were installed prior that cause yours not to install. So now you gotta look for the culprit and squash the problem(this can take forever). Also, (depending on the pc and the software and hardware), when you disconnect a peripheral when the software(sf4) is running and then plug it back in, windows will install it, but it usually requires you to restart the software for it to recognize the peripheral. So not only do you have to stop the game to configure controls, you actually have to reboot the entire game, adding even MORE time.

console, no real randomness. just plug your stick in, configure and start your fight. thats the only technical annoyance, vs the 873456346573763865 random annoyances found on pc platform

[ruin-]

the milf hunter has spoken!

[arstal]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows or some some other random program/virus/spyware/glitch/whatever causes me game to slightly pause/slowdown/framerate dip or maybe even just downright crash.

on top of that, would you really think a tourney like evo, or any other major would want to invest in a bunch of laptops? then having to do some serious maintenance prior to tourneys so all the randomness that pc's provide, can be minimized (not completely gone).

You also mention bigger variety in sticks. You are right in that aspect. But it's really flawed. One of the biggest issues I have with console tourneys is swapping out sticks/pads after every match, and constantly re configuring. It causes tourneys to last longer. Now change this thought from console to pc, and now you have an even longer time to swap, dragging the tourney even longer. why you ask? The first thing is that you gotta let the stick/pad/kb install. Then theres some sticks/pads/kb that just don't like installing on certain rigs for whatever reason (example hori fs3 stick). Also, you might start getting driver interference from drivers from other sticks that were installed prior that cause yours not to install. So now you gotta look for the culprit and squash the problem(this can take forever). Also, (depending on the pc and the software and hardware), when you disconnect a peripheral when the software(sf4) is running and then plug it back in, windows will install it, but it usually requires you to restart the software for it to recognize the peripheral. So not only do you have to stop the game to configure controls, you actually have to reboot the entire game, adding even MORE time.

console, no real randomness. just plug your stick in, configure and start your fight. thats the only technical annoyance, vs the 873456346573763865 random annoyances found on pc platform

Fair enough reasons.

I gotta ask this though. Why not have a tourney that's just like the old arcade days- you get solid controls, and have them set throughout the entire tourney? No need to config anything then , you play on what you get, just like how it used to be in the arcade- you swap out if a stick is broken. I know Arcade in a box sells a two stick setup that's mounted- though that's kinda expensive.

Advantage: People who chose "the wrong console" won't get shafted.
Disadvantage: Custom stickusers will feel shafted, may whine even if controls are perfect, what if you get a hard masher who breaks sticks?

This is a real problem, and something that the community has to find a solution for.

[pherai]

It's been a while since I've been to one, but they used to run the West Toasts (MB tourneys) on PC and they seemed to go smoothly, but I'd still prefer a console. More stable.

[TaZaR]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows
Taito Type X2 runs windows.

[Joe The Condor]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows or some some other random program/virus/spyware/glitch/whatever causes me game to slightly pause/slowdown/framerate dip or maybe even just downright crash.

on top of that, would you really think a tourney like evo, or any other major would want to invest in a bunch of laptops? then having to do some serious maintenance prior to tourneys so all the randomness that pc's provide, can be minimized (not completely gone).

You also mention bigger variety in sticks. You are right in that aspect. But it's really flawed. One of the biggest issues I have with console tourneys is swapping out sticks/pads after every match, and constantly re configuring. It causes tourneys to last longer. Now change this thought from console to pc, and now you have an even longer time to swap, dragging the tourney even longer. why you ask? The first thing is that you gotta let the stick/pad/kb install. Then theres some sticks/pads/kb that just don't like installing on certain rigs for whatever reason (example hori fs3 stick). Also, you might start getting driver interference from drivers from other sticks that were installed prior that cause yours not to install. So now you gotta look for the culprit and squash the problem(this can take forever). Also, (depending on the pc and the software and hardware), when you disconnect a peripheral when the software(sf4) is running and then plug it back in, windows will install it, but it usually requires you to restart the software for it to recognize the peripheral. So not only do you have to stop the game to configure controls, you actually have to reboot the entire game, adding even MORE time.

console, no real randomness. just plug your stick in, configure and start your fight. thats the only technical annoyance, vs the 873456346573763865 random annoyances found on pc platform

Are you serious? ...

If anything, it sounds like you are pc impaired.

I will be getting the PC version if it's anything like the DMC4 port. It was perfect in every way, and better than the console versions by miles. Can't wait to play this game in crazy resolutions. :woot:

[Aquashark]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows or some some other random program/virus/spyware/glitch/whatever causes me game to slightly pause/slowdown/framerate dip or maybe even just downright crash.yes, because matches with prizes of (tens of) thousands of dollars in Quake, CS, Starcraft are played.. err.. where exactly?

won't try to debate your other points.
you're absolutely right about consoles being more standard, but the situation isn't so grim in the PC area.. otherwise people would do competitive gaming on consoles with mouse & keyboard (and i mean real competitive gaming.. not halo or some crap).

[pherai]

I think Sabre is talking about using players laptops and PC's for tournaments, which are very likely to not be stable, and since both players would be playing on the same rig, unlike CS, there is less incentive to fine tune it to run optimally. Obviously if a major was running a tournament on PC's, they'd have a standard build that would run smoothly, but running weeklies and monthlies on PC's owned by players does hold the possibility of laggy, unstable games.

[Saotome Kaneda]

Until Creative, ASUS, and all these other PC parts companies start sponsoring us and giving us an easy way of making consistent PC builds I don't see the PC version getting in on our tournies.

[FMJaguar]

Everyone has to use the sf4 stick... problem solved!

[Akutabi Gamma]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows or some some other random program/virus/spyware/glitch/whatever causes me game to slightly pause/slowdown/framerate dip or maybe even just downright crash.

on top of that, would you really think a tourney like evo, or any other major would want to invest in a bunch of laptops? then having to do some serious maintenance prior to tourneys so all the randomness that pc's provide, can be minimized (not completely gone).

You also mention bigger variety in sticks. You are right in that aspect. But it's really flawed. One of the biggest issues I have with console tourneys is swapping out sticks/pads after every match, and constantly re configuring. It causes tourneys to last longer. Now change this thought from console to pc, and now you have an even longer time to swap, dragging the tourney even longer. why you ask? The first thing is that you gotta let the stick/pad/kb install. Then theres some sticks/pads/kb that just don't like installing on certain rigs for whatever reason (example hori fs3 stick). Also, you might start getting driver interference from drivers from other sticks that were installed prior that cause yours not to install. So now you gotta look for the culprit and squash the problem(this can take forever). Also, (depending on the pc and the software and hardware), when you disconnect a peripheral when the software(sf4) is running and then plug it back in, windows will install it, but it usually requires you to restart the software for it to recognize the peripheral. So not only do you have to stop the game to configure controls, you actually have to reboot the entire game, adding even MORE time.

console, no real randomness. just plug your stick in, configure and start your fight. thats the only technical annoyance, vs the 873456346573763865 random annoyances found on pc platform

....even if the PC ver. were tourney legal why would EVO or any other tourney use it over the other 2 systems?

...but to answer the first post, if the PC ver. is similar to the 360 and PS3 ver. which both are expected to be the updated ver. of SF4, then yes it could be tourney legal.
Then again PC is good for those, like me, who can find better competitive play online.

[Aquashark]

big eSports organizers like ESWC, WCG, etc. could use PC SF4 for large scale tourneys using their already established infrastructure

and another thing: since Taito X2 arcade machines are actually PCs.. maybe the console release will be less "arcade perfect" than the PC release

in the end i hope all 3 releases will be identical in gameplay mechanics.. so there would be more options for various tourneys/people

[UltraDavid]

A couple years ago I ran a small ST tourney on my PC with an emulated game. Obviously emulators have problems, but that's not applicable here because SF4's gonna be native on the system. People were plugging in and unplugging their own controllers and adapters all over the place, and there was never any problem. And there are PC-based fighting games people have tournaments for, have there ever been any major problems? I don't follow those games very closely, but no word of any problems has leaked out my way.

Assuming there aren't any major problems and the PCs we use have good enough specs and are owned by people we trust to not have pop-ups or viruses, I think it'd be a great compromise if we just used the PC version for tourneys.

[DaDesiCanadian]

Sabre's blowing this way out of proportion. Sure it might not be practical for Evo, but I don't see why it would be a problem for non-majors. And hell, if people have their shit configured for PC, I don't see why you wouldn't have an extra machine running that would help speed up the tournament.

We don't even know how the SF4 setup works yet, and how the sticks are gonna be accept. Why be so negative? Let's just wait and see.

[MAGUS1234]

Fuck PC's

[Keits]

I think the PC version will be the popular one for online play in our community, at least I hope... but for tournaments, drivers being a problem with new sticks... its just not happening.

[Cronopio]

As several posters said, the Taito X2 is basically a PC that runs on Windows and is highly customizable, so saying that running SFIV on a PC would be unstable is kinda silly.

[TaZaR]

If it's not a windows that was installed 2 years ago, and if no other unneeded applications running in the background, I can't see why would it be less stable than the console versions.

[KayinNasaki]

While it's unlikely EVO or anything would do this (I mean, why bother?) I'm positive that you'll see a lot of smaller tournaments ran as such. A lot of people I played with were actually preferring emulated ST over the DC version -- if simply for the ease of setup in comparison. Again, tournaments like EVO would never resort to this due to needs for consistency and big money involved, but for local level tournaments, laptops seem to be a big commodity (as they are a TV and numerous systems at a much smaller size and only require one outlet)

On a funny note, one time during a tournament I was eating lunch with two players (Zaeler and my friend) at a BK. Someone ran in and was like "YOU NEED TO PLAY BEFORE YOU GET DQED"... so I busted out my laptop and they played their set on FBA and we phoned in the results and went back to eating. It was worth it just to hear the tournament directors confusion over what we just did.

[SaBrE]

Are you serious? ...

If anything, it sounds like you are pc impaired.



I am not pc impaired. I have a shitton of hardware/software exp. and i used to play fps games, very competitively, for years.

aquashark: yes and all those players in those leagues, are all using their own hardware, and arent switching out kb's and mice every few minutes.

So you guys mean to tell me, you guys have played the latest and greatest games on your pretty good rig and your game has NEVER dipped below 60fps, ever? WHen an fps or an rts dips in framerate, the consequences aren't as severe as they would be in a fighting game. considering sf4 is running in a 3d engine, this wouldnt be as much of a problem as it would if it were a 2d game.

Yes taito x2 is a glorified pc. but also, its on a heavily modded windows xp OS, plus the ONLY thing other than a super stripped down xp that is on the hard drive, is the game itself. And that game was optimized for that SPECIFIC hardware setup.

What we are talking about is running this game in tourneys on fully loaded laptops/desktops with MANY MANY MANY more random possibilities of the pc doing something that can affect the game. What if we got some laptops and theres just one peice of hardware in the rig thats causing sf4 to randomly crash. or slowdown more, or cause audio lag, massive screen tearing(some pc's can be notorious for this, depending on the display and if v-sync is in use) etc etc etc... What do we do then? Everyone's rig is different, everyone got different random crap installed, that could "POTENTIALLY" cause a problem.

You guys are lying if you never had issues with games just crashing for whatever reason, or sometimes having framerate issues, to only find out that some bs in the background was fucking with it.

Could I be blowing this way out of proportion? Perhaps. But I am looking at the potential problems that a pc could cause. And then the logistical nightmare. A local tourney, i'm sure thats fine. But large scale fg tourneys? no way in hell.

Console = consistent. the game is optimized for the one hardware configuration. consistency throughout

pc = varies depending on the rig being used. game has to be optimized for hundreds or even thousands of different pc variations. Too much randomness that could happen

[Keits]

but if the netcode is bad, we can hack the PC version to use GGPO or P2P. So, lets make that the online standard at least :)

[Aquashark]

aquashark: yes and all those players in those leagues, are all using their own hardware, and arent switching out kb's and mice every few minutes.each competitor has his own PC assigned by the organizer. they only bring their kb+mouse.

having multiple players on the same computer is a bit silly even for a fighting game. (provided that the LAN netcode is impecable and it should be since SF4 arcade machines are linked in LANs)

anyway.. if ESWC throws quite some money @ SF4 on PC, would you not attend?

[TaZaR]

Seriously I don't remember any game crashes on my PC in the past 3 years. Dunno, maybe I was just lucky, or something.
Back than, I had a lot of problems, when I used DOS, then Win95/98, but everything seems fine with XP now. If a game runs, and no unneccesary apps are running in the background, it's unlikely that there will be a problem.

Well, I'm not saying PC version should be the tournament standard, or anything, just saying that, you can run games on XP without facing a crash-fest, it's not some seriously risky stuff.

[MaybeMemories]

negative. I will be damned if i play a tourney game on a platform where windows or some some other random program/virus/spyware/glitch/whatever causes me game to slightly pause/slowdown/framerate dip or maybe even just downright crash.


Let be fair, whens the last time your pc just CRASHED randomly when you were playing a video game. :shake:
If it was to, it be most likely due to hardware incompatibility issues, IF EVEN, and so thats capcoms fault.

[Lonewolf_Fenrir]

@Sabre: well people playing in LANs aren't having any problem usually, and there are still big tournament prizes...
+ you could get some sponsorship from pc makers like dell or alienware.
Dunno if that'd be a good idea though, just makes more sense to me to run the game on console version ^^ (unless the pc port is better of course)

[epy0nkaru]

I seriously doubt there will be anything "random" happening at a tournament like EVO if you get PC versions of SF4 going. I mean, if you get a flash drive and install all possible drivers for sticks you can find, never connect the computer to the internet, and you make only the USB ports on a computer visible, there's no reason a PC rig for 2 people would go wrong aside from wear and tear of a USB port.

This is assuming EVO decides to buy a bunch of new computers that will be dedicated to Street Fighter IV and Street Fighter IV ONLY, as in taking them fresh out of the box for the tourney, and putting them right back in the box when the tourney is all over until the next year

[SinJul]

I don't see a problem with SF4 on the PC for Tournaments. I saw people play Fifa on the computer in tournaments like WCG and on a german game TV show etc.

[Humbag]

Just frekkin run it on console. Much easier.

[gl0ry]

No one really brought up this so I figured I'd do it.

When you're dealing with something like a fighting game online with a pc, not everyone is going to have the same specs. Sabre brought up some valid points, but when two players have different computer setups and the frame rates start dipping on someone else's end the game may have a harder time keeping both players in sync and can cause more lag or desyncing to occur.

Don't forget we aren't dealing with older generation 2d fighting games that can pretty much run at full speed on anyones average computer. I would assume This game will require a pretty decent setup to run everything at full speed. When you deal with something like ps3/xbox the game has already been fully optimized and everyone is running the game at the same exact speed with the same exact hardware so keeping things in sync isn't as difficult.

[SaBrE]

glory: absolutely. but we are just talking about offline tourneys mainly.

don;t get it twisted guys. I'm not against the pc version. But is there really any true reason to play on a more "complicated to the average person" format as opposed to a simple console where you know what to expect at all times?

PC's are definitely more refined now then they have back in the day, no doubt about it. Pc side is still at a higher risk of something "weird" happening as opposed to console.

Bottom line is, you want to minimize risks of bad things happening. and pc's run that risk higher. will i refuse to play on pc? of course not, unless that version is wack. Would i join a pc sf4 tourney, especially at events with big name sponsor's and prizes? absolutely.

anyways, no fg major, is gonna switch to pc format and complicate things further on logistics. console is so much more user/tourney organizer friendly, plus it's friendlier on the wallets. Unless of course, pc becomes a more accurate port than the console version, I see no need to switch. Either that or some big name sponsors will dive in if we go pc.

[platinum_pinoy]

As opposed to using a system that allows universal sticks, why not just make a stick that can be used universally. All consoles have USB ports, so I'd think that the stick compatibility shouldnt be an issue anymore if someone made a universal PCB board/adapter.

I say do test runs on PCs before implementing it into major tournies. Let the community inform EVO staff on the value and utility of playing SFIV on PC. The problem I forsee is the PC version will request crazy specs, but I doubt that since fighting games aren't that graphic intensive. Still though, even a moderate PC setup can run $400-$500. If anything, bootlegging SFIV will probably be the downfall of the game being profitable for Capcom.

[Shadowhaxor]

Fair enough reasons.

I gotta ask this though. Why not have a tourney that's just like the old arcade days- you get solid controls, and have them set throughout the entire tourney? No need to config anything then , you play on what you get, just like how it used to be in the arcade- you swap out if a stick is broken. I know Arcade in a box sells a two stick setup that's mounted- though that's kinda expensive.

Advantage: People who chose "the wrong console" won't get shafted.
Disadvantage: Custom stickusers will feel shafted, may whine even if controls are perfect, what if you get a hard masher who breaks sticks?

This is a real problem, and something that the community has to find a solution for.

Its no different that if you were playing a FPS or RTS on a windows pc, you simply disable the antivtirus or if you're really smart you'll have a profile for nothing but games and only games. Problem resolved. Last time I checked, most sticks that you can use with the Playstation 2, Xbox 360 , Dreamcast, Saturn, etc... were compatible with the PC with an adaptor.

[ChaosNightWolf]

Is there even going to be a PC version of SF4?

Secondly, even if that was the case why even bother going through all the trouble of playing it on PC?

There is a higher chance for hiccups on PC and on top of that the set up's themselves would be very expensive.

It's much less of a hassle to run the game on console.

[Saotome Kaneda]

As opposed to using a system that allows universal sticks, why not just make a stick that can be used universally. All consoles have USB ports, so I'd think that the stick compatibility shouldnt be an issue anymore if someone made a universal PCB board/adapter.

http://forums.shoryuken.com/showthread.php?t=131230

The primary issue is the fact that the X360 PCB is a complete and utter bitch and doesn't play well with others. What usually happens is people will have both a PS(fill in the blank) board and an X360 board if they feel they'll need to play the 360 that much.

[Jion_Wansu]

Fuck PC's

didn't they have Arcana on PCs at EVO this year if I remember correctly? Also, yeah the engine for SF4 is a Windows platform (boo), I prefer Ubuntu over Vista...

[Saotome Kaneda]

didn't they have Arcana on PCs at EVO this year if I remember correctly? Also, yeah the engine for SF4 is a Windows platform (boo), I prefer Ubuntu over Vista...
no such thing as AH on PC

might be thinking of Melty Blood

the boards that runs most of the latest games are using a stripped-down version of XP, no vista in sight

[megaultrasuper]

The question I wanna ask is what if somehow the Taito Type X2 gets pirated, will people be willing to play that in tournaments?


From what I know the X2 runs on Windows XP embedded, and has a short list of compatible hardware.

What happens if somehow it became possible for us to "build" X2's and just run the the game that way? It would probably be cheaper than buying ps3's or xbox 360's and it would "be" the arcade game.

But if the X2 were ever to be cracked in such a manner I imagine that would quickly rise to be a very popular way to play the game.

[TheSix]

The only people with technical problems on their PC's are the ones who don't maintain even the basic of quality on their machine. Or try to run games that are out of their machines capabilities.

Don't know about tourney's, but there is really no legit reason to not get the PC version unless it's just majorly neglected by the dev team.