How to use the D-pad of the classic controller like the one on the Wii-Mote

super-smash-bros-brawl

I just bought a Classic Controller Pro for my Wii (mainly to play old (S)NES games on the emulator). However, I just thought it would be a great idea to try it out with SSBB. When I play SSBB I use the Wii-Mote without Nunchuck in the horizontal position, which allows me to control movement with the D-pad.

In the configuration menu I found, I cannot figure out how to map the Classic Controller's D-pad to the same functionality (by default, you move with the left analog stick). I refuse to believe that it's impossible, but all I can choose for the left-right-arrows is: Attack, Special, Jump, Shield, Grab and Horizontal-Mock. Similarly for the down-arrow.

Is there some hack or trick to configure the D-pad. I mean, the Classic Controller is a superset of the Wii-Mote. Why would you exclude the most obvious choice for the D-pad?

Best Answer

Brawl does not allow you to use the D-pad for movement if there is a control stick available (on any controller, Classic or otherwise). There are legitimate reasons for this; using the D-pad instead of a control stick will gimp your controls slightly. I believe this also has to do with how the control maps are coded - because up, down, and side are different functions in non-Wiimote alone setups, you can't "merge" the whole thing into "movement" and "jump". (They had to carve up a few mechanics to squeeze the game into the D-pad anyway, it gimped parts of the game engine itself.) It's the exception; the control stick is the rule (and indeed the crux of the series).

Of course there are probably hacks for this, but I don't know any offhand.