Suggest best gamepad for pc....

S

schoenda

Gawd
Joined
Apr 8, 2003
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So I just got the new Lara Croft game...I couldn't help it, I have suffered through them all...so now it becomes apparent that a game pad is the way to go. Now don't get me wrong, i typically think game pads are for my neodweeb little nephews to play there gameboxthingy games...I AM A KEYBOARD AND MOUSE GUY...err, so I am stuck with this new Croft game which has clearly been ported from game pad land....what to do, what to do?

Can anyone suggest the best game pad for pc? Or should I just say fuckit...is it possible to return or give away a steam purchased game?
 
I really like the XBox 360 for any games that need a controller. (Added bonus is many games that use controllers for PC automatically use the 360's controller and all settings)

Wired ones are cheap, it'll be a bit more expensive to get a wireless + PC receiver.
 
Any game that supports the 360 controller will immediately switch over to displaying the button layout for it. This can be annoying if you have the controller plugged in but don't want to use it. Batman:AA would actually switch mid-game between displaying keyboard and gamepad controls which was great.

Darksiders on the other hand forced me to close the game because it wanted me "Reconnect my controller." Also had no option to disable the controller. Dead Rising 2 has an option to disable the controller, which is nice.
 
The thing about the 360 controller is that so many games support it natively (a lot of games even have a '360 controller mode' where it'll basically even change in game graphics / popups to the 360 controller buttons as if you're playing it on the 360).

Whether or not you like the 360 controller, you can't really argue with the fact that it has the best support of modern games. I use a wireless one with a wireless receiver personally.
 
360 controller works well for games designed for a game pad (racing games, fighting games, sports games etc). If you are looking for something cheaper, you can get a USB adapter for a console controller you have laying around. Here's one for a PS2 controller, if you have one handy. I've seen them for orriginal xbox, N64, Game Cube, and even NES. They tend to be pretty cheap and work well (according user reviews anyway). Just run a search, you'll find em.

Hope that helps.
 
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I have to say, I've owned about a dozen PC gamepads over the years, and yet always go back to my 360 controller for PC games. I just can't find anything better.
 
I prefer my Logitech DualAction to the 360 controller. I have an older version, but it's pretty much the same as what they're selling now. It's a Dualshock clone, USB with a ~8 foot cord. $20 or less, plenty of buttons, good build quality.
 
The 360 controller gets my vote too. Microsoft has done a great job with driver support and more often than not the game recognizes you have it plugged in and sets everything up just like it should be. Rarely do I need to change the buttons around.
 
Another vote for the 360 controller, I very much regret selling mine so may look for another wired one in the near future (wired is more comfortable to hold in my opinion, as the battery housing bulges out uncomfortably on the wireless version.)

The console manufacturers controllers always seem to be better than any third party offerings. That said, I'm interested in the Razer Onza that is soon to be available. It's almost double the price of the Microsoft 360 pad, but I think I saw mention of user adjustable deadzone on the Razer pad - if it can have a zero deadzone that would be awesome, however I'm not sure if the reports are accurate as the product description only refers to adjustable tension. Of course Razer's build quality has always been dubious, so that's the other doubt.
 
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Don't bother with anything other than the 360 pad, unless you're wed to the (what I find to be extremely uncomfortable) Playstation style controller, in which case a Logitech Rumblepad should do well. 360 pad is a default support for all GFWL titles, and appears to be supported by just about every other game as well, almost always accompanied by the correct button prompts on-screen.

OP should really do a search before posting these because there are *tons* of existing threads with the same question.
 
Does 360 controller need any special software to work properly? I only ask because I tried this in the past (still have the usb wireless receiver) but didnt like having to use 3rd party software to configure the controller.
 
soul555top said:
Does 360 controller need any special software to work properly? I only ask because I tried this in the past (still have the usb wireless receiver) but didnt like having to use 3rd party software to configure the controller.
Click to expand...

I should specify that the wireless one needs more attention than the wired - the wired is plug + play, no issues, while the wireless (iirc) needs a driver and other things to configure.
 
quadnad said:
I should specify that the wireless one needs more attention than the wired - the wired is plug + play, no issues, while the wireless (iirc) needs a driver and other things to configure.
Click to expand...

the wireless autodetects all drivers with vista/win7 up.
 
I have never seen a thread like this one before. I am shocked to see the consensus is the 360 controller.........
 
before xinput and GFWL, I used to use a USB to PS2 adaptor to use my dualshock 2 controller on the PC. With modern games though, the 360 controller is the way to go, as other have said, just for the native support alone. Going wireless is also well worth the price IMO
 
ryken said:
but not shocked enough to explain why?
Click to expand...

Just kidding there are a million of these threads and the answer is always the same. I don't disagree with the choice really. Unless of course a decent d-pad is important to you.
 
texuspete00 said:
Just kidding there are a million of these threads and the answer is always the same. I don't disagree with the choice really. Unless of course a decent d-pad is important to you.
Click to expand...

Yep, there are tons of these threads every week.

Good point though about the d-pad - the d-pad on the 360 is poor at best. If you need a d-pad, you'll *definitely* want to look elsewhere.
 
I love my logitech rumblepad 2. Works great if you don't like those shitty bulky xbox style controllers.
 
So then my understanding is, that with the wireless usb receiver, and wireless 360 controller, I will not need to run any other software to make it work in games (that obviously can utilize the controller).

I'm not the OP and I understand the 360 controller is the way to go and I have tried it in the past, but the addition of secondary software, having to program the buttons, and the minimal amount of controller-games I play caused me to ditch it. I want to give it another shot though since I have been playing GTA4 and JC2 lately, and I still have my usb thingy.

If the above assumption is correct I will go grab a controller at Gamestop on my way home from work.
 
soul555top said:
So then my understanding is, that with the wireless usb receiver, and wireless 360 controller, I will not need to run any other software to make it work in games (that obviously can utilize the controller).

I'm not the OP and I understand the 360 controller is the way to go and I have tried it in the past, but the addition of secondary software, having to program the buttons, and the minimal amount of controller-games I play caused me to ditch it. I want to give it another shot though since I have been playing GTA4 and JC2 lately, and I still have my usb thingy.

If the above assumption is correct I will go grab a controller at Gamestop on my way home from work.
Click to expand...

I can confirm that it will just work in GTA4 without any other software (aside from the drivers for your usb receiver). It will automatically detect it if you have the controller connected when you start the game. Even the menu buttons will change to "A" "B" etc. I use my xbox controller for Dirt 2, GTA4, Just Cause 2, Batman AA, etc. -- it works out of the box. I would assume that if it has the little "controller enabled" icon in Steam that it works natively with the 360 controller, but don't quote me on that.
 
soul555top said:
So then my understanding is, that with the wireless usb receiver, and wireless 360 controller, I will not need to run any other software to make it work in games (that obviously can utilize the controller).

I'm not the OP and I understand the 360 controller is the way to go and I have tried it in the past, but the addition of secondary software, having to program the buttons, and the minimal amount of controller-games I play caused me to ditch it. I want to give it another shot though since I have been playing GTA4 and JC2 lately, and I still have my usb thingy.

If the above assumption is correct I will go grab a controller at Gamestop on my way home from work.
Click to expand...

The wireless controller is pretty much just as supported as the wired one now. I was also an early adopter of it, so I know the issues you're referring to.

Today, the only games that I've seen where the wired version works better than wireless are Ubisoft games (Splinter Cell, Assasin's Creed, etc). Even those can be fixed with a simple copy/paste of a .cfg file.

As for GTA4 and JC2, both of those work fine w/the wireless. Plug and play.
 
In my mind there are only two choices. The cordless Logitech Rumble Pad 2 or the XBOX 360 controller. The latter has a terrible D-Pad but supposedly there will be another version of the controller out soon which will address that.
 
I have to throw my lot in with the Xbox360 Controller. I'm using an Elite (black) wireless model that came with my 360, along with the Wireless USB Adapter, which I'm told isn't sold any longer! Its a pity, its a great little piece of hardware and you can connect 4 controllers/headsets with it. In addition, I can use my FightStick Tournament Edition on my PC as well - it shows up as an X360 controller! I'm on windows 7 and I've installed the drivers/gadget for X360 controllers, so I can see battery life, for instance. If you can hold out, I suggest buying one of those "new" 360 controllers.

That said, the Dual Shock 3 (PS3) controller SHOULD be one of the best around - it charges via Li-ION via regular miniUSB, its wireless transmission is Bluetooth etc... but the integration is crap due to no first party drivers! You can get it to work, and work well, with a MotionInJoy driver kit (freeware), but its annoying. I really wish Sony would simply opensource the driver interface!
 
I hate that the dropped the wireless receiver also. It can be found as a set though, the receiver and a controller. I actually resorted to buying a receiver off ebay when the one I had stopped working.

Tark
 
XBOX 360 controller for me. I used it to play some PC ports as well (Prototype and DMC 4).
 
I use a Logitech dual action.
But my gripe with game pad controller in general is you CANNOT aim playing a FPS using a thumb stick. IT just DOESN'T work. For FPS, I still have to use 'ole keyboard and mouse. And this is awkward because I kind of like to unwind (recliner) and game.
I have to wonder why nobody has come up with a game pad that has some type of ball for your thumb you can roll to aim. It would work like a mouse but it would be sensitive enough to aim precisely with your thumb. This would be the controller everyone that like to play FPS game on the PC would buy.
 
I only use my game pad to play fighting games and racing games on my PC. Third and first person shooters get the good old mouse + keyboard here.
 
Probably the nicest thing (or maybe the worst) about the 360 pad is that pretty much every game in the last few years has come pre-programmed for it using the same control scheme as the console counterpart.
The downside is that often times the game won't let you re-program the buttons. Usually they're mapped intelligently, but sometimes they'll go against the standard layouts and it can be frustrating.

I use my 360 pad all of the time for stuff like Batman, Darksiders, Need for Speed, etc.
For fighting games I find it to be pretty horrid (because of the D-Pad) so I have all of my arcade emulators set to use the PS3 pad via MotionJoy. It's a hassle because the drivers aren't signed, but I'd say it's 5X better due to the superior d-pad and placement. Probably not worth buying a PS3 pad for, but if you already have one it'll work with a $5 Bluetooth adapter.
 
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