What should I play next?

[zamardii12]

Controllers are anathema to me. In 15 years at least I went from completely hopeless to managing to finish some games that I really really wanted to play. But only on easiest or story mode. And it was still harder for me, than any game ever was with moues+kb, on the hardest difficulty.

I think maybe some of it has to do with what you grew up on. Like I didn't grow up playing PC games, but rather console games. Our computers growing up were barely functional and were able to be used for pretty much Compton's Encyclopedia, some internet, and word processing. I do remember Wolfenstein 3D being the first FPS I played and that was on the PC, but beyond that I always had a console until I started building my own PCs around the age of 14 or 15. In any case everyone plays with what feels best of course but controllers are insanely helpful in a lot of games. I mean I would be curious if you went to play Ace Combat 7 whether you would feel the same about KB+M. I couldn't play an arcade flight shooter with a keyboard, or racing games (minus an actual wheel), or most 3rd person games like Grand Theft Auto which is perfect for controller being that you switch from running, flying, and driving fast.

 

[M76]

The first action game I tried on the PS2 (my first console ever) was actually GTA Liberty city stories (not to be confused with Stories from Liberty City which was GTAIV's expansion pack), and it was a miserable experience. I took the game back to the store the next day. I also tried to finish GTAV on the PS3, but gave up after a few hours of misery and waited for the PC version.

So far the only games I managed to finish with a controller were:

1. Heavy Rain (the game is QTEs basically, those are equally bad with any input method)
2. The Last of Us (broke my DS3 three times while playing it, twice I managed to repair it and glue it back together, once I had to buy a new one)
3. Beyond Two Souls (again QTEs no real gameplay)
4. L.A. Noire (90% of the game is investigation the few short action sequences I managed somehow, skipped all the optional shootouts)
5. Detroit Become Human (Again no real action, just a QTE infested walking simulator)
6. Horizon Zero Dawn (This was almost good until I had to fight the huge machines with tiny weakpoints, like the songbird, had to lower the difficulty to story there)
7. Uncharted: Lost Legacy (This wasn't very frustrating, probably because it was very short)
8. The Last of Us Part II (This was the only game I almost enjoyed with a controller, it certainly plays much better than the first game)

As for Ace Combat 7, I went to play with my flight stick, only to realize the game does not have support for flight sticks outside of a few very expensive Thrustmaster sim equipment. I tried it with a controller after, but it was pure misery, never finished the game, one of my biggest purchasing mistakes, it was so self evident to me that a flying game should support every modern flight stick, that I didn't even think to check it before buying. Safe to say that after this experience bandai/namco have proudly joined my persona non grata list.

Racing games I always play with a wheel, the ones that does not support wheels are a joke to me.

Not being able to walk or run slower is a tiny compromise compared to not being able to hit shit when shooting, and taking 5 seconds to line up a shot that I can in 0.5 with a mouse.

 

[Flogger23m]

As for Ace Combat 7, I went to play with my flight stick, only to realize the game does not have support for flight sticks outside of a few very expensive Thrustmaster sim equipment. I tried it with a controller after, but it was pure misery, never finished the game, one of my biggest purchasing mistakes, it was so self evident to me that a flying game should support every modern flight stick, that I didn't even think to check it before buying. Safe to say that after this experience bandai/namco have proudly joined my persona non grata list.

It supported numerous budget options in the $60-80 range on release.

A few months post release it supported most USB ones from the past 15 or so years. It detects my X52 Pro without an issue. It works out of the box but mapping the controls yourself requires you to edit a .INI file I believe. Problem is with the X52 Pro there seems to be a half a second delay on my set up. I'm sure it can be fixed but I never bothered, still use the 360 controller. The game has a lot more "boss fights" compared to older titles which I don't enjoy, which means very unnatural movements of certain NPCs and those require constant slamming of the stick around the corners quickly. Which doesn't work well when using a flight stick (more travel time than a controller thumb stick).

 

[M76]

It supported numerous budget options in the $60-80 range on release.

Yeah, just not mine, why should I buy a new stick for a stupid game when I already have one? That's a very unrealistic demand of any game. Yeah, F PS4 for the same reason for demanding that you buy new wheels when the old one should be 100% compatible had they not decided to raise artificial barriers under the guise of security (= planned obsolescence in cartel with logitech)

A few months post release it supported most USB ones from the past 15 or so years. It detects my X52 Pro without an issue. It works out of the box but mapping the controls yourself requires you to edit a .INI file I believe. Problem is with the X52 Pro there seems to be a half a second delay on my set up. I'm sure it can be fixed but I never bothered, still use the 360 controller. The game has a lot more "boss fights" compared to older titles which I don't enjoy, which means very unnatural movements of certain NPCs and those require constant slamming of the stick around the corners quickly. Which doesn't work well when using a flight stick (more travel time than a controller thumb stick).

Try few years. I think it was 2 years when they slid in the generic usb option unadvertised and without support. I don't consider manual ini editing support. It's a hack, one I don't have the patience for, especially for a game that is barely worth my time as is.

 

[Flogger23m]

Yeah, just not mine, why should I buy a new stick for a stupid game when I already have one?

Which model are you using?

Try few years. I think it was 2 years when they slid in the generic usb option unadvertised and without support. I don't consider manual ini editing support. It's a hack, one I don't have the patience for, especially for a game that is barely worth my time as is.

Here is a post from May 28, 2019 from Logitech (they own Saitek sticks now):
https://www.reddit.com/r/acecombat/comments/bty5xn/logitechsaitek_sticks_and_hotas_now_supported_on/

If you're using a really old Logitech stick it might not be supported out of the box, Logitech essentially divested of the HOTAS/stick business years ago. Until they bought Saitek. Sounds like they're not too interested in adding official support for their long discontinued models.

Thrustmaster supported models as of May 2019.

That about covers all of the models that have been in production for the past 10-15 years.

Like with all flight games, you're going to need to assign the buttons yourself save for the most commonly sold peripherals. Or rely on community profiles. I can't expect any developer to make pre-sets for 50+ pieces of hardware that may have been discontinued a decade ago.

 

[M76]

Like with all flight games, you're going to need to assign the buttons yourself save for the most commonly sold peripherals. Or rely on community profiles. I can't expect any developer to make pre-sets for 50+ pieces of hardware that may have been discontinued a decade ago.

You got that completely backwards. They can't expect the player to create their own configuration file from scratch using notepad, because there is no freaking input mapping in their pos game. A control remap feature is elementary on PC for every game, especially one that can be played with a variety of controllers. Nobody expects them to have a pre-set for every conceivable controller made in the past 20 years, but I expect the game to allow me to assign the functions from the menu, without editing an ini file where I have to guess that "button 11" will be which actual physical button.

 

[Flogger23m]

You got that completely backwards. They can't expect the player to create their own configuration file from scratch using notepad, because there is no freaking input mapping in their pos game. A control remap feature is elementary on PC for every game, especially one that can be played with a variety of controllers. Nobody expects them to have a pre-set for every conceivable controller made in the past 20 years, but I expect the game to allow me to assign the functions from the menu, without editing an ini file where I have to guess that "button 11" will be which actual physical button.

I get that, but practically all major sticks/HOTAS are supported out of the box and have been for almost two years at this point. And there is an option (even if poorly implemented) for those older peripherals. It isn't perfect, but it is workable for the vast majority of players and peripherals.

Do you know what HOTAS/stick you have?