23 replies to this topic

[ElohiemMilitant]

Is the Saitek x52 any good for playing MWO?

[Alex Warden]

no joystick setup is really good... can you play with the x52? probably yes... can you beat mouse and keyboard? not the slightest bit...

[SirLANsalot]

Joystick is bad for MWO unlike in other MW titles.

Here we have arms that move independently of the torso, and using armlock to keep them in place, hurts your ability to aim left/right and quite often many mechs do not have good up/down either.

MWO was made for the mouse, and as such, if you don't want to hurt your team, your going to want to use it.

[BARBAR0SSA]

I have one of the x52 variants, I don't use it, I tried using the joystick for throttle and that was good except my desk is too high and it became an annoyance. I'd try that method if you really want to use a joystick.

If you were in a full simulator with actual cockpit shake etc, Joystick would be best option. Computer chair...mouse pinpoint accuracy is best.

[XX Sulla XX]

Ya can use it but it really only works well with lots of practice and in short range brawling. It is terrible and mid or long range as it is just to hard to aim quickly.

[Ningyo]

People are answering incompletely here.

Should you ever use a joystick to replace your mouse?
NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! its terrible to aim with you will be a massive liability to your team.

Should you use a joystick to replace your keyboard?
This is a harder call and probably depends most on how good you are with one. There are some major advantages over the keyboard. For instance you can more easily fine tune your speed to keep a perfect shot lined up for a laser while strafing, or use a twistable joystick to torso twist one way while aiming the arms another for protection while firing.
Overall I would say its player preference for this, I tried it an never quite got used to it, but did find there to be many advantages and think if you were good at it, it would be better than the keyboard.

On the Saitek x52 I don't know, I did get a Saitek Fly 5, and it had all the right options for this game, but I found it to be uncomfortable to use so didn't use it long enough to become good with it. (hands are very small, and have a fairly high desk which made it annoying after an hour or so. Also it needed clamped to the desk.

Overall if you have a joystick try it out for movement NOT AIMING, but I would not go out and buy one.

[Succubusy]

Try using the throttle unit and mouse or something crazy like that.

[trtw]

I know I'm going to get crapped on here but............. I'm going to recommend you give it a try.

I believe that joystick utilization is not as poor as it once was in this game but it will never be as percise as control using a mouse. Here is a link to a post made by forum member Loc Nar which states the difference between a joystick and mouse and how they are used.

http://mwomercs.com/...01#entry2362501

*i apologize for not knowing how to directly quote that thread into this one*

I play using the x52pro and the rudder pedals and I enjoy it. Do I win every game? Nope. My kdr is somewhere around .65 There are many reasons for this, not just my hotas setup. I'm getting older.... reaction time and my refusal to admit that maybe the eyesite has slipped a bit does not help me. I don't play the min/max builds and I'll never play as a poptart. I'm still fairly new so I still put myself into bad spots...... or stop moving in my Ember to shoot out some back armor...... or get focused on one target as his buddies shoot my a$$ off...... you get the idea. I do not regularily die because I miss my shots, this I am certain of. So if you already have the x52pro all I can say is give it a go, It was shockingly simple to setup. You no longer require user.cfg changes as you once did in this game. My controls were all setup using the ingame options, I do not use the Saitek software at all.

Edited by trtw, 05 June 2014 - 02:33 PM.

[Creovex]

ElohiemMilitant, on 05 June 2014 - 12:51 PM, said:

Is the Saitek x52 any good for playing MWO?

I own it but don't use it. The reaction is too sluggish for the game. Save your joystick for Star Citizen.

[Mister Dubis]

My old x52 had broken on me.. thanks movers! so once i started getting into sim games again (DCS) i bought an x52 pro. one day i mistakenly tried it with MWO as I loved stick with the older MW titles... one game and I was back to my mouse.

[Mystere]

Based on experience using my Thrustmaster HOTAS Cougar, I say using joysticks on heavies and assaults is not much of an issue. But, using them on a frisky light is not fun at all.

[Ovion]

Yes it can.

And with intense practice, and ramping the sensitivity up, you can be almost as good, or even as good as a mouse user.
Though this will take months of work.

I use a twin sticks set up and it's a blast.
Each month I'm doing better and better as well, and I reckon another few months and my average damage output should be 300-600 a match.

A Keyboard and Mouse, or even Joystick/Throttle and Mouse, will be far easier and much faster to pick up, learn, and get reasonably good with, but it's still doable with sticks / hotas.

[Zerberoff]

*removed because of redundancy*

Edited by Zerberoff, 05 June 2014 - 11:30 PM.

[Kilo 40]

I use a HOTAS setup and do pretty well with it. But I use mostly LRM builds, and keyboard/mouse is superior. They just give you much better control for aiming.

I do plan on upgrading to the X52 sometime after Christmas.

[Sephlock]

Out of curiosity, does anybody use a trackball?

[Kyynele]

I bought the X52 when I started to play, remembering how I used to play MW2 with a stick.

It's by far, hands down the worst purchase I've made regarding MWO, and I've bought Pretty Baby, too. Mouse and keyboard is so much more effective that the nicer feeling you get for playing with proper controls doesn't come even close to matching the frustration you get from completely gimping your aiming and movement compared to everyone else.

Edit: I'm not saying that it's impossible to do decently with one. But for the same amount of practice and effort, you could probably be one of the best in the game using mouse and keyboard. Or be just as decent with mouse and keyboard WITHOUT the practice and effort part. If you're the least bit competitive, forget about it.

Edited by Kyynele, 06 June 2014 - 12:26 AM.

[Creovex]

Sephlock, on 05 June 2014 - 11:52 PM, said:

Out of curiosity, does anybody use a trackball?

.... not since 1996...

[Marvyn Dodgers]

Moving to Hardware & Accessories per PM with OP.

[Old Bones]

The answer depends on you. I won't use anything but my X-52 or something similar.

Asking me to play this game using keyboard & mouse is like getting an elephant to competently play Mozart on a piano. Ain't gonna happen.

But that's me. I've never been able to touch type despite taking typing courses & wasting $$$ on learn to type software. When my fingers leave a key they forget where it was but with the X-52 everything is right there at my fingertips. I'm of an age where if you had a typewriter in high school it was a luxury & if it was an electric typewriter that was a status symbol.

As to sniping I do use the mouse, much more accurate & fine control. I set my torso so that I can forward/back with the throttle from cover & aim/fire with the mouse. For everything else I use the stick.

Program the X-Y-Z in the MWO settings & the buttons in the joystick software. Set the Deadzones as tight as possible in the controller control panel & use the ingame Deadzone slider to tune it to your preference.

Again, it depends on you & what you're most comfortable with. I get decent scores with my X-52. My nephew uses an X-Box controller to play MWO & can't stand using a traditional joystick or the keyboard/mouse. It's what he's grown up with.

Maybe borrow a joystick from someone for a couple of weeks & see how YOU like it. Different strokes & all that.

[Diznitch]

I play with a trackball ... it's excellent. Kensington MouseWorks. Carpal tunnel doesn't tolerate mice on any computers...