Deciding which peripheral to use for flight has been my biggest decision. They all have their benefits and drawbacks for different aspects of game play. You don’t have to use the same one for flying, dogfighting, FPS, etc. I definitely won’t be. That said, the only one you can experiment with fully right now is for dogfighting, the bane of someone who’s never played a space simulation game before, much less do it in a combat environment.
Keyboard and Mouse
There are on-going debates on the official forums about the combat advantages of using a mouse over the other options. I experimented with it myself and I did find it a bit easier. However, issues related to carpal tunnel syndrome, I can’t use a regular mouse. I’ve used a trackball for 15+ years and that’s a no-go in Star Citizen. Even after using the mouse as Virtual Joystick setting (CTRL C), touching the trackball puts my ship into an infinite spin. That said, most everyone agrees that for dogfighting the keyboard and mouse is superior. I suppose it’s a good thing that won’t be my focus in the game. *Smile*
That said, the advantage of this combo is that you can't get away from using the keyboard in SC unless you're going to setup other peripherals such as Track IR/VR and voice commands. There are a huge number of commands needed for flight. Going with this combo means you're set on all fronts.
Controller
Next up I tried using the Xbox Controller which was a tiny bit better. I could aim like a pro but don’t ask me to simultaneously move the ship. I’ve always found using a controller to be like patting my head while rubbing my tummy at the same time – awkward. The mechanic where my head swivel vs. body movement are on two different thumb controls has always been problematic. I’ve played Fable, Halo and Red Dead Redemption and enjoyed the titles but was always at odds with the controller.
Even if I was great at using a controller, it requires two hands. I don't see how you can play without having the keyboard because of the sheer number of commands utilized in space flight. On top of which, the default settings are horrendous. Did I mention the initial keybinds are horrendous?? Ugh. No thanks. At least a mouse only requires one hand, leaving the other free for keyboard use. This seems the most awkward combination to me unless you're doing bare bones flight mechanics.
HOTAS/Joystick
Not liking either of the above options brought me to the point of trying out a HOTAS setup. *Cringe* I watched a couple of joystick/HOTAS reviews on YouTube and went with the cheapest option, which is the Thrustmaster. Surprisingly, that instantly felt better than a controller but I couldn’t aim as accurately as I could with a mouse. In fact, a few days in and I still can’t. However, controlling the ship felt more natural which might be attributed to recently playing Tera.
Tera uses active combat with no tab/sticky targeting. This was a bear for me to get used to at first. In Tera my mouse/right hand is controlling the direction I’m facing with a few of my fancy oh no moves on the buttons, while the keyboard is strafing and executing skills. Using a HOTAS is very similar and probably why there was in immediate improvement in ship control. My right hand/joystick is controlling directional movements while I strafe with the keyboard.
The first time I tried running the solo simulation Raceway I couldn’t finish a single lap with crashing every other minute. Now I can complete the course without any crashes albeit flying at an abysmally slow pace. Whatever, that will get better over time.
Combat on the other hand, is a whole different kettle of fish. I’ve spent hours trying to tweak the sensitivity curves and dead space settings with nominal improvements. I’m sure it’s mostly because I don’t know that the hell I’m doing.
I’ve adjusted things so that yaw and roll are fine but I can’t get the pitch configured to something less jerky. Anytime I pitch, I go WAY up/down no matter what I try. Grrr. I’m slightly frustrated by trying to tweak the settings since the interface doesn’t explain what any of the options do, some changes don’t seem to stick and OMG loading the Arena Commander modules and hangar takes so DAMN LONG if you’re going in and out testing changes.
I’m not giving up. I’m sold on using a HOTAS setup since dogfighting isn’t a primary activity I’ll be participating in and I flew the ship itself better using it. More importantly, I’m excited for the RP side of SC and flying with “proper” equipment is a better fit from that perspective.
Difficulty in tweaking settings aside, the HOTAS/Joystick combination is first or second choice in my opinion. Like the mouse and keyboard option, it leaves a hand free for the keyboard which I think is a flat out necessity in SC.
I've seen people get away from the keyboard by adding other common peripherals such as an additional game pad or even an iOS device. While it certainly looks cool, the keyboard is good enough for me. But go them for going that extra RP/realistic mile.
Closing Thoughts
IF dog-fighting and space combat are a priority for you, most everyone agrees the mouse + keyboard is the superior combination. So much so, that people are asking for CIG to find a way to balance its advantages.
If you're up for overcoming the handicap in combat and have the cash to spend, I recommend at least a joystick. C'mon, this is how flight is meant to be experienced and it can be competitive with the mouse if you care about that and focus on mastering it. For me, being able to reasonably defend myself is sufficient.
My last choice is a controller. Again, I just don't see it for anything other than basic dog-fighting. We may find it the best choice in FPS depending on the amount of combat options available. However, at this time, we know very little about the FPS mechanics. And even then, I'm not sure I'd use one just for FPS anyway.
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