DCS and VR, New player questions.

[Zunkey]

Just wondering how to set this game up to play in VR with hotas? I am running Oculus rift and the x52. I cant see the keyboard in VR, and the x52 doesnt have alot of button to bind.

are there anyway to use the interface a bit better?
also do the default jets in general fly bad?

[Maki Nishikino]

Originally posted by Zunkey:

...do the default jets in general fly bad?

The Su-25? No, it's just inherently a flying brick.

[JBM]

Regarding the hardware questions:

I've been using the Rift with an X52 Pro for around 18 months. I only have the most necessary commands bound to the HOTAS. Things like landing gear, lights, canopy open/close, etc are left bound to keyboard controls. You'll find with the Rift that there is enough of a gap around the nose to be able to see your keyboard. (It works for me anyway!)

One thing I would suggest with this arrangement is to try and keep your HOTAS bindings the same where possible across all aircraft, so you develop muscle memory and instinctively know which control input you need, when you need it.

Regarding the planes, I haven't really used the Su-25 or the TF-51. But I DO have FC3 which has an assortment of "simplified" aircraft and they fly fine. If you're having issues with flight controls, experiment with axis settings in your setup menu. Some people like to wind back the Y saturation.

[malusku]

https://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=218861

Looks good!

[Zunkey]

Originally posted by Jim Bob:

Regarding the hardware questions:

I've been using the Rift with an X52 Pro for around 18 months. I only have the most necessary commands bound to the HOTAS. Things like landing gear, lights, canopy open/close, etc are left bound to keyboard controls. You'll find with the Rift that there is enough of a gap around the nose to be able to see your keyboard. (It works for me anyway!)

One thing I would suggest with this arrangement is to try and keep your HOTAS bindings the same where possible across all aircraft, so you develop muscle memory and instinctively know which control input you need, when you need it.

Regarding the planes, I haven't really used the Su-25 or the TF-51. But I DO have FC3 which has an assortment of "simplified" aircraft and they fly fine. If you're having issues with flight controls, experiment with axis settings in your setup menu. Some people like to wind back the Y saturation.

There is no nose gap for me on the oculus, got the big nose genes

[JBM]

Originally posted by Zunkey:

There is no nose gap for me on the oculus, got the big nose genes

Ah dammit. You could try setting up the different modes on the X52 so you essentially have 3 functions per button. It can be a tedious process though, and it will leave you with a lot of bindings to remember. But it might save you the hassle of finding keyboard keys while wearing the Rift.

[Zunkey]

Originally posted by Jim Bob:

Originally posted by Zunkey:

There is no nose gap for me on the oculus, got the big nose genes

Ah dammit. You could try setting up the different modes on the X52 so you essentially have 3 functions per button. It can be a tedious process though, and it will leave you with a lot of bindings to remember. But it might save you the hassle of finding keyboard keys while wearing the Rift.

Supposedly if I just bound the flaps and weapons, landing gear etc to hotas I should be able to use the touch controllers to activate switches and stuff (assuming I dont powerslam my desk again)

Which plane is the best doing this method in VR? I heard the a10 was really good for VR, and heard similar things about the f18

[JBM]

Originally posted by Zunkey:

Supposedly if I just bound the flaps and weapons, landing gear etc to hotas I should be able to use the touch controllers to activate switches and stuff (assuming I dont powerslam my desk again)

Which plane is the best doing this method in VR? I heard the a10 was really good for VR, and heard similar things about the f18

You could try that method, but I don't see it giving you the level of control you might need in a dogfight or NOE flying while trying to evade enemy fire, for instance.

For me, I found the Touch controllers to be too cumbersome in DCS. I don't think they offer enough in terms of precision for flicking switches, especially if it needs to be done quickly. I found them quite frustrating more than anything.

Worth a shot though. Experiment with controls and find out what works best for you.

I've only recently obtained the F/A-18 and the A-10C. I grabbed them in the Summer Sale and haven't spent any time with them yet, so I can't help you with that. I spend most of my DCS time with helicopters.

[Zunkey]

Originally posted by Jim Bob:

Originally posted by Zunkey:

Supposedly if I just bound the flaps and weapons, landing gear etc to hotas I should be able to use the touch controllers to activate switches and stuff (assuming I dont powerslam my desk again)

Which plane is the best doing this method in VR? I heard the a10 was really good for VR, and heard similar things about the f18

You could try that method, but I don't see it giving you the level of control you might need in a dogfight or NOE flying while trying to evade enemy fire, for instance.

For me, I found the Touch controllers to be too cumbersome in DCS. I don't think they offer enough in terms of precision for flicking switches, especially if it needs to be done quickly. I found them quite frustrating more than anything.

Worth a shot though. Experiment with controls and find out what works best for you.

I've only recently obtained the F/A-18 and the A-10C. I grabbed them in the Summer Sale and haven't spent any time with them yet, so I can't help you with that. I spend most of my DCS time with helicopters.

k50 any good in VR?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tzoq_YuUgE
it looks fun


Also how do i enable the mouse/head tracking curser for clicking knobs?

[JBM]

Originally posted by Zunkey:

k50 any good in VR?

it looks fun


Also how do i enable the mouse/head tracking curser for clicking knobs?

I enjoy the Ka-50. Trouble is, I don't use it enough because I love throwing the Huey around lol. Most of my helicopter hours are on the Mi-8 though.

I think ALL the helicopters are awesome in VR. The Ka-50 has some updates on the way (including a paid one) which will improve the cockpit. The weapons systems take some getting used to, but are very effective, even when attacking other helis. I love the helmet sight/targeting system. The Ka-50 can perform "the funnel" very easily compared to some other helis, which is great for running rings around ground targets. The co-axial rotor system makes it very easy to fly, even easier to hover, and it even comes with an ejector seat in case things don't go to plan!

Regarding the cursor question, you'll find the relevant options in Settings>VR. Check the applicable boxes for whichever options you want.

If you check the "enable VR headset" option, DCS will ALWAYS start in VR mode no matter what. This can be annoying if you only want to quickly pop in to check something, change settings or create/edit a mission, so I personally leave it unchecked. You can still launch in VR by right clicking DCS in your library and selecting "launch in Oculus VR mode" anyway.

Hope this helps! :)

[Zunkey]

Originally posted by Jim Bob:

Originally posted by Zunkey:

k50 any good in VR?

it looks fun


Also how do i enable the mouse/head tracking curser for clicking knobs?

I enjoy the Ka-50. Trouble is, I don't use it enough because I love throwing the Huey around lol. Most of my helicopter hours are on the Mi-8 though.

I think ALL the helicopters are awesome in VR. The Ka-50 has some updates on the way (including a paid one) which will improve the cockpit. The weapons systems take some getting used to, but are very effective, even when attacking other helis. I love the helmet sight/targeting system. The Ka-50 can perform "the funnel" very easily compared to some other helis, which is great for running rings around ground targets. The co-axial rotor system makes it very easy to fly, even easier to hover, and it even comes with an ejector seat in case things don't go to plan!

Regarding the cursor question, you'll find the relevant options in Settings>VR. Check the applicable boxes for whichever options you want.

If you check the "enable VR headset" option, DCS will ALWAYS start in VR mode no matter what. This can be annoying if you only want to quickly pop in to check something, change settings or create/edit a mission, so I personally leave it unchecked. You can still launch in VR by right clicking DCS in your library and selecting "launch in Oculus VR mode" anyway.

Hope this helps! :)

Thanks man! that last part about the VR enabled checkbox was annoying me too, didnt even think to ask about it!

[JBM]

Originally posted by Zunkey:

Thanks man! that last part about the VR enabled checkbox was annoying me too, didnt even think to ask about it!

No worries, dude! Happy flying!

[Saltheart Foamfollower]

When I went VR I had to do something because I hate having to break immersion to look at KB. I ended up buying two kits of the usb joystick interface with 10 buttons and a 4 way stick for $17. I made a mount of old ply behind my wheel poked some 30mm holes and I had a perfect cheap button box. I cut up a 3/8" dowel and drilled a cpl holes and plugged these in for easy blind identification of the buttons below them. Works amazingly well in both flight and race sims in VR. Under $50.

[JBM]

Originally posted by Saltheart Foamfollower:

When I went VR I had to do something because I hate having to break immersion to look at KB. I ended up buying two kits of the usb joystick interface with 10 buttons and a 4 way stick for $17. I made a mount of old ply behind my wheel poked some 30mm holes and I had a perfect cheap button box. I cut up a 3/8" dowel and drilled a cpl holes and plugged these in for easy blind identification of the buttons below them. Works amazingly well in both flight and race sims in VR. Under $50.

Which kits did you buy? I'm interested in building something like that.

[Thomas]

You can use modifier switches. For example you have 21 buttons and one button is a modifier switch, now you can bind 20 functions to the normal buttons and 20 more with the modifier switch pressed, now you have 40 buttons and 1 button that you can't use because it's a modifier switch. It's hard to learn but you have more buttons for free.

[Zunkey]

I ended up buying the ka50, had an idea of how to fly helicopters before hand so I was flying day one, and learning the main gun day one aswell. Learnt missiles and some of cold start today.

I ended up binding the vital stuff like trim, fire, Camera slewing and camera lock to HMD device (Gun follows head?) and flares, and the like 1 or two other things that cant be interacted in with VR, such as cockpit door (Handle doesnt do anything in VR) and equiping gun, selecting pylons etc.

If I say wanted to pick up the gear, I just pick up either touch controller, usually the left since its a helicopter (stick with a hand on is a must), hold the grab trigger and point and click on switches. A on the Right controller is bound to zoom but since the left handles realignment of HMD and pause/unpause I just bound the pinky trigger of my x52 to zoom in/out.