Play with normal controller?

[DudeImGodly]

Can you play this game with a xbox controller or you need special flight controller?

[jalsina]

If this controller is recognized by Windows 10, yes. But It´s very difficult. You better get a joystick and could use the controller for extra buttons and axis. The next step would be getting a Hotas.

[DudeImGodly]

Yes i can play it with my controller, just wondering what most ppl play on a normal controller or special joystick? Maybe i should rly get a joystick what would you recommend?

[Undead Rufus]

You're automatically gimped if you play DCS with a regular controller, but it sorta works. I wouldn't call it difficult so much as simply inadequate. Early on I flew the Su-25T with an Xbox controller. If you want a better experience, a proper HOTAS rig is strongly recommended.

[jalsina]

If you get the budget, a good Hotas like the Warthogg or a Virpil. With a lesser budget you can get Thrustmaster 16000 or even less a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro (just the joystick).
Five months ago I used the 3D Pro along a PS3 controller, but was not enough for High Fidelity airplanes Like the F16, F18 or A-10.
I recently got a medium quality Hotas, the Logitech X56 and I am fine with it, for flying for example the F-16C or other similar aircraft. To fly the WWII aircraft you may not require a first class Hotas.

[HoboCop]

Originally posted by jalsina:

If you get the budget, a good Hotas like the Warthogg or a Virpil. With a lesser budget you can get Thrustmaster 16000 or even less a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro (just the joystick).
Five months ago I used the 3D Pro along a PS3 controller, but was not enough for High Fidelity airplanes Like the F16, F18 or A-10.
I recently got a medium quality Hotas, the Logitech X56 and I am fine with it, for flying for example the F-16C or other similar aircraft. To fly the WWII aircraft you may not require a first class Hotas.

The trouble is, with experience, the "lesser budget" paths usually end up costing way more over time unfortunately. Over the years I and people I know have tried many different options including Microsoft Sidewinder ForceFeedback (god I miss that), Saitek Cyborg, Thrustmaster T-Flight, Thrustmaster t16000 & pedals, Thrustmaster Warthog and a lot of others including varying yokes and sticks.

All but the Sidewinder have ended up being a waste of money because they deteriorate quickly and end up with axis not working. The 16000 stuff ended up with throttle axis problems, the hog ended up with "stiction" after a few weeks, the cheapo Thrustmaster pedal toe brake axis went bad in just over a year, Saitek stuff couldn't hold calibration on nay axis after a while due to bad pots.

The only stuff I have had that was solid was the Sidewinder (but lacked buttons and axis) which had incredible forcefeedback and the axis was smooth as butter with zero problems - but this was expensive back in the day in comparison to other stuff. I saved for it and bought it in my 3rd wage from my 1st ever job.

The when the hog stiction became apparent, I upgraded the base with a Virpil Warbrd. Again, not cheap, but this is gonna last a lifetime!! I've had it for 3 years now and it's been fantastic, with a lot of use.

Pedals, I gave Thrustmaster another chance and went for the pendular pedals. These are simply epic and again, haven't missed a beat!!

My Thrustmaster TFlight Hotas X to be fair wasn't bad, but the ergonomics were a bit pants and it also has a centre detent on the throttle axis which I ended up modding to remove. This made it tons better, and reliability was also good too, it just wasn't very pleasant to use. I guess my previous experience with my Sidewinder spoiled me and I have been in search of a smooth accurate axis ever since, until I found the Virpil.

My advice, based on my own and friends experiences, would be to make do with your Xbox controller and save in the meantime if you are serious about DCS

[bingbean]

Originally posted by HoboCop:

The only stuff I have had that was solid was the Sidewinder (but lacked buttons and axis) which had incredible forcefeedback and the axis was smooth as butter with zero problems - but this was expensive back in the day in comparison to other stuff. I saved for it and bought it in my 3rd wage from my 1st ever job.

It is a pity that Microsoft decided to focus primarily on the Xbox in terms of the gaming community and stopped focusing on the production of gaming devices designed for the PC.
I don't know the exact details regarding the force feedback patent, but I know that Microsoft is somehow involved and the license price is the reason why force feadback joysticks have disappeared from the market. I've never had the opportunity to try a joystick with force feedback, but I believe I would be as impressed as when I first time tried the racing game on the force feedbeck steering wheel.

[bignewy]

Originally posted by aLeKs:

Can you play this game with a xbox controller or you need special flight controller?

Thanks to @Tuuvas for this guide!

To get the most out of a DualShock 4 or DualSense gamepad for DCS, you'll need to set up a profile in DS4Windows appropriately. See @Tuuvas's DS4Windows tutorial here:
https://youtu.be/iWUSGduasVk

Alternatively, if you're using an Xbox 360/One/Series S/X gamepad, you can follow his Input Mapper 1.7 tutorial instead:
https://youtu.be/S5rvfW6-wi4

Once you've configured your gamepad profile to control Mouse click and movement, you can now set up your DCS bindings referencing any of the Xbox Controller Layouts in Tuuvas' imgur album here:
https://imgur.com/a/0y4YsYp

Just keep in mind, DO NOT BIND "Camera Horizontal" and "Camera Vertical" to Right Stick if you're using Right Stick to control the Mouse. Only bind "Force Cursor On/Off" to toggle between camera control and cursor control.

Additionally, as stated in the DS4Windows tutorial, remember to bind Rudder and Zoom View under the "Controller (XBOX 360 For Windows)" device category. Every other control should be bound under the "Wireless Controller" device category.

[HoboCop]

Originally posted by bingbean:

Originally posted by HoboCop:

The only stuff I have had that was solid was the Sidewinder (but lacked buttons and axis) which had incredible forcefeedback and the axis was smooth as butter with zero problems - but this was expensive back in the day in comparison to other stuff. I saved for it and bought it in my 3rd wage from my 1st ever job.

It is a pity that Microsoft decided to focus primarily on the Xbox in terms of the gaming community and stopped focusing on the production of gaming devices designed for the PC.
I don't know the exact details regarding the force feedback patent, but I know that Microsoft is somehow involved and the license price is the reason why force feadback joysticks have disappeared from the market. I've never had the opportunity to try a joystick with force feedback, but I believe I would be as impressed as when I first time tried the racing game on the force feedbeck steering wheel.

I'd buy a good force feedback stick in a heartbeat! Especially if the force and the axis were as good as the old Sidewinder. When I was a teenager, I was lucky enough to fly gliders at my local club, and the feeling you got from the Sidewinder was actually so damn close to the real thing when I flew gliders in MSFS. The axis would be completely "floppy" at a standstill, and as airflow increased over the surfaces, the axis got stiffer and could even pull to certain side, and as you altered trim the stick would centre differently too.

As I understand it, Microsoft got into trouble for producing their sticks as force feedback due to the patent. Hence why they stopped. But yes, back then they made very good gaming hardware and even their mice and keyboards were good back then. I used to always buy Microsoft intellieye (?) mice and had a sidewinder keyboard where the numpad could be detached and re-attached on the opposite side, but alas I believe they sold out their hardware product manufacturing to someone else who just stuck Microsoft logo's on them and the quality dropped. The mice buttons became unreliable, the keyboards wouldn't last more than a year and they stopped producing gaming hardware.

It's interesting that Microsoft own the patent for "force feedback" but they had a law suit filed against them for patent infringement and had to either stop using it or pay Immersion for the rights.
It is possibly to do with a patent overlap, where Immersion owns a patent for "haptic technology" which covers a lot of what a force feedback joystick would achieve. I believe Microsoft still have to pay for the "rumble" that they add to their controllers, but at a lesser rate than they would have to pay for full force feedback features on a joystick.

However, because Microsoft own an overlapping patent, no one else can try and create this hardware legally for sale without permission / licensing from both Immersion AND Microsoft.

[jalsina]

Force Feedback in this game is useful for older aircraft. The Fly-by-Wire aircraft don´t experience force feedback.

[DudeImGodly]

I just did a little research and ordered the VPC Constellation ALPHA-L from VIPRIL. Now I'm a left-handed player, my biggest problem is finding a throttle for the right hand, if such a thing even exists =(

[Sizigmund]

Originally posted by jalsina:

Force Feedback in this game is useful for older aircraft. The Fly-by-Wire aircraft don´t experience force feedback.

Force feedback is a very good thing for helicopters. Because it can change the center of a joystick after trimming, exactly as the center of a cyclic changes. By the way, it can be also useful for trimming the plane. Because after trimming, it will be in an exactly the same position as in-game stick. So force feedback is a very useful thing for all planes. Too bad there is no such a joysticks on the market.

[Perfect Info]

Originally posted by aLeKs:

I just did a little research and ordered the VPC Constellation ALPHA-L from VIPRIL. Now I'm a left-handed player, my biggest problem is finding a throttle for the right hand, if such a thing even exists =(

You may wish to consider an "ambidextrous" civilian simulation throttle quadrant. Ambidextrous is more common in civil aviation, given the throttle is centre mounted and shared by the pilot and copilot.

Googling, another recommendation someone had was using a right-handed stick for throttle binds. You would need to modify it to remove the centring spring and perhaps increase the friction to ensure it doesn't flop around.

[jalsina]

Sorry I forgot the helo´s. You are right.
Maybe someone from Wing-Wing or Virpil is reading you and they might build and offer in the future a controller set for choppers.
I still have my Sidewinder (force feedback) in working state. It has an old game port. In Amazon there is a device to convert old game ports to USB. That could help to anyone with the old joystick.

P.S.
Why we would want to experience FF in an old jet if we are in first place, unable to experience the force of your body against the seat.

[DudeImGodly]

Originally posted by bignewy:

Originally posted by aLeKs:

Can you play this game with a xbox controller or you need special flight controller?

Thanks to @Tuuvas for this guide!

To get the most out of a DualShock 4 or DualSense gamepad for DCS, you'll need to set up a profile in DS4Windows appropriately. See @Tuuvas's DS4Windows tutorial here:
https://youtu.be/iWUSGduasVk

Alternatively, if you're using an Xbox 360/One/Series S/X gamepad, you can follow his Input Mapper 1.7 tutorial instead:
https://youtu.be/S5rvfW6-wi4

Once you've configured your gamepad profile to control Mouse click and movement, you can now set up your DCS bindings referencing any of the Xbox Controller Layouts in Tuuvas' imgur album here:
https://imgur.com/a/0y4YsYp

Just keep in mind, DO NOT BIND "Camera Horizontal" and "Camera Vertical" to Right Stick if you're using Right Stick to control the Mouse. Only bind "Force Cursor On/Off" to toggle between camera control and cursor control.

Additionally, as stated in the DS4Windows tutorial, remember to bind Rudder and Zoom View under the "Controller (XBOX 360 For Windows)" device category. Every other control should be bound under the "Wireless Controller" device category.

oh wow this is very helpful thank you

[HoboCop]

Originally posted by aLeKs:

I just did a little research and ordered the VPC Constellation ALPHA-L from VIPRIL. Now I'm a left-handed player, my biggest problem is finding a throttle for the right hand, if such a thing even exists =(

You will not be disappointed. Virpil stuff is fantastic.