Controller veterans i need your wisdom

[Dollmaker]

How does the Xbox controller feel to use?

So i have some issues with certain games which cant really be fixed due to hardware (i play on a laptop and the touchpad's scrolling WILL kill the inputs on some games like Elden Ring with no way to fix it besides force quitting)

I mainly ask cause i used to be a PS gamer before i moved to PC, and the controllers are different such as the Joysticks placement or the Buttons being completely different, one using Letters while the other uses Symbols, plus the overall design of the shape.

I also got a Steam Deck recently, and while i could play there due to the inputs being borrowed form Xbox, the battery life of the Deck really suffers from heavier games, and apparently setting this up as a controller is a pain on top of being clunky to use as such (its heavy, Wii U PTSD intensifies)

So yeah, was wondering how it was, since i never played on Xbox, when it comes to Console im mainly from Nintendo and formerly PS.

And the Xbox design appears to be the go-to for PC controller gaming, even most games have the Xbox inputs over the PS one, if they even have the latter.

[Abigail From Sneaky Squid Dept.]

I only like to use my controller for driving games and such where the analog inputs feel better for steering and acceleration.

[Dollmaker]

Originally posted by Abigail From Sneaky Beaky Dept.:

I only like to use my controller for driving games and such where the analog inputs feel better for steering and acceleration.

I personally would like to stick to keyboard (cause i even feel its better for Souls games) but like i mentioned earlier, theres this dumb bug that nukes the inputs for scrolling with the Touchpad.

Basically, scrolling with the Touchpad is by using two fingers on it and sliding up or down, which works well most of the time for gaming, but when it doesnt, this happens, the scroll gets stuck permanently, and you cant override the input, so it essentially locks the menus making them unusable due to the infinite scrolling.

From the very VERY little info i found about this bug, theres no fixing it, since it a problem with the game itself not properly reading the input from a Touchpad, since Elden Ring was among the games mentioned, it became clear it was consistent, other games were RE4 (2005) and Skyrim if i recall, two which i own and have this issue.

[Start_Running]

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

How does the Xbox controller feel to use?

So i have some issues with certain games which cant really be fixed due to hardware (i play on a laptop and the touchpad's scrolling WILL kill the inputs on some games like Elden Ring with no way to fix it besides force quitting)

I mainly ask cause i used to be a PS gamer before i moved to PC, and the controllers are different such as the Joysticks placement or the Buttons being completely different, one using Letters while the other uses Symbols, plus the overall design of the shape.

You can Buy a PC controller with a PS type layout. Or directly hook up a PS controller. PCs can handle that though admittedly things can be iffy when it comes to game support.

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

So yeah, was wondering how it was, since i never played on Xbox, when it comes to Console im mainly from Nintendo and formerly PS.

I can say that I find the X box style a bit more comfortable compared to the dual shock style.
The position of that left thumbstick just feels better. But ha have big meat hunk handss so its a YMMV sitch.

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

And the Xbox design appears to be the go-to for PC controller gaming, even most games have the Xbox inputs over the PS one, if they even have the latter.

And yeah because the support is much easier. The X-Box since day one has essentially been a stripped down windows PC in terms of its software and firmware. Sio Windows will easily recognize any X-Box controller plugged in via direct input because.. thats how the actual console does it. PS cobtrollers. need a little more work. and games that are ported to PC are generally built around the X-Controller layout by default.

My advice go to a store and get your hands on one. Or if you know a friend who has an Xbox go over and play a few games. Or ask him if he can lend you a spare controller for a bit.

[Chika Ogiue]

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

And the Xbox design appears to be the go-to for PC controller gaming, even most games have the Xbox inputs over the PS one, if they even have the latter.

Because MS specifically put out a Windows version of the XB controller back in the 360 days, capturing a large chunk of the market. As it is, the placement of analogue sticks don't vary that much between XB, PS, or even Switch controllers. The left analogue stick is below the d-pad on PS controllers and above the d-pad for the other two. You'll adapt in no time.

As for how well a controller will handle, that pretty much depends on you and how you're comfortable with using it for different types of games. I personally don't like controllers for first person, but prefer them for third person in most games.

With a laptop, what's stopping you from getting an external mouse if you'd prefer to play with mouse and keyboard?

[lsdninja]

Originally posted by Start_Running:

I can say that I find the X box style a bit more comfortable compared to the dual shock style.

That's because modern games have shifted mostly to the analogue sticks and the Xbox layout moves the left stick to where your thumb naturally tends to rest while holding it. The flipside is that anything that uses the d-pad extensively instead will favour the SNES/PS layout, for the same reason.

Ergonomics and subjectivity aside, however, the biggest advantage that Xbox-style controllers have when it comes to PC gaming is that pretty much everything these days supports xinput as a minimum, meaning not having to deal with Steam Input.

[Dollmaker]

Originally posted by Chika Ogiue:

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

And the Xbox design appears to be the go-to for PC controller gaming, even most games have the Xbox inputs over the PS one, if they even have the latter.

Because MS specifically put out a Windows version of the XB controller back in the 360 days, capturing a large chunk of the market. As it is, the placement of analogue sticks don't vary that much between XB, PS, or even Switch controllers. The left analogue stick is below the d-pad on PS controllers and above the d-pad for the other two. You'll adapt in no time.

As for how well a controller will handle, that pretty much depends on you and how you're comfortable with using it for different types of games. I personally don't like controllers for first person, but prefer them for third person in most games.

With a laptop, what's stopping you from getting an external mouse if you'd prefer to play with mouse and keyboard?

Cause im a dangerous psychopath that got used to the Touchpad over the Mouse for playing.

And i pretty much built my keybinds around this playstyle, which meant a lot of changes, technically i mainly use the touchpad for camera movement, but scrolling is tied to it for the most part, and if the game doesnt offer and option to change this keybind, im pretty much screwed, like in the case of ER where scrolling is needed to zoom in and out of scopes or the map.

[lsdninja]

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

(i play on a laptop and the touchpad's scrolling WILL kill the inputs on some games like Elden Ring with no way to fix it besides force quitting)

This sounds like one of those things that slips through because they think no one will be crazy enough to actually play this way. The nonzero number of games that misbehave when you don't have a keyboard connected also fall in to this category.

[Dollmaker]

Originally posted by lsdninja:

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

(i play on a laptop and the touchpad's scrolling WILL kill the inputs on some games like Elden Ring with no way to fix it besides force quitting)

This sounds like one of those things that slips through because they think no one will be crazy enough to actually play this way. The nonzero number of games that misbehave when you don't have a keyboard connected also fall in to this category.

Hilariously enough i also have Sekiro which is another Fromsoft game, i didnt had that issue there.

Havent tested the Dark Souls games though.

[Abigail From Sneaky Squid Dept.]

I mean it sounds like a problem that just needs a $15 mouse from Best buy.

[Dollmaker]

Originally posted by Abigail From Sneaky Beaky Dept.:

I mean it sounds like a problem that just needs a $15 mouse from Best buy.

Yeah, but like i said in another comment, i would essentially have to change all my keybinds to accommodate to that.

[Start_Running]

Originally posted by lsdninja:

Originally posted by Start_Running:

I can say that I find the X box style a bit more comfortable compared to the dual shock style.

That's because modern games have shifted mostly to the analogue sticks and the Xbox layout moves the left stick to where your thumb naturally tends to rest while holding it. The flipside is that anything that uses the d-pad extensively instead will favour the SNES/PS layout, for the same reason.

You'd think so but I've honestly never had an issue.
Though maybe it's because of the specific controller I have. It's a third party and you know how those can vary a fair deal in exact positioning. There can be as much as a full 1 cm of variance between a third party and a first party.

Again. Different hands will find different things comfortable.

Originally posted by Dollmaker:

Originally posted by Abigail From Sneaky Beaky Dept.:

I mean it sounds like a problem that just needs a $15 mouse from Best buy.

Yeah, but like i said in another comment, i would essentially have to change all my keybinds to accommodate to that.

And that is a pain to do fer sure.

[Dollmaker]

Well, just confirmed it happens on Armored Core 6 as well.

Wouldnt surprise me if the Dark Souls game are the same, weird since Sekiro wasnt affected and its the same company.

[ReBoot]

XBox controllers feel good to use. I personally wouldn't recommend them if your hands are on the smaller side, otherwise, they're great.