Is the Saitek HOTAS In-Game Cockpit a Placeholder?

Bird Man

Bird Man
As we all know, each ship cockpit currently has the same stick and throttle in it (basically a rendering of a Saitek X-52 Pro). I assumed that this was just a placeholder back when the Alpha first came out but we're now nearing release and I still don't see ships with individualized controls.

To have the cockpits basically designed after a game controller is a bit puzzling to me if indeed it is permanent. I suppose it would be somewhat interesting if it recognized the HOTAS you were using and inserted it into the cockpit that you were flying in but to just put an X-52 in every cockpit is a bit disappointing to me. I was kind of hoping that the ship designs would include individual dashboards, HUDs and controls.

It's totally possible that I missed an announcement about this so if anyone has some information on the subject I'd appreciate it.
 

Asp Explorer

Asp Explorer
Well - the BBC keyboard is already rendered to the left, I'd like to see this able to be rotated over for KB players as an option.

Maybe they could render different sticks and offer them in the store?

I'm not sure how a mouse render would cope in 0g though.
 

Bird Man

Bird Man
Yeah I'd rather not see keyboards and mice and other computer equipment in the cockpits. It sort of breaks the fourth wall. Maybe it's just me but I was expecting them to fully render cockpits (including controls). Meaning an in-fiction design; not a render of a game controller.
 

MARS The Devil

M
Bird Man said:
Yeah I'd rather not see keyboards and mice and other computer equipment in the cockpits. It sort of breaks the fourth wall. Maybe it's just me but I was expecting them to fully render cockpits (including controls). Meaning an in-fiction design; not a render of a game controller.
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I want to see my cup of tea on the dashboard, and my pajama's sleeves on the character's arms too :D
 

Orion03

O
I just want my bobble head back, I was rather sad when I left the sidewinder and didn't find bobble head in the hauler.
 

Zenicetus

Zenicetus
I use a Warthog HOTAS and it doesn't bother me seeing inferior Saitek hardware* in my cockpit, because I treat everything I'm seeing as a holographic projection anyway.

*I kid, I kid... :)

Call it future-proofing, if the game lasts 5 or 10 years and they don't have to do 3D models of every hardware combination out there. Besides, you know what the lefties will say.

For in-cockpit customization, the only thing I want is DLC I can pay for fuzzy dice in the color of my choice, and (as I've mentioned before here) a Hula Girl bobblehead for my trader ships, and a Marvin the Martian bobblehead for my combat ships.

FD can rack up a fortune on DLC bobbleheads. I don't don't know why they're messing with paint jobs that we can't even see when we're flying. Actually I do know... more's the pity. Some of the cool stuff like Marvin is probably under copyright.
 

Tempered

Tempered
I use a saitek x52. The joystick in the cockpit only has a vague resemblance to it. The throttle looks nothing like an x52 throttle.
Tools with similar functions are going to look a bit similar. I don't think they intended to model specific computer peripherals.
 

Cmdr Andy B

Cmdr Andy B
its a bit of a chicken and egg argument this as PC joysticks are without a doubt modelled after aircraft sticks, IIRC the warthog is a copy of the HOTAS in the A10. so the stick in game looks a little like an X52, only for the right hand though as the throttle in game only has a passing resemblance to the X's throttle.

as for the controllers all looking the same in each ship, almost every car on the road has a steering wheel that is a near carbon copy of every other wheel out there, it makes changing vehicles easy to do as you don't have to spend half hour reading the manual to find out where the indicators are. its the same with ships, different control layouts and HUD elements would make transferring between vessels a nightmare as after spending so long getting used to one set-up you would have to learn the new one almost from scratch.
 

Zenicetus

Zenicetus
AndyB(EDB50) said:
its a bit of a chicken and egg argument this as PC joysticks are without a doubt modelled after aircraft sticks, IIRC the warthog is a copy of the HOTAS in the A10. so the stick in game looks a little like an X52, only for the right hand though as the throttle in game only has a passing resemblance to the X's throttle.
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In real combat aircraft, the throttle quadrant varies much more than the joystick, which tends to follow a standardized layout. Check out this page, from a commercial sim company that makes joysticks and throttle quadrants tailored to specific combat aircraft:

http://www.bugeyetech.com/#!f-22-throttle-and-grip/ccr

That's the F-22 HOTAS. Now click on the "Primary Controls" link at the top, and browse through all the different control setups for F-16, F-18. A-10, F-35, etc. Notice how the joysticks are all very similar, and very close to the CH Fighterstick and Warthog stick? The throttles are all different because primary flight controls (the stick) vary much less across aircraft than all the things you need to do in addition to controlling the engines on the throttle quadrant.

That's why I love my Warthog stick, like I loved my CH Fighterstick before it. It's 'yer basic air combat stick. And why the Warthog throttle is still a bit fiddly to match to the game.

P.S. I like how the throttle quadrant for the F-35 is apparently referred to as the "cow pie," due to the shape compared to other throttles.
 
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Bird Man

Bird Man
Zenicetus said:
In real combat aircraft, the throttle quadrant varies much more than the joystick, which tends to follow a standardized layout. Check out this page, from a commercial sim company that makes joysticks and throttle quadrants tailored to specific combat aircraft:

http://www.bugeyetech.com/#!f-22-throttle-and-grip/ccr

That's the F-22 HOTAS. Now click on the "Primary Controls" link at the top, and browse through all the different control setups for F-16, F-18. A-10, F-35, etc. Notice how the joysticks are all very similar, and very close to the CH Fighterstick and Warthog stick? The throttles are all different because primary flight controls (the stick) vary much less across aircraft than all the things you need to do in addition to controlling the engines on the throttle quadrant.

That's why I love my Warthog stick, like I loved my CH Fighterstick before it. It's 'yer basic air combat stick. And why the Warthog throttle is still a bit fiddly to match to the game.

P.S. I like how the throttle quadrant for the F-35 is apparently referred to as the "cow pie," due to the shape compared to other throttles.
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Great link! I'm too scared to look for prices over there though.

As for the comment by AndyB; I disagree with you. The controls of different automobiles can be radically different in appearance. This is especially true when you compare totally different cars (18 wheeler compared to a sports car for example).

The ships in Elite have radically different roles/sizes/performance. They should not have IDENTICAL control interfaces. Sure having a stick and throttle makes sense but not identical ones. The steering wheel in a Ferrari looks totally different from the wheel in a Chevy. The dashboard looks completely different in a BMW M5 than it does in a Toyota Camry. It just seems odd that they would design different ships from different manufacturers with literally identical controls.
 

Zephyriel

Zephyriel
Variety would be nice but I think the devs have much more important things to work on. The ship interiors are already very nice and varied. The hotas is really not something I'm going to spend time looking at, it looks fine and that's all I ask of it.

Maybe if they make new ships after the game releases, they will make new sticls for them, but I wouldn't count on it.
 
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