Controls are tough

[Rabcor]

I'm having difficulty with the controls in this game, just fighting the 1v1s in the 2nd and third missions I won by sheer luck, not skill.

I can't seem to fly for **** (nor aim for ****) what did I miss?

For starters, my biggest current issue with controls is that I can go at around 150km up, down, left, right, forward and backwards and I can spin at high speeds like that too (High speed as in really damn slow in space, sports car level of fast on the ground...)

But I can't seem to find a way to turn my ship around at any decent speed

Turning my ship up/down to the sides takes forever meaning if someone gets behind me, my only plausible course of action is to try to dodge and outrun him.

Again, what did I miss?

 

[Yaffle]

Well, a few things.

Pitch and Roll are the best ways to turn, not yaw.

Your rate of turn is fastest when your speed (shown on the right of the scanner) is in the centre of the blue area. The blue area shows 50% of your current maximum speed.

You turn even faster if you add more power to the engines.

Yaw is very low for gameplay reasons (as is the top speed, that's a network and gameplay thing).

 

[Rabcor]

Yaw as in turning up/down/left/right, right?

Well, no matter how much I roll, I will still keep going straight ahead and that's the problem, I have no problem with rolling to the side and then pulling up like I would in most atmospheric flight simulators to turn But that is just again too slow. (Although that is a bit ironic as this is not an atmospheric flight and in space where you have thrusters on all sides, top and bottom there should be no difference between directions and how fast you can move except the power of the thrusters, judging by how fast I can strafe vertically/horizontally, I have a truckload of thrusters on all sides and should therefore be able to turn faster, but that's applying logic to video games I guess... and besides if i'm going to apply logic I might as well add in the math that in space when I'm moving in a direction and turn, i will still keep going the same way as before).

But you said I turn fastest at 50% speed? I'll try that.

 

[Nagual]

The lack of Yaw turning is in by design, to help combat 'turrets in space' fighting. To turn use your roll and pitch, keep speed in the blue marked area on your speed display to optimal turning. Use reverse to alter the angle of your turn, by putting it on for a couple of seconds as you pitch and you'll find that your target will come into view faster. Control the amount of engine power by using the power management functions - more pips = more power in whatever you put them in, at the expense of others. More in engine will give you a faster top speed, allowing you to turn faster too.

Use the lateral thrusters while pitching and/or rolling to allow you to track your target better or to avoid incoming fire.

You can use Flight Assist off, throttle to zero and pitch / roll about without changing your direction. Put it back on when you're ready to engage the target again. Throttle up again and continue to fly safe!

 

[Jorlin]

Yaw as in turning up/down/left/right, right?

Well, no matter how much I roll, I will still keep going straight ahead and that's the problem, I have no problem with rolling to the side and then pulling up like I would in most atmospheric flight simulators to turn (although that is a bit ironic as this is not an atmospheric flight). But that is just again too slow.

But you said I turn fastest at 50% speed? I'll try that.

since every player and NPC has the same turn rates (on the same ship)...it doesn't matter

 

[Yaffle]

I wasn't very clear, sorry.

Pitch moves the nose of your craft up or down. A "fast" axis.

Roll raises one side, lowers the other. A "fast" axis

Yaw rotates you through an axis as if someone had put a nail through the centre of the ship. You stay 'flat' and rotate, like turning a car. a "slow" axis.

There are also up, down, forwards, backwards thrusters.

Once you've got the hang of roll and pitch (it takes practice) play with the thrusters too, so pitch up and thrust down for example should allow you to fly around an object and always have it in front of you (try it on the navigation beacon).

 

[Crystles]

If your not currently being shot up, you can get an advantageous position by using flight assist off, and doing a back flip with the throttle in the sweet spot.

Use it tactically, since if your under fire and cant get out of their fire arc quick enough, you'll get torn to shreds in an instant.

Also, make more use of the transnational thrusters. When I'm fighting these days, I dont fly straight if I dont have to, and the better I get the less time I spend outside of FAO.

Also, keep close to your target, dont let them get away because frankly the AI is a better aim then you. Keep them where you have control over the fight, and actively manage your power distribution to keep as much power to thrust as the situation demands, including going 4 pips in engines if thats what it takes to keep up.