How much fun is Elite Dangerous without joystick & tracker?

[BinaryRun]

Hello everyone,

Almost everyone on twitch etc plays the game with a joystick/flight control or a track IR set etc. However this is really withholding me from buying the game, as I don't want to be outnumbered or anything simply because I'm using the good old mouse & keyboard.

How do you guys experience this?

 

[sbdags]

Hello everyone,

Almost everyone on twitch etc plays the game with a joystick/flight control or a track IR set etc. However this is really withholding me from buying the game, as I don't want to be outnumbered or anything simply because I'm using the good old mouse & keyboard.

How do you guys experience this?

I tried it with an XBox Controller at first and the learning curve was steep but I got competent but was never really comfortable.

Then I tried Mouse and Keyboard and was useless!! Like writing with the opposite hand to normal.

Then I bought a £40 Thrustmaster HOTAS and never looked back.

IMO this game flies with a HOTAS and everything mapped onto it.

 

[LtCasey]

No Fun! Absolutly!

 

[Tiamat]

Many play on mouse/kb only and a lot play on game pads like xbox ones (including some devs). I use mouse/kb sometimes if I can't be bothered to get my x52 out and it is perfectly playable. No head traker here either.

A HOTAS will give you a slight edge in combat as you have your fingers on more buttons at the same time but it is not required in any way and I can fight perfectly well without the stick.

 

[pantbash]

Xbox controller was alright to play with.

I could not cope with mouse/keyboard though


Not got track IR. Game seems fine without it (although it would be nice)

 

[Sav112]

I’m having to go down the buying a new rig high end route as my old PC is ten years old so I’m thinking may as well push the boat out and get a thrust and Joystick along with a new mouse and Keyboard.

X52 seems the sweet spot.

 

[BinaryRun]

I'm trying to decide atm if I should buy into the beta or not. However I do have an xbox one, so I could use that controller.

 

[Kramster]

Hello everyone,

Almost everyone on twitch etc plays the game with a joystick/flight control or a track IR set etc. However this is really withholding me from buying the game, as I don't want to be outnumbered or anything simply because I'm using the good old mouse & keyboard.

How do you guys experience this?

I played just fine with a mouse/keyboard setup

The looking around is still doable, I just assigned the looking around keys to my power distribution keys and it worked fine.
I have a extreme pro stick now and combat is a little easier but find landing harder...weird
.
I found using a mouse that roll was difficult to control so I put the yaw on mouse instead of the default roll

 

[Commander Noobly]

I go with the cheap and cheerful Trustmaster Hotas flight x. Costs virtually nothing and makes the game much more immersive. Track Ir is nice but I do very well without it.

 

[CDR TSquared]

I am currently playing on a boot-camped Macbook (less than optimal) with mouse and keyboard. Are there some flight maneuvers I wish I could do but don't have that many fingers or the dexterity to pull it off? Yes. Is combat a little more challenging because I can't look out of the top of my cockpit in a turn? Yes. Can I still do everything I need to do in order to play and enjoy the game? Absolutely. Having the best gear is nice, but not having it doesn't break the game in any way.

 

[Sav112]

for the price of a cheap stick its worth it.

 

[CmdrThombs]

I think Track IR made the game hugely more "real", being able to turn your head slightly to look out of the cockpit windows really adds to the immersion. I run with an Xbox controller too, I hated mouse & keyboard.

 

[kwik]

There are some cheap alternatives to trackIR out there if you want to give head tracking ago. edTracker, opentrack, facetracknoir etc, and people will give ya a hand happily if you decide to try one.

As for your question however - I flew quite happily without anything other than KBM for a while, but decided to get a joystick and try out the above solutions, so I picked up quite a cheap F.L.Y. 5 and I'm currently using edTracker with opentrack.

I also have voiceattack but don't really use it at the moment - kb + joy is fine for me, but if your going to try a gamepad voiceattack could be pretty handy.

 

[SuBSynk]

I much prefer Keyboard mouse to joystick myself, once you got the keybinds where you want they its all good and mouse = very precise controls too

Have no problems with it, getting Ed tracker soon for added immersion but its defo not needed.

 

[Aewarin Jameson]

Hello everyone,

Almost everyone on twitch etc plays the game with a joystick/flight control or a track IR set etc. However this is really withholding me from buying the game, as I don't want to be outnumbered or anything simply because I'm using the good old mouse & keyboard.

How do you guys experience this?

Used to be X52Pro but my laptop has decided they dont like each other. Plus I recently broke it ... snapped one of the thumb hat switches

As a result KB & Mouse and its OK !

 

[zenoic]

I've played with keyboard and mouse then added an EDtracker then x52. The game is certainly playable with keyboard and mouse though you don't have the same fine control and ability to easily pull off lateral and horizontal thrust during dogfights. When I played with keyboard and mouse I actively avoided dogfights because I felt I didn't have sufficient fine control. EDtracker simply adds to the whole experience and makes following your target in a fight easier so shortens dogfights, I'm not sure it made the dogfights easier though. I would recommend an EDtracker over a joystick simply because it enhances the whole experience even if you're a peaceful trader. A joystick helps a lot in a dogfight and for me makes it more comfortable to play, though not essential.

 

[Nikonthenet]

I play with HOTAS and Rift, but I do at times wish I had TrackIR for its convenience over VR headset, and improved graphics.

I don't think you'd be asking this question if you weren't after the simulation aspects of the game...?

ED is a prime example of how wonderful motion head tracking and HOTAS can be. Its glorious and worth the investment IMO.

But as above, plenty are having fun with mouse and kb....

 

[Tobytyke1972]

I play with xbox control or Trustmaster both work great for the price. I also use voice attack (Well worth the $8 i paid) it also helps with immersion.

There's nothing sadder or geekier than saving "Computer Engage" and the jump sequence starting.

 

[Cmdr Gyro]

I use mouse and keyboard with no problems and actually find it very easy to control and convenient. My only binding changes are incremental speed % assigned to the keypad and C for the super cruise.

 

[adoredtv]

I'm using mouse and keyboard. It's ok but I feel like I'm fighting it sometimes during dogfights, so it's probably holding me back a little. Landing is for some reason much more difficult than when I was using the playstation controller so that's weird also.