Newcomer / Intro noob/help - flight controls are awful

[capt my capt]

cant believe i spent 40£ on a game thats not really playable with keyboard & mouse, my controller broke recently and im waiting for a new one to be delivered but im not optimistic, if youre going to charge 40 for a game like this then you might want to include a note that says 'warning - youll have to spend another 40 on a joystick/hotas cause our ships cant be landed with a mouse.....'

not impressed mr braben (although tbf it is very pretty..... im just hoping it actually works more effectively with an xbox pad )


really needs another camera angle btw

 

[Newbie]

i was in you shoes too when i bought the game trying to use a k/m as this was all new to me too (having never played space games before) but i kept at it and now im currently using a xbox 360 controller and game plays perfectly, was abit tricky getting used to the controls and what each button does but there are loads of threads out there for controller setup to help you out. hope your controller arrives soon so you can enjoy the game like i am now.

 

[FlyingBlind]

I play with mouse and keyboard because I couldn't aim at anything with my X360 pad or joystick and it's perfectly playable, I didn't even change the default controls (except pitch inversion which I hate). And yes I can hit ships from 2 km away without a problem and without gimballed weapons, in fact railguns are my favourite

 

[Firebeard]

The default keybiard and mouse set up is awful I used the tutorials to set my own bindings and run with WS being pitch up/down ad being roll left and right and mouse just being yaw - try it but find a combo that works for you and you'll find its not too hard to control once your minds in place.

 

[Painkiller]

I have been landing 5 types of ships in the last 4 months with a mouse and I earned 7 milion credits until now...(nothing else to say).

<snip>

 

[Lupin]

Do not have a problem with mouse & keyboard setup myself, but it does depend on what you are already use to.
This is not an arcade game or shoot-um up and you treat it as one you are going to die alot.

 

[Red Kite]

I played the original Elite with keyboard only (no mouse even!) and reached Elite, but I wouldn't dream of playing the present game without a joystick. It's all a matter of personal choice and since some people are playing perfectly well with mouse & keyboard there wouldn't be any sense in issuing a "warning" as suggested.

 

[Sythrix]

This game feels best with a Hotas setup IMO. However, before I got that I was landing fine with the mouse and keyboard. Get very used to using your yaw, vertical and lateral thrusters. After you've mastered that, landing is simple.

 

[cmdr lowest]

I get the feeling a lot of these threads are from people who consider Elite to be an arcade dog-fighting shoot-em-up.

ED is more of a flight simulation than anything else and the use of a joystick, while not required, is definitely beneficial. As it is when playing flight simulators.

I am currently using an Xbox 360 pad just now as it has more axis than the crappy sidewinder joystick I have. Xbox controller works fine, just lacks anywhere to map horizontal thrust so have to use the keys for that. Might pick up a cheap HOTAS in future but don't really want the house filled with bulky plastic gizmos.

 

[Newbie]

I get the feeling a lot of these threads are from people who consider Elite to be an arcade dog-fighting shoot-em-up.

ED is more of a flight simulation than anything else and the use of a joystick, while not required, is definitely beneficial. As it is when playing flight simulators.

I am currently using an Xbox 360 pad just now as it has more axis than the crappy sidewinder joystick I have. Xbox controller works fine, just lacks anywhere to map horizontal thrust so have to use the keys for that. Might pick up a cheap HOTAS in future but don't really want the house filled with bulky plastic gizmos.

check this thread out, it helped me loads and i printed the layout out to help in-game
https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=71532

 

[saintcee]

http://i.imgur.com/T105elz.png

Also try this, From C1yde on the elite dangerous reddit subforum.

 

[Protoplasmic traveler]

cant believe i spent 40£ on a game thats not really playable with keyboard & mouse

I started the game with three different joysticks and not cheap ones – I went back to mouse and keyboard and I have found targeting and fine controls to be much more effective with the mouse. I can roll accurately and have no worries about collisions or lack of fine tuning movements.

Practice makes perfect and the game is VERY playable with a mouse and keyboard - the problem is not the game, the problem is you

With mouse and keyboard

[video=youtube;PMJZamge98c]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMJZamge98c[/video]

With mouse and keyboard

[video=youtube;PbDzxRWD1e8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbDzxRWD1e8[/video]

 

[Executive]

cant believe i spent 40£ on a game thats not really playable with keyboard & mouse

Seriously... you expect a space/flight sim to be well playable with... keyboard and mouse!?
What's next, trying DCS with keyboard and mouse and then complain about the obvious?

...if youre going to charge 40 for a game like this then you might want to include a note that says 'warning - youll have to spend another 40 on a joystick/hotas cause our ships cant be landed with a mouse.....'

Are you the guy that sued McDonald's cause he burned himself with hot coffee... because it didn't say its... hot?

Besides that, you are completely wrong, the game is playable with keyboard and mouse... but of course it can't be your fault, the "flight controls are awful".

*Insert Jackie Chan meme here*

 

[Spiggs]

not impressed mr braben (although tbf it is very pretty..... im just hoping it actually works more effectively with an xbox pad )

Well if you check out YouTube there seem to be shed-loads of players managing quite well with the control mechanism. In fact DBOBE himself plays with an Xbox controller when travelling so it's unlikely that he'd make the game so it is unable to be controlled using that method. Just keep practicing and it'll become second nature in no time at all!

 

[thorn-]

Driving Sims also work better with a steering wheel controller...

Yes, get a joystick. It's more suited for the game. You CAN use a mouse if you like. And if you hate it, there are other controllers out there. I recommend a Thrustmaster Warthog, they're great.

(I won't be surprised one day if someone asked how to use a Wacom Tablet to land...)

 

[technophebe]

Have a look at the guide in my sig, it has a section on redefining the controls for mouse and keyboard.

 

[thedr4gon]

(I won't be surprised one day if someone asked how to use a Wacom Tablet to land...)

I am SO going to try that out! and complain, to go with the mainstream, and even ask for a refund.

Beside the jokes, the game is totally playable with a K&M setup and more than customizable, i even find myself stunned by my skills in artistic parking with a week of game experience. if you understand the flight physics of the game and write fluidly with a keyboard, you will be totally able to play this game with a keyboard. this said, it is much comfortable with HOTAS, that is sure. and i actually had only a bad experience with my controller, it just doesnt have all the functions I direly need.

 

[Ted Striker]

The default keybiard and mouse set up is awful I used the tutorials to set my own bindings and run with WS being pitch up/down ad being roll left and right and mouse just being yaw - try it but find a combo that works for you and you'll find its not too hard to control once your minds in place.

That's what I use except I need inverse pitch so W and mouse up point the nose down.

I'm way better with m+kb than with HOTAS but I've had years of experience with War Thunder realistic battles. Aiming precision alone is vastly superior with mouse.

 

[Elysarian]

I played Frontier and FFE with a stick (by today's standards a rather crappy Quickshot one) as I couldn't get to grips with using a mouse to aim...

Since then pretty much every PC game I've played (mostly FPS/RPG ones but also Eve Online) have been mouse only.

I bought ED on boxing day after my nVidia driver update reminded me of its existence >.< - I had a quick go at the combat training and realised there and then that the control system wasn't suited to me at all - I couldn't hit the side of a barn with the weapons.

The very next day I went out and bought myself a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro stick, I'd say I'm now as proficient as BITD when I was flying around in FFE (probably more so as ED forces me to fly outside of dogfights where I had autopilot and a docking computer in FFE!).

I haven't gotten into a dogfight "for real" yet as I'm saving credits by trading to save for better ship and equipment for that

 

[ermtony]

I played the original Elite with keyboard only (no mouse even!) and reached Elite, but I wouldn't dream of playing the present game without a joystick. It's all a matter of personal choice and since some people are playing perfectly well with mouse & keyboard there wouldn't be any sense in issuing a "warning" as suggested.

Pretty much my experience. And the X55 arrives tomorrow

PS love the sig, as another Yorkie.