Rampant Games - Game Controllers and Compter RPGs

[aries100]

The Rampans Coyote has updated his blog with his opion on game controllers and computer RPGs. After a talk about the old days, he goes on to explain how he sees this today:

Nowadays, from a technology standpoint - there's not such a difference between consoles and computers. As far as what's going on under the hood, it doesn't really matter. As Microsoft's Surface and will-conceived Windows 8 attest, mobile devices are closing the gap as well. We have HD TVs now that display text almost as well as computer monitors. And the controllers? Well, console controllers from the last couple of generations of systems have been pretty dang interesting. I'll bet you could eliminate some redundancies, put a few rare controls on a menu, and map the old Ultima controls onto an XBox controller pretty well.

An then, a quote, about how this will affect his new game:

But reality intrudes. I have to show my next game, Frayed Knights 2: The Khan of Wrath, at Salt Lake Comic Con in about a month, and ... well, people really respond better to controllers, especially when faced with a new game. The left stick and right buttons are the first to be experimented with. And - as the adventure games of the 90s illustrated, context-sensitive verbs are a pretty good thing. I really want to hand them a controller, not point them to a keyboard and mouse. So now I'm frantically re-thinking my UI in terms of game control input.

More information.

 

[you]

God I hope not; controllers on pc suck. The reason I don't use console isn't because they are console but because they don't have KB/M for their games.

 

[Irien]

Each to their own, I guess, but as someone who games on both, I hate resorting to mouse/keyboard when I can lie back in my chair with a controller in my hand. The more-or-less seemless way the 360 controller is handled under W7/8 is a real step forward in this regard, and makes playing games on the PC (always better gfx) far more pleasant.

Indeed, one of my pet peeves is that games like Mass Effect and Risen have xbox versions but don't bother to give the option of controller input. It effectively forces you to hunker down over a key/mouse which frankly sucks if you have a big screen HDMI-display on your desk/wall etc. Conversely, with a minor option change, Arcania *did*, and was lovely to play that way (game itself was less inspiring).

I know many people love mouse/keyboard, and I've been happily playing Divinity:OS on it, but equallity both myself and my wife gave up with the PC version of Divinity2 and prefer the (controller-enabled) xbox version. There's another one - they even did a Director's cut and didn't include the controller option!

I'll be back on k+m for Wasteland 2, I guess, but there's a comfort that comes from grabbing the controller and leaning back in a comfy chair, that I always miss on k+m. It *does* depend on the game, though - my beloved Might and Magic is always best on the hallowed cursor keys, maybe with a touch of mouse if I must!

 

[Carnifex]

Yeah, I'm sticking with my keyboard and mouse. The controller stays with my PS 3, and both can keep gathering dust.

 

[Deleted User]

but there's a comfort that comes from grabbing the controller and leaning back in a comfy chair, that I always miss on k+m.

Sounds to me like you need a setup like mine.

32" LCD TV 4 feet in front of me hanging on the wall
Keyboard on my lap
Mouse on the right arm of my chair (the arm is flat so I can rest a mousepad there and use it comfortably)
Lean back in the comfy chair and enjoy!

Wireless devices optional

 

[joxer]

I believe players should have a choice. Put both in and when the game is started ask the player.

Want to play a gamepad? Okay, here's horrible inventory(TM)Fable.
Want to play with K+M? Deal, here's symphonic inventory(TM)D:OS!

Just please don't assume everyone wants just what you want like those schmucks that don't put subtitles in games!

 

[Capt. Huggy Face]

I don't think it's just a question of personal preference or how comfy your chair is. The fact of the matter is, there is no way for a controller to efficiently do all that a keyboard and mouse are capable of. A keyboard simply has a ton more buttons, and a mouse is a much more efficient and accurate aiming mechanism. We wouldn't have dumbed down console games if consoles had been built with a keyboard and mouse. Of course, consoles might not have been built in that case. Feel the might of the comfy chair and tremble!

 

[greywolf00]

It all depends on the game. Controllers works for games where the number of controls required can be adequately covered and utilized with a controller. IE BG 2 not a good controller game nor are most MMOs. Just to avoid the "BG was never designed with consoles in mind" I'd counter point with DA:O on consoles and again it wasn't the right type of game for a controller and was a millions times better with K+M. Stuff like the last 3 TES games were designed with consoles and controllers and mind and work fine.

 

[gandalf.nho]

To me one, lack of proper K+M support in a PC game is one of the symptoms of consolitis, like what happened with Dungeon Siege III...

 

[Capt. Huggy Face]

Yeah, i hear you. I'm not completely opposed to controllers. I have one for my PC, though I don't tend to gravitate toward the games that require them. I used to play the hell out of the MLB games by 2K Games on the PC, which pretty much require a controller. Wish they still made those games. Same goes for Don Bradman Cricket 2014, which is an excellent cricket game, by the way. And I have my cheap HOTAS joystick for a flight sim I enjoy. They all have their uses.

 

[Dez]

Gamepad controllers - good for adventures like tomb raider, sports games like fifa, beat'em ups like tekken etc

mouse+keyboard for strategy, shooters and rpgs

 

[Zephyr]

Due to an accident years ago, I can't use a controller. I have enough function for a KB & M. If I don't have that capability in a game, I can't/don't play it. I know my situation is a true for a minority of players, but it is still a reality that I hope merits consideration with game developers.

 

[Alrik Fassbauer]

I guess it's also kind of an cultural thing ? Consoles were never big sellers here ... But the tidse seems to slowly turn towards them ?

Anyway, since I've never had a console, I greatly suck with console controllers with me leaving unable to play ANY game nowadays on fairs & cons since ALL of them nowadays exclusively have controllers attached to them ...

I just can't play them. Because of the controllers. And no play, no review from me (from Games Com, for example). Sad times, imho.