Playing PC Game with Controller > Mouse + Keyboard

Ok, this isn't to start a flame war, rather to have a friendly discussion, cuz I'm bored.

I always see PC gamers bash playing games with anything other than mouse + keyboard, but I think that is being narrow minded.

I'm a strictly PC gamer (I own the M14x Alienware and have no consoles), so you have some context where I come from.

I generally prefer to play most games with a 360 controller (barring RTSes like Starcraft which isn't feasible).

Here's why:

Immersion.

Having vibration is great, when I hold a controller, I feel more like I'm holding a weapon, when I press R-trigger to shoot, it feels more like shooting a gun than clicking a mouse button. When I race a car with a controller, it feels more like driving than with a keyboard.

Now, I know mouse + keyboard defenders will say that the controller is nowhere near as accurate...guess what, I agree 100%. Shooting with a mouse is very easy...but again, I feel less immersion, when you shoot a real gun, its not as easy as pointing a dart at someone. Hence, imo, a controller's less accurate controls actually make shooting more immersive.

Also, force feedback is really a nice feeling.

Just my 2 cents.

 

Shooting a gun is pretty easy in real life if you're properly trained. I can definitely aim and pull the trigger on a real life weapon faster than a controller.

Also I don't think that holding a controller feels anything like holding a real weapons. There are certain games which a controller is just better (fighting games, 2d brawlers, twin stick shooters, ect), but a majority of the time it isn't.

 

well, its more like holding a gun than mouse and keyboard

just like how touchscreen games are even worse in terms of immersion

tactile experience is very important for me

also, another benefit I forgot to mention is I like to play in bed (cuz Im very lazy)...which is possible only by using a controller

 

Lots of games that support controllers seem to still allow the keyboard to remain active as well as the controller. If you really want the "immersion" of the vibration, just stick the controller next to you while you play on the keyboard.

No one will argue that the keyboard is about the worst input device for driving games.

Sure, triggers feel nice for shooting guns, but the entire analog sticks overwhelmingly ruin it before you get to take the shot.

The awesome thing about PC gaming is the options we get in choosing and configuring our input devices. Console players must defend their controllers to the end, as it is the only "option" they have.

 

This is really more of preference, shooters having grown up with doom, doom 2, wolfenstein 3d over the years. mouse keyboard just comes more natural.

fighting games, driving games, console ports, flight sims (if supported) is much better for me to play using a game pad.

 

For me, a 360 controller and a mouse-and-keyboard are both so far removed from holding a weapon that I don't worry about immersion. I go with the one that works better for shooters, which is mouse-and-keyboard. I'd rather that the "challenge" comes from the game itself rather than the control scheme.

Outside of shooters, though, the answer is not always the same. For adventure games (Batman: Arkham, Amalur, etc), a mouse-and-keyboard setup doesn't feel as natural. It works, but you can tell it'd just feel more right with a 360 controller. For flight sims, while a joystick is best, a controller is better than a mouse-and-keyboard (because the thumbsticks are mini-joysticks). And for platformers, a controller is WAY better.

 

Tangent: why isn't there a mouse-and-mini-keyboard controller option for consoles? I mean, if I can plug a $200 steering wheel into a console to play Gran Turismo or Forza, why can't I plug in some sort of mouse-and-keyboard setup to play Halo or Resistance?

 

I just can't help but feel slower when using a controller. Granted, some games are excellent for one, but I'd never do a FPS on one.

 

I'd assume for balancing reasons? as mosue and keyboard would have significant advantage over controller users...and would make console games (shooters) too easy as games were designed with controllers in mind

 

What controller has force feedback?

 

xbox360 controller...alot of pc games incorporate force feedback when you play with the 360 controller (ie crysis, bioshock 1, need for speed games, etc)

 

Mouse + Keyboard for FPSs any day. I can play very well with the 360 controller but I'm still very reluctant to play an FPS without a mouse + keyboard.

For anything else that doesn't always have a cursor on the screen, however, I always use a controller.

 

I think you mean vibration.

 

I love my xbox 360 wireless controller for PC. I game on my bed too while looking at a 120 inch projector image on the wall in front of me. I mostly use the controller for games like Skyrim and Batman Arkham City, but also have a wireless Keyboard + Mouse so I can play even RTS style games while on my bed ^^ so comfy!!!

 

I use my PS3 Controller. It feels great playing racing games on it. Heck, I even use it in Battefield for vehicles for precision because I hate mouse-rowing constantly.

 

Although I grew playing on consoles, I wouldn't say that the controller is superior to the keyboard and mouse, and neither would I say the opposite. There are just some games more comfortably played using a controller and some games that are easier to play using a keyboard and mouse.

 

I tried using a controller and it seemed convenient, but I just don't have the same muscles in my hands that I used to have 20 years ago when playing 8-bit NES.

My hands started cramping after 30 minutes and I had to go back to using my wireless trackball mouse plus nostromo NumPad

 

There are quite a few mouse/keyboard setups that work with PS3/360. ( http://www.amazon.com/PS3-FragFX-Controller-Mouse-Playstation-2/dp/B001V6WZQ4) I had a buddy get a mouse for his PS3 and swore it made a world of a difference when playing CoD (for the better).

I think mouse + keyboard makes shooters and games like batman feel pretty stale, however it bumps up the power curve for playing a little more extreme. I actually can't wait for the day that they make a co-op/multiplayer game where one person can play on the main monitor and another person can play on an external monitor/TV on the same computer (ie: play something like a co-op shooter where P1 is playing on the notebook screen and P2 is playing on a TV hooked up via HDMI - I realize this only targets like 2% of the gaming population of people that play computer games and want to play with friends, nevermind the GPU power needed to make that happen and be stable... but I can always dream).

 

I only use a controller for racing games such as Need for Speed. Otherwise, it gimps my performance significantly in other genres.

 

I have an Xbox 360 controller and bounce back and forth. For something like Battlefield 3, the keyboard+mouse combo is a must. But Arkham City felt far more natural to me with a controller in my hands.

 

Myself, I prefer using a mouse and keyboard in most instances. I just like having the option to directly navigate through menus with ease via the mouse or hotkeys as well as having more accessible buttons on my keyboard/mouse when playing an rpg. I don't really play shooters so I cannot really comment on that, and sports games for me can really go either way.