Gamepad problems

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pompeybear

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Have bought a gamepad (USB rumble control pad same as a PS2 gamepad) from game. But I cannot get it to work on brothers in arms at all. When I test it the z axis and z rotation are the wrong way round (up is left,down is right). I am very new to PC's so please put it in idiots terms what I should do. Or should I get a different gamepad that will work with FPS.

Any help at all would be appreciated or I am going back to X box and PS 2 .
 
There may be some options in the game to reverse the axis. Does it work in the control panel joystick tests? (Start > Control Panel > Game Controllers).
 
On the tests it is back to front also, tried it on a flight sim, joypad worked except these were still back to front. But I want to work on first person shooters and I can't get any game to recognise the gamepad is even plugged in.
 
Well can anyone recomend a gamepad to buy which I can use with FPS, that is easy to get up running and works?
 
I bought a Saitek Rumble Pad P2500 from Game about a year ago now, especially for playing Vice City on PC. It is nearly identical to the PS2 pad but only has 2 buttons at top instead of 4 on PS2, and has 6 right joypad buttons instead of 4 on PS2.

Having used it for about a year now it has been fantastic, and my axis were always the correct way around.

You could try uninstalling and then re-installing the pad, but make sure you follow the installation instructions, as mine instructed me to ONLY plug in the pad after I had got to a certain part of the installation.
There is a small chance that there could be an error in the construction of your pad, so if all else fails, return it to Game and explain the problem and they should simply swap it for a new one - please try to re-install it first though, and any other suggestions that are made here.
 
Cheers mate, have tried re installing lots of times so off back to the shop it goes I think. Is it difficult to get a game pads to work on games that says it recommends mouse and keyboard? Like I said I have no idea about PC's at moment but am learning all the time. Once again thanks for helping me out, very frustrated at present !l
 
Usually, the game has to provide support support for a gamepad, although some games allow you to manually configure them under control settings.
 
ummm... is this for Ps2 or PC, cause if it for PC then why would you want to use a gamepad for a FPS?? Theres no better combination then Mouse and keyboard.
 
Alf said:
ummm... is this for Ps2 or PC, cause if it for PC then why would you want to use a gamepad for a FPS?? Theres no better combination then Mouse and keyboard.
Click to expand...

I was about to say that myself. Using a gamepad for a fps puts you at a positive disadvantage.

As for gamepads, I have a couple of Logitech Cordless Wingman Rumble Pads, they're great, would thoroughly recommend them.

Mine are the older design, managed to get one half price in Currys of all places when they were discontinued, Logitech now have a revamped version on the market.
 
Hey Flops, i see that you have a MX1000 mouse, how are they?
 
Am now the proud owner of a logitech gamepad which lets me use a profiler to play fps with and guess what........after all the messing about to set it up, I am starting to agree with you guys about mouse and keyboard being better. After 20 years playing consoles (Coleco vision CBS was my first one! I do feel old now) it is hard to teach an old dog new tricks ! Thanks again fellas, at least I know I can get help when I break the pc (again) .
 
Why would anyone want [need] to use a gamepad on a PC? You've got to be kidding me...

I've been using computers for 20 years now, taught them for 6 at a community college. I've NEVER had joint problems. This past year, I hooked into World of Warcraft. After only 7 months of playing, I have blown the joints out of the fingers of both of my hands. I've not played WoW for 6 months. The damage is permanent, time isn't making my joints get better.

The thumb is 5 times or 20 times stronger than an individual finger (one of the two, 5 or 20). Playing video games on a keyboard/mouse, you strain the tendons or ligaments of your fingers. You hold keys down, you aren't just clicking. If you get excited during gameplay, you press harder unknowingly, putting termendous strain on finger joints. I've played the X-Box until my hands cramped up and I couldn't play anymore. After a few days, my hands got better. I can't say that about PC games using a keyboard/mouse interface. Why would you use a gamepad to play PC games? Because it's infinitely more ergonomic than playing on a keyboard (okay, not infinitely better, but 5 or 20 times better). Sure, people can play games on a mouse/keyboard for a few years before it will catch up with them, but rest assured, it WILL catch up with them in just a few years, if they're true 'gamers'. I know [3] former WoW players who have who have blown their hands out playing World of Warcraft. Interestingly, they've all filed workmen's compensation claims of Carpal Tunel (sp?), trying to blame it on their occupations.

In GTA Vice City (for the PC), I do find the occassion to jump to the keyboard or mouse, especially aiming and firing weapons accurately. Still, for things such as holding down an accelerator, running, sprinting... anything requiring holding down a button, I would strongly recommend using a gamepad. It might not seem to be bothering you short-termed, but it will catch up with you long-termed. There is a reason that all new games for the PC are gamepad-enabled, it's called ergonomics.

BTW, I'm using a Logitech 2.4 GHz Rumblepad 2 USB. It's not a perfect solution, but I wish I'd have been using one a year ago ... I'd still have perfectly functional fingers today.

Just my 2 cents and 10 minutes of writing, hope it helps someone... Jim
 
Hello Jim, welcome to the forums :)

Frankly my friend you're talking a load of crap.

Not my fault if you've got weak body structure.

Listen up.

I'm 56 and have been playing fps's with keyboard/mouse for the last 12 years.

And too frequently to be proud of, I'm afraid :o

Lemme see now, how do my hands and wrists work?

Well well, I can still pick my nose and flick a bogey no problem :)

You are a scaremonger, methinks.

Have a nice day :)
 
Greetings to Mr. Genetically-Superior and all others listening in...

No, I'm not a scare-monger. I'm 46, and my story is 100% true, right down to knowing 3 people filing workman's comp claims after playing WoW for a little over a year each. The 4 of us have identical, tendon-stress finger joint problems (the two joints after the 'knuckles', both hands, index through ring fingers). At my height, I was typing 120+ wpm. I've been typing that fast for almost 20 years, since I got out of the military and started college in 1988. I've slowed down on the typing somewhat the past few years, but I'm still faster than many 'professional secretaries', even with my hands hurting terribly as they do today. Typing isn't the problem (press-release), it's holding the buttons (hard and too hard) during excited gameplay that leads to the problem. BTW, at college I _taught_ Programming, Networking, Ergonomics, Operating Systems, and Hardware/Software Debugging-Repair.

So, I guess my first question for Mr. Genetically-Superior should be, what do you do on a computer or for a living, and how long have you been doing it? I have a long, hard history on computers, reasons why the problems caught up with me 'so fast'. Have you typed volumes for the past 20 years, as I have? Are you playing games more than 8 hours a day non-stop, 7 days a week? After 13 years in the business of computers, I'm semi-retired (a disabled veteran), and I've been playing games against teenagers (and 20-somethings) for more than 8 hours a day for the past 7 years, mostly on X-Boxes and PS2s until I joined World of Warcraft. I've statistically surpassed or outright beat everyone at every game I've ever been challenged on (every game that I liked enough to bother with), and I was an expert tank gunner in the Army. At least in all those respects, I am genetically superior to most.

By all means, consider me an idiot and keep doing what you're doing. If you're playing half as much and half as well as you imply, it WILL catch up with you too. It's only a matter of time. Just don't bother trying to claim Workman's Comp like the schemers and scammers when it hits you, because you've been formally forewarned. Happy gaming!

As for everyone else, do and think what you will, everyone in this world does anyway. If you're looking for a recommendation from someone with both knowledge and experience in these matters, I've given my recommendation and stated factual reasons for my 'opinion'. Other experts must apparently agree with me, or new games wouldn't all be coming out gamepad-enabled, and PC gamepad sales wouldn't be on the rise.

With or without a gamepad, happy gaming, everyone!

Jim
 
Oh dear. Oh dear dear me.

A veteran expert tank gunner eh?

No problems with our self confidence there then eh?

So I'm genetically superior am I?

Maybe, maybe not, I survived cancer so I can't be that superior. I'm just a regular human being I guess.

Seems to me you may have been suffering from a compulsive disorder there, gaming that much.

No, I'm not that sad I game 8 hours a day though I must admit one or two days a week I may come close to that figure.

I guess, on average, I game about three hours a day, current favourites are CoD4 online, Timeshift and Halo 2, all on PC and all with Keyboard/Mouse.

Have I typed volumes for last twenty years as you have?

On and off, yes, a bit.

I started typing in Fleet Street in 1969 and have been typing ever since, though not regularly.

Listen Bud, just cos you messed up and have a compulsive obsession, don't assume we all do.

And as for Veteran, as I understand it, our Forces guys have to do at least two tours of duty and have seen active duty before they can utter 'veteran'. That's a term that's bandied about too loosely imo.

If you do meet that criteria I apologise and I salute you.

From what you're telling me/us on your posts, I'm not sure whether to be impressed or pitiful.

Whatever, nope, I can't match you.

Still say keyboard/mouse is best though ;)
 
:) Hello again, England I presume? Wish I was there, that's for sure! My ex-wife is there in Cornwall, lucky her!

Yes, I was an expert tank gunner in the US Army (1981-1988). I am a veteran, with 2 tours of active duty in Germany during the Cold War, and five holes in my head from surgeries the last year I was in (it was my intention to be a lifer). My military disability is why I'm 'semi-retired' instead of being gainfully employed.

My disability, and being semi-retired at an early age, has led to boredom, which in turn led to video games (initially on gaming consoles). I live in an inner-city in the US, which has led to a lot of the younger crowd hanging out, which only added to the 8+ hours a day gaming 'syndrome' I've had going for a while. (It also added to the challenge, being older playing against much younger people with potentially quicker response times) No compulsive disorder, just the only challenging thing to do on many days, boring as retired life can otherwise be.

The 'genetically superior' thing came from your comment about my possibly weak body structure ... nothing more. It isn't simply a matter of 'my hands are weaker than most', and I really am above average in most respects, just as my former posts imply. I don't brag on that, or live my life with some weird superiority complex. But in the world of Forums where people don't know me, I have to state my credentials somewhat in order for people to believe my opinions are based on knowledge, intelligence, and experience. Please don't 'pity' me, I've gotten enough of that from being labelled a 'disabled veteran'. It is okay to be somewhat impressed by my 'resume' though; it's all true, and I've earned the right to be a little proud of it.

To be fair, as I even stated in my first post, I agree that certain events in games are better played on the mouse/keyboard (examples: selecting targets, aiming and firing with a mouse vs. a thumbstick). There is a certain element of control and sensitivity that a thumbstick cannot match. It's why the mouse lives, while the original 'joystick' model never made it big in computers. But for many and even most things one does in a video game (travel by whatever means, for example), using a gamepad will inarguably save some wear and tear on people's hands (depending on how much they play). Example: travel in WoW consisted of constantly holding down both the left and right mouse buttons while using mouse movements to aim your character. That will get to everyone, over time. I would still have to recommend using a gamepad, because their operation is +90% thumb control, and the thumb is considrerably stronger and more durable than a finger. Even having a gamepad (and the dual option of keyboard/mouse for my PC games), I admit to using the option to jump to the mouse, or hit the occassional tab key. I'm not trying to get rid of important peripherals completely, and I do acknowledge their superior traits.

The only reason I can think of for me to have posted as a 'scare-monger' would be if I had a vested interest in getting people to buy gamepads. I do not. I don't sell them. I don't manufacture them. I don't own any stock interests in any peripheral companies (or any corporation, for that matter). I am not trying to stimulate any market. That would be the only logical reason I could have for trying to get people to buy gamepads, other than my sincere and factually-based belief that it's truly better for people in the long run, especially gamers who play their games a LOT. I want people to use their computers, and I also want people to be able to continue to use their computers.

Lastly, I am sorry about your cancer, but I'm happy that you are a survivor and that you are around for us to have this conversation. I didn't have cancer, I had some kind of sinus infection that was eating its way through the bone of my skull and into my brain. Of that, I am 'cured', although I have chronic sinusitis now, as well as severe trouble with weather changes (causing headaches, mood swings, personality changes, and unemployment) from all the holes in my head. All in all, I'd say, "nice meeting you". :)

Take care, Cheers, or whatever you may prefer!

Jim
 
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