Learning to use a controller

[Xyebane]

Hi everyone,

I'm a PC gamer and was brought up with a mouse and keyboard, but it seems like a lot of games are designed to be played with a controller, the controls feed very awkward with my trusty mouse and keyboard. I have a 360 controller but I am afraid I have never developed the muscle memory in my thumbs to use it well, yet I would really like to try games like Dark Souls, Witcher 3, and Shadows of Mordor. Yet using the analog sticks with my thumbs leaves me spinning uncontrollably. Can anyone recommend some games to try to learn to use a game pad? That isn't too taxing on controls?

 

[Pseudonym]

Ehm, well geometry wars is a score attack game so no matter how good you are you should be able to get some fun out of it even if you get completely rekt. I recommend geometry wars 3: dimensions evolved. It has a good amount of content for a decent price. It is a twin stick shooter so pretty much designed for a controller and if you completely loose all your games you can go to classic mode and play some pacifism. That'll allow you to practice with a single stick at a time before having to do anything else. Other options? Do you have some RPG that you can play with a controller on easy? That way the combat isn't immediately the focus and you have more leeway to screw up whilst walking around.

edit: a year or 5-10 back I was in the same boat as you, trying to play halo 3 on xbox rather than CE and 2 which had been made available to the master race. If you can find a game that you really like, regardless of being bad at it for a while you can practice on that game. It makes the process of learning more bearable if you are playing something you like.

 

[Mister K]

OK, so, I think you can try to play Valkyria Chronicles. It has a nice mix of turn-based and real time gameplay elements and execution wise is not really hard.

 

[Evonisia]

I recommend starting on 2D games, especially platformers like say Rayman Origins (don't know whether uPlay is necessary there). Not too taxing controls wise, but still require usage of most buttons on the controller at some point. In Origins you get new controls at a steady pace so you can learn to incorporate using more buttons in combination with your thumbsticks organically, and you can always go back to previous levels to practise some more. Makes it easier to move on to 3D games with the controller.

The likes of Valkyria Chronicles and XCOM: Enemy Unknown can help as well, especially XCOM which requires very precise movement with the thumbstick for fear of missclicking and sending your soldier somewhere wrong. Thankfully they're turn based so you can make sure you know what you're doing.

 

[Maximum Bert]

Id say just play a game you enjoy rather than a game you are playing just to familiarise yourself with a controller. I can use most controlers pretty easily especially from the SNES era onwards and while I dislike using the mouse and keyboard for most games even some that are technically better with it i.e shooters I can use them fairly well it just takes practice. I just persevered enough with a game(s) I liked to become comfortable with the controllers. Although for PC the fact I use one a lot for work means I found it easy to switch it up and use it for gaming as well.

I am currently trying to learn an arcade stick for fighters so I do understand your pain. I havent had that game that has really pushed me to go for it over controller yet but I think SF5 may be the one as I vastly prefer the stick for 6 button 2D fighters and I have slowly acclimatised to it through very casual and infrequent practice. When I first got it I could not even do quarter circle forward moves consistantly but now I can do double QCF moves and 360s etc pretty much everytime just like I could on controller before juts takes practice and time.

If I absolutely had to reccommend a game I would go with a 2D platformer like Rayman Origins, Shantae and the pirates Curse, Shovel Knight possibly Ori and the Blind forest etc.

 

[SmugFrog]

Rhythm games (or a game with a lot of QTE's) are good to help you build your memory for which buttons to press. If you're having trouble with the analog, try adjusting the sensitivity settings a bit and see what you like more.