Why do PC Gamers Oppose Using a Controller?

[4RT1LL3RY]

I'm a PC gamer but I don't hate on controllers. They are better for certain games and I use it for them. Racing games, platformers, third person rpg's. I do prefer mouse and keyboard for anything first person though. Elder Scrolls and FPS is general.

Poorly done Keyboard and mouse controls in PC ports do bug me though. I wish mouse sensitivity in Dark Souls didn't suck so I could better aim for my bow only build. Bad mouse acceleration in PC ports is so common it hurts.

 

[Daveman]

I don't think we are. I think we're opposed to HAVING to use a controller. We're pro-choice typically. Hell, my friend would switch between keyboard and controller mid-game when playing Just Cause 2.

 

[Mausthemighty]

Because some are too engraved in their "PC Master Race, Mouse & Keyboard are superior to everything!" mindset to realize that controllers are not only better for certain games, they have been a part of PC/Computer gaming since the very beginning. In fact, back in the 80's keyboard controls were considered inferior to a proper joystick controller. Granted, part of that is due to the fact that back then most games were arcade conversions and having a joystick made it feel more like being in the arcade, but still. Having a joystick was considered essential in that era. And then there were certain games, believe it or not, like X-Wing vs. Tie Fighter (which was in the late 90's, but it still serves to back up my point) which wouldn't install if they didn't detect a flightstick plugged into your computer...

Controllers for PC/Computer games have been around since the dawn of PC/Computer gaming. Acting like you shouldn't use them on a PC just shows not only a massive amount of idiocy, it also shows a complete lack of knowledge of the history of the very platform you like to game on.

Yeah, some. Like a very small minority.
Most of the pc-gamers are not elitist pc gaming master race people who look down on the unwashed masses. Like most of the posts here it isn't about our imagined "superiority" but about practicality and personal preference. Some games just don't work with keyboard and mouse and some games are perfect for them. And it's the same with gamepads. That really doesn't mean people like me look down upon people who play consoles. I find it really awesome that people can play with that much buttons on a gamepad and those analog sticks, because I can't for the life of me figure out how they work.

 

[Evonisia]

I wasn't aware that PC Gamers were opposed to using controllers, of course I don't know any statistics. Using both is easy for me, although I'm not the best keybinder in the world nor do I use mouses designed to have extra buttons for gaming purposes.

 

[frizzlebyte]

I don't oppose using a controller, but my problem with it personally is that, if I already have a great controller in the m/k setup, why not make the PC version of a game usable with that setup, a la the first three Splinter Cells? Games like Assassin's Creed are ass to play with m/k, and there is no real reason for that other than having zero optimization for them.

EDIT: And I have no trouble using a controller, actually. I just don't see the point in needing one for PC.

 

[Drops a Sweet Katana]

It depends on individual games and genres. For FPS's and RTS's, I prefer mouse and keyboard. For anything that has the camera separated from movement, like Assassin's Creed and Rockstar games, or games focused on vehicles controllers are the only way to go for me. Each have their advantages and disadvantages.

 

[Sofus]

Why do PC Gamers Oppose Using a Controller?

We don't oppose the option to use a controller, we oppose the idea that a game on the pc shouldn't be perfectly optimised for kb+m.

I personally can't properly hit anything while I play with a controller. To me, the tumbsticks are unintiative and unprecice when compared to a kb+m.

A controller is awesome when all you have to do is lock on to a target or something like that, but in games such as Mass Effect, Mafia 2 or Dead Space 3 I end up wasting so much ammunition and failing to kill enemies as fast as I can while I use a mouse.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

Keyboard has around 50+ buttons, a controller has around 15. And a lot of PC gamers play games that make use of every button, like RTSs or more in depth FPSs. And the precision of the mouse, when you grow used to it.

It's also what you were raised on instead of actual usability.

 

[irok]

I'm in the I own a controller and I use it for pc games basket, when dark souls came out on pc and people were all like this is a horrible port the controls suck ass having a Xbox controller meant that I didn't have to deal with random spinning and jerky mouse controlled camera movements and Ive used it for a few other games but there are a lot of things for which is not appropriate, shooters ~ no , rts ~ no, any mmo/rpg that has a control scheme that clashes horribly ~ no, but things such as plat forming or 2 games/fighters overwhelmingly yes my friends who are into fighting games would say things about Z-movements and stuff like that but it boils down to certain games being harder to play on the KB/M then on a keyboard, that and personal preference.

Not everything can be used with controllers and I think the default reaction to controllers is I don't want to buy this thing ill only use for a couple of games to slightly improve my "gaming experience" I shouldn't have to as games should be able to be played perfectly fine with a keyboard, which is fair enough.

 

[mrgerry123]

My method is simple. First person games and strategy games played with keyboard and mouse.
3rd person= controller
2d platformer= whatever I feel like

I used to use just keyboard and mouse but now I appreciate being able to slouch on my bed playing games

 

[Doom-Slayer]

I have heard many current PC gamers describe needing a controller for a PC game as "heresy," and a lot of the replies to this threat seem to support that. My question is, if needing a joystick to play PC games was acceptable back in the 90s, why is the same not true of controllers?

Joysticks and things similar are used because they enhance the experience of gaming by adding something the keyboard/mouse combination cant. Joysticks are easier to use for flying games than trying to use a mouse/keyboard, pedal/steering wheels are better for racing games.

A controller doesnt do that. They offer less precision than aiming with a mouse so they arent adding anything for fps games, they dont have enough buttons for more complex games.

Controllers are designed to be held with two hands, because you play on consoles on your TV sitting on your couch. YOu sit playing computer games usually at a desk, so having a controller in two hands has no benefit either.

Its not that we are opposed to them, its just that they arent designed for it, and dont offer anything we want.

 

[kingthrall]

I have heard many current PC gamers describe needing a controller for a PC game as "heresy," and a lot of the replies to this threat seem to support that. My question is, if needing a joystick to play PC games was acceptable back in the 90s, why is the same not true of controllers?

Joysticks and things similar are used because they enhance the experience of gaming by adding something the keyboard/mouse combination cant. Joysticks are easier to use for flying games than trying to use a mouse/keyboard, pedal/steering wheels are better for racing games.

A controller doesnt do that. They offer less precision than aiming with a mouse so they arent adding anything for fps games, they dont have enough buttons for more complex games.

Controllers are designed to be held with two hands, because you play on consoles on your TV sitting on your couch. YOu sit playing computer games usually at a desk, so having a controller in two hands has no benefit either.

Its not that we are opposed to them, its just that they arent designed for it, and dont offer anything we want.

jOYSTICK ARE AWESOME AND FULL OF JOY, ITS JUST A SHAME THAT NO PUBLISHER HAS RELEASED A DECENT DOGFIGHT GAME FOR THE PC IN AGES! My god im all goeey inside for this idea of a star wars remake of the X-wing alliance game.

 

[RaNDM G]

I love using my controller for games as long as they don't involve shooting. Though this is mainly due to me being a lazy bum wanting to sit back in my chair while playing. Anyhow, I don't have anything against controllers.

I actually want kind of a crossover between K/M and controllers. Replace the keyboard with a pad with an analogue stick and loads of buttons up and left of it, the other hand on the mouse as usual. Perfection.

Spoiler: Something like this might catch your fancy.

I will always prefer a controller, mostly because I grew up with the SNES and N64, partly because there's less to worry about than the 100+ keys and near infinite number of commands available on a keyboard. Of course, I won't have the same level of precision in shooters. But there's more of a tactile feeling, a greater sense of being in control of a game when I have my hands wrapped around a controller. A row of buttons can't give me the same feeling.

My only exception is with RTS and point-and-click games. Starcraft is impossible to play with a controller, and as engrossing as Walking Dead is, the analog sticks were a pain to use for quick-time events. Still if I had to pick, I'd rather go with a game-pad than without one.

 

[kingthrall]

Pretty sure the term "Master Race," is pretty much the epitome of "discrimination."

it makes no sense considering technology isn't exactly beaming of any lifelike properties to consider it a member of any species in the first place.

 

[Da Orky Man]

I've used a controller on console and mouse/keyboard on PC. All-in-all I prefer mouse and keyboard, and not only because I have a great fondness for RTS titles, and I doubt Total War games would work well with a controller.