[Lunatique]

I've always thought that if I got a keyboard/mouse adapter, I'd be able to enjoy playing FPS on a console. Well, I picked one up for my XBox, and nooooooo, it's nothing like keyboard/mouse on a PC. In fact, it's so bad that I actually prefer to go back to the controller.

So why is it bad? Well, simply because even with the adapter, you are still moving at that snail's speed when you look around, and what FPS players need is to be able to whip around 180 degrees in all directions in a split second to take out enemies shooting at you outside of the peripheral. The adapter essentially "translates" your mouse movement into the equivalent of the controler movement, but the games themselves are calibrated to the controllers, not the mouse. Then, during the translation, the adapter tries to compensate for the differences in the capacity/range of the mouse and the controller, and that causes strange snapping and stuttering of your movements. You can try to fine tune the adapter, but it really doesn't help much. The frustration it causes reminds of me trying to play piano on a little toy keyboard where the key sizes are about 1/4 of real piano keys.

I regret getting one.

[[Shizo]]

Yes. That's why i don't own a gaming console
PC ALL THE WAY BABY! Total h4x0r!!!

[Ian Jones]

Yeh, screw the console until it gets a proper mouse and keyboard. I can't game for crap on anything but a real computer.

[B0b]

yeah a few people regret buying a console

[Impaler]

It doesn't really take that long to get proficient with a controller, and once you do, you'll begin to see some actual advantages.

The button layout never changes, so you have know instantly where all 22 buttons are. What's more, the controller has ONLY the buttons you need, a feature you're finally seeing on $60 keyboards. I don't know how many times I've been killed in an fps because I hit the Talk (t) button instead of Reload (r).

The buttons are all pressure-sensitive, which adds a whole new dimension to gameplay. Playing on a keyboard these days actually feels less precise to me, especially since a keyboard only has two states (on, or off).

Everyone is on a level playing field with controllers. You can't spend more money to gain an advantage, as opposed to PC games. You're going to lose if you run up against a kid with an $80 gaming mouse and game-specific keyboard if you're still using your ergonomic keyboard and old optical mouse.

If freelook on a controller feels too unresponsive, then adjust the Look sensitivity. Halo 2 starts at 3, but I had to up it to 7 just to play comfortably. You have to remember that consoles are catering to a wider, and therefore more average audience. If the game doesn't include look sensitivity, then it was probably a conscious design choice to make the game feel more realistic. After all, when was the last time you saw a soldier in real life swinging around wildly in every direction at 300 miles per hour looking for snipers?
_________________
QED, sort of.

[Mikko K]

I don't understand people who still complain how shitty console controllers are. I've played a lot of pc games in the 90's, and now that I rarely play, I've started to realize how much better my Xbox pad really is.

I played Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory demo on a pc and boy, it was the most unresponsive and clumsy thing I've ever tried. It's really stupid to use half of the keyboard just to do simple moves that can be done easily with analogue controls of the Xbox pad.

I'm thinking that after I've played through the camera movement simulator known as HL 2, I'll never play FPS games on pc anymore. I've played Halo 2 ten times more than HL2, just because the controls are so much more intuitive and slick.

edit: and there's one more thing : immersion. I prefer using the "less accurate" pad to fire quick bursts at the enemy and take cover in Halo 2, rather than point-and-clicking enemies hoping for a head shot in HL2. Because of the accuracy that mouse allowes, I think that some of the feeling is lost. Who wants to fire at the enemy in HL2, when you really kill them only when you click those ten pixels you see when that Combine bastard is hiding behind an obstacle?

[gLitterbug]

[jinnseng]

I didn't know there was such hatred for console systems. The comparison of a keyboard to a controller seems so funny to me. A keyboard has what... 100+ keys on it? A gamepad is typically less then 20. To me there's more confusion with a keyboard layout for a game then using a standard gamepad. What would a fighting game be like played on a keyboard? It just wouldn't work right, which is probably why fighting games hardly ever get ported to PC format. I have love for PC and console gaming formats, but i'm definitly more of a console gamer.

[Lunatique]

I dont' hate consoles at all, I just hate playing FPS on consoles. I would never play a fighting game on a PC--that's a console game type for sure (and also racing games, platformers..etc). When I said I regretted getting one, I meant the adapter, not the console. I love my XBox, and I also own a Dreamcast (I bought it just to play Virtua Fighter 3, Dead Or Alive 2, and Soul Calibur) and a N64 (I got it just so I can play Conkerr's Bad Fur Day). Originally, I got the Xbox just so I can play Dead Or Alive 3, Halo, Soul Calibur 2, and DOA Extreme Beach Volleyball, but then as time went by, other great games were released on the Xbox. I'm now playing all sorts of games on it (but I don't play racing games, RTS, or platformers--Conker is the only exception).

Mikko K - I feel totally the opposite. I played both the HL franchise and the Halo franchise, and I have always felt that the Halo franchise is overrated. I think the world of HL is far more immersive, inventive, creative, original, innovative, and far better presented/executed than the world of Halo.

jinnseng - depending on the game, you can configure however you like, and that's one of the strong points of keyboards. For example, I hate using the WSAD side fo the keyboard, and I always remap everything to the numberpad side of the keyboard. I could swap out single commands if I choose to, but with a controller, you are given maybe a couple of different layouts, and rarely you are given the freedom to change single buttons at a time.

[jinnseng]

Luna, I didn't suspect you hating the consoles. It was some comments from other posters that surprised me. It seems most people here are Xbox fans. Thats actually the only gaming console I don't own. I'm somewhat of a collecter of consoles. I own a lot of the older stuff and a few long forgotten consoles like Turbo Grafx 16 and the Neo Geo home console. I'm tempted to get a Xbox for the Ninja Gaiden game, but I can't justify spending the money on it right now. Too bad Tecmo is working exclusivly with MS. One more thing, since I noticed you were a fan of Virtua Fighter 3. Virtua Figter 4 Evolution for PS2 is one of the best fighters I've ever played. I'm a big fighting game fan as well. From Street Fighter 2, the Tekken series, King of Fighters, and Virtua Fighter of course.

[watmough]

VirtuaFighter4 was the best fighting game i ever played.
I love consoles,I think they are fun...I agree with Mikko,too...I enjoy the console controllers.

[Lunatique]

[Impaler]

Ha, I thought I was the only one on earth who bought DOA Xtreme Beach Volleyball. I love you guys, so I'll be completely honest. I originally bought it for the DOA girls in bikinis. Turns out, there's an unexpectedly complex dating sim hidden inside the game. Within the first hour, I had forgotten all about the babes; gifting had become my new obsession. I scoured the shops for that perfect item, only to have it thrown away by the giftee because she wasn't a morning person, or because I was teammates with someone she didn't like. Argh. I drowned so many damn hours into that game.

It also made me a huge fan of Team Ninja, though. These guys put such artistry into their games. DOA3 is still one of the best looking games on Xbox, and it's 4-5 years old already. DOAXBV's bikinis could all be considered works of art. They're all straight-up beautiful. Ninja GAIDEN is just plain beautiful as well. DOA4 is one of the few games I'm actually excited for in this next batch of new consoles.

gLitterbug: Please. Sir. Don't take out your rage over adventure gaming's death on consoles. They don't deserve it! Sure, they've got their flaws, and there's no WoW, but how can you not look upon cel-shaded Link's face and not smirk? How can you possibly kick someone's ass in a fighter and not feel like a champ? Please. Just give Mario a hug. It will all be better in the morning.
_________________
QED, sort of.

[Lunatique]

[Mikko K]

Lunatique: Just have to say that I think both HL2 and Halo 2 are way overrated. I haven't played thru HL2 yet, but I bought it in december so that tells something about how interested it has managed to keep me. It seems to be a nice game, but I have to wonder where are those cool things that made it The Best PC-Game of All Times to Come. I feel that the hardcore pc folks are just so happy that HL2 has been pc-exclusive so far, haha.

I think both of these titles have gotten their god-game status due to heavy marketing and mass hypnosis
The competition sucks too (your Pariah thread is another reminder). It's no choice at all if you consider between the latest Soldier of Fortune or the latest Half-Life title.

Hey, Tecmo roxorz. Ninja Gaiden is one of the few games that really kept me playing for days. It's a pretty hard game, and that's very cool in a time when everything is made as safe as possible for the nonexistent casual player.

[jinnseng]

I would say most first person shooters are over-rated. I haven't had any interests in one since the first Half-Life. There's just too many of these games out there. How many Bond and Medal of Honor game does EA have to keep pumping out?!

[gLitterbug]

Overrated and Hyped? To a certain extent sure, but there are tons of people out there that liked HL2 very much, including me. I don�t want to sound like a fanboy, but the fact that so many people like it can�t be due to the hype only, because hyped games that actually suck, get their shit revealed fast in times of internet.
To me it sounds more like you don�t enjoy fps as a genre rather than those specific games, so I don�t really see a point in bashing it. I personally dislike the whole WW2 stuff thats going on lately as it seems that 50% of games nowadays have that background. Still doesn�t mean all those games suck simply because I can�t stand em.

It�s weird how topics like this always end up in becoming a mini-fight about what is better.

In the end it doesn�t matter if it�s console or pc, keyboard, gamepad, steering wheel or anal probe. Most important is that the game is good and uses the hardware that is best for it. I played through Psychonauts on PC simply because I don�t have a console to play it on. I�d have preferred to play it with a gamepad rather than a mouse and keyboard, but I don�t go out and buy a console for it, nor am I willing to pay double the price only caus it�s a console version.

I might buy me a new Nintendo when it comes out though. I hope they have a good lineup. I remember enjoying Waverace 64 very much and I would love to play some more platformers. The price is a real problem though, because paying 50-60 euros for one game is horrible and I have no rental around here.

[Mikko K]

Hype does not bother me. I really shouldn't judge HL2 yet, as I haven't completed it yet. It just hasn't struck me as 'best game ever' like it has been claimed by respectable journalists at least here in Finland.

I just think that gameplay wise, these Fps games have not gotten so much better since first Half-Life (which indeed was truly groundbreaking). Maybe it's the lack of smoothing and inbetweening in the controls that I dislike. It seems too Operation Flashpoint-style to me. You look at the enemy, aim for the correct pixels. Press shoot. Then repeat. I truly miss some nuances that games like Shen Mue or Chaos Theory have. It's not the poet/illustrator/director/drama queen in me talking, but the gamer who wants good gameplay. I don't think good games are about good stories.. They can be, but HL2 doesn't really seem that DEEP to me that just the story makes it the best game ever.

And in my opinion, Halo2 has much more intense and dynamic fighting scenarios. You can play the same combat in many different ways, and the AI works pretty well. In HL2 I felt much more like a Virtua Cop shooting range.. I'm not trying to argue about these things, it's all a matter of taste really. I just like to tell if I have opposite opinions, that's it


edit:

[Mikko K]

hmm.. double post. Wtf just happened I don't know.

edit: now that I have this extra space here, I'll say what really sucks about Halo games. The level design is too repetitive and very boring if compared to that of HL2.. It seems that the designers have thought, "well, they'll just drive through the level with Warthog anyway, let's not worry about design", hehe. Must also be because of XBox's memory limits and to keep polycounts / loading times reasonable.

[gLitterbug]

You�re right about that serious thing, but with alot of people you talk online they ARE actually all serious and start to shit you once you say something they don�t agree with. Especially if it insults their inner nerd. Most often happens with the console/pc thing or ATI/Nvidia, etc.

I wouldnt�say that HL2 is the best game ever. Not even claim that it is revolutionary, which it is not really. It�s just a solid game that makes most things right and is quite immersive. I don�t play that much games really, mostly due to my limited budget and the fact that currently there aren�t much great games out there for the PC . The last stuff I played was World of Warcraft until they patched it into another game and I hit lvl 50, where you can�t do shit alone anymore. After that I played Psychonauts, but it was done with quite fast as I couldn�t stop playing.

I actually would like to play console games, but the problem is that there are games on all 3 platforms which are exlusive to them. Getting all of them is no option, so I might just wait for the next gen ones and get me one of them if the lineup is good and the price ok. I couldn�t care less about halo 3, so it�d be either a playstation or a nintendo I guess, who knows. Maybe I�ll just stick to the pc and hope that some good games will be released.