DCS: A-10C Warthog no joystick?

[wooaa]

i like laptop gaming. i love sims like silent hunter, and i want to try DCS: A-10C Warthog. however, i if i have to use a joystick it sorta defests the purpase of playing on a laptop. so, can i play the game with no joystick?

[cichlidfan]

i like laptop gaming. i love sims like silent hunter, and i want to try DCS: A-10C Warthog. however, i if i have to use a joystick it sorta defests the purpase of playing on a laptop. so, can i play the game with no joystick?

 

I would have to say that you probably will not find it enjoyable. The ability to control the aircraft with the keyboard is not really sufficient for the flying you will need to do. Even for basic stuff I would have to say no.

 

SH4 or whichever version you are working with is built for keyboard input. I played SH4, very heavily modded, on my laptop and it was excellent but this is a completely different animal.

 

Of course, it is your nickel if you want to give it a shot!;)

[VMFA117_Poko]

This sim prefers not even simple joystick but HOTAS + head tracking device for full enjoy of its features.

[Boulund]

I'd say it's perfectly doable, just don't expect to be able to play through the campaign or go online and be competetive (or actually able to complete anything but the simplest objectives).

For procedures training and simple navigation practice I'd say it's still very playable and enjoyable. Only when I intend to actually play through a mission I get my HOTAS out, otherwise I just practice with the keyboard. I find the HOTAS a bit too big to keep lying around on the desktop all the time.

That said, I still find headtracking extremely useful, as playing the game on keyboard is quite limiting - adding another limiting factor is almost too much ;).

[hog_driver111th]

It is possible. Use the arrow keys, and the +/- on the keypad for thrust. I think your issue will come into play when you need to be going through your systems a lot, and having to do all those keypresses can be a pain.

[BoneSaw]

Wow I would have to say don't even try to play without a stick of some sort. Even with a HOTAS the learning curve is so steep that it can frustrate the most experienced simmers.

 

But hey to each their own, if you want to give it a whirl, who am I to say no?

[Kaiza]

I feel that you will regret buying it and feel you have wasted your money if you do not have a basic joystick.

[winz]

Think about it like playing a FPS with pure keyboard. Sure, you can use the keys to look around, but the unresponsivness and binary nature of keys will eventualy lead to frustration...

 

Sure you can use keys to control control surfaces, but it will be unresponsive and very clunky.

[Impact]

So you want to play a flight simulation without a joystick? But isnt that the point of a flight simulation? To simulate that stuff pretty realistic?

 

Ever seen a Hog driver flying just with a keyboard?

[MemphisBelle]

At first welcome to the Forums, and second good bye again cause I wont think that you´ll have much fun with just a Laptop without any further devices. Either you want to play the game as it is supposed to be or you wont play it at all. An interim solution is possible but not to be recommended.

[MTFDarkEagle]

Welcome to this forum!

 

On subject: I have to agree with the above posters. It would be possible to do the basic things, like flying a circuit, or just generally flying around, but to be honest, you can forget any form of combat when only flying with your keyboard. If you pick up the simplest usb joystick, you can go a LOT further, and will enjoy it as such.

[EvilBivol-1]

As others have said, a joystick is highly recommended. However, unlike others, my personal opinion is that the sim can be flown well enough on keyboard only. Most people here are flight sim junkies and to us it seems unnatural to fly these sims without at least a decent stick, but I don't think it's necessarily the case. Just expect to be spending a lot of time pressing keys and trying to click things in the cockpit with the mouse. It's not great, but it can still be enjoyable and interesting, if that is what you're going for.

 

You should also consider whether your laptop is well suited to run the product. RAM, etc.

[MemphisBelle]

Most people here are flight sim junkies

 

lol...junkies...I prefer enthusiasts. By the rest you´re right, assumed he´s got Track IR :D

[BimC]

Well you can, and so did I. But you WILL at some point realize you will need to look around while managing radio controls, slew your TGP and maneuver the bird at the same time, and then you need a HOTAS and a Track IR.

[xWARGOx]

Welcome! I think its great you want to try and engage yourself in this amazing sim but in the end, it's safe to say you will most likely start kicking puppies after a few days of using just the keyboard. I cant even imagine trying it with a hotas an no trac ir at this point.

 

I hope you dont get too turned off by most responses on this. My advice would be, buy the game, start reading the manual, and use your keyboard to start learning everything within the hawg until you have saved up for a hotas/tracIR. That way when you do have it, you will have a bigger understanding of what does what and where what is.

[Conure]

I played and enjoyed the game for a long time using just a cyborg evo. I would avoid the game without a joystick.

[BimC]

BTW you will have a hard time manoeuvring the bird without analogue control. Stall warnings and tire blow is common with keyboard.

[Bucic]

lol...junkies...I prefer enthusiasts.

As good as 'cocaine enthusiasts' :D

 

To answer the original post - to enjoy the flight experience you do need a joystick. Twice as good stick - twice as good experience. But there's a lot more to DCS A-10C Warthog than just the flight model (from another topic):

I'll be more considerate of the fact that you can have hours and hours of genuine satisfaction of DCS without even taking off at all! It's not only about learning systems. There's also spectating (is the word right?), recording videos (a perfect platform for that), mission/campaign making, participating in the forum discussions...

 

That said a really cheap joystick will be a lot better than keyboard... I'd recommend Saitek ST290 or Saitek Aviatior AV8R-01, if you're lucky enough to find it. Stay away from any Saiteks with 'Cyborg' in the name of the product.

Edited July 6, 2011 by Bucic

[rud]

I play on the keyboard all the time. You can setup some pretty good controls, and once you get used to them you can do just about everything, though air to air refueling is something I've yet to master without my X-52.

 

I use the WASD keys for the coolie hat, TFGH keys for the TMS, home end pgdn and delete for CMS to name a few.

 

It doesn't matter WHAT you use to control the sim as long as you get it so it's comfortable and you practice, practice, practice. It's just as natural now for me to hold a hat up for 1 second or hold down T for 1 second to mark my SPI. They're both just TMS up in my mind.

[LostOblivion]

While it is indeed lotsa fun sitting on the deck flipping switches, it does get boring after a few hours...don't ask.

[MemphisBelle]

While it is indeed lotsa fun sitting on the deck flipping switches, it does get boring after a few hours...don't ask.

 

I am sure the real Pilots think the same...damn switches, they all bore me...can´t I have a shortcut on this procedures? :D

[ZaltysZ]

Landing, take off, gun strafe is tricky, and air refuel or flying damaged plane is more than tricky without joystick, but in all other cases it is pretty playable without joystick. After all, this is not a sim in which you have to dogfight with guns.

[Cali]

I played and enjoyed the game for a long time using just a cyborg evo. I would avoid the game without a joystick.

 

I couldn't fly without my HOTAS and I wouldn't fly without TrackIR and I love flying.

[LawnDart]

Can you run Windows without a mouse or touchpad? Yes.

 

Is it fulfilling? No.

 

Same applies here.

[VMFA117_Poko]

Can you run Windows without a mouse or touchpad? Yes.

 

Is it fulfilling? No.

 

Same applies here.

That sums up all :thumbup: