1565

I’m hoping it’s the Midwest wasteland.

1566

So…now then?

1567

WISH-I-HAD-A-SIC-BURN-GIF.gif

1568

As per usual I’m behind. I just started, for the first time. Just a few graphical mods, but playing with a gamepad rather than a mouse. Killed the first dragon and am now dragonborn.

I’m good at not reading about games I haven’t played, so I am pretty sure everything will be a good surprise.

Any recommendations on remapping the gamepad or am I just being stubborn using it?

1569

It’s kind of designed for gamepads (part of the reason why so much modding had to be done re. the UI for the PC - but also the pacing of the game generally, the combat, etc., are strongly influenced by what makes for decent gameplay on those … things we laughably-ironically call “game controllers”) so I think you’re ok :) I wouldn’t spoil your playthrough by changing horses in the middle of the stream, play the game as Bethesda intended it, then start screwing around with it. The game Bethesda made, without any further modifications, is a cracking game in itself.

1570

The console game is designed for gamepads, but it plays so much better (like pretty much any first person game) with mouse and keyboard on PC. Even before you mod the UI, which you should do at some point. But if you can tolerate playing with a gamepad, hey, it’s certainly viable.

1571

Any suggestion that it plays “better” with mouse and keyboard is so much bullshit. Try both, see what you like. You may have to do more work to get a setup you like on a gamepad if you’re using mods that change the interface or add a requirement for more hotkeys, but if you enjoy the gamepad it’s worth it.

I run a custom controlmap, so I have more favorites and a button free for Dual Wield Parry.

1572

There are pretty self-evident advantages to the mouse and keyboard setup, including easier aiming and inventory management, more hotkeys, etc. These may not outweigh a personal preference for using a gamepad, but that doesn’t make the gamepad the optimal way to play.

1573

That’s kind of true out of the box, because out of the box it’s pretty clunky for m/k, and better suited to those hilariously ineptly-named things we call “controllers”. But once it’s modded up with SkyUI and a few other bits and bobs, it’s waaaaaay slicker with m/k.

But I’d still say that if one has started one’s first playthrough with a controller, there’s no point spoiling the vibe by trying to change over to m/k. Finish the game that way, enjoy it that way, then feel the power of m/k and SkyUI, MCM, all the cool mods (STEP is the best starting point for anyone new to modding I think), etc., etc., to enable you to tailor the game to your perfect fantasy sandbox (and you can even change the combat quite radically to be more complex and more suited to m/k too).

1574

I don’t agree that it’s better suited to gamepads out of the box (although it’s not a great PC UI by comparison to other games in its genre), but mods certainly tip the scale even more so.

1575

Or as a grown-up would say: I don’t think it’s better with mouse and keyboard.

1577

Wait, wait, wait. What’s all this about dual wield parry? That must be a mod, never seen that in vanilla.

Edit: Nevermind, it is.

1578

Skyrim is great when played with the mouse & keyboard on PC. That said, I prefer using the gamepad because I want vibrations when I hit things, and I like running the game with as few mods as possible at the same time.

1579

It’s a decent mod, although it’s really sensitive to high script latency. Also, the “new” 3.x version, last time I checked, was buggy compared to the old 2.x version. I use a copy of 2.52 (I think) I have locally.

http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/9247/?

1580

That’s the conclusion I reached. I just wish the favorite setup was a little more intuitive and less clunky. Oh well. I think Wasteland 2 is about to knock Skyrim right back to my backlog.

1581

Moving is more accurate with the gamepad. Analog WASD is just not as precise, ironic as that my seem to be.

1582

True, but aiming with a bow & arrow has to be better w/ a mouse.

1583

It is. If I’m playing a character that uses a bow I’m pretty much tied to the m/kb, but for everything else the controller is OK. I tend to prefer a controller because kicking back and relaxing while I explore is how I like my Skyrim.

1584

I’ve never understood what people mean by this.

I tried playing console games a few years ago when I was living with a friend who had an XBox - tried Halo, Dead Space, some military style things. I just couldn’t stand it, and I couldn’t see anything about movement per se that was any better than WASD and mouselook. The whole experience felt restricted - i.e. my movement felt restricted to a certain medium-slow pace. Movement, shooting, everything.

I suppose it’s just what you’re used to. I only got into games with Doom on the PC so that’s what I’m used to. I think in those days the “analogue” movement on a controller may have been better than non-mouselook and directional keys on a keyboard, but I can’t see how there’s any comparison now with WASD and mouselook.

1585

The left analog stick allows fairly precise degrees of movement speed, something you can’t really emulate with WASD.

This is really emphasized in a game like Tomb Raider where I’m often slowing to a brisk or slow walk while I’m either examining the environment around Lara or trying to avoid attracting attention. Keyboard controls only allow full on run or base walking speeds. Whether or not this is important to the player will vary, of course.

Skyrim is a tiny bit more enjoyable for me with the much smoother movement of a controller rather than the jarring run or walk transitions.