Here is the story: I decided to buy a good and expensive controller for my PC for the first time, after 3 decades of using stock dualshocks and cheap knock-off brands. Googled “best controller for PC”, found a lot about elite series 2 controllers. Got excited about it (primarily the back-grip buttons and adjustable stick tightness), bought it.
After a month of playing Binding of Isaac I have decided to play some Doom Eternal to learn the hot new aiming technique - flick stick. Only to realize that this elite controller, that costs 130€ for the base kit, in current year, comes WITHOUT the gyro.
I honestly wish at least one of 5 reviews I watched and read mentioned this detail.
Is there any accessory I can acquire to get gyro, or would I have better luck returning the controller and buying something else?
Edit: I actually like everything else about the device, and not having the gyro is not exactly the deal breaker, but c’mon people
Problem is that even on a premium product, cost is gonna be a factor. Well, and weight.
I can think of a bunch of features that could be supported in a controller. Problem is, not everyone is gonna want everything, and if they put it on the thing, everyone is gonna pay for it. On the XBox Elite Series 2:
Force feedback thumbsticks: No (I’m not aware of anyone that makes these, but force feedback joysticks were once a real thing, useful with flight sims simulating pre-fly-by-wire aircraft, like the Microsoft Sidewinder Force Feedback 2)
It’s not widespread BECAUSE Microsoft refuses to include it in all their controllers. It’s been a standard in Sony, Nintendo, and even some 3rd party controllers like 8bitdo.
Gyro has been present in Sony controllers since Dualshock 3. All of the Nintendo controllers I ever used had it. Steam deck has it. I honestly assumed it is a standard feature.
I decided to buy a good and expensive controller for my PC for the first time,
It‘s not exactly a widespread feature
Gyro has been present in Sony controllers since Dualshock 3.
Not many PC games natively support gyro, however, because most controllers that people have on the PC don’t support it.
Yeah, it’s an input that you can use to rig something up with Steam Input or some sort of macro software, but if you don’t have a large proportion of the userbase with hardware support, game developers aren’t going to put resources into native support, and without native support, most people won’t use it.
All PC games support gyro if they’re played with SteamAPI and the controller has gyro support. You can configure it however you want, it’s just a controller function being bound to an input.
You can even add gyro support to games that never had it, like PS2 and GameCube games. Because, again, it’s just a method of input.
I‘ve have a PS3 and PS4 and can‘t think of a single game that uses this feature. When I say widespread I don’t mean the hardware, but how it is implemented in software.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a patent Microsoft just hasn’t been willing to license use of.
I remember when the Sixaxis came out. It was missing vibration. It was because Immersion sued Sony (and ultimately won) over patent infringement of rumble motors. Sony ended up having to pay somewhere around $100 million.
I bought that same controller and it’s absolute garbage. It started developing multiple problems before I realized it was too late to use the warranty. The left bumper was inconsistent, the d-pad was wobbly (more give on one side than the other), and the right stick started drifting badly. Not to mention the basic, crappy software and connectivity issues. I tore it apart and tried every fix I could find but nothing helped. I wasted a lot of money for something that felt and looked really great, but was fucking awful otherwise.
Then I did a lot of research and found the Flydigi Vader 3 Pro. It has hall effect triggers and sticks, mechanical buttons, both C and Z buttons, triggers that could actually click, a gyro, a high poll rate, Nintendo Switch compatibility, and a lot more. It doesn’t feel as premium as the XBES2 controller did in my hands, but it seems just as durable and it’s less than half the cost. Don’t let the look fool you. I HIGHLY recommend it.
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Unfortunately so much stuff on the web is astroturfed it’s hard to form a good opinion nowadays.
Even the products reviews or maybe especially these it’s hard to tell what is true nowadays and what is fiction or misinfo
Id love to brush it off and say eh just paranoid but there’s real money and motive.
Reddit was relatively good for some time but then I heard it’s already full of marketing
8bitdo controllers are good. They care about making good input devices.
That’s bizarre to me too. Everyone keeps praising the Xbox controllers for being the best and they don’t even have gyro??
People tend not to like gyro aim.
People are wrong, but I am not surprised.
whether they like it or not, it should still be included on a “premium” product, when the Wii U controllers had it!
Problem is that even on a premium product, cost is gonna be a factor. Well, and weight.
I can think of a bunch of features that could be supported in a controller. Problem is, not everyone is gonna want everything, and if they put it on the thing, everyone is gonna pay for it. On the XBox Elite Series 2:
Interchangeable thumbstick hats: Yes
Interchangeable D-pad hats: Yes
Interchangeable thumbsticks (a la the Thrustmaster eSwap): No
Rumble motors: Yes
Haptic force feedback (a la the Playstation’s DualSense): No
Gyros (a la the Playstation’s DualSense): No
Force-feedback triggers (a la the Playstation’s DualSense): No
Hall Effect triggers: Yes
Hall Effect thumbsticks: No
Extra back buttons: Yes, 4
Extra face buttons (a la SCUF Envision): No
Force feedback thumbsticks: No (I’m not aware of anyone that makes these, but force feedback joysticks were once a real thing, useful with flight sims simulating pre-fly-by-wire aircraft, like the Microsoft Sidewinder Force Feedback 2)
Pressure-sensitive buttons (a la the Playstation’s DualSense): No
Bluetooth LE: Yes
Wired: Yes
RGB LED: Yes (though apparently the XBox hasn’t historically provided access to this and Steam Input does; I don’t know if this has changed).
i get that, but adding a gyro is really, really minor, just a couple modules on a PCB
How is that bizarre? It‘s not exactly a widespread feature so most people don‘t care about it.
It’s not widespread BECAUSE Microsoft refuses to include it in all their controllers. It’s been a standard in Sony, Nintendo, and even some 3rd party controllers like 8bitdo.
Isn’t xbox the only one that doesn’t?
Yep games for Xbox don’t have it because Xbox controllers don’t have it.
Gyro has been present in Sony controllers since Dualshock 3. All of the Nintendo controllers I ever used had it. Steam deck has it. I honestly assumed it is a standard feature.
Not many PC games natively support gyro, however, because most controllers that people have on the PC don’t support it.
Yeah, it’s an input that you can use to rig something up with Steam Input or some sort of macro software, but if you don’t have a large proportion of the userbase with hardware support, game developers aren’t going to put resources into native support, and without native support, most people won’t use it.
Same thing for the haptic feedback and the force feedback triggers on the Playstation controllers. You can use them on the PC, theoretically, but just not much native support out there for them.
All PC games support gyro if they’re played with SteamAPI and the controller has gyro support. You can configure it however you want, it’s just a controller function being bound to an input.
You can even add gyro support to games that never had it, like PS2 and GameCube games. Because, again, it’s just a method of input.
I‘ve have a PS3 and PS4 and can‘t think of a single game that uses this feature. When I say widespread I don’t mean the hardware, but how it is implemented in software.
GTA IV had it for PS3, I remember.
It did? How was this utilized?
It was optional to use, you could control leaning on bikes I remember but I never used the feature.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a patent Microsoft just hasn’t been willing to license use of.
I remember when the Sixaxis came out. It was missing vibration. It was because Immersion sued Sony (and ultimately won) over patent infringement of rumble motors. Sony ended up having to pay somewhere around $100 million.
I highly recommend the Gulikit KK3 MAX, I think it has all the features of the Elite Series 2 and also Gyro and a lot more. And it’s only $80.
Hey this one looks exactly like what I expected to get, thanks!
Hello friend. I use the brooks adapter on my xbone elite gen 1 for ps4. It adds gyro and touch pad click support.
https://a.co/d/gL2oxm0
Unfortunately it says it does not support the Elite series 2.
Maybe this one? https://www.brookaccessory.com/detail/43268489/
That one does appear to be compatible with the Elite 2, but I don’t think either model supports motion control on PC, just PS4/5 and Nintendo Switch.
I bought that same controller and it’s absolute garbage. It started developing multiple problems before I realized it was too late to use the warranty. The left bumper was inconsistent, the d-pad was wobbly (more give on one side than the other), and the right stick started drifting badly. Not to mention the basic, crappy software and connectivity issues. I tore it apart and tried every fix I could find but nothing helped. I wasted a lot of money for something that felt and looked really great, but was fucking awful otherwise.
Then I did a lot of research and found the Flydigi Vader 3 Pro. It has hall effect triggers and sticks, mechanical buttons, both C and Z buttons, triggers that could actually click, a gyro, a high poll rate, Nintendo Switch compatibility, and a lot more. It doesn’t feel as premium as the XBES2 controller did in my hands, but it seems just as durable and it’s less than half the cost. Don’t let the look fool you. I HIGHLY recommend it.