D-Pad or Analog

[bloseth]

I used to use the analog, but my hands kept cramping up, and I had to learn using the d-pad. Now it seems to work better for me than the analog ever did. What are you guys using? :robot

[phl0w]

Always analogue (neGcon). Unfortunately the PSP's analogue nub is crap, so I had to get used to the d-pad. Although while it worked great with Pure, with Pulse's sensitive controls and its track's many long, sweeping bends, I am in desperate need of a proper analogue input method.

[bloseth]

I never had a negcon, but I used analog in wo3 of course (and fusion), but I was mainly thinking of the PSP, now. I totally agree that the PSP-analog is leaving a lot to be desired. I wonder, has it been changed anything in the slim version of the console?

[jacen]

d-pad all the way.
tried analog stick once ... but i have to big hands to reach it comfortably.
also, i have to remap accel to SQUARE and fire to X for me not to cramp.

[bloseth]

You know what? I really miss having an extra set of shoulder buttons. That would have made absorbing weapons and using weapons a bit easier... *sigh*

[MarcoM]

D-pad in Pulse. The analogue stick is crap for racing games on the psp. It does work for other games, but not for racing games.

[bloseth]

I actually think I liked using the analog in Ridge Racer, but that's a game with an entirely different tempo.

[jacen]

You know what? I really miss having an extra set of shoulder buttons. That would have made absorbing weapons and using weapons a bit easier... *sigh*

i only have problems absorbing because i absorb with CIRCLE with my right index finger. so i can't absorb when i need to turnbreak right.
this could be solved if i switched backlook and absorb so i can absorb on TRIANGLE with my thumb ... but i am so used to this setup ... no way i gonna adapt.

[bloseth]

My solution is pressing the x with the joint of my thumb, and using the tip for weapons and absorbing. Works most of the time, but the angle of the hand when absorbing is not very good, and sometimes screws up my flow...

[ZenDJiNN]

ALWAYS the analog stick, and NEVER the D-Pad. I have tried with the D-Pad but it's just too slow & jerky (For me anyway) and i always go back to the Analog stick. I'm a very "Light handed" player (I don't bash the controls around & i don't push the buttons any harder than i have to) so i find the Analog stick works really well.

[orgy]

i dunno if it's just me or my psp, but i have the feeling that the analogue stick is just too slow. im more precise and faster with the d-pad.
though i might still give the analog stick another chance.

[Tomahawk]

I'm using the nub (analog) steering. Have done so for pure and I'm still doing so for pulse. I just never got the hang of doing proper barrel rolls with d-pad... For all other wipeouts I use NeGcon.

[Neverdown]

I use the nub now, but I do barrel rolls with the D-pad. Might want to switch to the D-pad in general, but the distance to the left-shoulder-button feels really weird then.

[Vincent_VII]

I used the nub exclusively for almost a year with Pure. I was playing Initial D (also with the nub) and found the game almost uncontrolable. A friend suggested trying the D Pad and Initial D became instantly playable! I quickly pulled out Pure and attempted a few laps with the D Pad - same story. Pure felt about 50% more controllable. I never looked back and continue to use the D Pad with Pulse.

I have found that the nub works great for action or shooter titles on the PSP but not very well for racing titles.

[zerojay]

I've only used the analog nub for both Pure and Pulse. Makes those long turns smooth instead of tap, wait, tap, wait, tap...

[Hyper Shadow]

I use D-Pad all the way. I hate the nub on the PSP, and the d-pad is only a little better. But I've used the d-pad right from the start of playing WO, so its hard to break a habit.

[tapioca]

I only use the nub. It's just what i need for a better control on the pitch on Platinum Rush Phantom (i love this track, it feels like riding waves at high speed).
And for the barrel roll, i found that a quick circle instead of left-right-left works very well !

[Stardragon88]

Hmm I only use the D-pad, the nub just seems too far away from the L button and it screws up my left airbraking.

[Asayyeah]

dpad for psp , neg for older ones :p

[Hail Seizure]

D pad for all Wipeouts. :p

Also, Square for accellerate, X for fire and triangle for drop/absorb. One of the things that really annoys me in Fusion is not being able to reassign the buttons (but you can at least turn off the analogue-ness of the buttons and D pad, which is a great feature and should definately be included in Wipeout HD, since it probably won't be compatible with the original PS1 digital controller that I use for all current console Wipeouts).

[Rapier Racer]

Older games don't get much of a look in these days but it was neggy for them. D-pad on PSP I find the nub is not as sharp for control as the d-pad and I don't even want to think about trying to barrel roll with it.

[ZenDJiNN]

Here i am, racing some really great guys online (T-Rex29 being one) and all i keep doing is hitting walls and trying REALLY hard to get a decent line. :g

I use the Analog almost exclusively, and wondered what others used & why? I'm thinking of using the D-Pad instead but find it really slow & difficult. Any hints or tips? ... Please!! :D

[Alucioj]

Im not an expert, only just bought Wipeout and playing online found I was last every race almost lol (Im playing the grids more to get up to scratch).

Personally though I prefer the D-pad out of choice/habit for computer games. I havent tried to use the analogue with Pulse but I reckon Im more accurate with the D-pad. Its all down to choice though. Maybe the experts have valid reasons for either. I have only used the PSP Analogue for Pes6 as all the reviews suggested to use it and having tried both; the Analogue for Pes6 was far more accurate and precise in movement......however I have Sega Rally also and I tried the analogue once and it didnt feel too precise for me to persist with it.

[BARTgai]

i use the D-pad as the analog stick is a pain for me. i may switch at some time, but most likely i wont as the stick is in a weird place. :)

[bloseth]

See: http://www.wipeoutzone.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4392

[ZenDJiNN]

Thanks for the link bloseth. I did do a search before i started this thread but could only find stuff related to other Wipeouts & not Pulse! :) I shall go read right now & continue in that thread.

Thanks also to Alucioj & BARTgai for your answers. It's fascinating to find out how people play their games & why they use either controller! :)

[infoxicated]

I thought it better to merge the threads - good work bloseth. :+

[Therealmat]

I use the D-Pad, I've never really tried the analog stick. :D

[Frances_Penfold]

i use the D-pad as the analog stick is a pain for me.

That's my take as well-- whatever possibility that I might actually like the analog nubbin is destroyed based on it's placement in the extreme lower corner of the PSP :(

I'm still glad though that Sony didn't swap the current positions of the d-pad and the nubbin, however.

[ZenDJiNN]

Well it certainly works well for you Frances, you were almost "Uncatchable" many times. :g I've been trying to get used to the pad, but it's difficult. I shall keep trying though, because i feel that it's worth being able to use both. Most of the really fast racers seem to use the Pad, so there must be something in that? :)

[swift killer]

d-pad all the way

[MAMUTH]

i used analog stick for quite some time back in pure, but later i started to use d-pad and now i can´t imagine i would go back to analog... plus its much easier to perform barrel roll

[realityhole]

I have always used the D Pad, the analog stick just doesn't feel respnsive enough for me, and my massive hands make it hard to use, I found that a good control setup is to have accel as circle, absorb as triangle and fire as x, then you have lookback as sqaure.

[ZenDJiNN]

That's interesting realityhole. I've often seen posts where poeple have changed the accell button etc, and re-mapped the whole lot according to what works for them. I've never tried this myself, but i think i might just to see what kind of difference it makes to racing.

I've been trying to use the D-Pad the last week or so, just to get used to it a bit more, but i find that i almost always slip back to using the stick, and the scary thing is that i don't notice my hand doing it! :)

Who's in control here.... me or my hand!? :g

[lunar]

you and me seem to be the only people left in the world who use the stick. I`m finding Pulse steering so different to Pure, so I have decided to experiment with d-pad, just today, and did exactly the same thing - totally forgot to use the pad and did a couple of laps with the stick instead, all the time thinking "this d-pad isn`t too bad actually" :dizzy I think the pad may be more precise in the end, but I`m feeling a bit disconnected with it and I`m so slow getting into a BR. I`ll just have to force myself to stay with it and hope it comes good.

[wich]

I can't bring myself to use the nub on the psp, it's just in a way too uncomfortable position when you also need to use the left trigger and completely screws up the symmetry of left and right airbraking.

Also I actually find it easier to do BRs with the d-pad than with the nub, I can just roll my thumb over the middle to do them.

[BravePotato7]

I started out with the analog stick, but the d pad is so much more comforable and easier :)

[Nadia Elenova]

I've used D-Pad in Pure for a long time, then swiched to analog and I found it easier and faster when I got used to it. So in Pulse I also use analog.

[ZenDJiNN]

I've used D-Pad in Pure for a long time, then swiched to analog and I found it easier and faster when I got used to it. So in Pulse I also use analog.

Hmmm, you, Lunar & myself seem to be pretty much the only ones using the analog stick in Pulse. :) I'm sure there are a few others as well, but we're definitely in the minority...... strange.

I'm still using the nub..... as Lunar said, everytime i use the pad i find myself (Almost unconsciously) going back to the nub without even realising that i'm doing it.... :)

I've tried the pad a few times, and i must admit that there are a few times when i suddenly think... "Yeah, this is working OK!" and then i hit a corner or somesuch and Wham!!:) That's when i revert straight back to the nub, vowing never to touch the "evil D-Pad" again! ;D

[swift412]

I tried using the D-pad for an hour or two, but I prefer the analog :)

[Intera]

I used the nub in pure and up until a few days ago I was using it in pulse.

Overall though I think I prefer the D-Pad. The nub has it's perks, I do find it easier to use on series' of sweeping corners and for more "smooth" racing. Thing is though I find it very hard to make small adjustments left or right using the nub (even on straights), which caused me to miss pads frequently, so I've went to using the D-Pad.

[Dragoon111]

D-pad forever!Although i would give the analog one other chance but i cant work with it quite well so i use to only "no important" races.

[RJ O'Connell]

D-Pad. It was the only choice other than neGcon for WO1 and XL. There's something about playing any Wipeout using the D-Pad that just feels right.

And I don't like the feel of the PSP analog stick anyway. >_>

[P52Smith]

Always the D-pad
the analogue stick's far to jerky for delicate control and too slow for quick reactions, I'm a teenager so I have fast fingers!

[Jake]

Analog. Once you get used to it, (for me) it's much better than tapping away at the d-pad.

[Argo91]

I use the D-Pad. :)

[P52Smith]

As I said

I find the stick too sticky and slow, I've pulled it off and cleaned it since but it's still no good

[jklasdf]

No way guys, its the analog stick all the way for me. I find it easier on the thumbs.

and barrel rolls are a lot easier, i think, with the stick.

plus, its easier to hold ur nose down and turn at the same time if u use the stick. if i try that with dpad, im all over the place.

good for courses like amphiseum white near the end if u choose to barrel roll off the cliff, that way u dont hit the screen over the finish line and it makes the sudden sharp turn way more navigable

[blixabargeld]

D-pad since 2097, but in pulse at phantom class is terrible for long turns...

[Harvai]

Used to use the d-pad with 2097, but after playing a boatload of W3 with the analog stick I find it really hard to use the d-pad in Pulse. So I use the stick/nub/twirly bit.

[Albino Ace]

D-pad forever - whether its 3, or Pulse. :P I tried the stick for a bit, but it felt harder to control that way...

(Yes, I just got it yesterday, incase you all wonder. And while I'm in parentheses, yes, the avatar does not lie. I've tried all the ships on Phantom, even Piranha. And since that sucked for me, I'm not even going to bother trying Triakis. o_o)

[Skvall]

One thing that makes analog impossible for me is that the PSP stick is both crap and badly placed. So its D-pad without question for me.

I dont know if the dualshock analog is good enough to use either actually. I guess it wont be as good as neggie. I will see if I prefer D-pad or analog when I get my hands on WOHD. Oh wait gotta try the motion sensor too! xP