Analogue pc joysticks on Amiga

pubzombie · 26 January 2015, 18:48

Hi all,
I have an older pre USB analogue joystick for my old pc (sort that plugged into the sound card).
I fancied trying it on some old flight sims on Amiga and Elite etc - I have seen adapters made in the past and sold online. Just checking - do these work ok (was gonna get one from Amigakit) and are the safe?
Also fo they work on all games or just flight sims?
Thank you.
Steve

Mrs Beanbag · 26 January 2015, 19:41

my dad once rewired a PC analogue joystick to work on Amiga, it seemed fine.

they will only work on games specifically programmed to use them. they won't work as a normal joystick.

Jope · 26 January 2015, 19:54

An ancient post with some games with analogue support. It is not a very long list. :-D

http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=252205&postcount=6

Mrs Beanbag · 26 January 2015, 19:56

hmm, maybe potential for WHDLoad mods here, put analogue stick support into, eg, Starglider

pubzombie · 26 January 2015, 20:51

Yeh - would be great to get more support for analogue sticks, I want to be able to play Sims and frontier without constantly having to bob the stick

andy · 27 January 2015, 07:34

I was writing a few hours ago about analogue and the adapter I bought back in the '90s, Steve! I still have the adapter from then and a box of sticks too. It's been an impossibility for a long time but I yearn for a USB stick to get the same sort of game input on the PC today! Xbox 360 pads are good but they're not always ideal...

Getting to your questions, Formula One Grand Prix (F1GP) and Gunship 2000 were the big games with it for me and as with steering wheels that would later follow on the PC and consoles, that fine control transformed the experience of them both. As well implemented as other options are, there's no substitute for being able to gradually make a turn or maintain a speed or angle as you're able to with an analogue stick in these two games.

Oh, no problems on my 500+ after years of use either - just that brilliant analogue input compared to digital sticks or keyboard!

Jope · 27 January 2015, 07:56

I never knew that FA18 Interceptor also did analogue. I should have tried that when I still had an analogue PC gameport stick. Damn.

Nekoniaow · 27 January 2015, 08:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jope

An ancient post with some games with analogue support. It is not a very long list. :-D

http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=252205&postcount=6

About as long as the list of games which support all three buttons allowed by the joystick port!

Also it's interesting that all these games are vehicle simulators.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrs Beanbag

hmm, maybe potential for WHDLoad mods here, put analogue stick support into, eg, Starglider

Good idea, however this is massive work since this requires modifying all the input handling code while preserving the existing gameplay. For games which translate the binary impulses of the joystick into an analog state because their engine requires it (typically simulators) that could work since one would essentially need to short cut the binary to analog conversion but for those where impulses are directly translated to action any change would radically alter gameplay.

This said it's definitely worth trying.

pubzombie · 27 January 2015, 08:36

Well for starters I have F19, Red Baron and Knights of the Sky to play - YAY

Mrs Beanbag · 27 January 2015, 13:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nekoniaow

Good idea, however this is massive work since this requires modifying all the input handling code while preserving the existing gameplay.

Starglider is controlled with the mouse IIRC

Daedalus · 27 January 2015, 16:39

I built an analogue adaptor right into my towered A1200 so I could just plug the standard 15-pin D connector straight in. Worked great in Birds of Prey - awesome game in "realistic" mode with analogue!

Edit: Never mind, I se F1GP on the list after all... It was excellent with analogue control though, and IIRC it supported multiple buttons for gear changes.

Supamax · 27 January 2015, 23:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jope

I never knew that FA18 Interceptor also did analogue. I should have tried that when I still had an analogue PC gameport stick. Damn.

Me too, I didn't know

.
F/A-18 Interceptor was one of my favorite games on Amiga!

Is there a way - in WinUAE - to emulate an analog joystick using the PC mouse? (without buying a real analog joystick, I mean)

zipper · 27 January 2015, 23:26

Analog Joystick Adapter was available, I did use a Flightstick thru it, Jet Pilot for instance.
Well, seems still be available @ Amigakit.

Mrs Beanbag · 28 January 2015, 21:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Supamax

Is there a way - in WinUAE - to emulate an analog joystick using the PC mouse? (without buying a real analog joystick, I mean)

funnily enough i was considering the possibility of doing the opposite, and making some kind of adapter that would allow to use an analogue joystick as an Amiga mouse

Jope · 29 January 2015, 09:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Supamax

Is there a way - in WinUAE - to emulate an analog joystick using the PC mouse? (without buying a real analog joystick, I mean)

That's something for support.Winuae, but why don't you take a look at the input config editor. I haven't checked, but if it can be done, that's where you're probably going to do it.

Hewitson · 29 January 2015, 14:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by pubzombie

Well for starters I have F19, Red Baron and Knights of the Sky to play - YAY

I had no idea Red Baron existed on the Amiga. I really enjoyed that game on the PC when I was younger.

strim · 29 January 2015, 16:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrs Beanbag

funnily enough i was considering the possibility of doing the opposite, and making some kind of adapter that would allow to use an analogue joystick as an Amiga mouse

Actually, some of these PSX adapters allow to use Playstation pad analog sticks as Amiga mouse. So that should be perfectly doable

.

Supamax · 29 January 2015, 22:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jope

That's something for support.Winuae, but why don't you take a look at the input config editor.

Do you mean the .uae config file I'm using?

Quote:

I haven't checked, but if it can be done, that's where you're probably going to do it.

I don't know if it's possible, but even if it was I took a look at the config (.uae) file but the mouse/joystick section is so complicated that I wouldn't know what to modify..

Jope · 29 January 2015, 22:37

You don't have to edit the config file directly, winuae's gui has a section called input and that's where you should look.

Toni Wilen · 30 January 2015, 08:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by Supamax

Is there a way - in WinUAE - to emulate an analog joystick using the PC mouse? (without buying a real analog joystick, I mean)

2.8.0b8: "- Some kind of physical mouse as digital/analog joystick/joypad support. Not that good but perhaps better than nothing."

Game Ports panel: set mouse in port 2, set type to "analog joystick" (select box under the device selection). Can't get any easier.

(PC compatible game pad is much better solution..)

26 January 2015, 18:48	#1
pubzombie Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: westmids Posts: 900	Analogue pc joysticks on Amiga Hi all, I have an older pre USB analogue joystick for my old pc (sort that plugged into the sound card). I fancied trying it on some old flight sims on Amiga and Elite etc - I have seen adapters made in the past and sold online. Just checking - do these work ok (was gonna get one from Amigakit) and are the safe? Also fo they work on all games or just flight sims? Thank you. Steve

27 January 2015, 23:26	#13
zipper Registered User Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: finland Posts: 1,838	Analog Joystick Adapter was available, I did use a Flightstick thru it, Jet Pilot for instance. Well, seems still be available @ Amigakit. Last edited by zipper; 27 January 2015 at 23:31.

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26 January 2015, 19:41	#2
Mrs Beanbag Glastonbridge Software Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Edinburgh/Scotland Posts: 2,243	my dad once rewired a PC analogue joystick to work on Amiga, it seemed fine. they will only work on games specifically programmed to use them. they won't work as a normal joystick.

26 January 2015, 19:54	#3
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,862	An ancient post with some games with analogue support. It is not a very long list. :-D http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=252205&postcount=6

26 January 2015, 19:56	#4
Mrs Beanbag Glastonbridge Software Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Edinburgh/Scotland Posts: 2,243	hmm, maybe potential for WHDLoad mods here, put analogue stick support into, eg, Starglider

26 January 2015, 20:51	#5
pubzombie Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: westmids Posts: 900	Yeh - would be great to get more support for analogue sticks, I want to be able to play Sims and frontier without constantly having to bob the stick

27 January 2015, 07:34	#6
andy Back. Join Date: May 2002 Location: UK Posts: 121	I was writing a few hours ago about analogue and the adapter I bought back in the '90s, Steve! I still have the adapter from then and a box of sticks too. It's been an impossibility for a long time but I yearn for a USB stick to get the same sort of game input on the PC today! Xbox 360 pads are good but they're not always ideal... Getting to your questions, Formula One Grand Prix (F1GP) and Gunship 2000 were the big games with it for me and as with steering wheels that would later follow on the PC and consoles, that fine control transformed the experience of them both. As well implemented as other options are, there's no substitute for being able to gradually make a turn or maintain a speed or angle as you're able to with an analogue stick in these two games. Oh, no problems on my 500+ after years of use either - just that brilliant analogue input compared to digital sticks or keyboard!

27 January 2015, 07:56	#7
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,862	I never knew that FA18 Interceptor also did analogue. I should have tried that when I still had an analogue PC gameport stick. Damn.

27 January 2015, 08:36	#9
pubzombie Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: westmids Posts: 900	Well for starters I have F19, Red Baron and Knights of the Sky to play - YAY

27 January 2015, 16:39	#11
Daedalus Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Dublin, then Glasgow Posts: 6,335	I built an analogue adaptor right into my towered A1200 so I could just plug the standard 15-pin D connector straight in. Worked great in Birds of Prey - awesome game in "realistic" mode with analogue! Edit: Never mind, I se F1GP on the list after all... It was excellent with analogue control though, and IIRC it supported multiple buttons for gear changes.

29 January 2015, 22:37	#19
Jope - Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Helsinki / Finland Age: 43 Posts: 9,862	You don't have to edit the config file directly, winuae's gui has a section called input and that's where you should look.

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