Frontier Pilot Simulator

Frontier Pilot Simulator

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Set your gamepad like this, ditch your joystick
By dinosaur
IMHO Out of the box setup for the gamepad can be improved by binding the throttle to the right stick. Read on.
   
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Custom keymappings only apply to the profile you are in.
You can experiment with different control setting schemes by using different profiles. The keybindings don't carry over from one profile to another.
Put your joystick back in the closet
A lot of people move to joystick so they can get the sliding throttle. I did as soon as I remembered where mine was. The gamepad triggers have variablity, but I never found it comfortable. Constant thrust incremental changes aside, it starts to feel like full up, full reverse, or zero, a lot like the keyboard, really. I wanted that throttle, though, and moved to joystick.

But I realized I can get the same tactile control as a joystick throttle by doing this:
Forget looking around with the right stick. Map the throttle there.
Use the D-Pad to look around.
It's what I pulled the joystick out for: incremental, tactile throttle control.

In 'controls' submenu of settings
Under category FLIGHT
1. Map the thrust in all modes to the right stick y-axis.
2. Unmap the four functions from the D-pad.
The functions you take off the pad are for flaps, open the hatch, and load and unload. Clear them.
You'll be willing when you try this setup. Learn the keys: TYU (you will use these) and Tab (you won't be using flaps for a long time if ever). Re-map them somewhere else; see below about putting them under FLIGHT 1.
3. Change the view left right up down to the four directions of the D-Pad. Remove the right stick mappings and set the 4 ways to the D-Pad. Use the keyboard settings as a guide. Center the view is still on right stick button.
4. Clear yaw in all modes; no yaw motion mixed in with the throttle.
IMPORTANT:
Also,
when you push left shoulder for lateral maneuvers, you set all controls to category FLIGHT 1
5. Map the thrust in all modes to the right stick y-axis.
6. Change jetpack strafe left / right from right stick x axis and set it to left stick x axis
7. set yaw in all modes to right stick x axis here
Now when you hit the left shoulder button, the left stick moves you forward and back and strafes you left and right, which is pretty natural, while the right still runs the throttle and will yaw only.

When you release the left shoulder in hover mode, the left stick still rotates you as usual. Gentle moves will yaw you without flailing around.

In fixed flight mode the left stick rolls you left and right, but small moves with the left stick will yaw, and adding left shoulder will give you explicit yaw, just ruddering over to fine tune your course.

TRIGGERS STILL WORK
What's really nice is you can use the right stick for throttle, or still use the trigger to override to full or take a rest. Constant thrust mode can be adjusted by either the trigger or the stick.

This makes left shoulder under constant control a very nice way to land especially with heavy loads.

Don't use left or right shoulder; they are mapped to trigger the other control schemes. Leave them as they are: Left shoulder lateral moves (FLIGHT 1), right shoulder answer NPCs.

Coincidentaly, I realized this is how to put those other keyboard commands back on the gamepad: Put these commands under FLIGHT 1. (Tested. Lovely.)

Good luck! My joystick is sitting on the floor, unplugged. I'm not looking at it. Flying better than ever.
5 Comments
TommyGuns 20 Nov, 2024 @ 6:42pm 
That gave me a serious headache man.
EliteForceQc 12 Mar, 2019 @ 12:15pm 
Xbox controler:I keep the default setting and just bind the Roll on Bumper (LR/RB) .. That way you can move trought obstacles without loosing momentum in VTOL. And its look very great and realistic.

I never use the other controle mode .. and i use the keyboard to answer NPC.
Radwulf 23 Nov, 2018 @ 1:16pm 
Thanks for your explanation.
I really enjoy the game too and hope the devs will add features/events in order to develop a community (as SCS have done for Euro/AmTruck Simulator).
dinosaur  [author] 23 Nov, 2018 @ 1:03pm 
No issue, but my Madcatz Xbox gamepad didn'tt seem to work like that; and I would have thought it would too. I just went in and checked, and yeah there is the variablity on that input; i'll edit that bit.

I do however like it on a stick so much more, as I did the joystick throttle. I find it so much more comfortable. Each hand has its own segregated thing to think about.

I was using a joystick, and liked that too. Then I had this idea, and it worked so well for me I got excited. This game had me excited for a bit.

So, I just don't touch the triggers anymore. That's for shooting things, I figure. Don't want to retrain. But to each their own; thanks for reading.
Radwulf 23 Nov, 2018 @ 10:49am 
"The gamepad just gives you the same control as a keyboard: full up, full reverse, or zero, with constant thrust incremental changes. Just like the keyboard, really."

Thanks for you message but I don't understand the issue.
With my X360 gamepad, when I press the trigger halfway, I got only half of the power.