MagicPants
Still Fresh
I'm rather impressed with the 
andora1: 's controls, but Ican't help but look at any portable controller and add my own two cents.
I've never been satisfied with console controls, because they never hold up well against a mouse (in shooters anyway). I don't want to start a flame war here. But I would like to discuss the virtues of various control schemes.
When you move a mouse its position controls the position of the pointer. This is what's known as a "zero order control".
When you use a joystick its position controls the velocity of the pointer. This is what's known as a "first order control"
A throttle on a car or plane controls the acceleration of the car or plane. This makes it a "second order control" or accelerator.
So position is order 0; velocity is order 1; and acceleration is order 2.
Joysticks work well for moving a character because they are order 1 controllers and map well to velocity. It is difficult to control velocity with a mouse because their orders don't match, a mouse is 0 order while velocity is order 1. The further the order of the control from the order of what you are controlling the harder it is for you to control.
Now when you look at a zero order control there are two types: relative and absolute. A mouse is relative because you can pick it up and put it down without moving what you are controlling. A touch screen/pad is absolute because you lift your finger/stylus off it, move it ,and put it back down and what you are controlling is now in a different position.
Given that mice work so well for shooters I'd conclude that zero order relative controls are best for this sort of thing. So has anyone seen something like this on a console or portable controller?
andora1: 's controls, but Ican't help but look at any portable controller and add my own two cents.I've never been satisfied with console controls, because they never hold up well against a mouse (in shooters anyway). I don't want to start a flame war here. But I would like to discuss the virtues of various control schemes.
When you move a mouse its position controls the position of the pointer. This is what's known as a "zero order control".
When you use a joystick its position controls the velocity of the pointer. This is what's known as a "first order control"
A throttle on a car or plane controls the acceleration of the car or plane. This makes it a "second order control" or accelerator.
So position is order 0; velocity is order 1; and acceleration is order 2.
Joysticks work well for moving a character because they are order 1 controllers and map well to velocity. It is difficult to control velocity with a mouse because their orders don't match, a mouse is 0 order while velocity is order 1. The further the order of the control from the order of what you are controlling the harder it is for you to control.
Now when you look at a zero order control there are two types: relative and absolute. A mouse is relative because you can pick it up and put it down without moving what you are controlling. A touch screen/pad is absolute because you lift your finger/stylus off it, move it ,and put it back down and what you are controlling is now in a different position.
Given that mice work so well for shooters I'd conclude that zero order relative controls are best for this sort of thing. So has anyone seen something like this on a console or portable controller?
