Which should I get to enhance my gameplay?

[progamer 14]

Which he should I get a joystick, TrackIR or pedals? I have the money for only one or the three things right now and want the one which will best enhance my gameplay. I am an avid pilot but I am stuck with infantry in the alpha.

[deepfried 1]

What input devices are you using to fly at the moment?

[Nicholas 5]

TrackIR can be used while you're playing as infantry or while you're driving/flying any vehicle in the game. I would suggest you get TrackIR first.

I have a TrackIR and love it.

[deepfried 1]

TrackIR can be used while you're playing as infantry or while you're driving/flying any vehicle in the game. I would suggest you get TrackIR first.

I have a TrackIR and love it.

I've wondered before, does TrackIR make flying harder? I ask because I rely quite a bit on the fixed forward view to get a good feel for the orientation of the helicopter, I can happily skim hilly terrain at 1-5m at high speed that way. Being able to look around the cockpit would be more realistic, and I imagine would greatly improve your situational awareness and make it easier to land without 3rd person... but as its not real life and you don't have gravity telling you what angle you're at to the ground, doesn't it get a bit disorienting?

[progamer 14]

What input devices are you using to fly at the moment?

Keyboard and a gaming mouse.

[Beard 10]

I've wondered before, does TrackIR make flying harder? I ask because I rely quite a bit on the fixed forward view to get a good feel for the orientation of the helicopter, I can happily skim hilly terrain at 1-5m at high speed that way. Being able to look around the cockpit would be more realistic, and I imagine would greatly improve your situational awareness and make it easier to land without 3rd person... but as its not real life and you don't have gravity telling you what angle you're at to the ground, doesn't it get a bit disorienting?

It can take a bit of getting use to. I actually had a hard time adjusting to infantry combat with it. What I did for awhile though was bind trackIR's "center" and "pause" option to my mouse 4 and mouse 5 buttons. So If I get disoriented I just push pause and trackIR becomes inactive, or if I find that where I'm holding my head now is making me look off to the left in-game I press the center key and trackIR will then center itself to my new location. Having used it for awhile now I can hardly imagine playing with out it. You'll laugh at how often you find yourself moving your head around attempting to look about in other games that don't support it.

@ProGamer: Personally I'd say go for the trackIR as it'll help you in all three areas. If you plan to do a ton of jet flying or helicopter piloting, which it looks like you plan to do, then a joystick is a viable option too, but I'd even narrow it down to just jet usage. I actually don't use my joystick anymore and have moved back to a keyboard and mouse as I can actually aim better on attack runs. That said, I still use the joystick for transport stuff.

Pedals are totally awesome, but for how expensive a decent pair are I'd rather go with trackIR or a joystick for sure. I think you'll get more return out of those two.

[AbortedMan 1]

I used to be in the same position as yourself and had the same dilemma when I started playing Cliffs of Dover...I took a guess at what I should do and got a Logitech G940 joystick instead of a TrackIR, which I got some months later...

As soon as I got my TrackIR, I knew I had made the wrong choice in getting the joystick first. TrackIR adds SOOOOOOOOO MUCH immersion and awesomeness to any game that has headtracking enabled. Even compared to the free alternatives (FreeTrack, FaceTrackNoIR) TrackIR is a whole 'nother ball game of headtracking accuracy and responsiveness.

My (imo, highly valuable, was-in-your-same-shoes) suggestion, get the TrackIR and just use a $17 Logitech Extreme 3D Pro joystick for now until you can get a real HOTAS and pedal setup.

[My Fing ID 0]

I used to be in the same position as yourself and had the same dilemma when I started playing Cliffs of Dover...I took a guess at what I should do and got a Logitech G940 joystick instead of a TrackIR, which I got some months later...

As soon as I got my TrackIR, I knew I had made the wrong choice in getting the joystick first. TrackIR adds SOOOOOOOOO MUCH immersion and awesomeness to any game that has headtracking enabled. Even compared to the free alternatives (FreeTrack, FaceTrackNoIR) TrackIR is a whole 'nother ball game of headtracking accuracy and responsiveness.

My (imo, highly valuable, was-in-your-same-shoes) suggestion, get the TrackIR and just use a $17 Logitech Extreme 3D Pro joystick for now until you can get a real HOTAS and pedal setup.

1000 times this. The Track IR adds so much depth to a game that uses it. I literally cannot play simulations that don't use it. It's that important. While you're at it you should download Rise of Flight (it's free). Nothing like using the Track IR to find the enemy, keep your eye on him while you get in position, and line up your gunsight all with your head, just like you would IRL. Very immersive. As for using it in Arma on the ground, well it's nice but you already control your view with the mouse so it seems redundant outside of vehicles. That said it is nice to be able to go in one direction and still look around, and in vehicle it's a big help.

[progamer 14]

I used to be in the same position as yourself and had the same dilemma when I started playing Cliffs of Dover...I took a guess at what I should do and got a Logitech G940 joystick instead of a TrackIR, which I got some months later...

As soon as I got my TrackIR, I knew I had made the wrong choice in getting the joystick first. TrackIR adds SOOOOOOOOO MUCH immersion and awesomeness to any game that has headtracking enabled. Even compared to the free alternatives (FreeTrack, FaceTrackNoIR) TrackIR is a whole 'nother ball game of headtracking accuracy and responsiveness.

My (imo, highly valuable, was-in-your-same-shoes) suggestion, get the TrackIR and just use a $17 Logitech Extreme 3D Pro joystick for now until you can get a real HOTAS and pedal setup.

Which version of TrackIR should I get?

[Planetside 1]

the rift

[progamer 14]

the rift

But the retail version will not come out for quite some time right?

[Planetside 1]

But the retail version will not come out for quite some time right?

a couple months, the dev versions got shipped out awhile ago.

[progamer 14]

a couple months, the dev versions got shipped out awhile ago.

No, the dev version will be shipped in may and the the retail ones months later.

So which version of TrackIR should I get and were can I get it for the cheapest in Canada?

Edited March 13, 2013 by ProGamer

[Iroquois Pliskin 0]

Track IR 5 is the latest one: comes in Basic & Pro versions. The 4th generation is probably going to be 30-40% cheaper than TIR 5.

To answer the topic: TIR > Joystick > misc.

[progamer 14]

Track IR 5 is the latest one: comes in Basic & Pro versions. The 4th generation is probably going to be 30-40% cheaper than TIR 5.

To answer the topic: TIR > Joystick > misc.

We're would I find these items for the cheapest price in Canada as I am low on money at the moment?

[Iroquois Pliskin 0]

Amazon most likely; I've no idea about outlets/retail in North America. :)

[Fuse 1]

I've dabbled in flight sims for years and have tried FreeTrackNoIR before. As soon as I quit my first session of A3 Alpha I went online and started to part out a FreeTrack 3point clip.

I'm waiting on parts at the moment, so I can't report on how well it works, but I've heard nothing but good things about Freetrack. It's freeware headtracking software and you build the IR assembly your self and use a webcam with a light filter. You don't need any experience with electronics, you can find plenty of walkthroughs for how to build it. Or you can use TrackIR's clip, which is still much cheaper than a full TrackIR set up.

Again, haven't tried it personally in A3, but you can probably use FaceTrackNoIR to get a taste and see how you like it. Just requires a webcam and the software, but doesn't work nearly as well as IR tracking.

I can't wait for my LEDs to arrive so I can get mine built.

Edited March 13, 2013 by Fuse
Corrected one instance of "Freetrack" to "Facetrack"

[dragula 12]

i use TrackIR 5 work great. wish would work on all games.

[deepfried 1]

a couple months, the dev versions got shipped out awhile ago.

No, the Pilot run of the dev kits got shipped to major devs a few weeks back, the bulk of the dev kits don't go out until April/May. As for the commercial version, I've been keeping track of every scrap of information available and I'm 99% certain it will not release this year, maybe not until mid/late next year. Their CEO has stated on camera that they will not release the Rift until there is a good catalogue of games that support it (so far there are quite a few that say they will, but only 1 or 2 that actually have it working), and they all but said outright that it won't be out this year in an interview with the New york times. Plus don't forget they will still have design and testing work to do after they get the feedback from the devkits (several months from now) which will take several months, then they have to get the tooling done at the factory and ramp up production.

I'd bet any money commercial version is not out this year.

Not to mention the rift will be tough to get working well in Arma, its hard enough to get good frame rates as it is in Arma, but render two views at a minimum 60fps vsync will take a beast of a computer. You'll need to be averaging 80-90fps at the moment with it never dropping below 60.

[dmarkwick 261]

I've wondered before, does TrackIR make flying harder? I ask because I rely quite a bit on the fixed forward view to get a good feel for the orientation of the helicopter, I can happily skim hilly terrain at 1-5m at high speed that way. Being able to look around the cockpit would be more realistic, and I imagine would greatly improve your situational awareness and make it easier to land without 3rd person... but as its not real life and you don't have gravity telling you what angle you're at to the ground, doesn't it get a bit disorienting?

TrackIR will take you a day to get used to. At first you will suffer from head-flapping and some minor disorientation, but after that.... you'll be lost without it. To answer your first point about having a fixed forward view - you can set a dead zone for TrackIR so that you have no movement when your head is facing forward, allowing you some small amount of head movement without affecting your view.

[almanzo 144]

TrackIR, no doubt... There is a hell of a lot of config you can do to make it feel right, and after a while it feels like second nature.

[zimms 22]

As everybody else said: TrackIR.

Biggest improvement for immersion AND gameplay, especially while flying.

You get a clear view of your surroundings and can look down when slowing down to land instead of having to watch the blue sky and hope everything's fine beneath you. Makes a HUGE difference for your helo skills.

[SmallBlackSheep 0]

TrackIR.

I installed mine yesterday after having it laying on my desk for a year, and it's a whole new game!

There are quite a lot of people who fly with mouse & keyboard. A good joystick is only about 40€ though, so you still might get one later.

[dunnobe 10]

I'd go for the joystick first as I enjoy flying helicopters (and planes) a lot.

You could use freeware software like FacetrackNOIR or XiaTeK's software for android phones instead of TrackIR.

[MaxiM_PL 1]

How about getting a joystick and FreeTrack instead of TrackIR? FreeTrack setup will cost you around $15 at most. Then if you think you like it and wanna "pro" setup, get TIR later down the line, saving a ton of cash in the meantime.

Just a tiny sample showing that FreeTrack can do whatever TrackIR is capable of (obviously, only X,Y,Z rotation is shown in this snippet):

You can also zoom in/out, lean, move head forwards, backwards, up and down and all the other uses you could possibly need ;]

Edited March 13, 2013 by MaxiM_PL
YouTube link.