Force Feedback Joysticks; any good?

[Dragonlich]

Hi, I was wondering if anyone had experience with Force Feedback joysticks. I always liked the idea of Force feedback, ever since the days of Arcade games with such features... Now, I play quite a lot of flight sims, and need a new joystick soon. I can either go for a regular joystick or a FF one. Of course, I need some input here.

Can anyone recommend a Logitech Force Feedback joystick, or are Microsoft's better? How does this hold up when you take into account the extra cost for a Microsoft joystick - is it worth it? How is the game support these days? And of course: is it worth the extra money at all: 20 Euros for non-FF, 55 for FF?

Thanks.

[The_Dude]

i never actually owned one, but i've played with a sidewinder racing wheel. it's pretty awesome.

i wish i had spent the $30 extra on my wheels instead.

almost all the new games support that technology these days, so i say go with it.

http://store.yahoo.com/justdeals/logwinstrikf.html

there's one for 37 dollars, a logitech one.

be sure to check on pricewatch, that's where i found that one.

Force feed back joysticks just suck. They dont do anything to add to a flightsimming experience. The shaking gets annoying and isn't worth the extra money. The support for them is pretty good haven't run into a game that doesn't work with force feedback.

[hulk]

I find that they really enchance the experience. Probably because I'm a console gamer, and I'm used to the shaking =D.
I recommend you look at http://www.saitekusa.com/usa/prod/joysticks.htm

[Wyodiver33]

I just bought a Logitech FF Wingman Rumblepad game pad, and I like it a lot. It's the first FF anything that I've had. The game pad is great for GTA: Vice City. But I don't know how well a FF joystick would suit Flight Sims.

[Dragonlich]

Thanks for the feedback so far.

I've done some research myself, and it turns out that although FF joysticks are nice, they're not as accurate as non-FF joysticks. These usually have a spring, to make sure the stick goes back to center, whereas FF joysticks do not have this. This can be a problem during games, naturally. People do report that they get used to it, so it shouldn't be a permanent problem.

Also, when checking Amazon for the Logitech FF joystick, a lot of people complained about the thing dying too quickly. This may be a case of people only posting with complaints, and the happy majority never speaking up, but still... it makes you wonder.

[mrquackers]

I've had the Microsoft FF Sidewinder for years now and never had any problems at all. Personally, I love it - and really miss the golden days of space-based shooters like Wing Commander, Freespace.

Another advantage to these? Microsoft's getting out of the business, so they're probably real cheap these days. Also, the stick will return to center, as non FFs do.

[humperdinck]

I've had the MS force feedback sidewinder pro since they first came out and mine is still running great. Now they have the no. 2 model which runs through usb but haven't used one of those. I've read that some people complain that the new version doesn't have as much force as the old one but the new one does come with a built in power supply so you don't have the bulky plug.

[sibulborog]

Force Feedback 2 looks neat, and I've heard rumour of the discontinuation of the sidewinder line because people realize you can get a joystick for 15 dollars (but it's triggers are wired counterintuitively). Force feedback I would only go with a sidewinder, but only if you feel like spending $60 on a joystick. I can't imagine too many quality feedbacks. but i've only used the M$ one and it's nice, but can't tell you about others.

[MPower]

FF is a doubleedged sword. In Flightsims and racing and such, you can feel your stall point and when youre edging off the track. but when you fire weapons the kick is great but will seriously throw off your aim.