PS2 joystick for one-handed use
Discussion
My son has broken his wrist - a great start to the summer holidays.
We need to find ways of occupying his time, and though video games might help. It seems that there is absolutely no support for less than physically able people to play computer games on consoles. You either have two thumbs or you don't play.
I can't understand how such rampant discrimination can exist.
It's not like its such a hard problem, is it? The thumbstick is basically a mini joystick, and old PC joysticks like the Sidwinder Pro had lots of accessible buttons on the stick itself. We need a joystick that has the famous four Playstation buttons on the joystick handle - and conveniently the average hand has four buttons. OK, some games need two joysticks, and maybe some use more buttons, but for a good percentage just the left joystick and the X button does for much of the action (yes, driving games, and who need brakes huh?). Anyways, the Sidewinders had a top hat control which was essentially a thumbstick on top of the joystick.
If anyone knows of an solution to one handed console gaming I'm all ears.
We need to find ways of occupying his time, and though video games might help. It seems that there is absolutely no support for less than physically able people to play computer games on consoles. You either have two thumbs or you don't play.
I can't understand how such rampant discrimination can exist.
It's not like its such a hard problem, is it? The thumbstick is basically a mini joystick, and old PC joysticks like the Sidwinder Pro had lots of accessible buttons on the stick itself. We need a joystick that has the famous four Playstation buttons on the joystick handle - and conveniently the average hand has four buttons. OK, some games need two joysticks, and maybe some use more buttons, but for a good percentage just the left joystick and the X button does for much of the action (yes, driving games, and who need brakes huh?). Anyways, the Sidewinders had a top hat control which was essentially a thumbstick on top of the joystick.
If anyone knows of an solution to one handed console gaming I'm all ears.
Hmm there doesn't seem to be much in the way of PS2 joysticks. Logitech have one, but its USB and needs whatever you're playing to support it... Seeing as virtually nothing does, that isn't much use.
There's a single handed PS2 controller here - www.consolesandgadgets.co.uk/catalog/handed-controller-p-1616.html but it looks really awkward and nobody seems to have them in stock either.
If he likes driving games perhaps a steering wheel would help (bizarrely enough). Moves accelerate and brake onto the pedals and while I don't recommend driving like a chav with one hand on top of the wheel, it'd probably be ok for games
Turn the force feedback down / off and use auto gears.
Can you remap the controller in the options of whatever you want to play? Again taking a driving game as the example, if you can put steering on the one analog stick he can use and then accelerate and brake on the triggers on that side too you'd probably be ok. Any sort of nitrous / handbrake might be a tad tricky... clicking the analog stick perhaps?
There's a single handed PS2 controller here - www.consolesandgadgets.co.uk/catalog/handed-controller-p-1616.html but it looks really awkward and nobody seems to have them in stock either.
If he likes driving games perhaps a steering wheel would help (bizarrely enough). Moves accelerate and brake onto the pedals and while I don't recommend driving like a chav with one hand on top of the wheel, it'd probably be ok for games
Turn the force feedback down / off and use auto gears. Can you remap the controller in the options of whatever you want to play? Again taking a driving game as the example, if you can put steering on the one analog stick he can use and then accelerate and brake on the triggers on that side too you'd probably be ok. Any sort of nitrous / handbrake might be a tad tricky... clicking the analog stick perhaps?
The only driving game he likes is the new Cars one, which unfortunately only has two preset control mappings. The other game he is really keen on is Lego Star Wars, which might not work too well with a steering wheel. And he wants a footy game, which again won't work too well with a wheel. I've never got on too well with wheels anyway - I had one, and flogged it on ebay. Where do you put them when you are playing on the sofa? We don't have a coffee table, the wife won't entertain them, and a wheel balanced on your knees is pretty hopeless. And some wheels are suited to some games, but not too hot on others.
That one handed controller looks a bit bulky for six year old hands, but a good find though. Worth a try if I can find someone with stock.
The ideal would be a PS2 adapter for a Microsoft Sidewinder joystick.
That one handed controller looks a bit bulky for six year old hands, but a good find though. Worth a try if I can find someone with stock.
The ideal would be a PS2 adapter for a Microsoft Sidewinder joystick.
Something like an RPG would be good as you don't need to be using both hands at once for it, Final Fantasy 10 on the PS2 is ideal, it may take him a little while to get into it and he might not like it at all, but I can remember being suckered in by one of the earlier games when I was laid up ill and it absorbed all my time making the days fly by. Another option could be a lightgun game like Time Crisis as you only need one hand to hold the gun.
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