Planetside NEXT on PC and ... ps3>

[DviddLeff]

I reckon you can fit all the controls onto a console, just not fast typing unless the console owner has a keyboard.

Don't forget that all the menus can feed into one another; there's no reason the Character, Squad, Map, Implant, Outfit and even the Inventory cant all come off one key press combined with a direction.

[Vancha]

With that system, I'm guessing implants and weapons would work the same way? Considering you need one thumb to look around and the other thumb to move around, that leaves you with four buttons available on the top of the controller. One to fire, one to crouch, one to jump and one left for zoom, medkits, implants, weapons...plus whatever functions I forgot to include (change ammo button, MAX ability/deploy/cloak button, squad/platoon/outfit invite and kick commands, bailing etc.)

Console controllers have come a long way, but I they they have a little further to go before they can cope with Planetside.

[DviddLeff]

Im thinking of the D pad on the PS3; use it as a weapons select/implant system and just have all the info panels come up when you press select.

[Vancha]

So that means you either have to stop moving, or stop being able to look around in order to switch on an implant or take out a weapon.

[Furret]

Vancha: Also, mouse+keyboard gives you the ability to be holding 5 keys and 3 mouse-buttons at once, while still being able to look around. I can be strafing sideways, moving forward, crouching, reloading my gun, firing and use a medpack without needing to move my fingers to different buttons/keys (W+A+Ctrl+R+Mouse 1+Mouse 4). Granted, not a situation that will come up all too often, but still...

too lazy to quote...

umm, I'd like to see you reload a gun and fire it at the same time

Anyway, I think if a company made a game for both console and PC, they'd have to design it for PC then dumb it down for console, because PC has so many more options. I think in a standard keymapping, there would be 27 keyboard buttons, and probably 9 mouse buttons (left click/right click/scroll up/scroll down/mouse wheel click/two left side buttons/two right side buttons)

That's a total of 36 possible key presses (one button at a time)

For a console *pulls out PS3 controller*, you have (From Left to Right) L2, L1, DPad left/up/down/right, left stick N/NE/E/SE/S/SW/W/NW and L3, select, start, right stick N/NE/E/SE/S/SW/W/NW and R3, Square, Triangle, X, O, R2, R1.
Total of 30 possible button presses.
Unfortunately, 16 of those are null and void, because you'd be using them to move and aim.

Now we're down to 14.

However, if we look at the list vancha posted, lets try to map each action with a button press or button combination.

Foward/Back/Strafe-left/Strafe-right -=- Left control stick
Move vision -=- Right control stick
Jump -=- X
Crouch -=- Circle
Fire -=- R2
Alternate fire -=- Triangle
Enter vehicle+Use terminal (G) -=- Square
Character screen -=- L3 + Right Stick N
Squad screen -=- L3 + Right Stick NE
Map screen -=- L3 + Right Stick E
Implant screen -=- L3 + Right Stick SE
Outfit screen -=- L3 + Right Stick S
Inventory -=- L3 + Right Stick SW
(Space for 2 more screens -=- L3 + Right Stick W/NW)
Weapon 1 -=- DPad Up
Weapon 2 -=- DPad Right
Weapon 3 -=- DPad Down
Weapon 4 -=- DPad Left
Weapon 5 (Melee) -=- R1
Medkit -=- L1
F1-F8 -=- R3 + N/NE/E/SE/S/SW/W/NW
Zoom -=- L2

The Medkit would not be placed in the F1-8 section of the HUD

Also, all of the screens (Character Screen - Inventory) could be accessed from hitting start, then scrolling through the options.

[Sifer2]

They wouldn't have you pressing L3 for all that they would have you hit start to bring up a menu with all that stuff on it an then you would have to scroll through it. An then us PC crowd would get to complain about the slow cumbersome console interface they went with like we do with most ports these days.

Inventory would be simplified too I imagine no more drag an dropping an trying to cram lots of goodies in there. Would be something simpler an more dumbed down. Honestly unless they made two different versions of Planetside Next I see no way they could pull it off without really pissing off the PC players.

[Furret]

not necessarily.
Why couldn't the game be designed where you can change the button layout. It would come with an Xbox Layout, a PS3 Layout, and a PC Layout.

And why couldn't you use the controller as a mouse-ish. Click L1 to select an item, hold L1 to drag and drop. R1 opens up a menu for drop/destroy/etc.

It might not be as easy to do the decimator trick, but the game should be dumbed down for the consoles, but in a way that doesnt effect the PCs