Force Feedback Joysticks Support

[Simicro 247]

Hi everyone,

Yesterday was my first day with MSFS and... it was very strange to fly with my MS FF2 stick without Force Feedback support from MSFS. If you own a FF stick, no doubt that you see what I mean.

Here's a quick summary regarding Force Feedback joysticks and MSFS:

• There is a vote ongoing for FF support: click here (please vote)
• Russel Dirks, the developer of FS Force for FSX/P3D said one year ago that he would not develop for MSFS. I don't have info if he has (or not) changed his mind since: click here
• One alternative is XP Force: click here
• Another one is AirForce Player: click here

Any comment, advice or return on experience is welcome.

Nota: I'm starting a new thread to avoid necroposting since the last thread on this topic was back in JAN 21.

Edited May 22, 2022 by Simicro

[icewater5 181]

No FFB still!   i  had that problem back in FS9 and got FS Force i think in your list (worked a treat) 🙂. I take it you have a normal upright joystick (e.g Saitek)

Absolute immerssion killer without it  . Will vote then (amazed after eight years this is still a problem for some). 

 

Its like voting do you want something in a sandwich other than just bread

Edited May 22, 2022 by icewater5

[FlyingGoose 405]

It's not really working. I've tried both XP Force and Air Force Player, but the results were sub-par and it didn't work well. I am resigned to flying without FF until Asobo adds native support. 

[Simicro 247]

Thanks for your replies guys, and FlyingGoose for your return on experience.

[Simicro 247]

A quick feedback.

I have identified a new utility: simFFB (click here). Might be useful for you. But for me installation and usage are not clear.

I tried AirForce Player but could not achieve to get it work.

I tried XP Force, it works...  but how to say... it does not provide a good feel as Russel Dirks' FS Force.

So I think I'll end up flying without Force Feedback until MSFS supports it OR Russel Dirks changes his mind and makes a FS Force for MSFS.

[peloto 213]

Is there a decent HOTAS with Force Feedback nowadays new to sell? or with at least a sad rumble motor? at least solely one in project there?

[Matchstick 1,898]

1 hour ago, peloto said:

Is there a decent HOTAS with Force Feedback nowadays new to sell? or with at least a sad rumble motor? at least solely one in project there?

 

That's the thing, MSFS hasn't added FFB support because, to all intents and purposes, there is no consumer level FFB equipment available.

Yes we have the Brunner and FlightIllusion equipment but the prices of those clearly show they aren't aiming at any kind of consumer market and there are old Sidewinder FFBs out there, but not many and that number will just decrease over time.

The patents are long dead, so maybe someone will roll out a new generation of consumer FFB kit one day but until then it's not really work MS/Asobo's time when they could be working on other things.

[DD_Arthur 1,090]

1 hour ago, Matchstick said:

and there are old Sidewinder FFBs out there, but not many and that number will just decrease over time.

There are still plenty of them out there. I’ve got three and they seem indestructible!

 

[orchestra_nl 954]

2 hours ago, Matchstick said:

That's the thing, MSFS hasn't added FFB support because, to all intents and purposes, there is no consumer level FFB equipment available.

Yes we have the Brunner and FlightIllusion equipment but the prices of those clearly show they aren't aiming at any kind of consumer market and there are old Sidewinder FFBs out there, but not many and that number will just decrease over time.

The patents are long dead, so maybe someone will roll out a new generation of consumer FFB kit one day but until then it's not really work MS/Asobo's time when they could be working on other things.

There is another problem: FFB is mostly just a gimmick unless it mimmicks what a real pilot would feel. Without this, a FFB joystick is just like any other vibrating stick.
Since the effect of FFB is different for each aircraft, not only does Asobo needs to implement the core support, each developer would need to spend resources to record and describe the forces needed to accurately simulate how an aircraft feels. Some developers already have a hard time simulating how an aircraft sounds, or in fact flies.

X-plane tried it and it didn't work. It had (or still has) support for FFB if an aircraft supported it, but there were only a few aircraft that ever had this support.

[Pugilist2 880]

Gimmick or not, it is nice to feel the effect of the wheels rolling on take-off and touching down on landing. I really hope Asobo implements it in MSFS!

[sniper31 650]

5 hours ago, Pugilist2 said:

Gimmick or not, it is nice to feel the effect of the wheels rolling on take-off and touching down on landing. I really hope Asobo implements it in MSFS!

This is why I love my Buttkicker so much. I get all kinds of physical feedback from MSFS (as well as any other game) right through my chair. Much better then simply in the controls. I can feel it in my whole body when my aircraft is rumbling down the runway for takeoff. Or, the bumpiness of a hard landing, the feel of the landing gear being deployed. It is the most immmersive piece of tech I have added to my simming setup, and something one will never appreciate until they have experienced it. Highly recommend it!

[icewater5 181]

Agree, not a gimmick at all,.and any ffb (resistance) is a lot better than none at all (realistic or not)

[Glenn Fitzpatrick 3,799]

Agreed, FFB is not a gimmick and any feedback on the controls is better than none at all.  You do not, for example, judge a real aircraft is about to stall by staring at the gauges and listening for a stall warning - it is done by sound and feel of the stick.

I suspect all the talk back in the day that FFB was totally useless unless it exactly reproduced the exact stick forces of each individual aircraft in all possible unusual flight situations is nonsense and probably driven by FFB Envy from people that cannot afford the gear 😄

[spilok 1,139]

9 hours ago, DD_Arthur said:

There are still plenty of them out there. I’ve got three and they seem indestructible!

 

Me too.  I have 5 of them.

Stan

[spilok 1,139]

On 6/2/2022 at 4:12 AM, Simicro said:

A quick feedback.

I have identified a new utility: simFFB (click here). Might be useful for you. But for me installation and usage are not clear.

I tried AirForce Player but could not achieve to get it work.

I tried XP Force, it works...  but how to say... it does not provide a good feel as Russel Dirks' FS Force.

So I think I'll end up flying without Force Feedback until MSFS supports it OR Russel Dirks changes his mind and makes a FS Force for MSFS.

I use XP Force with limited satisfaction.  If Dirks ever gets the urge to come back into the game, his software will be the best without question.  XP Force works somewhat satisfactorily and they constantly upgrade and tweak it.

Stan