Do You Invert Your Mouse Controls?
I got a huge spark in my brain when I read and commented on Wilhelm’s post on the control keys we use in games, in particular the WASD movement control. I found that to be a really stimulating post about his, and thus my, gaming history.
Now for the noodle-cooking: invert mouse or no? I have, since day one, inverted the mouse for one very simple reason: flight simulators. Some of the first games, and the ones that I undoubtedly played more of than any game pre-Doom/Duke Nukem 3D, I played were flight sims. I still remember the old Amiga and hearing “Pull up, Pull up!” from the cockpit’s female warning while in a dive too close to the ground in Falcon. You move the stick back to go up, and move it up to go down. I just can’t make my brain switch in first or third person games to reverse that directional control. The first thing I do when I get a game with mouse aiming from a non-isometric view (as in The Sims or the other real-time strategy sims) is to change the mouse controls. I have a complete freak-out if I play Call of Duty on my best friend’s computer. He does the same when he gets back on to play.
Interestingly, I have brought in a couple of friends into gaming with FPS, and my roomie played WoW, and none of them invert the mouse. I have asked, and none of them ever played flight sims, either. Maybe that setup is something that distinguishes players from each other. It will go to prove the point when I have a son and get him playing games. I will hide the flight sims from him until he starts with other games and we’ll see which way he puts his mouse. 
How about you? Up for up, or do you invert your controls?
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I invert for flight sims and FPS. Since the mouse to me seems inverted already in WOW i have not had to change the way it acts….I did however gets me a wireless optical mouse over the weekend. I had to kick down the sensitivity to almost nil. I couldnt keep up with the mousr flying across the screen.
I grew up on flight sims and have to arrange controls to make it work the same way. My friends think its wierd when I invert the controls for HALO and still manage to roll them constanly. I love watching them try it reveresed ,to them, and see them sqirm from the unfamiliarity.
Flight stick control FTW!!!
I also KILL at Flight/Space Sims.
X-Wing vs. Tie Fighter FTW!!
Man, I LOVED those LucasArts games!
X-Wing, Tie Fighter, X-Wing vs Tie Fighter, X-Wing Alliance. All got me some serious flight time. Another awesome space sim was Privateer 2 Amazing play too bad i havent been able to get it to work with the newer computers. I would so play that over WOW its that good.
I put a post together that outlines why I think I invert controls:
http://gamepeople.wordpress.com/2006/11/07/down-is-up/
The question is where does the player put their consciousness in relation to the controller. What part of their body is the joypad controlling, their arm, their head; and how is this control translated to that body part.
Thank you for sharing your post. I love converging thoughts.