[EM V2] New Pilot with odd joystick problem (Windows 8)

Adoma · Post by **Adoma** » Fri Apr 05, 2013 5:04 pm

First, I want to say hello to everyone and say that I just bought the game yesterday but have been really enjoying it.
Now the problem about 1 out of 3 to 4 times I start the game my ship pops up in an uncontrollable spin forcing me to exit and restart. Most of the time this fixes the problem and loads up correctly. I think I may know the cause of the problem but have no good answers. I play on a gaming laptop using a Logitech Extreme Pro stick for flight and a Logitech Trackball for mouse control. So course, being a laptop it also has the stupid touchpad thing which I absolutely HATE. I think this is just causing an input conflict with so many input devices, but when it happens none of them work.

System Spec:
Intel I7 - 2.6Ghz
Nvidia GTX 660 2GB DDR5
16 GB DDR3
1TB Sata3 7200RPM Drive
Windows 8

P.S. - All drivers and windows have been updated to try to resolve it already.

[Edited on 4-24-2013 by Vice]

Post by **Vice** » Fri Apr 05, 2013 5:07 pm

Sounds like it might be a device conflict, flawed device driver(s), or a hardware problem with the stick itself. When this happens, open the Windows device menu and see visually what kind of input the device is returning. I suspect you'll see the same result there that the game is seeing. Since you're on Windows 8, have you checked for more mature drivers for that device on that OS specifically? Are you plugging in the stick after launching the game? Have you tried different USB ports to see if the behavior changes at all?

Adoma · Post by **Adoma** » Fri Apr 05, 2013 5:26 pm

I have tried several ports and got the latest drivers for the stick and track ball for Win 8. Also, I disable the touchpad BEFORE starting the game. I however plug in the stick before launching it. I try not to boot with everything turned on. THANK YOU! for your prompt response. I like this community already:D

Post by **Marvin** » Fri Apr 05, 2013 5:31 pm

I have the same joystick but use a standard mouse on my laptop. The touch part of the pad and the two buttons are permanently disabled whenever the mouse is plugged into the computer. And both the joystick and the mouse are plugged in prior to launching the game ... otherwise the game doesn't recognize the USB input.

Adoma · Post by **Adoma** » Fri Apr 05, 2013 6:19 pm

Mine will use all 3 inputs. I have to push a button to disable the touchpad(the trackball is wireless USB BTW). The game still plays ok thanks to some reading on Win8 compatibility though. All-in-All a winner in my books. The problem is NOT game breaking but wanted to post it for developers and others. Thanks Marvin for your insight.

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Fri Apr 05, 2013 10:38 pm

Hi Adoma, Welcome to the game and forum!.....Hope to see you out there some time!.....

Rubber Chicken · Post by **Rubber Chicken** » Sat Apr 06, 2013 1:10 am

I have an X3d Pro, wireless mouse, Logitech gamepad, and laptop touchpad - all running with no conflict.

Sometimes my X3d will drift a bit when the game loads. I just unplug it then re-plug it and it straightens right out. Give that a try next time.

ixtern · Post by **ixtern** » Thu Aug 22, 2013 10:12 am

Vice, I had exactly the same problem two or three times with latest EM build (my ship pops up in an uncontrollable spin not reacting to joystick moves). But when I exit to joystick axis setup in game options (no game restart), joystick movements were displayed correctly on screen. Returning to the game was uncontrollable spin again.
Windows8/Thrustmaster Warthog.

[Edited on 2013-8-22 by ixtern]

Post by **Vice** » Thu Aug 22, 2013 4:38 pm

Vice, I had exactly the same problem two or three times with latest EM build (my ship pops up in an uncontrollable spin not reacting to joystick moves). But when I exit to joystick axis setup in game options (no game restart), joystick movements were displayed correctly on screen. Returning to the game was uncontrollable spin again.
Windows8/Thrustmaster Warthog.

The only instance where that should occur would be if you accidently engaged the formation system during gameplay. All of the input signals would display correctly in the game's configuration menu, but your ship could be stuck in a spin/loop if the target ship is out of view or out of range until you disable the formation system. Otherwise, the game actually uses the same system for the configuration menu that it does for the flight input system, so there would be no other explanation if the config menu displays correctly but the flight input is different.

Star King · Post by **Star King** » Thu Aug 22, 2013 4:54 pm

I had the same issue with Windows 7 Home and upgraded to Windows 8 Pro in January 2013. In the beginning of August I upgraded to Windows 8.1 Pro Preview operating system.
I use a logitech 3D Extreme stick and experienced the spinning ship issue. Please remove the Logitech software and reboot your PC. The plug & play drivers will find your stick and load the Windows drivers. Then launch Evochron and program your stick profile into the game.
The game and stick should work perfectly!

Post by **Vice** » Thu Aug 22, 2013 5:15 pm

That's a good tip. You can review similar user experiences with other Logitech users on Windows 8 encountering the same problem in other games (along with some information on solutions and possible causes) on their support forums. Information on various gamepads encountering the same problem is also available there.

As for USB joystick issues in Windows 8 in general for those encountering intermittent device/signal loss, I'm not aware of any issues game-side that would cause it, the game simply reacts to what it is sent via DirectInput. So perhaps it is primarily some kind of issue in Windows 8. Some google searches around the net seem to indicate a number of gamers have encountered the same kind of problem in other games using other joysticks, all on Windows 8. Whatever joystick device they are using seems to 'intermittently' disappear in Windows 8, resulting in strange input behavior, often in the middle of playing a game. There also seems to be similar 'lost' device issues with other USB devices in Windows 8, beyond just joysticks. But for this thread, we'll focus on the joysticks. Some gamers reported fixing the issue when it happens, but only in some cases with some games with some devices, with the following:

- Alt-tabbing out of the game they are playing, then returning to it.
- Opening the task manager (Control-Shift-Escape), then returning to the game.
- Changing USB ports for the device (limited reported success).
- Unplugging the device, then plugging it back in.

Perhaps this issue will be resolved in the upcoming finalized Windows 8.1 update. I think it is planned for release in October.

Another tool you can use to observe your controller's behavior (as well as most other input signals, including keyboard and buttons) is available here:

http://www.starwraith.com/evochronmerce ... Config.zip

To install it, just extract the file from the zip and place it in the save data folder of the game, which is usually c:\\sw3dg\\EvochronMercenary (not the install folder, if it is different).

For anyone encountering joystick control problems in Windows 8, I would recommend leaving this program running for as long as you run the game before the problem occurred. See what the exact results are of the input signals from the device. This program displays the raw input signals sent to it by your system through DirectInput.

Post by **DaveK** » Fri Aug 23, 2013 2:52 pm

Just a thought - I use a Saitek X52 Pro and occasionally had the unstoppable drift or rotate problems. It turned out to be the plug linking the throttle to the stick unit getting pushed over a bit! Pushing the plug back firmly and taking more care with cable routing solved it

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Fri Aug 23, 2013 4:38 pm

From post: 163996, Topic: tid=10738, author=DaveK wrote:Just a thought - I use a Saitek X52 Pro and occasionally had the unstoppable drift or rotate problems. It turned out to be the plug linking the throttle to the stick unit getting pushed over a bit! Pushing the plug back firmly and taking more care with cable routing solved it

I had to replace the cable once because one of the pins had become loose and broke of my X52....

Capt_Caveman · Post by **Capt_Caveman** » Fri Aug 23, 2013 6:00 pm

I had the same problem on very rare occasion with several different sticks on xp pro and win 7.
unpluging the stick and pluging into a different usb port, then restarting game always fixed the issue.
turns out my problem was a worn out / loose fitting usb port.
intermittent usb connection will cause this problem.

I cant say this is the only cause but it's worth looking into

cylon raider https://www.box.com/s/yk3t9n5sgtj08dfqcz5e

em cockpit files https://app.box.com/s/iyjmk6x26szqp35ux0a0

[Edited on 8-23-2013 by capt_cronic]

ixtern · Post by **ixtern** » Sat Aug 31, 2013 11:25 am

Today again I had uncontrolled spin with above view instead of the front view - from the very start of the loaded game. After going to the joystick settings (where joystick/throttle movements were tracked ok) I returned to the game and everything was ok also. So it is not a very big problem for me. Maybe something with Windows or Thrustmaster software.
Windows 8/Thrusmaster Warthog.

efari · Post by **efari** » Tue Sep 08, 2015 7:13 pm

I just got this game today on Steam. I cannot stop a roll to the left. the only roll controls i have set are Q and E. I have win 10 and TM warthog HOTAS. i am going to try the steps above and let you know.

Post by **Vice** » Tue Sep 08, 2015 7:16 pm

You may have roll control mapped to an axis channel rather than just key/button controls. Check the axis mapping menu and see if unwanted drift is occurring on one of the axis channels for your device. If so, you can expand the deadzone setting or unbind the roll control entirely from the axis if you want to by selecting 'No Axis Control' for that channel. Also check for a current Windows 10 driver for your device.

Post by **Marvin** » Tue Sep 08, 2015 9:58 pm

Extending the dead zone works for me. I'd try that first.

PaulB · Post by **PaulB** » Tue Sep 08, 2015 10:23 pm

From post: 160627, Topic: tid=10738, author=Adoma wrote:First, I want to say hello to everyone and say that I just bought the game yesterday but have been really enjoying it.
Now the problem about 1 out of 3 to 4 times I start the game my ship pops up in an uncontrollable spin forcing me to exit and restart. Most of the time this fixes the problem and loads up correctly. I think I may know the cause of the problem but have no good answers. I play on a gaming laptop using a Logitech Extreme Pro stick for flight and a Logitech Trackball for mouse control. So course, being a laptop it also has the stupid touchpad thing which I absolutely HATE. I think this is just causing an input conflict with so many input devices, but when it happens none of them work.

System Spec:
Intel I7 - 2.6Ghz
Nvidia GTX 660 2GB DDR5
16 GB DDR3
1TB Sata3 7200RPM Drive
Windows 8

P.S. - All drivers and windows have been updated to try to resolve it already.

[Edited on 4-24-2013 by Vice]

If you are using the joystick for flight control and do not plan to use the mouse for flight control the go intot he EM settings and tell it to NOT use the mouse for flight control.
I don't remember the exact wording but having the joystick and Mouse both active can cause that and make you think there is a problem.
I had the same problem when I 1st got EM and hooked up my gamepad. I disable EM Mouse flight control and problem solved.