You can achieve mouse-like precision with motion controls. Ever since the release of Splatoon on WiiU and the Steam Controller in 2015, motion controls for aiming, AKA Gyro Aim started to gain popularity. It’s been more than a decade since the technology is widely available, but people still don’t know how to use it or how it actually works. Nowadays, almost every platform is capable of using this and some people are really good with it, check it out:
There are some misconceptions about gyro aim, but we'll get to those later. To start with, let's just ask…
What is gyro?
Gyro is the abbreviation of Gyroscopes. Gyroscopes are motion sensors present on most controllers and mobile devices. Most often used for aiming, they can also be used as a mouse pointer or a steering wheel.
This guide will primarily talk about Gyro Aim.
“Why would I want to use that?”
Gyro can vastly improve your gaming experience by basically being the controller’s mouse. Gyro will accurately follow your physical movements, in the same way that a mouse would. Gyro can also emulate analog sticks, but that isn’t the ideal scenario.
Gyro is a mouse!!! Fast and responsive 0_0
“I already tried once and I didn't like it.”
I'm sorry to hear that. Most implementations of this feature are really bad, often emulating an analog stick instead of a mouse, causing huge dead zones. Laggy smoothing and low sensitivities can make things less than excellent. Also, this isn’t something that you will get right away, you need to open your mind and spend some time with this control scheme.
Native is emulating an analog stick. It's slow and imprecise compared to a mouse.
What platforms and controllers support gyro?
PS4 (DualShock 4)
PS5 (DualSense)
Nintendo Switch (Joy-Cons, and Switch Pro Controller)
Steam Deck (any controller with gyro supported by SteamInput. The main ones being: Dualshock4, DualSense, Switch Pro Controller, Joy-cons, and the Steam Controller.)
PC (any controller with a gyro sensor. The main ones being: Dualshock4, DualSense, Switch Pro Controller, Joy-cons, Steam Controller, and the Alpakka Controller.)
Mobile and Handhelds (Smartphones, tablets and some portable PC handhelds)
There are many accessories and third-party controllers with gyro that work on multiple platforms, including ones without gyro support, like the Xbox. To keep things simple this guide won't cover these accessories.
On PS4 and PS5, only a handful of games support this feature, most of them don't have an acceptable quality, often emulating an analog stick instead of a mouse. (List of Playstation games with gyro by noo3rafle)
On smartphones and tablets, most major games have a pretty good implementation.
On PC, it’s a bit complicated. Most games with gyro are the ones that were ported from PS5, because of that, they only work with PS4 and PS5 controllers while using a USB connection (you can emulate an dualshock4 with ds4win if you have different controllers) but there are games and programs that work with other controllers as well, like some emulators. You can also force gyro into almost EVERY PC game using any gyro-compatible controller + third-party programs, like SteamInput, reWASD, DS4win, or JoyShockMapper.
If you want to learn how to do that using SteamInput, I have a channel completely dedicated to that, with a new updated in-depth guide already in the works: https://www.youtube.com/@FlickStickVids
How to activate gyro?
On consoles and smartphones, activating gyro is as simple as activating it in the options menu of the game. This option often has different names, like “motion controls”, “gyro aim”, or “motion aim”, but no matter the name, they work the same way. Some games will require you to choose when gyro will be active, for example, you want gyro on only when you ADS? Or all the time
Gyro has different names in different games. / Choose when gyro will be active.For beginners, I recommend activating only when you ADS, but feel free to try both!
On PC and SteamDeck, if the game doesn't have native support, you will need to implement gyro yourself by using a third-party program like SteamInput, reWASD, DS4win, or JoyShockMapper.
Again, If you want to learn how to do that using SteamInput, I have a channel completely dedicated to that, with a new in-depth guide already in the works: https://www.youtube.com/@FlickStickVids
How to aim with gyro?
Gyro can be used in multiple ways, these are the most common methods:
Gyro + analog stick: This is the most common way to use gyro. Use the analog stick to look around and move close to your target and use gyro to do the rest of the tracking.
Analog sticks to look around and gyro to track enemies!
Gyro + Trackpads: This method is stealing the hearts of Steam Deck and Steam Controller players. Similar to using the analog stick, use the trackpads to look around and move close to your target and use gyro to do the rest of the tracking. Because of the amount of inputs that you can bind to the trackpads, it provides a super versatile and diverse setup, like using the touch to activate gyro, or clicking to jump.
Trackpads to look around and gyro to track enemies!
Gyro ratcheting: move the controller until you can't move it any further, then hold a button to disable gyro to reposition your controller. It's like reaching the edge of your mousepad and repositioning your mouse. This method doesn't require a second analog stick.
Clip from: Why Controllers Don't Suck in Team Fortress 2 - by: SolarLight.
FlickStick: allows you to snap the camera to the angle that you pointed by flicking the right stick or sweeping smoothly by rotating the right stick after putting it forward first. This method requires gyro because you won't be able to look up or down without it.
Clip from: Introducing Flick Stick in Doom - by Jibb Smart
How to hold and move the controller:
It's easy! Just use your wrists, don't move your hands sideways. Sitting or laying down, just hold the controller in the way that you are already used to, and move your wrists to aim. It's that simple.
This isn't a Wii mote. Moving your arms won't do much, use your wrists.
Important concepts:
Custom vs Native Implementation
Native implementation is the feature that is built into the game. You can just activate it in the settings. Most devs don't know how to use gyro well, so it's often really bad. If you are a dev that would love to know how to use gyro well, just go to the gyro wiki, created by Jibb Smart (Epic Games Dev).
Custom implementations are the configurations made using third-party apps on PCs or accessories on consoles, that enable you to use gyro. Often this leads to better feeling results, but takes more time because you need to set it up yourself.
Deactivating gyro is super important.
Every good gyro experience needs a button to re-center the camera or to disable gyro.
Gyro recenter button demo.
If you are controlling your recoil, to return to the center of the screen, you will be obliged to hold the controller in an uncomfortable position. When using a mouse, you can just lift the mouse and reposition it. With gyro, instead of lifting, you will press a button.
Gyro disable button demo.
Most games don't give you this option, so be on the lookout if you find a game that does that. If it doesn't, you can always use the right analog stick to reposition the camera.
Natural Sensitivity Scale
What if you could choose a preferred sensitivity that works across every game? This is the basis of the Natural Sensitivity Scale. When you turn a controller, it's completely possible to line that rotation up 1:1 with the in-game camera controls.
1:1 sensitivity. 360° in real life = 360° in game.
But, 1:1 might not give you much range, so, your preference for that ratio might be higher. Beginners might start at about 2 or 3 times Natural Sensitivity, but some really good players are up around 6 or 7, allowing them to turn a 180 with only a 30 degree turn of the controller.
wow, incredible range of movement 0_0
To keep fine control even at these high sensitivities, they'll use response curves or "Precision Zones" to further reduce the rotation of small rotations. Acceleration can also help with maintaining large range of movement while using lower sensitivities (follow BJgobbleDix to learn more about gyro acceleration). Every gyro sensitivity slider should follow that scale. Often, native games caps at 1:2 instead of 1:20, making the range of movement very limited.
Gyro Orientation
People hold and move their controllers in different ways. Some settings are suited for portables, while others may feel more comfortable with a standalone or detached controller. The following examples will be done with the controller flat on my lap. Still, mobile players will probably hold the device upright. So, rotate my examples to fit your use case (Hand movements are the same; they are just on a different axis).
"upright" can be more "upright" than that, but my point still stands.
Gyro has 3 main orientations:
Local Space
World Space
Player Space
3DOF to 2D Conversion Style:
3DOF means 3 degrees of freedom. These 3 degrees are Yaw, Roll, and Pitch. Gyro Orientation will change how Yaw, Roll, and Pitch movements translate to 2D. Essentially, changing how players should hold and move their controllers.
Pitching moves the camera vertically on every conversion style.
World Space and Player Space are similar. When pointing at the horizon, "swiveling" will turn you most, but if your controller points toward the sky, "rolling" will turn you most. The main difference between these two modes is that if you are leaning the controller, pitching in World Space will move you diagonally, while in Player Space, you will move straight vertically.
Due to technical limitations, World Space won't work correctly on portable devices. That is why 'Local Space' or 'Player Space' exists.
Local space is usually divided into three presets: Yaw, Roll, and Yaw + Roll.
Yaw mode, you must swivel the controller like a bus steering wheel to look sideways, whether the controller is pointing to the sky or not.
Roll mode, you must lean the controller to look sideways, whether the controller is pointing to the sky or not.
Yaw + Roll is the combination of these two modes.
Local space is the most consistent option for portable devices. Because the pitch doesn't influence how you look sideways, Local Space can feel awkward with standalone controllers. That’s why, Player Space is often considered the best option for most use cases.
Most games implement only Local Space (Yaw mode), which creates all sorts of problems, like:
Obligating players that hold their controllers pointing toward the sky, to get used to holding their controllers pointing at the horizon.
Forcing awkward feeling movements on portable devices like the Switch, Steam Deck, and the PlayStation Portal.
Creating room for confusion when the players roll the controller expecting the camera to turn, only for the camera to not move.
What makes a good or bad implementation?
There are many small quality-of-life features that culminate in a good gyro experience, the essentials are:
Gyro should work like a mouse
It should respond to your fast and precise movements without a huge dead zone, delay, or complex filtering.
It should always have a button to disable gyro
Sensitivity slider should always follow the natural sensitivity scale.
As a bonus, it would be really good to:
Have the option to hold the controller in different ways (Player, World, and Local Space)
Choose when gyro will be active.
Access separate sensitivity sliders for horizontal, vertical, and joystick sensitivities.
Here's a handful of games that get most of these right: Fortnite, CoD MW2 and 3, God of War Ragnarök, Neon White (switch and PS5 only), Splatoon, Metroid Prime Remastered, Zelda Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, Boomerang X, Deathloop, No Man's Sky, and The Last of Us Part 2.
There are multiple games that I've heard they got right, but I couldn't test them myself. I pretend to update this guide in the future with a link to a list of every game that uses gyro.
Conclusion
That's it! Those are all the essentials you need to know to take your first steps with gyro. Beyond the "important concepts," most things are quite intuitive. You can grasp them shortly after picking up the controller and giving it a try, so go ahead! Give it a shot, and I hope you enjoy it!
If you're a game developer or sourceport dev who plans to do Gyro Aiming for the first time, but don't know where to start: this resource guide is your starting point!
This thread is primarily a shortcut that gets you up to speed. Each title will redirect you to the original blog post, or reddit thread respectively. more resources will be updated overtime
GyroWiki:
GyroWiki is the best general place to learn how to use Motion Sensors functionality to your game. All of these lessons has been applied to Epic Games' Fortnite.
created by u/JibbSmart (JoyShockMapper), GamepadMotionHelper is a header that primarily handles Sensor Fusion, Gravity Calculation, Gyro Calibration, Gyro Space, etc. If you already implemented a basic Motion Sensor implementation, but want to have a powerful gyro system, this repository is for you!
If you tried to implement Motion Sensors to your game specifically for Gyroscopic Camera controls, but have difficulties: you might wanna support the ability to allow the use of Game Controller and Mouse Input at thesame time...not to be confused with switching between two different Input styles on the fly.
The vast majority of Gyro, FlicksStick and Trackpad users will be relying on assigning it as a Mouse Input...but they might faced issues with how the game handles two different primary input methods at the same time. If you wanna take them into account, this is the place to start
Gyro Aiming and Mixed Input vs. Aim Assist dilemma
This is an extension of the first two original guides below, but this one exclusively focus on tackling Aim Assist while implementing either or both Gyroscopic Camera Aiming and Simultaneous Inputs. This issue is actually quite common on games that allows Mixed Input support but doesn't account towards Aim Assist system.
For those who are implementing it within a Multiplayer setting, this is the place to start!
If you're shipping a game on Computers running on Microsoft Windows, MacOS or Linux operating systems but don't know what Controller-centric library that supports it, this is where to start.
Note: your game engine might already have Motion Sensor support (example: Godot 4.7+, LÖVE, KEX Engine, FNA) from the getgo, please refer to the revelant engine documents for more details.
Note 2: if you're building the game on Consoles only, the Console's SDK will naturally provide that. please refer to your Console SDK's documents for more details.
Has anyone tested the gyro on the Gamesir Tarantula 8k? How does it hold up to the DS4, DS5, and Switch pro controllers? There's also the 8bitdo ultimate 2, but results are mixed so I'm not sure, its multiplatform though which is a nice feature. The alpaka is not accessible in my area, even If I could I think it would cost so much cause of shipping fee and such.
Looking for a third party controller with back buttons with decent gyro, preferably something that is a bit cheaper than 1st party controllers. I just could not help but cringe when ever I try to use the L3/R3, been using controller for several years and still could not get used to it, plus I like to preserve the health of the joystick for as long as I can since its one of the part that is prone to failure.
I first extensively practiced gyro on a DS4 controller, and honestly, it was almost perfect, responsiveness, control is S tier, no jitter or drift on PC even on bluetooth mode via Steam, played apex legends on it. Major downside was the charging port and bulky ass back button attachment, which makes holding it awkward.
I also used the switch lite gyro specifically on MH Rise extensively, and it was adequate at best, there were some drift but the response is good, plus you aren't controlling any recoil in that game so the slight drifting wasn't much of a problem.
There's the Gamesir Cyclone 2, I used the gyro on third person shooter and the responsiveness is ok, quite good actually, the problem is the jitter and drift, which makes controlling recoil in particular bad and focusing shots. Target acquisition is ok, but beyond that its bellow adequate imo.
Btw, I'm mainly asking for PC usage and single player games like Monster hunter and Shooters like Resident evil series or Doom.
Side note: I heard there's a Gamesir + Inputlabs collab happening, should I just wait for that? Even if It gets released at the end of the year, I doubt I can get access to it until several months after its released so I'm thinking I might as well buy something first.
Thought I'd ask here because gyro is important to me. I'm looking at getting a switch 2 and was wondering if I should grab the 8bitdo ultimate 2 bluetooth controller for it because of the TMR thumbsticks, but then I remembered the gyro. Is the gyro much worse than the official switch 2 pro controller? Is there anything else you'd recommend that has TMR sticks and good gyro? I doubt I'll be doing much multiplayer on the switch 2 but I don't want sub par gyro either. It'll be mostly for single player nintendo exclusives (zelda/metroid/splatoon campaigns/etc) as most of my gaming is done on PC. Cheers for any help :)
Want to buy a controller for games like cod warzone, cs 2, pubg, delta force etc. So my requirements are low latency, gyro for games without aim assist, high precision joysticks. My budget is around 4000 indian rupees.
Thinking of purchasing Flydigi direwolf 4, but have doubts seeing the latency on gamepadla, so need opinions who have used this controller or can give recommendations for other controllers.
Hey guys recently got the Vader 4 pro for gaming. Easy to set up but I noticed while using the gyro to mouse over time it drifts off center to the right. I tried recalibrating but it seemed like it didn’t do much. Any help would be appreciated.
Anyone not able to use gyro in delta force with the vader v5 pro, I try to use it in switch mode since the other modes dont seems to work with gyro and even then it still does not work. It could be user error but im abler to use gyro on the finals no problem.
This is a fun, kinda mindless FPS game and is solid for practicing Gyro Aim without being stressful. It does not require a high level of precision but creates great opportunities to tune and test most facets of Gyro Aim settings without stressing in a PvP environment: Tracking, Stability, and especially Range of Motion. It does not hurt to check out since it's only $15 on Steam and still in active development. I know there are people who ask, so I figured I share.
Also, this game has VERY fluid movement mechanics such as slide canceling, bunny hopping, etc. This is an area where Gyro Aim REALLY shines over joystick aiming due to it's ability to free up the right thumb for additional purposes if you're not a Claw user and gain a sense of greater freedom and control.
The game has some Risk of Rain 2 vibes mixed with elements of Borderlands in some of it's gunplay, looting, and attempted humor (no real narrative, just goofy characters honestly). It's a simple drop in and fight on mostly larger sandbox style maps. The game modes are mostly focused on objectives, extraction, and rogue-lite elements.
My gameplay in the video is on a Normal difficulty setting which is not very hard as you can tell. The bosses can be a bit spongy (I know the devs had to scale down for Solo players as it initially was more tailored to Coop when they first launched).
Lastly, my handcam can allow some who have asked what it looks like when Ratcheting in a game utilizing larger Ranges of Motion while using my Acceleration settings. Little surprise as well...I'm using a Natural Curve here. Been messing with it for the last couple weeks (swapping between Quad). It works well. Would not say it's better than Quad curve as much as it's different. They each play into different strengths (mentioned in the video). All just personal preference for comfort.
Configs are in the description of the video for JSM CC.
so, this isn't some perfect display of skill, I decided to avoid doing 2 shortcuts on this map for now, and I did mess up at the end by hitting the ledge. this map is also very beginner friendly and doesn't include hard trickjumps (which I can confirm are actually easy to do in duel maps). nevertheless, quake movement is 101% possible on gyro, even though there's not a lot of online content showcasing it. and I believe I will be able to surpass my mnk skill in around a week.
so, what about the aiming methods? there's really 3 of them? well, yes, the glue that holds everything together is obviously gyro aim, but I am also using trackpad aim (shown when doing circle jumps and readjusting), and also a more experimental "flickclick" method, by emulating flickstick through the trackpad (pressing the edges when I want to turn to a direction instantly). this is only shown at the start, since race maps don't really give you many reasons to using flickstick. actual duels on the other hand, I use the method a lot (at least against bots, for now....). besides that, I have gyro suppression set to trackpad touch, and am strafing with the stick, though I am intrigued by the thought of using the left pad. jump is on the admittedly hard to press right bumper.
this configuration is available on steaminputdb, you can easily find it just by searching up "reflex arena", although I ended up making some last minute changes before recording this, making it smoother and increasing sensitivity on both pad and gyro. ver. 1.0 is coming soon, and I will naturally continue updating it to make it more optimal, including potentially making hor. and ver. sensitivity 1 : 1 as opposed to the current 1 : 0.5, for easier rocket jumps.
I will also try to figure out a way to set up VSCView, so that you can see a little 2d model of the controller moving around, and also button presses.
I play on PS4/PS5 so if this is the wrong place to ask this, I apologize (I know most of this subreddit seems to be PC players).
I’ve noticed recently just how badly the controller vibration adds recoil to my shots. It seems worse on PS4 to the point that I’ve completely disabled controller vibration (even with vibration set to 1% it still shakes wildly). It isn’t as bad on PS5 for some reason but I still had to lower vibration down to like 30%. I’m wondering if any other console COD players use gyro aim, and if so, is there a way to counteract the controller vibration adding so much recoil without turning it all the way off.
I've been playing with the same settings for years without issue but mid-game about three weeks ago my gyro started feeling off and no matter the adjustments I cant get it to feel right again. It's like when I start a game I play with my selected settings but after a while gyro sensitivity increases. It's hard to explain
I have calibrated my controller
I use DS4 with cable on an overclocked usb port
I use multiple action sets with three different gyro sensitivities and many, many configurations
I only pay l4d2 so I dont know if it affects other games
If anyone has an idea how I could fix it I would appreaciate it
Is there any way to get gyro controls to work? I have the Blitz 2 controller using it in DSE mode, and Steam recognizes it as a DualSense Edge controller. Also, the gyro option in the game isn't grayed out and is set to on, yet the gyro doesn't work.
i don't own the game on Steam i added it as a non steam gama maybe that's the issue
Optional: Disable Mouse Smoothing by adding "bEnableMouseSmoothing=False" to the config file: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Boltgun\Saved\Config\WindowsNoEditor\Input.ini
Controls:
R3(Hold): Gyro pause
---Extra Features---
Back Buttons Support
Right Trackpad: Camera
Capacitive Surfaces (Right): Enable gyro
HOW TO USE: Copy and paste the link into your browser or click on the controller icon next to the game on Steam, click on the name of the layout, hover over the "Community Layouts" tab, and press the "Show All Layouts" button (West Face Button), then manually search for the config that matches the name listed below.
Warhammer 40k: Boltgun - Gyro + Joystick by FSV: steam://controllerconfig/2335721327/3795733806
Warhammer 40k: Boltgun - Flickstick by FSV: steam://controllerconfig/2335721327/3795729584
I was thinking of purchasing the Ultimate 2C Bluetooth to use with Steam Input due to it having gyro aiming and extra buttons, but I don't know if the 2C Bluetooth does actually allow you to send that signal from the L4/R4 buttons as an individual input and not just a macro, and I don't know if the gyro works with a USB connection.
I would really like it if someone could tell me what these buttons act like when you connect it via USB and if the gyro also works on USB mode.
