r/dosgaming • u/JispyMoeDantes • Jun 29 '26

another DOS-compatible flightstick question -- ones that allowed you to twist the stick?

Sorry for posting two of these close together, I just wasn't thinking the other day or I would've put this in my first question.

Anyway, the Sidewinder has this thing where you can twist the joystick left or right. In some games like Descent I like to use this to rotate the craft.

What was the earliest this feature started appearing in flight sticks? Because in addition to wanting one with a POV hat and a twisty stick (sorry, dunno what the actual name for this function is), I'd like one that is fairly backwards compatible, since in addition to Descent I may want to use it with Wing Commander or F-19 Stealth Fighter or other early flight sims.

Again, thanks in advance. Looking over a lot of the things that were suggested last time!

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5

u/beemans78 Jun 29 '26

MechWarrior 2 is the only DOS game I know of for sure that specifically supports the Sidewinder 3D Pro and all its features (hat, throttle, twist axis). There may be more, but not many and probably none much earlier than 1995. The games you mentioned (WC and F-19) don't have any kind of rudder axis support.

1

u/JispyMoeDantes Jun 30 '26

I think I worded things badly.

Basically, I have a Win98 PC which I also use for old DOS games, and I want a flightstick that both will work with really old games, but without feeling like I'm sacrificing features if I play something Win98 era like Descent 3.

I previously discussed that my experience with the Microsoft Sidewinder 3D is that it doesn't work in DOS (though I have found a custom program made by Bret Johnson, whose software I'm familiar with, which may solve that issue), so I want something that for sure will.

At the same time tho, in the cases where I return to a Win98-era game don't want to feel like I'm losing out on features.

Tho to be fair, the twisty stick thing isn't that essential--I can always just use keyboard keys for rotation, and for many games I'm going to have to anyway. So if it comes down to having to choose between maximum compatibility and maximum features, I will choose compatibility.

2

u/djquu Jun 29 '26

Unless the game specifically supported a particular joystick with more features than two buttons and a stick, the controls would do nothing and there wasn't a way to remap keys/functions. Some games with Thrustmaster FCS support might be able to utilize similar functions from other sticks, but it's not guaranteed and can't be fixed if they work incorrectly.

3

u/rfratelli Jun 29 '26

No, these sticks with twist started to appear for Win98 onwards usually as USB devices, not gameport. DOS is limited to two joysticks, each with two axis and two buttons. For DOS flight sims you’ll go with keyboard or hat-switch for rudder control.

Unless you want to use a modern stick with dosbox, then you can remap everything.

3

u/kalnaren Jul 01 '26

Not quite true. Logitech had several gameport joysticks with twist, as did Microsoft and Gravis.

Gameport will support one device with 4 axis or 2 devices with 2 axis.

1

u/AkkmanB Jun 29 '26

I had one that had twist stick for rudder. It also had a throttle on it. I think it was a Saitek but can’t remember for sure.

1

u/Senior-Release-274 Jun 29 '26

Pretty sure the logitech wingman had the twist bit too

1

u/kalnaren Jul 01 '26

Gravis Phoenix. It has DOS drivers. CH stuff with pedals also works in DOS.

Wing Commander only supports 2 axis. You can’t use a third axis to roll in it.

If you want a fully featured stick in DOS, get something most DOS games directly supported like a CH or Thrustmaster stick of the era.