Problems using Joystick in Mafia II for driving.

[doane]

I have a Thrustmaster T16000M joystick that I enjoy using in games like Test Drive Unlimited and older Need for Speed games where I have it set up with the X axis for steering and the Y axis for acceleration and braking. It works fine and it works fine with flight simulations I have like Combat Flight Simulator II, Rise of Flight, Wings of Prey, and with the old Mafia I version before while driving. But I can't get it to work well with Mafia II. I tried using it using the free JoytoKey program, and now with Xpadder and they can be assigned the key inputs for car driving to the sticks X and Y axis but they are way to sensitive, especially the steering which is almost impossible to control, even with dead zones set up.
I tried using the X-Box360 programs, including the newest 2.0.2.94 version and with them, the steering with the joystick is OK, but I can't assign the acceleration to the Y axis, I have to use buttons on the stick.
I tried using the X-box360 programs in conjunction with using Xpadder for just the acceleration on the Y axis assigned to the up and down arrows or to the W and S keys (either one). Then I have a strange problem.. the steering works smoothly, but from a stand still, if I turn right or left and try to accelerate, the car won't move, I can only accelerate while not turning the wheel until I get moving to about 10 MPH, then turning is OK and acceleration is OK. But if I use the buttons on the stick that the X-box360 has assigned the acceleration works from a stand still with no problem.
I also noticed in Xpadder that when I tried to set up my stick it says it is not analog so I have tried also to use a Dpad setting. I tried that and I have the same problems of not being able to start moving with the wheel turned left or right while using the Y movement for acceleration forward or backward.

[Primal Fear]

I have a Thrustmaster T16000M joystick that I enjoy using in games like... older Need for Speed games where I have it set up with the X axis for steering and the Y axis for acceleration and braking.

Finally someone who thinks like me. I play almost every game with joystick and mouse and since I had Xpadder used never again the keyboard. And I also play NfS: High Stakes from time to time.

It works fine with... the old Mafia I version before while driving. But I can't get it to work well with Mafia II. I tried using it using the free JoytoKey program, and now with Xpadder and they can be assigned the key inputs for car driving to the sticks X and Y axis but they are way to sensitive,...

Yes, the problem is that Xpadder and JoytoKey only emulate the keyboard. And if you press for example "d" on the keyboard a car will steer fully right too. There will be no difference with Xpadder or JoytoKey.
With Need for Speed for example you can map your controller completely free, it's a shame that this seems to be completely lost since Xinput. I cannot remember any game that only supports the Xbox360pad (or equivalents with Xinput) were it was possible to map the buttons and axes absolutely free.

I tried using the X-Box360 programs, including the newest 2.0.2.94 version and with them, the steering with the joystick is OK, but I can't assign the acceleration to the Y axis, I have to use buttons on the stick.

I know this program and had also tried to use it (also together with Xpadder) with the demo of Mafia II. I remember that it wasn't possible to assign a button to an axis or the other way.
But I had "accelerate" and "brake" on the triggers, so I could assign it to the stick. The problem was, while outside of a car "Stick forward" was shoot . You have changed the preset for the 360pad in the game, right?
Edit: OK, there is no preset in the gamewith gas on a gamepad button.
It is for me no problem with this program to assign this axis to the triggers (which are for gas and brake) of the emulated 360pad.
Left Trigger=Half Axis 2
Right Trigger=Inverted Half Axis 2[/edit]

My solution on the end was to use my Xbox360 pad for driving and to use outside of a car joystick and mouse via Xpadder.
But this brings not the possibility to drive with the joystick. Maybe two Joysticks, one with the x360ce and one with Xpadder, but that would be absolutely impractical.

I also noticed in Xpadder that when I tried to set up my stick it says it is not analog so I have tried also to use a Dpad setting. I tried that and I have the same problems of not being able to start moving with the wheel turned left or right while using the Y movement for acceleration forward or backward.

This strange. As long as you don't want to use Distance Zones in the Advanced Assignments this not such an big problem, but normally this stick has to be analog.
If you click on the tab of this controller in the Xpadder main window you see the input of the controller on the right side.

For you there should be only DirectInput. Do Axis X and Y (or maybe any other axes) move if you move the stick.
Maybe the stick can be also digital, so there would move an axis and there would be a button pressed for each direction.
In this case it would be a solution to select the axes manually in the Gamepad Setting. But in every way it wouldn't really help you with you problem with Mafia II.


I currently download the demo of MafiaII again and I will therefore once again look closer. Maybe I can find a solution, but since you was already on a good way I have not much hope.
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Apart from this I have a question about this joystick you have. How long is the stick from the hand rest to the lower edge of the center button? It is the only Joystick that seriously convertible to left hand use (currently on the market) and so the only one that could maybe replace my current Cyborg 3D Stick. But I have concerns that it could be much too short for my paws and so I would have to take the risk to break my thumb every time I want to press this button.

[Primal Fear]

I tried using the X-box360 programs in conjunction with using Xpadder for just the acceleration on the Y axis assigned to the up and down arrows or to the W and S keys (either one). Then I have a strange problem.. the steering works smoothly, but from a stand still, if I turn right or left and try to accelerate, the car won't move,...

I have tried it all, and had the same problem. To be exactly the problem is, that the game cannot handle gamepad and keyboard/mouse input at the same time.

I can only accelerate while not turning the wheel until I get moving to about 10 MPH, then turning is OK and acceleration is OK.

Yes but I guess this still means that you cannot accelerate while steering. You only have the feeling that everything works well because the car is indolent (I hope this is correct term for the topic physics).

I see only two possibilities.
1.No analog input for the joystick, which means almost impossible to drive a car

2.The joystick only for driving and for everything by foot keyboard and mouse (or another controller via Xpadder)
2a.Or like I did Xbox360pad for driving and Joystick(via Xpadder) and mouse for everxthing by foot (but that would mean no driving with joystick)