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What are gaming joysticks and how should you buy one?

What are gaming joysticks and how should you buy one?

By Shivam Published about a year ago 3 min read
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What are gaming joysticks and how should you buy one?
Photo by Steve DiMatteo on Unsplash

With rising trends in technology, we are seeing new developments coming with the passing of each day. Today we see a phone that speaks; tomorrow we see a phone that folds; the day after that we see a phone that cooks, and whatnot. When it comes to gaming, things have changed pretty rapidly too. New ways of playing games are around. For example, VR gaming is on a quick rise. Similarly, the gaming joysticks have seen changes too. What are these changes? And how should you buy a gaming joystick? In this article, we’ll reveal to you all about gaming joysticks.

What is a gaming joystick?

A gaming joystick, or a gaming pad, is a device that lets a gamer control his/her movements during the game on a computer or a game console like Xbox. It has numerous buttons that are assigned different functions based on how the game runs. For example, one button can be used for firing, another for movement, another for direction, and so on.

A joystick is generally preferred by gamers over a mouse and keywords. Now, let’s take a peek at different types of gaming joysticks out in the market.

Different types of gaming joysticks

Gaming joysticks have been around for more than 5 decades. The first joystick was invented and released in 1967 by the company named Applied Engineering. Since then, these joysticks have evolved much to cater to the needs of gamers. Presently, gaming pads can be categorized into 4 categories.

• Analog stick

• Digital Pad

• Arcade-style

• Flight stick

Let’s understand these all one by one.

Analog Stick joystick

These are one of the most popular joysticks out there. This type of joystick has a thumb-stick that looks like a manual gear in a car, which is used to control the movements of a player. It usually allows a player to move in 8 different directions. Apart from the thumb-stick, this gamepad also has several buttons that allow a player to function differently. Gamers who require precision and control in their play must go for an analog stick joystick.

Digital D-Pad joysticks

The D in D-pad stands for ‘Directional’. These are one of the earliest gamepads that have simple features like on, off, up, down, left, right, etc. These gaming pads are often used in simple racing games that do not require many movements. Because modern games involve complexity, these gamepads often fail to satisfy the needs of gamers.

Arcade-style joysticks

These joysticks were invented to serve the needs of arcade-style games of the early 80s and 90s. Consider these as the basic version of an analog stick. These pads have a gear-like joystick that allows movements; apart from it, there are a few other buttons that serve other functions. Arcade pads were best used to serve games like Pac-man, space invaders, etc.

Flight stick joystick

If you love games that offer flight simulation experience, these joysticks are best for you. These joysticks have a handle that offers throttle and a few other buttons that help you simulate a flight perfectly. The point to note while buying these is that these joysticks have limited functionality. You would not be able to play a large number of games with these.

These are all the different types of joysticks that are out there in the market that you can consider buying. Apart from it, the VR game sets come with other types of Bluetooth controllers. These controllers mimic hand movements. For example, by holding these, you can fight as you do in the real world.

While choosing gamepads is one thing, buying them is another. When buying, make sure you buy them from a trustable source. There are many alternatives to eBay that offer excellent video gaming products at competitive prices. Check them out, buy your gamepad, and enjoy the game.

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About the Creator

Shivam

Helping people communicate complex ideas using storytelling

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