I don't know what it is, but for some reason I want to gouge my own eyes out when this topic comes up because of the blind fanboys. Why there is some kind of civil war within the FPS genre I have no idea and can only hold back the FPS genre from evolving like it has been.
The popular argument I'm speaking of, which most of you already know, is the "twitch" shooter vs the "heavy"(?) shooter. I'm fine with personal preference, and people having opinions on what they think is better and what have you, but when it comes to people actually praising a control flaw is what really ruffles my feathers--Yes, I said ruffles my feathers =D
Even if KZ2 or KZ3 for that matter had "twitch" controls, does not automatically make it COD, for obvious reasons. I want to take a quick history lesson and make a few points. The Call of Duty IP did not invent, nor is it the only IP with "twitch" controls.
So why always compare "twitch" controls to COD? Why not refer it to the "Standard shooter", because this is simply more accurate. People tend to do this though out of hate for the series, you can think of "twitch" as a prejuduce slur, because it's almost always used to put down COD's controls, when in fact, twitch controls did not originate with COD.
I can understand people not liking the floaty controls, but like it or not, they're RESPONSIVE. And responsive usually equals praise. Now this is where it may get more confusing so please try to stay with me.
Killzone 2 introduced a very heavy feeling type of controls, which was praised by the die-hard fans and people craving change within the FPS genre. The only problem, is there was a design choice to have a large dead zone (aka input lag). The heavy feeling was NOT, I repeat, NOT due to this. What created the heavy feeling was the acceleration while turning or momentum.
As in it took you awhile to start turning, then once you got going, it took a second or two to slow down or stop. People confuse this with realism and the heavy feel to the game. They think the large dead zone is what created the heavy feeling, when this is simply not the case.
Here's some examples:
It was virtually impossible to make minor adjustments in KZ2 pre-precision controls patch, because it took more than a 1/4 of movement of the analog sticks for it to register on screen. This does not in any way or form represent weight. What it does represent, is a hesitation of neurons sending messages from the brain to your body. So why people defend the dead zone to death is way beyond me.
Again, the momentum is what succeeded in representing a heaviness to the game. The second part of the argument is "realism". This where I find most of the humor (Sorry if it's at your expense). Momentum IS realistic, delayed messages from your brain to your arms/fingers/body is NOT realistic unless you're mentally challenged or have some kind of nerve and/or brain damage.
With COD, you had weight changes depending on your equipped weapon which = realism. KZ2 had the same weight for every single weapon which does not = realism. In COD, you could not sprint for long distances (Not including perks), in KZ2 you could basically sprint forever which again does not = realism. So while you guys swear about the heavy feel and realism, this is a huge contradiction to your argument.
Onto Killzone 3, it appears they got rid of the dead zone issue but kept the momentum. Which is a win/win for everyone, you have responsive (Which does not = twitch) controls with a heavy feeling. So why is everyone hating the "new" controls although they're not new, they're fixed.
BF:BC also have heavier controls, but no one complained about them, why? Because although they were heavier, they were responsive. You could give me a 300 pound obese character walking through molasses, as long as the controls are responsive, you won't hear a complaint out of me. Give me a twitch shooter with a large dead zone and feel the wraith of my bitching. Point is, I could care less about the weight of the game, it's the responsiveness is what I'm worried about, this should be a necessity in any game on any given day, anything else is asking to take steps back within the gaming industry.
Final notes:
I am only a fan of COD4, I am also a fan of KZ2, but more importantly I am a fan of FPS. And it will only hinder the FPS genre if we as a community defend bad design choices or defend something blindly for the simple purpose of being different regardless of whether it's a good thing or not.
To the non-believers, you know who you are, the ones saying "Stop complaining and get better noob!" or "You get use to the controls" etc. I played the hell out of KZ2, I had a 2.0+ k/d ratio (Better than usual for me), and could kill easily but it still doesn't mean the controls were responsive or you could make minor adjustments (This is mainly felt with ADS), or even good for that matter.
I "adapted", which shouldn't be an issue, if the controls were at all realistic, they'd feel comfortable from the get go not uncomfortable. Thanks for reading my rant to those of you who did, to make it clear I am not bashing Killzone in anyway. I am a huge fan and loved it.
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Well, I have to agree when you said the controls should be comfortable from the get go. You're right, other than learning what button does what, it shouldn't be a burden to learn how to move around, especially in an FPS. KZ2 had a huge learning curve, and I found myself strafing to hit targets more than I was aiming, but I adapted, and I'm eager to see what the new controls are like when the open beta hits.
Actually, the size of the dead zone for the original controls in KILLZONE 2 was quite reasonable. It may even be smaller to the dead zone used for the "high precision" controls. What people don't seem to realize is that the slowest possible aiming speed is actually really slow (even at max sensitivity), so slow that it becomes difficult to notice the screen moving. If you look close you should be able to observe details (e.g. the frames on the lights) shifting from pixel to pixel.
Mostly agree but BFBC does not hav heavy controls. They are just like COD except your character likes to shake his gun all over half the screen.
Correction: Input Lag is NOT the same as Deadzone.
Deadzone - The amount of "dead" area on a joystick or analog stick, either inherent in the individual game programming or the mechanical design of the device itself, that does not respond to player movement. An example of this would be that, in a game with a high amount of deadzone, the player would be forced to press the joystick further in a direction before it causes movement on screen. Games with higher deadzone, especially in shooters, tend to make the aiming controls feel stiff and hard-to-control, especially when trying to make very small, precise aiming adjustments or when trying to snipe at an enemy from very far away. All games have at least SOME amount of deadzone; the games with very little deadzone (e.g., Call of Duty and Halo) tend to feel more responsive, and it appears to the player as if there isn't any deadzone at all.
Input lag (or Input Latency/Delay) - A delay that occurs, usually measured in the tens or hundreds of milliseconds, from when you first press a button or move the analog stick, to when the game finally responds to your controller and does something on screen. For example, pressing the fire button, and after a short delay, the gun finally fires on screen. The smaller the Input Lag, the less noticeable this delay is between player controller action and in-game response, and the more responsive the game feels. Like deadzone, ALL games have at least SOME amount of Input Lag.
From what I've read, Killzone 3 has an input latency measurement of ~100ms, which is considered good-to-average.
Heavy gun (all guns are heavy) = slow turning/aiming speed = realism.
super light weapons carried by super strong soldiers in a no gravity area = Twitch gameplay = not realistic. It's arcade'y.
KZ2 had heavy controls. Whether or not this is because this or that, doesn't matter. What matters is the end result, which was heavy aiming, which is how the real world works. At least unless you're going for some kind of record with a light gun. In war your body is tired, there's no energy for twitch movements all the time.
That's what KZ2 reflects. Whether or not this is because of a design decision, or badly made controls doesn't matter. What matters is the end result. And in the end, KZ2 movements are much more realistic than twitch shooters like COD.