Anyone use old 15pin joysticks?

[Chugster]

So i have just bought a Rockfire USB/15 pin adaptor to use with a Thrustmaster Top Gun joystick i bought a while ago. Now the joystick connects and i can see the axis, buttons and hat working on the Game Controller screen, albeit the axis movement is very restricted compare to modern sticks.

It seems to work fine with old dosbox games but when I try a slightly newer game it doesnt seem to work right, the axis worked fine in Jane's Fighter Anthology, but in others like Janes USAF and MS Combat Flight Sims 1/2/3 the axis didnt work properly and even did stuff like fire guns or missiles when you moved the stick.

So is this just a settings issue, either on the Rockfire adaptor or ingame or is it a fools errand to try and use these old flight sticks today?

[Goob113870]

probably you are using a very obsolete antiquated joystick might as well be trying to put a round peg into a square hole. Just buy a new stick, if money is an issue as I know most stuff is uber expensive. There is always the Logitech Wingman 3d flight stick  that is most definitely not the newest but it works amazingly well with awesome reviews. you can find it all day long brand-new in box for like $30 dollars.

[Chugster]

Oh i have modern joysticks, i just wanted to go the whole retro experience, shy of buying an old PC the game and the joystick are as close as i can get

[Goob113870]

gotcha! 

[Cadmus]

I've gotten old joysticks to work with an adapter on modern computers. Generally if it works correctly under Window's controller setup, it should work for your game.

I just have a generic adapter off ebay. I think it works by turning the signal into a DirectInput device. I had no problem with more modern Windows games but I didn't test extensively with Dosbox. I know with Dosbox you can change the cycles each program runs at, that might affect how often it checks the joystick for updates. If it works in Windows but not is Dosbox, it's most likely not a controller issue but a Dosbox compatibility issue.

A few years ago I switched from Dosbox to 86box. 86box emulates the entire computer, I find it's a much more accurate and consistent emulation. Games that run choppy or stutter in Dosbox run smoothly. I haven't tried it with any joysticks yet, but I expect it to work. It is more work to get set up as you have to pick the virtual hardware and install the operating system. It is also an option for some Windows 95/98 titles, where compatibility with modern systems is poor.