PC Gaming Archive

Home flight simulators have been around almost as long as computers. Way back in 1988, you could play the original Jetfighter on your DOS or Amiga PC. The graphics weren’t exactly realistic, but they were cutting-edge for the time. And for all of us flight enthusiasts, it was an amazing, fun experience. Nowadays, you can take to the skies in much more advanced, more immersive …

If you’re a flight simulator enthusiast, you’re probably familiar with the awkwardness of traditional control schemes. Console-style controllers, for example, are excellent for shooters like Call of Duty or action titles like Red Dead: Redemption. But they don’t provide enough inputs for a flight simulator. Oftentimes, this means you’ll end up scrolling through menus or moving your cursor around with the thumbsticks. Needless to say, …

For most genres of games, a standard controller is the best type of input. Gamers will argue over form factors, and whether the PlayStation or Xbox is better. But the basic layout has been the same for a few console generations. You have some triggers, a pair of thumbsticks, a directional pad, and some buttons. This layout works well for shooters, roleplaying games, and action …

There are many different aspects that go into a great flight simulation yoke. In a general sense, realism is often priority number one. However, some users may consider it second or equal to many other qualities. For example, there are technical capabilities like custom button mapping, where you can create a layout that’s specific to different models of airplanes or which allow you greater commands. …

If you ever find yourself playing games online, you are bound to hear people talk about their ‘frames,’ and usually when they are frustrated with ‘frame drops.’ Essentially what they are referring to is the FPS or ‘Frames per Second’ that display on the screen. FPS is one of the primary benchmarks used to measure graphical performance in a video game. The primary reason everyone …