Saturday, December 3, 2011

PS3 Controller/Keypad Installation Instructions

NOTE: You do NOT need Bluetooth or the keypad to use your PS3 controller with your PC: you can follow the same instructions below to play via USB.
http://www.ps3attitude.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/keypad-2.jpg
You don't need it, but you know you want it.

These instructions summarize how to set up your PS3 controller/keypad for use with Windows.  You have two driver options: MotioninJoy and Tamamy's drivers. MiJ is by far the most common option, but as some have expressed concerns about viruses (see warning below), I've provided links to Tamamy's drivers as an alternative.

As I have not personally attempted using Tamamy's drivers, the instructions below are for MotioninJoy.  FOR INSTRUCTIONS ON DOWNLOADING AND INSTALLING TAMAMY'S DRIVERS INSTEAD OF MOTIONINJOY, SEE THIS BLOG POST. Whichever setup you use, you'll be able to pair your keypad to Windows if you have Bluetooth.
(As a side note, MiJ's XBOX 360 emulator function is extremely useful for PC games preconfigured for use with a 360 controller, such as Skyrim) 

WARNINGS:
  • MotioninJoy installs its own Bluetooth drivers, which make your Bluetooth receiver useless for any other purpose! As a workaround, get a separate Bluetooth USB dongle specifically for MiJ, and only install MiJ's drivers for THAT BT device.  I may provide instructions later on how to locate and remove MiJ's drivers if anybody needs them.
  • My antivirus program detected the DOWNLOADER trojan when I downloaded the program a couple months back (what do you expect from a program hosted in China?). This isn't really cause for concern: despite some infamy in its past, MiJ recently paid to have their drivers fully signed and approved by Microsoft, and my system's AV software was so unconcerned it didn't even warn me about the trojan: it quarantined it without so much as a popup. Other users on the SWTOR forums have fully scanned and installed the program files and determined them to be virus free. I'd be remiss if I didn't warn you though, so it's your call!  I should note that today, 12/3/2011, I downloaded the latest version and ran it through multiple antivirus programs including Norton, McAfee, VirusTotal and ThreatExpert.  No threats were detected.  VirusTotal also confirms that www.motioninjoy.com is virus free.
INSTRUCTIONS:
  1. Download and install MotionInJoy from MotionInJoy.com. Follow the instructions on their site for installing the drivers for both your controller and keypad and pairing the devices to your Bluetooth.
  2. You can configure your controls directly from MiJ by binding controller buttons to keystrokes and mouse movement in the settings, however you must run MotioninJoy as an administrator for SWTOR to recognize it.  Your other option is configuring your controller in MiJ as a standard controller and binding keystrokes/mouse in a separate program like XPadder or Pinnacle Game Profiler.  If you choose the former option, save and enable your profile and you're done.  If you choose the latter (recommended, as it offers more flexibility in button assignment), continue to step 3.
  3. I have uploaded my custom MiJ profile here for anyone to download and use.  Otherwise, select the custom profile option and configure your controller to function as a standard PC game controller (as in don't bind buttons to keyboard presses or mouse movements). Set the SIXAXIS config to none (or it will cause you problems when you try to map controls in XPadder), and set the L2 and R2 buttons as controller buttons, NOT as a z-axis. Make sure you save your profile and hit ENABLE when you're done.
  4. Configure your controller in XPadder or Pinnacle Game Profiler (instructions coming soon).

MOTIONINJOY NOTES:
  • MiJ has adjustable sliders for mouse movement speed and analog stick sensitivity, among other things. If you've dialed down the camera rotation speed and mouse sensitivity in SWTOR and are still having issues with rotating too fast, try adjusting these settings as well.
  • You can switch between Bluetooth and USB if your battery starts to run low...however MIJ treats these as separate devices, and you might find yourself needing to reenable your controller/keypad if you plug/unplug it...so plan around that.
  • MotioninJoy has a "Disconnect" feature you can use to immediately disconnect your PS3 controller or keypad to save power. If you disconnect, when you turn your controller back on, make sure you hit "Refresh", then hit "Enable". You do not need to do this for the keypad.
  • The PS button on the PS3 controller IS configurable as a standard controller button (I have mine set to lock on to the nearest enemy).
  • UPDATE: Kyren has pointed out below that apparently the latest version of MotioninJoy changed the default axis configuration in the Playstation 3 menu, so the Z-axis is mapped to the right analog stick's left-right rotation.  This will screw up your controller configurations.  Either manually change the configuration so the right stick is controlled by Rx and Ry, or select the Xbox 360 Controller Emulator mode (the latter of which is the much easier solution at sacrifice of your PS button).
KEYPAD NOTES:
  • The keypad functions as a standard keyboard, so its hotkeys will mirror your standard keyboard...without alt or ctrl buttons. If you want some easily accessible hotkeys, the , ' . and ; keys are unbound by default in SWTOR.
  • The keypad is designed to automatically time out after a minute or so of inactivity, and reconnects the next time you press a key (then follows through with that keypress upon reconnect).  This takes about 3 seconds, so to prevent this from being an issue in combat, tap one of the shift keys on your way into the fight. 
  • While the PS3 keypad is pretty damn light, the keypad and PS3 controller use two separate USB ports for connecting and charging. Make sure you have some lightweight USB cords if you play via USB (not one of those ones with the big capacitor by the connection).

11 comments:

  1. thanks for the blog can't wait to try this out...just one thing...there is no file in the link to your MiJ profile

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  2. Fixed the link. Thanks for the heads up!

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  3. Hey dumb question but how can i load your profile onto mij? I downloaded...but then what?

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  4. if anyone else misses this like I did, motioninjoy's default configurations map the right analog stick to the z axis. this messes up things like camera control in swtor.

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    1. Thanks for the info, Kyren! I'll have to check the latest MiJ update, as previously the Z-axis was default mapped to the L2-R2 buttons as stated above.

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    2. Kyren, looks like you're right! Apparently it's an update they made to the Playstation 3 controller configuration. If you switch to the Xbox 360 Controller Emulator mode, the default configurations are correct. I'll make sure to note this in the post above. Appreciate the heads up!

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  5. is there a way to bind the scrolls keys to alt and control kb keys on keypad?

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  6. How do I change the movement speed of my analogs????

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    1. Hi, Jacob. I recommend you check out the following post: http://swtorpeeps.blogspot.com/2012/01/peeps-fixes-your-camera-and-other.html . It should have the answers you're looking for!

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  7. Will it also work with an wired ps3 controller

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  8. Hi! I'm having a problem to fix it's keys... T-T Do I need to setup anything on my windows so the keys work accordingly?

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