I was expecting that once locked onto the joystick (eg A320 sidestick), I would tilt the VR controller to tilt the joystick, much like in games like VTOL VR or Xplane. Whereas at the moment we seem to have to move the controller left/right forward/backward to drag the top of the joystick about.
Advantages of tilting method I see:
-Base of controller remains in one place, giving a valuable reference point
-Closer to the real life hand action
-Can inherently feel how much control input you are giving to the joystick without looking, rather than constantly having to visually check the virtual sidestick to see how far it has moved compared to the arbitrary position where it started.
-Much more comfortable - allow users lock onto the joystick, whatever that is located in the plane, then move the controller to wherever is more convenient or comfortable in real life (chair arm rest) and this movement will not affect the joystick as you are not tilting it. Whereas currently you have to keep your hand in the exact position of the joystick in the virtual cockpit, usually in midair.
-Edit - As described in posts below, it also significantly reduces controller tracking loss which is quite a problem at the moment when turning the head.
Ideally it would also allow twist for rudder input, like in VTOL.
I am not sure if others prefer the current method, in which case ideally we would have the option to swap between tilt and move. Personally I would control yokes using this method as well if I could.
Edit:
For anyone who is not familiar with tilt controls, I found this old video of the developer explaining the controls on a (very) early build of the outstanding VTOL VR. It also shows how seamlessly you can interact with flight controls and instruments when you don’t need to be fumbling between different controllers.
Definitely this. X-Plane call it the ergonomic method and I vote for it with gusto! If I could vote 1000 times I would. It’s just better when using VR controllers.
One additional benefit (particularly for us G2 users) is that you no longer have to track the controller in space (translation) With the tracking on the G2 not being great, not having to look at the controller, so the headset can track it and know it’s physical location, would be an enormous benefit.
That’s indeed a very good point, assuming tilt sensor is in the handset.
On a similar point I have had a couple of occasions where my quest 2 has lost tracking of the controller and it has suddenly put the yoke or throttle to an extreme position - it would be better to assume a neutral position if possible.
Going into the newest VR update (im a VR flyer only) using the index controllers to move the wheel is quite awful and i just use my logitech pro 3d instead. I really hope they do something with hand tracking SDK.
I just now noticed that when my controller was obscured by desk it would lose tracking, but the tilt sensor continued to track perfectly, so you are indeed correct. This explains why there is often a loss of tracking in MSFS, and resultant yoke/throttle going to extreme values, when turning head to look out the side window, while it never happens in VTOL VR - so you are right, a huge additional advantage of the tilt method!
I just wanted to pop back in here and say that I’m still trying to find the perfect method for enjoying and controlling my flights in VR and this is still the one thing which I think could get it right.
I can’t swap between physical yoke/throttle and VR controllers all the time, so I just want to only use the VR controllers but with the current implementation that is rubbish and as said above, the loss of tracking causes troublesome inputs on the main aircraft controls.
Using only VR controllers also enables full use of the menus, extra panels, etc. so feels,like the best way to have a seamless, immersive experience.
I’ve even tried using an iPad as a remote mouse for my PC so I don’t have to fumble for the mouse when I’ve got my headset on, but it’s just not natural or accurate.
Has anyone heard anything stated by MS or Asobo around VR controller improvement lately?
Thanks
Unfortunately not, I have tried asking questions at the Q+A etc but I haven’t seen anything.
There are one or two planes that are just about flyable with the current implementation, due to the stick being in favourable position and also being very slow and stable so if tracking is lost then it is not an instant crash… The Robin DR 400 is one.
However most planes are not controllable with the current implementation, so I am doing like most others and using a hybrid of physical and VR controls which is not ideal. My main setup at the moment is using physical joystick in my right hand to the side of my seat (a bit like an airbus side stick) and VR controller in my left hand, and flying from the copilot/right hand seat so that left hand can reach most of the instruments. I would much prefer to be able to do the whole thing with just 2 VR controllers as discussed but this is the best I have found for now!
Yes, you’ve come to the same conclusion I did, i.e. to fly from the copilot seat!
It excludes a couple of aircraft though, like the Cessnas, unfortunately.
Voted the topic! that would make a lot easier flying with VR controllers, (I’m struggling to understand why is so difficult for Asobo to implement a VR interaction more similar to xplane 11 or 12) if just one could assign the inclination axis to the controls, also on quest, the controller tracking is probably better, but I find myself looking around or behind to some detail in the scenario and the visor loses track of the controller so my grabbed yoke (or sidestick…) goes haywire and i find myself recovering from a stall or an undesired attitude, can add to the fun of course!
for those (the vast majority of people, I know) using hardware yokes and throttles, maybe consider also that the “tactile” feedback from the hardware yokes, sticks or throttles out there, is nowhere close to what’s supposed to be in real life!
I hope that devs will still work on VR controller support despite not many votes… Because otherwise we could be in a and situation whereby: users do not expect that VR controllers can be comparable or better than HOTAS and so they do not vote for improvements, and yet they will not realise how good VR controllers can be until they have experienced a good implementation of it for themselves. But they won’t experience it for themselves unless they vote for it! (Or play another game such as VTOL VR - indeed I never thought I would want to use VR controllers over my HOTAS until I was forced to in that game, and it is now my favourite VR game !)
I’m waiting for this feature. I spent some days trying to get used to fs2020 method but definitely, the ergonomic mode like xplane is amazing. Hope developers can work with that
There is an application called Steam VR Wheel, and I have used it with DCS in the past. but,
It wasn’t for WMR, and there was no input ON/OFF function with the grip button, so the upright position was always neutral.
Can you make something like an improved version of this application?
and 
situation whereby: users do not expect that VR controllers can be comparable or better than HOTAS and so they do not vote for improvements, and yet they will not realise how good VR controllers can be until they have experienced a good implementation of it for themselves. But they won’t experience it for themselves unless they vote for it! (Or play another game such as VTOL VR - indeed I never thought I would want to use VR controllers over my HOTAS until I was forced to in that game, and it is now my favourite VR game !)