It doesn't have a twist handle, but I use a Saitek x36 for that game as well as Tie fighter collectors CD. I only use it in windows with dosboxes though. I've never tried it in dos.

Yeah, I wanted the twist handle as Mech2 uses it for twisting your torso so it's pretty much essential.

Looks like the only joystick other than another sidewinder is a Logitech extreme 3d pro. On the torso issue, I just use the rudder control on the throttle. I can see how using a twist handle would be more intuitive though. Back when I originally played this game we had a sidewinder too.

If you could fing one how about the wingman warrior the one with the twist knob on it ?
ps: does mech 2 support forcefeedback I know mech 3 did

Mech2 predates the forcefeedback novelty madness by 3 years so no.

The Logitech Extreme 3D Pro looks promising but i thought that wasn't compatible with Windows 9x/Dos? Gameport+USB or USB only?

The other joystick I found was the Logitech Wingman Extreme Digital 3D. Doesn't anyone know much about this joystick?

Why not consider a proper HOTAS and rudder pedals? To me, "ideal" for the gameport era means the Thrustmaster F-22 Pro + F-16 TQS + RCS pedal combo.

Though given the way MechWarrior 2 aiming works with absolute mapping, a CH Products Fighterstick may be preferred for the wide throw and light tension.

By the way, the SideWinder 3D Pro is really finicky to get working in digital mode. There's a big batch of drivers with altered timings for Win9x use floating around out there, but YMMV; they sure didn't work on my P4EE box.

Analog mode (TM FCS or CH Flightstick Pro, depending on switch position) is much more straightforward, but then you lose the base buttons and either the throttle slider or the ability to depress buttons simultaneously because of how TM and CH respectively implemented their hat switches.

NamelessPlayer wrote:

Why not consider a proper HOTAS and rudder pedals? To me, "ideal" for the gameport era means the Thrustmaster F-22 Pro + F-16 TQ […]
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Why not consider a proper HOTAS and rudder pedals? To me, "ideal" for the gameport era means the Thrustmaster F-22 Pro + F-16 TQS + RCS pedal combo.

Though given the way MechWarrior 2 aiming works with absolute mapping, a CH Products Fighterstick may be preferred for the wide throw and light tension.

By the way, the SideWinder 3D Pro is really finicky to get working in digital mode. There's a big batch of drivers with altered timings for Win9x use floating around out there, but YMMV; they sure didn't work on my P4EE box.

Analog mode (TM FCS or CH Flightstick Pro, depending on switch position) is much more straightforward, but then you lose the base buttons and either the throttle slider or the ability to depress buttons simultaneously because of how TM and CH respectively implemented their hat switches.

That Thrustmaster setup you suggested looks amazing...and expensive 🤣 A bit overkill for Mechwarrior 2 but I did say "ideal" I guess. The base buttons are also required as I remember playing Mech2 without needing the keyboard...at least I think I didn't use it.

Do you have any experience regarding the 2 Logitech joysticks I mentioned previously?

The Logitech Extreme 3D Pro is a modern USB stick, not a gameport one like most of the things we've been discussing. This may actually be perfectly okay for MechWarrior 2 if you're running a Windows version, since the Win9x versions handle DirectInput with all its axes and buttons just fine. It's a decent stick, but the twist rudder could use more tension to balance itself out with the stick gimbal spring.

But if we're gonna bring up USB sticks, then I'd rather go for the Thrustmaster T.16000-M on a budget. Nice gimbal and Hall sensor for the stick axes, kinda Suncom-esque but without the crappy slide pots. It's just too bad that a whopping 12 buttons are stuck on the base instead of the stick grip where they belong.

As for the older Logitech WingMan Extreme Digital 3D, I've seen a few of those in thrift stores, but passed on them for being too basic. I'm trying to remember if the "digital" part is a complete misnomer and it's actually an analog gameport stick, or if it's an ADI digital gameport stick which won't work in DOS.

The main Logitech sticks I have experience with, Extreme 3D Pro aside, are the WingMan Interceptor, WingMan Strike Force 3D and G940. That first one's Logitech ADI-only, useless in DOS, great in Win9x and kinda gimped in XP because I can't enable gameport rudder pedals in XP (which is needed because the Interceptor doesn't twist). The latter two are force-feedback USB sticks with some rather grating flaws.

What about the MS Sidewinder Precision Pro? It comes with a gameport to USB adapter, has a twist stick for rudder control, and MS are good at building rock-solid peripherals. Drivers would probably be very easy to find, if not included on a Win98 disk.

When I was beta testing Mechwarrior 2 (yup! I'm listed in the freaking credits! My only claim to fame), they suggested the entire joystick/throttle/rudder system from thrustmaster. I think CH had issues with the throttle, or it was late to market (??? been so long ago).

I only had the joystick and throttle (low-end...no the F16-whatever), as the rudder was very expensive. I think I tried to make the HAT on the joystick work as the rudder....or at least buttons on the throttle as the rudder.

dogchainx wrote:

When I was beta testing Mechwarrior 2 (yup! I'm listed in the freaking credits! My only claim to fame), they suggested the entire joystick/throttle/rudder system from thrustmaster. I think CH had issues with the throttle, or it was late to market (??? been so long ago).

I only had the joystick and throttle (low-end...no the F16-whatever), as the rudder was very expensive. I think I tried to make the HAT on the joystick work as the rudder....or at least buttons on the throttle as the rudder.

Awesome! Too bad they didn't have you for Mercs, that game really needed it. 😒

When I played Mech2 at a neighbor's house almost 20 years ago it was always on a Sidewinder 3D Pro, and that's one of the only joysticks I enjoy using to this day. I'm not much of a joystick person, the immersion isn't worth feeling totally gimped.

dexter311 wrote:

What about the MS Sidewinder Precision Pro? It comes with a gameport to USB adapter, has a twist stick for rudder control, and MS are good at building rock-solid peripherals. Drivers would probably be very easy to find, if not included on a Win98 disk.

It would work in WIn9x just fine, but the Precision Pro lacks the 3D Pro's analog gameport emulation modes and is thus completely useless in DOS. Whether this sets back MechWarrior 2 any depends on what version he's running.

The other thing I have to point out is that there's actually two versions: an older "3D Pro Plus" variant, labeled as such on the bottom, and a newer Precision Pro variant that came with the USB adapter cord. Said cord does NOT work on the old version because the USB interface is built into the newer revision's PCB and it has a few extra pins to match, but in that case, you could just build yourself a 3DP-Vert.

NamelessPlayer wrote:

It would work in WIn9x just fine, but the Precision Pro lacks the 3D Pro's analog gameport emulation modes and is thus completely useless in DOS. Whether this sets back MechWarrior 2 any depends on what version he's running.

The other thing I have to point out is that there's actually two versions: an older "3D Pro Plus" variant, labeled as such on the bottom, and a newer Precision Pro variant that came with the USB adapter cord. Said cord does NOT work on the old version because the USB interface is built into the newer revision's PCB and it has a few extra pins to match, but in that case, you could just build yourself a 3DP-Vert.

Interesting. Is this the case for other Sidewinders of the era like the Force Feedback Pro (the gameport one)?

dexter311 wrote:

NamelessPlayer wrote:

It would work in WIn9x just fine, but the Precision Pro lacks the 3D Pro's analog gameport emulation modes and is thus completely useless in DOS. Whether this sets back MechWarrior 2 any depends on what version he's running.

The other thing I have to point out is that there's actually two versions: an older "3D Pro Plus" variant, labeled as such on the bottom, and a newer Precision Pro variant that came with the USB adapter cord. Said cord does NOT work on the old version because the USB interface is built into the newer revision's PCB and it has a few extra pins to match, but in that case, you could just build yourself a 3DP-Vert.

Interesting. Is this the case for other Sidewinders of the era like the Force Feedback Pro (the gameport one)?

I don't think the original SideWinder Force-Feedback Pro ever had a USB variant, hence why someone over at DescentBB took the time to expand upon 3DP-Vert and re-implement the proper FFB commands so it could do more than just re-center itself when used with a compatible USB adapter.

Relevant links:
https://code.google.com/p/sw3dprousb/
https://code.google.com/p/adapt-ffb-joy/

All the full-size joysticks I know of after the Precision Pro and Force-Feedback Pro went native USB without any gameport functionality whatsoever, like the Precision 2 and Force-Feedback 2. (Speaking of which, the SWFFB2 is still a coveted joystick by the flight sim community over a decade later; it doesn't have much to offer in terms of buttons, but it gets the basics right and doesn't feel sloppy to use in non-FFB titles.)