DIY shumps joystick for PC

[viletim]

There are lots of shumps available on PC, but it's difficult to play them on a keyboard. The arrow keys are no good for movement. It's especially a problem on horizontal shooters where a fast response of up/down key presses are required.

My solution is to use an arcade joystick in a small enclosure, clamped to the desk, instead of the arrow keys on the keyboard. Other keys on the keyboard are still used for fire buttons, etc. This way it fits inside a desk drawer and is still reasonably quick to set up for a short play session. This worked well for me so I thought I'd write about the details in case somebody wants to build something similar.

Inside the joystick is a Teensy LC - a USB development board. When plugged in this joystick looks like another USB keyboard the computer. The reason I didn't make it a USB joystick is because some games (Dariusburst CS for example) refuse to take player input from a USB keyboard and a USB joystick simultaneously.

You need:

• Arcade joystick. I used the Semitsu LS-32.
• Teensy LC board.
• Heavy duty enclosure, rated for outdoor use. ABS plastic or cast aluminium, with the plastic one being easier to work with. The height should be just enough to allow the joystick to fit. The width should be greater than the size of the joystick to allow room for the clamp. My enclosure size is 50*80*160.
• Insulated wire.
• Micro USB cable.
• Small F-clamp.

1) Dill holes in the lid to mount the joystick. Use a step drill bit to make the large 22mm hole for the joystick shaft. The joystick should be mounted to one side to provide a good place for the clamp to go.

2) Solder wires between the Teensy LC board and the joystick switches. The pads labelled 0, 1, 2, 3, should be connected to up, down, left, right, switches on the joystick respectively. The pad labelled G (for ground) is wired to the other terminal on all switches.

3) Make a hole for the USB cable and plug in into the computer.

4) Go to the PJRC Website and download the Teensy loader application for your operating system. Also download the software for this project. Install the Teensy loader and use it to program the board with the shmups_joystick.hex file.

5) Screw your enclosure together, clamp it to the desk and play games!



It looks like this in use. My desk has a soft writing surface so needs some padding to prevent damage when clamping things to it. In future I'll add some dense foam or rubber to the base of the enclosure.

[Fudoh]

Are you actually using it with your right hand ?

Reminds me of some C64 sticks that were available with the stick on the right side. I actually used these once upon a time, but ever since getting a stick with the actual control stick on the left (XE-1 for the PCE in my case) I could *never* go back.

[viletim]

Are you actually using it with your right hand ?

Yes, I prefer it that way and I'm right handed. I've pretty much always played shmups this way. I find it very hard to use gamepads to play games that require fast 8 direction movements, so I avoid them.

Since pretty much all shmups I've played on PC come with a move-with-the-right-hand key layout, I presume somebody else out there likes to play that way.

[buttersoft]

I still love the Epyx/Konix Speedkings. But without the joystick housing cradled in my left hand, I'd struggle to use the stick with my right. I'm having a hard time thinking of another right-handed stick - save on those two-stick setups for mecha or Smash TV. However, I'm also a big fan of customised controls, so GJ. Is there any particular advantage to the Teensy LC over something like an IPac? Other than size, I mean.

[buttersoft]

weird dbl post...removed