Coming from a more console-centric background (though I've always played PC game

s to some degree all my life), I tend to prefer using gamepads while playing gam
es. However, I do enjoy the ability to customize my PC to make my gaming experie
nces better. I feel like PC gaming is the superior platform but a lot of people
enjoy using gamepads still, and unfortunately there has never been a good compil
ed list for those who want to see what their options are. So here it is- I've sp
ent a good amount of time on this list. If you have any other games to add to th
e list or can confirm/deny a game on the list supports gamepads, it would really
help a lot.
Just two things I'd like to say before continuing.
1. If you love keyboard and mouse already, great. This list isn't aimed at you.
It's not to convince you to start using gamepads. It's to show people what their
options are. If you loved Crysis and now somebody else will buy the game becaus
e it has gamepad support, everybody wins as it increases sales and will encourag
e more PC development.
2. If you're happy to see a list but are still uncomfortable with using keyboard
and mouse, I highly suggest you read the second post in this thread. I was once
in the same boat as you- perhaps my experience and suggestions will help you be
come more accustomed to using keyboard/mouse to play games that don't natively s
upport gamepads. Trust me, for some of those great games, it's worth learning.
I should mention in posting this list that the original list was compiled by Tyc
obb on the Afterdawn forums. After some time, he/she stopped updating and then t
he list was maintained by SpykeZ on the Nforce.nl forums. However, it appears th
at those forums will be permanently down. I am using Tycobb's original list and
trying to restore (and go beyond) SpykeZ's list.
The list will be broken into two sections- games with full gamepad support out o
f the box (or via official patches) and those that require some unofficial mods/
fiddling with .ini files/light usage of 3rd party programs to make it fully usab
le. While with third party programs it's possible to make *any* PC game support
gamepads, I'm referring to using them for small things that round out the experi
ence. Perhaps in the future there could be a separate list of "games that work w
ell with programs that emulate keyboard/mouse" but not for now.
Key:
*- games personally tested by me/other members of this forum, either demo or ful
l version
(X)- games that should work natively with the Xbox 360 gamepad (therefore menus
and key presses will display the correct button instead of a generic 'button 1')
(nothing)- works according to readmes/other sources of information but not confi
rmed personally
Games with full gamepad support
Aquaria*
Assassin's Creed*(X)
Audiosurf*
Beowulf
Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg
Bioshock*(X)
Blazing Angels: Squadrons of World War II/Secret Missions of WW2
Bloodrayne 2
Cars
The Club
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (via patch)
Clive Barker's Jericho
Colin McRae: DiRT*
Condemned: Criminal Origins
Conflict: Denied Ops
Crysis*(X)
Devil May Cry 3:SE/4
Dynasty Warriors 4
Eragon
Eternity's Child
EvoChron: Renegades*
Fantastic 4
FEAR
Fifa (probably all modern iterations)
Flatout: Ultimate Challenge
Flight Simulator X
Future Cop LAPD*
Gears of War
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
The Godfather
Grand Theft Auto 3*/Vice City/San Andreas
Gun
Half-Life 2: Episode 2*
Halo CE/2 (X)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Heroes of the Pacific
I-Ninja
Ice Age: The Meltdown
Indigo Prophecy/Fahrenheit*
Jade Empire
Jazz Jackrabbit 2*
Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights
Kane and Lynch: Dead Men*(X)
Kung Fu Panda*(X)
Lego Indiana Jones
Lego Racers 2*
Lego Star Wars 1/The Original Trilogy
The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King*
Lost
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition*(X)
Madden NFL 0x (all modern incarnations support, 08 has native X360 support*)
Mark Ecko's Getting Up*
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance*(X)
MDK2*
Metal Gear Solid 1/2
NBA 0x (all years should support gamepad)
Onimusha 3
Outrun 2006
Over the Hedge
Overlord
Pac-man World 3
Pacific Fighters
Phantasy Star Online v2*/Blue Burst*
Phantasy Star Universe /Ambition of the Illuminus*
Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End
Portal*
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time/Warrior Within/Two Thrones
Pro Evolution Soccer/Winning Eleven (5, 6, and 2008 all confirmed, probably all
versions though)
Psychonauts*
Race Driver: GRID*(X)
Rainbow Six: Vegas 1*(X)/2 (reported not to work with wireless 360 controller)
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Resident Evil 4*
Sega Rally Revo
Silent Hill 2/3/4
The Simpsons: Hit and Run
Shadowgrounds /:Survivor
Shadowrun*(X)
Sonic Heroes
Spiderman 3/Friend or Foe
Splinter Cell: Double Agent/Chaos Theory*
Star Wars: Battlefront 1/2
Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy* (the game officially supports it, but throu
gh the demo, I couldn't get it working in a satisfactory way)
State of Emergency
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Tomb Raider: Legend/Anniversary
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2/3/4
Trackmania (all versions)*
Transformers: The Game
Ultimate Spiderman
Virtua Tennis 3
Viva Pinata
X-men: The Official Game
X-men Legends: Rise of the Apocalypse*
X3- Reunion*
Games that support gamepads with some slight modding
The Elder Scrolls: Morrowind/Oblivion (require 3rd party program for right thumb
stick)*
Mass Effect (requires a modified .ini file- search the Bioware forums)*
Two Worlds (requires Two Worlds control panel)*(X)
World of Warcraft (requires Switchblade, a 3rd party program but the compatibili
ty is maintained by Switchblade, so it requires no configuration on your part)