PCSX2 control, need help

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Hi, so about a month ago or a few weeks ago I downloaded PCSX2 for Windows 10 (to those who don't know what it is, its a program to play PS2 games for free...which is a PS2 console to download basically), & was able to get it up & going thanks to 7-Zip.


There's one minor problem I can't figure out, I'm wanting to set up the controls on my keyboard on my laptop....I tried looking up tutorials & from what some people said....you might have to have a gamepad in order to set up the controls. Whenever I go to CDVD & click Iso selector to play a game it won't let me start or do anything on my keyboard, & yes I did go to Config, Controllers (PAD), then Plugin settings to set up the controls on my keyboard but nothing happened.


So either I'm doing something wrong or I just need a gamepad (whatever that is), but either way if there's anything I did wrong to set up the controls then I would appreciate some tips or something. Sorry if this sounds stupid I'm new to this, thanks & have a good day.

Last edited by GraysonTerry19 on 11 Jun 2018, 9:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Honestly, you're going to need a controller. PS2 games are going to be basically unplayable on a keyboard alone, if that's even possible.

Reason: Analog sticks. Almost all games will want them. And if I recall correctly, PS2 controllers also use analog input for the back triggers. I think. I know PS3 & 4 controllers do that (makes it a pain to use those on a PC).

This wasnt an issue with the original PSX, but... yeah, PS2 and any console from that era or beyond, you've got analog to deal with.

Beyond that, you're not likely to find much help here. I've used alot of emulators before, but the PS2 isnt one of them. I do know however that the more "modern" the console being emulated is, the screwier the emulator itself will be. The good emulators are typically NES/SNES era. Go much past that, and you start getting wonky, unreliable programs that often dont make sense.

My partner has setup a load of emulators on my PC and I would agree anything past SNES gets harder and harder.

I can emulate PS1 games well and even a few PS2 games but I don't use a keyboard i use a xbox one controller for most and a ps4 controller for the PS emulators.

I can't imagine that it's impossible to set up keyboard controls. I haven't tried PS2 emulation much, but I know with PSX emulation, there were lots of different plugins you could install. Maybe you could try installing a different input plugin and see if that helps?

If you do have to resort to using a gamepad/controller, Logitech makes decent wired USB ones that are much cheaper than the ones that Sony and Microsoft sell (and they have much better d-pads).

It's technically not impossible, no. Hell, I can force the keyboard to be a mouse if I wanted it to, in any program/game.

But on the PS2, with analog sticks to deal with, that's the issue. Using a keyboard to emulate sticks would turn analog into, well... a bloated Dpad, effectively. 8 directions always at full tilt, period. Alot of games wont react very well to this, many will become unplayable. I say this from experience. Due to some problems in my arm I went through a long period of time (probably about 2 years) where there were a number of things I really couldnt do without alot of pain (like using a mouse in games, or too much analog stick use), so I had to come up with screwball alternatives. Forcing one device to be another, forcing games to accept input types they dont support. And I'll just say: It's not worth the effort. In my case I had no choice at all. But for most players, this is going to suck all the fun out and keep it that way.... provided they even find a setup they can use at all. And it'll take bloody forever.

The PSX didnt have analog sticks, so the games (with a couple of very, very specific exceptions) never expected them, and 8-way dpad control was the norm. It's very easy to find a satisfactory setup for PSX games. Yet at the same time, keyboard control will STILL screw you up in some genres. Just try playing a fighting game with one. Let's just say it's not a good time.