Petition Microsoft to add mouse and keyboard support to the XBox 360

[TriggerShark]

Xbox-Scene (www.xbox-scene.com (http://www.xbox-scene.com)) and Team Xbox - (www.teamxbox.com (http://www.teamxbox.com)) are in agreement that Microsoft should add mouse and keyboard support to the XBox 360.

View petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/x360kbm/petition.html
Sign petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/x360kbm/petition-sign.html

4,075 signatures as of 7/15/07

[MegaDrive20XX]

But can't you use a USB Keyboard on the 360 thanks to the May update?

[udisi]

I've been using a wireless usb keyboard on my 360 since I got it....

never had any need for a mouse...

[ProgrammingAce]

This petition has been up since before the 360 launched almost 2 years ago... with 12 million units sold and only 4,000 signatures, i think you're screwed.

There is no mouse API in the xbox XDK, it would be non trivial to add.

Any games that have already been developed would be left out, think about how a mouse uses absolute cordinates whereas a controller uses relative.

There are technical reasons they won't add it this late in the game. Besides that, MS intentionally left out mouse support. It's not as if they forgot the feature.

[Vinnysdad]

No thank you. If I wanted to use a mouse I would play on my computer which I dont do because I hate playing with a mouse and keyboard.

[LucidDefender]

I'm a big fan of using a mouse and keyboard for FPS games. That being said, I DO NOT want mouse and keyboard support on the 360 for gaming.

Why? As soon as that's added, I'd have to hunch over using a mouse and keyboard to be competitive in any online game. I'd no longer be able to sit back with a wireless controller and enjoy a relaxing gaming experience.

Want to use a keyboard and mouse for gaming? Get a gaming PC.

[swlovinist]

The 360 is a dam console, not a computer. Part of the problem with the sytstem is that it tries to be a computer too much anyways. If people wanted it to be a computer, then for the same price they could buy one and have all the computer and mouse controls they wanted. PC lovers need to understand that consoles are different, and that consoles are not computers. 4,000 signatures probably all came from PC gamers. The more that the 360 tries to be like a computer, the more it will fail as a console. You probably think that I hate the 360 and PC gamers. Nope, I actually want MS to succeed. I just get tired of the company making decisions that are just stupid(1 billion lost on faulty hardware design). I belived PC gaming to be entirely different than console gaming. PC gaming is more isolated with multiplayer being online. You dont have many average PC gamers sharing game screens and doing multiplayer. Lan parties are different altogether, but usually 1 gamer, 1 screen. Console gaming is more social in person, usually involving a couple of chairs in front of a TV screen, with a controller. This is what console gaming is, and has been for the last 30 years. Even with Online Play, that is console gaming in a nutshell. I can see that hardcore gamers want their PC and mouse on the 360, but ultimately it just wont fly, and would be a poor move for Microsoft. On a side note, I recommend the book "Opening the Xbox" that covers the creation the Xbox console. It will explain better than I can why a mouse and keyboard will not work on a console.

[jonnyutah]

you want a keyboard and mouse? use a pc/mac :) it's that simple. we consolers like to kick back in our livingroom or lay in bed and crack a cold beer and get into some game, console style! which means with game pad in hand. :D

[alxbly]

Microsoft already have plans to release a mini keyboard:

http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6168769.html?tag=result;title;1

And there's a third party adapter for mouse/keyboard support in the making:

http://www.gearsofwarrealm.com/2006/11/27/keyboard-mouse-adapter-for-the-xbox-360/

Personally I prefer a controller but I can understand the desire for this kind of support.

[briskbc]

Seems there is some resistance towards mouse support. This strikes me as odd. What's wrong with having options regarding gaming control? As long as it wasn't the only controller option on a game. Even if it was, just don't buy the game.

[jonjandran]

Seems there is some resistance towards mouse support. This strikes me as odd. What's wrong with having options regarding gaming control? As long as it wasn't the only controller option on a game. Even if it was, just don't buy the game.


What everyone is basically saying is that if MS adds mouse/keyboard support then they would have to get them to stay competitive in the game. Because you can play better with mouse/keyboard than a controller. And that's not what anyone wants. We want to sit back on the couch/bed/easy chair and enjoy our Xbox 360 games, not have to sit at a desk hunched over a mouse/keyboard.

We Xbox 360 fans are a lazy breed :)

[heybtbm]

Because you can play better with mouse/keyboard than a controller.

Speak for yourself. I'm far more accurate with the 360 controller than I am with a keyboard/mouse. There is no advantage of one over the other...it just comes down to practice.

[Griking]

Why do people think that if keyboard and mouse support is added to a game then all of a sudden they won't be able to use their gamepad any longer. Let the people who want to use a mouse/keyboard do so and let the others use their gamepads.

Oh and I hate to break it to everyone but console have pretty much become computers already. Hard drives, patches, online play, web browsers. They're computers already, just not open platform ones.

[Vectorman0]

Speak for yourself. I'm far more accurate with the 360 controller than I am with a keyboard/mouse. There is no advantage of one over the other...it just comes down to practice.

Mouse gives much more accuracy. The throw of a control stick is tiny compared to the space used for mouse movement. The best PC player would beat the best console player in an identical FPS.


Keyboard lacks analog movement, so you will be limited to one speed. (besides walk toggle, etc.)

[boatofcar]

I'm a big fan of using a mouse and keyboard for FPS games. That being said, I DO NOT want mouse and keyboard support on the 360 for gaming.

Why? As soon as that's added, I'd have to hunch over using a mouse and keyboard to be competitive in any online game. I'd no longer be able to sit back with a wireless controller and enjoy a relaxing gaming experience.

Want to use a keyboard and mouse for gaming? Get a gaming PC.


Sums up my feelings perfectly. I love kicking back on the couch with a controller.

[Bassgrabber]

Ummm... can't you use just about any console gamepad on a PC (I dunno about Mac, sorry) these days via USB?