Definitely depends on the game.

A controller with two analog sticks and two analog triggers has six analog axes of input. A keyboard and mouse has two. There are definitely games that can benefit from more analog axes -- think twin-stick shooters. You can use digital inputs for movement, but it's also less-precise.

On the other hand, a mouse can provide both rapid and precise movement, more-so than an analog stick. And a keyboard has a lot more keys, which is important for some games. And a keyboard is going to be a lot better for text input.

Controllers have output to players, in the form of rumble motors (and with some controllers on some platforms, more-exotic options). There's no widespread support for any kind of output from the mouse or keyboard. Use of rumble motors can add immersion.

While I've used a mouse as a flight input in Freespace 2, generally-speaking, I think that a controller's analog sticks are better for flight sims (though if you're playing an old-timey WW2 flight sim, probably getting a full-size stick with all the extra controls is worthwhile).

On the other hand, it's very hard for a controller to compete with the keyboard and mouse for first-person shooters. I've used one for some games that were designed for consoles and aren't very demanding in response and often have vehicles that are better-controlled with a controller -- I'm playing Starfield with a controller. But one is simply going to do much better with a keyboard and a mouse, if one practices with both. Playing an FPS with a controller feels like driving a truck.

Some games, like a number of strategy games, are going to be much-better played with a mouse. I have a hard time seeing Paradox's grand strategy games being played with a controller, even with a lot of work on the control scheme.

Ditto for RTSes. I've tried a few with controllers, like Supreme Commander, and it definitely benefits from a mouse.

Playing interactive fiction of the classic sort, where one types in commands, really, really needs a keyboard. There are ways you can mitigate a bit of the pain, and some point-and-click adventure games have tried to do this, provide a limited set of preset commands, but it's just not great.

Playing pretty much any game designed for a D-pad, I'd rather play on a controller. Yeah, you can get okay with a keyboard, but it just doesn't feel the same, not nearly as fluid.

And there are a few other input options that aren't seen much any more:

• Full-size flightstick, maybe with throttle and pedals. Some had force feedback. I haven't seen many new releases; in the 1980s and 1990s, though, these were common for PCs.

• Steering wheel

• Arcade stick

• Light guns

• Dance pad

Different tools for different purposes. Strategy game, or a game where precise pointer control matters? Mouse and keyboard.

Racing, platformer, fighting game, that sort of thing, controller.

KBM. As I played on a keyboard and mouse since so long, I lost the usage of controllers. And whenever I have to use controlers, it's a bit of a pain. So I don't, as much as possible.

Tho in some games I tried, like elite dangerous, I had to use a controler for movement as on keyboard it was painfully slow, or too fast, but also just to be able to use most of the controls.

I prefer controller for basically everything except fps games. I don't really play more keyboard designed games though, like civ, very often. If I do I'll def use keyboard though

Controller: Witcher, Cyberpunk, Senua's Sacrifice, Shadow of War/Mordor

Mouse and Keyboard: Diablo, things that end in "Craft"

HOSAS: Flying things

Depends on how much shooting is involved.

Mouse aim trumps controller aim after all. But for games that aren't shooting-focussed I favour controllers because I can flop back.

I've been a pc gamer all my life but controller has always easily been the superior choice. For first person shooters and strategy games I'll go KBM sure, but for every other kind of game I'll go controller when I can get away with it. It's significantly more comfortable for me and I'm much more familiar with it.

When I used to play GTA V, I would use both.

My controller sat on the desk in front of the arrow key cluster of my keyboard, so I could run around in first person and cap some fools with KBM, then picked up the controller for driving.

Honestly, after years of gaming I would have to say controller. I grew up on consoles and didn’t start playing on the pc until my late teens. I can manage on MnK but after a while my wrists get sore even with wrists rests and I tend to forget where the keys are on the keyboard. Where as on controller I can comfortably play in any position and very seldomly my fingers may get sore but not as bad as my wrists. Plus, I like playing on a big TV depending on the game lol

For platformers it's controllers. Type varies from game to game.

For almost everything else, Keyboard & Mouse.

And lastly, the Joystick for those very singular free-flight games i might posses.

I grew up on consoles, mostly Playstations, so I can use controllers a lot better then some people. I prefer to use them in FPS', movement and melee feels a lot more natural with a controller then with a keyboard. Aiming is, I dare say, an art-form with a controller and it can get really difficult when the sticks are old and losing their sensitivity (*or it's just a crap controller).

Not to mention how comfortable it is not having to have your fingers splayed across a flat surface for the whole game.

First person shooter or third person game where aim is important, has to be keyboard and mouse. Pretty much anything involvong driving a vehicle, gamepad is better. In games like GTA I often use both, switching as necessary. Mostly I play FPS games though so KB+M is my most used input method. Some console-focused FPS games such as Halo I'll play on controller if it's all that is available, such as with the Steam Deck.

Controller, playing on keyboard strains my arm muscles.

For games where you need to drive some sort of vehicle I do prefer a controller for the joystick and analog triggers, but anywhere you need to aim at something I prefer a KB+M.

I'd like to try some kind of hybrid setup to have the best of both. I stumbled upon the Hex Evo some time ago, but it's still in preorder phase and I don't want to buy into something cheap or that's going to get abandoned, and maybe the final product will look more polished but the footage I could find of it, it looked like a cheaply 3D-printed device which doesn't look that great, but it's probably just a prototype.

For anything that requires speed and precision: Mouse and Keyboard.

Everything else I can go either way.

I was KBM untill i said fuck it, im not following with rising pc prices for components, so i have a potato for everything else and a console for play. Got old too, so i dont give it so much time anymore

I spend all day at work with a keyboard and mouse, so I try to use a controller for absolutely everything else

It really depends on where I play. Behind the PC it's definitely mouse and keyboard, it just doesn't feel comfortable to play with a controller while sitting in my office chair.
Everything else is controller, but it's not like you have much choice in those situations :)

Most rhythm games are better on keyboard except for project diva which is way better on controller. I think osu! is the least controller friendly rhythm game and osu!mania style rhythm games are probably impossible on controller if it needs more than 6 keys (unless the charts are designed for controller and don't require hitting every button at once).

Project diva feels really bad to play on keyboard for some reason. I think its because its only recently been playable on pc and I'm used to controller. It just feels better on thumbs.

The steam deck controls are so good, I prefer it for almost everything. Gyro, trackpads, and steam input customization

I play a lot of FPS games and I've always been a PC player come up playing with keyboard and mouse. However, I tend to find controllers to just be more ergonomic and more comfortable. To me, the best way to play is simply controller with gyro aim.

I love my Steam Deck for this and I also love my Steam Controller, however I find it to be a bit too big for my small hands, which is a big problem that I have with it, because this thing is so innovative, it's just so good!

I played Battlefield 1 on my Xbox today. And aiming with just a joystick is horrendous. God I miss the gyroscope every time I can't have it.

Steam deck user here. I've done with it what I couldn't achieve with even the Steam controller: preference for trackpads + gyro for pretty much everything (FPS included) except for hotkey heavy action RPG's (Dragon Age, Witcher 2, etc).

I don't play RTS anymore. I had a falling out with them around Supreme Commander days.

Kmb. If it is nor implemented well in the game I just skip the game.

This is actually a good question. I hope you get some replies from serious gamers.

I am not a serious gamer, but I've always preferred keyboards for FPS and RTS games. Years ago when I tried an FPS game for the first time on a console using a controller it was a disaster and took weeks to get used to.

KBM EVERYWHERE. Unfortunately I'm starting to feel the dreaded wrist pain because of that, so I may need to diversify myself with a controller.

I prefer controller on all games aside from top-down games and competitive games. Even faster games that I treat more casually, like destiny or overwatch, I use a controller.

I was much more into Gameboy, SNES and later PlayStation than the DOS games that were available to me. However, once I really got into PC gaming, controllers felt extremely limiting to me and nowadays I cannot even use them anymore. I prefer mouse and keyboard even for racing games and platformers

I play games on PS5, Switch, and Mac Mini.

On consoles, I use gamepad, usually with back buttons / paddles. Nothing interesting.

On my Mac Mini, I mostly play emulated games and point and click games.

• For emulated games, mostly using gamepad, except for shmups, fighting games, and arcade MAME games, which I use my Hori Mini Fighting Stick
• For point and click games, Civ, and OpenRA, I use a cheap Huion drawing tablet
• I don't play much FPS, but the last one I played was TimeWarpers (an idle FPS game), and I managed to use a trackball to play it comfortably

I switched from right hand mouse to left hand trackball (It's Kensington Expert trackball, not really right or left handed) earlier this year, because my right hand was aching. I thought it was RSI, but now when I think about it, it might have been uric acid.

Playing something like UT or Quake, and so many more FPS benefit from the rapidity of the mouse, but timesplitters there's no other controller than the PS or Logitech dual joystick controller (which controlled that sub that imploded recently).

Really depends on the game. I usually get a lot faster and more precise adjustments using KBM, so I prefer that for games like shooters and anything where precise 3d movement or fast reactions is an issue.

Basically the only games I play with controller are the ones that are really well optimised for controller and kind of meh for KBM and the ones on my Switch.

Keyboard and mouse for literally everything except things where using a wheel makes sense (ETS2 and ATS).

I can not use controllers at all. I can't wrap my head around using them properly and pretty much all except one (ps3) hurt my hands after 15 mins.

Since i'm a console player mainly i find myself trying to use a controller when playing pc. However, i recently started playing half life 1 which didnt have a controller option and its gotten me more used to the idea of using keyboard and mouse

First person or shooter games I use mouse and keyboard for better control. I couch PC game so it's actually a wireless trackball and keyboard I use. For anything else it's controller.

It depends on how big of a role precise movements play (that are controlled by mouse on KMB). And how much I gain from the analogueness of controllers. Take Death Stranding for example: Shooting is relatively few and far between and it rarely requires high precision when you shoot (most weapons are either splash damage grenade-types or fully-automatic with a generous enough amount of ammo). The trekking along to deliver packages feels much better on a controller. So DS is controller territory for me, even if it involves shooting.

Red Dead Redemption 2? Couldn't imagine playing it half as well with a controller, because most guns have a very low rate of fire, gunfights are a lot more lethal and (thanks to the "Scroll Wheel Movement Speed" mod) I am able to casually meander at different speeds even while getting all the benefits of playing with keyboard and mouse.

Increasingly I find it depending mostly on what the game was built for... I was raise, if you will, on PC point and shoots, and so my preference is for mouse and keyboard. But even a lot of AAA games these days that are console ports have noticeable pointer lag and aggressive reticule gravity or other aids. I find these really frustrating since they interfere with the 1:1 sense you get with motion on a mouse, so I'll switch to a controller instead.

Hogwarts Legacy is an example of a recent AAA release that has such heavy reticule gravity that sometimes the best strategy is to just hold an analog stick forward and not move it (e.g. in the broom races)... I hate this kind of thing but I feel like it's something you put up with as a PC gamer due to the popularity edge the consoles have. At least it tends to be games where fast aiming isn't a huge factor.