How do you best optimize playing with the PS4 controller?

I use PS4 w/ controller. For the most part it works fine for me, but when doing dungeons especially I have lots of trouble targeting.

Right now I use the D pad to target enemies.

- U have 2 b looking in the direction for it 2 highlight an enemy
- When fighting in a dungeon where there's tons of quick kill enemies like Sashtasha, many times by the time I target something, then attack, it's dead and I'm just standing there, and have to then try to press the D pad to highlight something else, only to have it be dead before I can even hit attack on it.
- A lot of times in a dungeon using the D-Pad seems to select everything but the enemy, going through NPCs or Treasure Chests first. It's very hard to select a specific enemy, as you'll see maybe 3 on the left showing they are targeting me, but sometimes I have to keep pressing the D pad over and over to have it cycle, but many times it never highlights the one I want on the left.

Any tips?
Thanks!

Sorry if that message is hard to understand, it says max 1000 chars which is next to impossible, had to erase more than half of my original message. Just basically looking for tips on using the PS4 controller as I find it hard to target enemies especially when you have 5 or so targeting yourself and it shows the list of them on the left, if I had a mouse I'd just click one of them, but many times the D-Pad doesn't select from the left since they are behind me etc. Figure there must be shortcuts I'm missing.

You can hold L1 and navigate the enemy list with the d-pad.

If you are holding R2 or L2 you can press L1 or R1 to cycle through enemies really easily.

So strange that's what I read somewhere too but it didn't work, maybe I need to reset the settings or something. R2 holding it brings up the hotbar but when I'd press R1 as well nothing would happen. I'll try it again after and see, but holding L1 and navigating with the D pad from the list sounds like that will solve 90% of the problems if that works for me! Will try after work :)

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Originally Posted by 416to305

A lot of times in a dungeon using the D-Pad seems to select everything but the enemy, going through NPCs or Treasure Chests first.

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I have edited my selection filters when my weapon is drawn. This way I cannot select anything but enemies when cycling (left and right) with the D-Pad. My target selection is everything while weapon is sheathed.
This also helps a bunch in FATES, as NPCs are no longer targeted while drawn.
If I need to interact with an object, face the object, a quick Circle (remove current target selection) then L3 to sheath my weapon and double press X for the object selection and activation.

For those few quests, where you have "heal" some NPC I adjusted my settings for that quest instance and then switch it back. I only remember doing this a few times.

Thanks so much that's a big help. It's the FATES for sure that get to be a pain since it always seems to target the NPCs by default for some reason. Will try it later after work, got some leveling to do lol. Made it to 34 Bard and then realized I'd rather be a BLM, so at level 20 now THM, getting back up there slow and steady :)

Up/Down - target party members, cycling in the order they appear in the party list
L1 + Up/Down - target already aggroed mobs, in the order they appear in the enemy list
Left/Right - target according to your current targeting filter, but in a seemingly random order

You can adjust your targeting filter a couple different ways. As ChameleonMS mentioned, you can set one filter for when your weapon is drawn and another for when it's sheathed. Or another option is to set a few different filters that you can alternate between using L1 + (triangle, square, circle, or X). (You don't want to have both methods enabled, though, or they'll interfere with each other.)

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Originally Posted by 416to305

it says max 1000 chars which is next to impossible

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The workaround to that is to post part of your message, and then edit it to add in the rest. For some reason, the forum only checks that "1000 chars" rule when initially posting a new message, but not when editing it.

If you are playing Dps on ps4, do 2 things:

1. go into the character customization menu -> hotbars and change your l2/r2 settings to toggle or mixed.
2. forget the d-pad. once the hotbar is active (no need to hold it, see item 1) use l1/r1 to target.

Seriously, its targeting easy-mode. Satisfaction guaranteed.

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Originally Posted by radioactive_lego

If you are playing Dps on ps4, do 2 things:

1. go into the character customization menu -> hotbars and change your l2/r2 settings to toggle or mixed.
2. forget the d-pad. once the hotbar is active (no need to hold it, see item 1) use l1/r1 to target.

Seriously, its targeting easy-mode. Satisfaction guaranteed.

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That works well enough if you're never going to do anything other than DPS. Personally, I prefer the greater flexibility of "Hold" mode with d-pad targeting. L1/R1 targeting is locked to always be enemies only, regardless of any filters you set up, and it's locked to only hard targeting. Using the d-pad lets you alternate between several different targeting filters according to what you're doing at the time, and lets you choose when to hard target and when to soft target.

If you're ever going to heal, use targeted support abilities, do leves that require interaction with an NPC while mobs are also in the area, or even wander around town and inspect the player who walked by in cool-looking gear to see what that is he's wearing, then you'll want targeting abilities other than just cycling between enemies.

(Oh, and the L1/R1 targeting is also available with the controller in "Hold" mode. It's just that with Hold mode, it becomes (either L2 or R2) + (either L1 or R1). I've never used it much, though, since it's just a subset of what the regular d-pad targeting can do.)

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Originally Posted by Niwashi

That works well enough if you're never going to do anything other than DPS.

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Tank and DPS. The few times this seems "inconvenient" is with PLD where I want to Cover or SS someone on the team. But in 99.5% of situations, TNks an DPS are focued on mobs. even in situations where you have to deactivate the hotbar to "eat" something, it's no more inconvenient than what you proposed.

Reduce and remove the clutch folks. You are making the gamepad way more busy than it needs to be.
Oh and i heal like this too. My hotbars are almost always active, because i like being able to defend myself.

Thanks everyone! It's weird I was doing totally fine until a few days ago when I'd swear my settings all changed, even though they didn't. I had thought turning on filtering like only enemies when weapon is drawn was for the holding R2 and pressing R1, and holding L2 and pressing L1 type cycling as it always seemed to work, and so that's how I got into the habit. Generally enter battle, hit X which usually targets the proper first enemy, then cycle by holding L2 or R2 and pressing L1 and R1 where as before I'd always just use the D-pad. I don't like mixed or toggle mode as I tried that and then did a dungeon and was non stop unable to do actions because I'd forget and the hot bar would still be visible, so have to maybe test it more outside a dungeon.

It seems the D-Pad left and right is what uses your target filter settings, but where I'm having issues is say I'm in a fate and a monster dies. I'll be facing the enemies and press X which usually always automatically selects an enemy, however it ALWAYS selects some stupid NPC doing the fate first instead, and then I have to cycle to find an enemy. Kill that one, press X and sure enough same thing highlights a NPC first. I never used to have that problem, would face the battle/enemy, press X and 99% of the time it would select who I wanted, or would just require a quick left or right tap on the D-Pad. Any idea why that might be? Thanks!

/chotbar change 2
and
/chotbar change 1

those two macros will allow you to swap hotbars without turing them off.
so, instead of letting go (or turning off a hot bar if you use toggle/mixed) you can switch instantly.

think:
let go of l2/r2
l1+desired hotbar number
engage l2/r2

or

x (or whereever you drop your macro)

From a simplicity standpoint, the choice is obvious.