I have a connected joystick (Logitech Extreme 3D Pro) in Linux (Debian). Joystick is recognized by the system and works fine in other games. But when I try to launch the Planets Nomads, the game crashes. If I disconnect the joystick (pull out USB cable), the game starts normally. In the file Player.log I have the following string:

Joystick 1 (Logitech Logitech Extreme 3D) is unrecognized and will use raw control indices as reported by the driver

Is there a command line option to prevent the game from using the joystick and not to remove the USB cable from the computer each time?

Game version 0.9.7.7

Not having this issue on Debian (Buster), using exactly same model of joystick. In fact, I can easily use it in-game, too (for example, while driving or flying, but also for character movement if I would wish too). Game gets mapping from SDL, via xinput (the one related to gamepads, not the linux xinput), so setting:
SDL_GAMECONTROLLERCONFIG

...variable with correct content allow you to provide own mappings (recommending gamepad-tool program for preparing the mappings).