Poll: Screw WADS

[Valiance]

ESDF or RDFG feel much more natural to me than WASD.

 

[No_Remainders]

I use ESDF instead of WASD. It's easier to find by touch (because F has the marker on it for your index finger), and it allows the user to use WQAZ far easier as extra keys, because you don't have caps lock beside A.

 

[Voodoomancer]

My WASD keys, at this point, are so worn they look like they came from a different keyboard

 

[Fetzenfisch]

Since the Days of Halflife WASD is the standart, because the arrowkeys arent sufficient anymore.

 

[Blackfire001]

Wow...wait. I really am the ONLY FXCV user here. O_O
Why do people think I'm joking?

 

[Ahomelessman]

Wow...wait. I really am the ONLY FXCV user here. O_O
Why do people think I'm joking?

Damn, never thought of that but you might need a freakishly long pinky to reach the Number keys

 

[SenseOfTumour]

My only input is that if you've only ever used £5 budget keyboards, keep an eye out for an offer on a better, branded keyboard, I got a £30 MS one for about £13, and I'm really happy with it.

It's like when people build an awesome gaming PC then get a crappy £20 budget PSU, and wonder why they're getting sucky performance, the keyboard might not be as interesting as the video card, but it's gonna get used almost every moment you're in front of your PC.

It's worth a few extra quid to get something nice, but yeah, you don't need to go wild. For now, just try something in the £20-30 bracket and feel the quality!

 

[LorienvArden]

OT: No. WASD is fine. If you can't find WASD, you're not using your computer enough.

QFT

There is a reason everyone and their mothers use wasd-controls. That reason beeing an optimal ergonomical position you can find by just shifting one key left from your standard typing position. You DO know that the F and J keys (on western keyboards anyway) have ridges for a reason ?
Why isn't it esdf then ? - because with wasd there is only shift and caps left of your hand and you can feel the difference in keywidth. No chance in confusing keys unless you are really really drunk.

 

[deathninja]

+1 for Merc Stealth.

I really got into PC gaming during college (all-night freelancer/UT2K4/D2:LoD sessions FTW), and WASD became second nature.

My partner can't get her head around WASD, but oddly prefers playing LOTRO using the Merc L-H zone.

 

[James Crook]

The only thing I'd really want to change about WASD isn't even about the keys themselves, is the stupid key limit that you can press. For example, a lot of driving games wont allow you to press W (accelerate), D (turn right) and Ctrl (boost or whatever) at the same time, so you end up boosting yourself straight into the oncoming wall. I never got the point of that key limit, especially when it works with some key combinations and not others.

I think my Logitech keyboard's drivers remove that key limit... I need to check though.
Talking about these drivers, they do a lot of things, such as disabling Caps Lock so that it just becomes a blank key. It's very useful for gamers who prefer Shift when typing and need Caps Lock in games.

-Snip-

The best one is when you press shift too many times in quick succession and the game alt-tabs out so that Windows can tell you how much it disapproves of your actions.

First thing I do everytime I get a new computer is go to the control panel and disable that nightsoil. I find it funny people still complain about it, because it's very easy to just go in there and disable it, or disable it the first time it pops up.

-Snip-

Woah, I've never seen any of these, they look beautiful and pretty practical, especially for gaming. I would've purchased one if I saw one, but already I feel pretty comfortable with my Logitech keyboard anyway. I can see why you switched from the Zboard though. From that picture, it seems that typing long texts on it might be a tad annoying.

OT: Personally, I have no problem with WASD, because that's how I learned how to game and I usually have my fingers over these keys by default when using any kind of keyboard. Actually, it's ZQSD since I'm on an AZERTY keyboard.
However, I have a huge problem with that piece of fucking shit ballsack QWERTY keyboard layout. I just hate it. I find it counter-productive, as it doesn't let me type as many characters as the AZERTY keyboard, which is annoying when typing in languages other than English, such as Spanish, German, or French. What I jaratees me the most is when developers poorly program their games and don't include key customisation (or, at the least, key layouts) or don't accommodate for AZERTY keyboards. Champions Online does that well: key inputs are based on the key position layout (Z, on AZERTY, is at the same place as W on QWERTY so it registers as W) instead of the key's character input, like that horrid piece of crap Moonbase Alpha does.

 

[lumenadducere]

WASD feels really comfortable to me, and I actually prefer it to most other setups. But the wonderful thing about PC gaming is that you have a ridiculous number of options in terms of controls. You can use a gamepad (either a XBox 360 one or any of the dozens of others) or you can re-map the controls. Well, in any proper PC version you can re-map the controls. So if you don't like WASD you should be able to change it to literally any other setup you'd like. I have a friend who always changes it to ESDF - one set of keys over. Customization is wonderful.

 

[Zarmi]

No. Just no. WASD is best if you ask me, because it's always easy to get a hold of the other keys in case you need them for w/e.

 

[BanicRhys]

I'm left handed so I just use the arrow keys.

 

[ZephrC]

I honestly think the problem is that keyboards are inherently bad for gaming. Sure they have umpteen bazillion buttons for hotkeying every stupid little thing ever all at once if you're into that kind of thing, but they just don't work very well as a gaming accessory other than that.

The problem is that the mouse is so utterly and completely superior to anything a controller can do for quite a few different genres of games that you've really got no choice but to drag that stupid keyboard along for the ride.

I would love to see something kinda like the Wii nunchuck with a couple more buttons that was designed to be used together with a mouse. That would be the ultimate gaming setup, I think.

 

[Ranorak]

Perhaps what you need is one of these bad boys:

In case those pictures aren't clear, you can move the keys around to wherever you see fit.

Got the name of this device?

I believe it's called the ErgoDex DX1 [http://ergodex.com/mainpage.htm].

I'm getting one, that is the coolest thing I've seen since that crazy keyboard with the illuminated screens on the keys that can change the letters around

How secure are those keys?
I got the feeling that they slide around the board really easy, and get messed up pretty fast.

Though that's just from first glance.

 

[Sansha]

Don't fix what isn't broken.

 

[4nthr4x]

I play all my FPS games with the arrow keys, and all other buttons around it.
I have tried to change multiple times, but then I play horribly, not surprising

But the again, some games I play WASD with no troubles

Tomb raider for example, because you really need those extra buttons
GTA4 too, actually

or Resident Evil 4, but those are just horribly ported controls, so there I am forced to do it :|

 

[Kavachi]

I honestly think the problem is that keyboards are inherently bad for gaming. Sure they have umpteen bazillion buttons for hotkeying every stupid little thing ever all at once if you're into that kind of thing, but they just don't work very well as a gaming accessory other than that.

The problem is that the mouse is so utterly and completely superior to anything a controller can do for quite a few different genres of games that you've really got no choice but to drag that stupid keyboard along for the ride.

I would love to see something kinda like the Wii nunchuck with a couple more buttons that was designed to be used together with a mouse. That would be the ultimate gaming setup, I think.

You have obviously never played an RTS have you? There is nothing superior to a keyboard in that genre.

 

[Flabbagazta]

WSAD since HL1 (the first game I can think of when this was default) on a regular keyboard its perfect. Although my Quake Live setup is EDSF so i can have Q - Grenade, W - Rocket, R - Rail, T - Lightning, A - Shotgun, G - Gauntlet and MW up - Plasma. Everything is perfectly placed in order of need around my fingers, rocket and rail being most common

 

[funguy2121]

I find WASD controls problematic because they are so unbelievably commonplace almost to the point of an unmodifiable standard. If it were easier to get your fingers oriented around WASD buttons from touch I wouldnt have nearly the issues.

So, It got me to thinking that a solution for this would be to modify keyboards. If you moved the arrow keys to the left side of a gaming keyboard and make a more ergonomic 1 hand control layout around that set of arrow keys, it would alleviate many issues that are created with WASD configurations like tying up text capabilities with movement mapping

TL;DR: Would you use a keyboard with a specialized set of control keys to the left of the letter keys if available, over standardized WASD controls?

Please, kind sir, refrain from calling me a "screw wad" in the future. I have not insulted you, have I?