Tricky Fingers!

I’d like to share my custom keyboard setup for First Person Shooters. Motion in the virtual world depends on four main keys: forward, back, strafe left, and strafe right. After that things start to vary depending on the game you’re playing. Backpack inventories, equipped slots, player commands, point of view shifts, vehicle controls, etc., all require keys (or buttons for the console controllers) to activate or deactivate.

For me, the PC, mouse and keyboard, are by far the best way to control FPS virtual reality. Console controllers are made to be held with both hands. They come in all kinds of variations but the bottom line is that, no matter how you have them configured, you only have four digits (most controllers), two index fingers and two thumbs, to do all the work.

I don’t know how the console players can do it. Nevertheless, we humans are amazing; we can adapt to just about anything. I’m sure there are plenty of console players that can own (pwn’d if you’re l33t) me with ease. I’m thinking if players can get that good with a gimpy console controller, please don’t tell them about the accuracy and ease of use you get from the PC/mouse config.

Let’s look at the default keyboard setup for Left 4 Dead, a FPS, multiplayer, virtual reality game.

As far as it goes, this is a good way to set up the keyboard. If I had to take a wild guess it’s set up so you can use the keyboard to play the game without the mouse, using the numeric keypad (not pictured here) for motion and direction. See how everything is weighted to the left? Look at all those unused keys on the right. But we have a mouse and no need to make allowances for the right hand on the keyboard. So why not position the key binds in a place where more keys can be used?

It looks like the only thing the pinky can do, with default setup as far as gameplay is concerned, is duck (pretty busy key for most FPS that have that function), walk (hardly ever used in L4D), and check the score. Orders and Questions and Answers might be a little problematic as the pinky would have to go under the control fingers–not so easy while busy ingame. Any of the weapon/item keys on the numeric keys would require interruption of game movement if using any of the three motion fingers (index, middle, and ring) to activate them.

Cogitate on this . . .

The direction keys highlighted in red in the graphic below are core FPS controls. Every FPS, or any Virtual Reality game for that matter, must have some way to activate two-dimensional directional movement.

I came up with this setup because I wanted to optimize my gameplay in Half Life Deathmatch. I was tired of tripping over my fingers just in time to get blown up. I was tired of having to look, taking my eyes off the screen, for that out-of-the-way key. By the time I looked back I’d usually be respawning somewhere. I was tired of, once I’d moved my fingers off the direction keys to reach that out-of-the-way one, not being able to find the direction keys again without looking. Again, in deathmatch, a fatal lag.

All the Valve games I play have almost identical setups. I play other games such as: Hard Reset, Borderlands, Far Cry, Wolfenstein, Doom, all of which use pretty much the same setup. Weapon and item selection is ranged around the motion keys (both sides, eh?). I can move, shoot, select items, etc., without taking my eyes off the screen. It’s kinda critical, you know?

My setup is based on the touch typing bumps you find on a standard keyboard. “F” and “J” keys have little bumps on them to make it easy for your index fingers to find the proper position for typing. By placing your left index finger on “J” and your left pinky on “F” you have a central position around which many keybinds can be clustered. You can easily find the proper position without looking at the keyboard. My setup aside, you can easily configure the keys any way you desire based on that central position. There are many benefits.

I use my pinky for left strafe, my index finger for right strafe. There was a slight learning curve as I broke my old habits but it was short lived. This setup has the advantage of allowing the ring finger to control the “duck” and “scope” keys. I use my thumb for jump (spacebar) and use (right alt), which is ergonomic for the left hand.

The little finger and the index do all the “selecting,” eliminating the need to move the “forward” and “back” (middle) finger out of position. This allows weapon, item selection “on the fly.”

Of course, strafing is critical in FPS, especially for dodging attacks. However, in most situations, because steering is mainly done by the mouse and the interruption is momentary, strafing isn’t missed so much when the strafe fingers (index and pinky) are selecting. All this can be done at the same time as moving forward or back. And you can do it all without looking at the keyboard.

Oh, I may need to look for out-of-the-way keys like chat and team chat keys but I usually don’t stop to type a chat text in the middle of a firefight. Or stretch my pinky to turn on the flashlight? Or spray my logo? Heh, I’m a guitar player and it’s not so hard, I can reach all the binds without moving my forward direction finger off its line. But even if I had to, I would be able to find my way back without looking. Heh, nanoseconds do count.   😆

There it is, kiddoes. If anything, I hope this page has opened your eyes to the fact that you don’t have to settle for w, s, d. My custom setup has worked quite well for me and will for you if you’re daring enough to try it. Heh, I know it’s hard to change from that with which we are accustomed to something new. But, hey, if it’s a change for the better? How will you know unless you try it?

S’all for now . . . ChitlinChylde