Laptop MMORPG gameplay controls, no mouse

KenFisher

Need some help on this.  Given a 15" or better laptop, either playing at a desk or stretched out on the floor (or bed), and no external mouse, just a touch pad with 2 buttons, what are TYPICAL controls for a tab-target, right-mouse-button mouse steering MMORPG (WoW style controls)?

 

I find touch pad right mouse steering quite clunky.  So I end up with:

 

A - Rotate left

D - Rotate right

W,S - Forward / reverse

1 to 9 - hotkeys for actions

 

and then skipping the touch pad completely except for UI.  But I find that this is still barely playable compared to my normal desktop and mouse.

 

Is there something better / more efficient / more fluid that I can setup?

 

NOTE: working on RL2's laptop playability, so your input is greatly appreciated.

 

Vrika

Buy a mouse. There's no way to properly play an MMO like WoW with just keyboard.

If you can't use a normal mouse, you can also try using some kind of gaming controller, or a trackball mouse.

KenFisher

Helpful, thanks.

 

So just list it as a hardware requirement, noting that the game will run but controls are clunky without a mouse.

 

Will do.

 

rojoArcueid

Originally posted by ZombieKen

Helpful, thanks.

 

So just list it as a hardware requirement, noting that the game will run but controls are clunky without a mouse.

 

Will do.

 

Definitelly going to need a mouse.

Without the mouse its painful to play, and the touchpad is not effective even for casual gameplay. With that said, when im playing and need to rest my right hand (nerve problems) i turn with A,D while navigating. As soon as im fighting, the mouse is essential.

 

Im sure you are aware of all the good choices out there. I recommend checking out the Redragon Perdition. Got mine for $35 on amazon. I wouldnt touch a razer naga when the perdition is as good and cost less than half the price, thats just me any mouse would do. Get one.

sunandshadow

Gamepad is also an option.  And many games have a keyboard mapper that allows the player to set what the keyboard shortcuts for everything are.  Personally I hate having anything attached to the number keys, I like to use something on the right hand side of the keyboard, like IOPKL or []'enter

Quizzical

There's an enormous difference between:

a)  you're making a game and want to design it to be playable using just a keyboard, versus

b)  you're playing a game created by someone else and want to play it using just a keyboard.

Most people would be in the latter case, but it sounds like you're in the former.  A lot depends on what you want movement to be like.  Click to move is very rough without a mouse.  WASD movement to move forward/backward, turn, or strafe can work pretty well, along with hotkeys for attacks.  Press an arrow to move in that direction like the directional pad in console games from 20 years ago can also work pretty well with a keyboard.

There's also an enormous difference between:

a)  you want to play a game and cannot use a mouse at all, versus

b)  you want to play a game and can't use a mouse very much or very well, but can use it a little if needed.

The latter works fine for people who have to occasionally navigate menus that would have been easier with a mouse, but not for constantly needing to use the mouse to move around.

Loktofeit

Originally posted by ZombieKen

Helpful, thanks. 

So just list it as a hardware requirement, noting that the game will run but controls are clunky without a mouse. 

Will do.

 

Why note that? It's understood. You really have to get out of the habit of adding "and my game is a piece of crap" at the end of everything. Aside from it detracting from the actual great work you do, it's starting to get a bit played out. 

KenFisher

Originally posted by Loktofeit

Originally posted by ZombieKen

Helpful, thanks. 

So just list it as a hardware requirement, noting that the game will run but controls are clunky without a mouse. 

Will do.

 

Why note that? It's understood. You really have to get out of the habit of adding "and my game is a piece of crap" at the end of everything. Aside from it detracting from the actual great work you do, it's starting to get a bit played out. 

 

I don't mean to.  It's just that I've seen small teams from MMOWorkshop and other places, building games and pitching them behind a fancy logo and web site.  People come along thinking it's an Indie with a million, or an AAA with a box of millions, and the game ends up looking terrible because of comparison to games way out of their league.  That is if the game doesn't fall flat on its face because the developer overshoots a realistic scope and can't ever reach feature complete because they're too proud to admit they've bitten off a project far beyond their capabilities and/or resources.

 

Part of downplaying my work is so people don't do that to me.  I don't want that embarrassment.  But that's not all of it.

 

I shouldn't let my emotionality leak into communications.  I swear I don't mean to, and it's not intended as some sort of gimmick or ploy for attention.  I'm not stable and in a pissy mood, plain and simple.  I hate this F*ing game.  There are days I can't stand to even look at it.  I had that happen a couple times before, and my pattern is to rip it apart and start over (WAC had 11 major rewrites redesigns in 2 1/2 years).  I'm not doing that this time.  Focus and brute force effort, this thing is releasing.  If it doesn't work on October 1st, then no Internet upgrade (that's where the backing comes in) and all the hardware goes for scrap (my servers are P4s, in 2015, hehe... paperweights).

 

Blah, I'm doing it again.  My apology.  I should delete this, but you deserve a response.  I really have to chill.

 

KenFisher

Originally posted by Quizzical

 

b)  you want to play a game and can't use a mouse very much or very well, but can use it a little if needed.

The latter works fine for people who have to occasionally navigate menus that would have been easier with a mouse, but not for constantly needing to use the mouse to move around.

 

That's where I'm at with this.

 

There was something I played, I don't have a clue what it would have been, but it might have been an MMORPG, maybe not.  At the time I noticed how easily it was played on laptop because the UI was non standard.  But I can't recall what it was.

 

I was hoping someone would have a keymapping configuration that I could preconfigure as 'laptop mode'.  Something that would eliminate holding RMB and trying to steer, which is incredibly clunky.

 

Only thing I've been able to come up with is a hotkey that toggles mouse cursor mode and mouse look mode, so you can steer in mouse look, and then toggle when you need to use UI.  That's far from ideal because it kills mousing actionbar buttons.  I'm going to see if the engine supports this without work, and test if it does.  If not, I guess blow it off as non-critical since opinion is pretty much universal that WoW style controls need a mouse.

 

madazz

Originally posted by Quizzical

There's an enormous difference between:

a)  you're making a game and want to design it to be playable using just a keyboard, versus

b)  you're playing a game created by someone else and want to play it using just a keyboard.

Most people would be in the latter case, but it sounds like you're in the former.  A lot depends on what you want movement to be like.  Click to move is very rough without a mouse.  WASD movement to move forward/backward, turn, or strafe can work pretty well, along with hotkeys for attacks.  Press an arrow to move in that direction like the directional pad in console games from 20 years ago can also work pretty well with a keyboard.

There's also an enormous difference between:

a)  you want to play a game and cannot use a mouse at all, versus

b)  you want to play a game and can't use a mouse very much or very well, but can use it a little if needed.

The latter works fine for people who have to occasionally navigate menus that would have been easier with a mouse, but not for constantly needing to use the mouse to move around.

What a useless post. Lol

madazz

I don't know if maybe there is a disability involved, or lack of space to move, but a trackball could be your answer. While not as good as a mouse for most,its significantly better than a track pad.