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WASD: Why???

Zarathustra[H]

Zarathustra[H]

Extremely [H]
Joined
Oct 29, 2000
Messages
42,235
Hey all,

I'm just trying to understand why WASD has become the most prevalent keyboard layout for FPS games.

It doesn't make any sense to me.

Firstly, keyboards already have arrow keys.

And then you have the fact that on most keyboards the w is offset to the left of the ASD, making it feel all weird.

I have used the following keyboard layout for all my FPS gaming since the original DOOM/Quake days (and to a lesser extend, Wolfenstein 3D)

Code: 
Move forward:  Up arrow
Move backwards: Down arrow
Strafe left: Left arrow
Strafe Right: Right Arrow.
Fire: Mouse 1
Jump: Mouse 2 (same as original Doom/Quake controls)
Mouse:  Invert Y axis

Then over the years I have bit by bit worked in other standard keys.

Code: 
Crouch: right ctrl
Run modifier: Right shift
Use: Enter
reload: Delete (over arrow keys)
drop weapon: End (over arrow keys)
Scope/weapon special function: Page Down (over arrow keys)
Weapon quick switch: Dedicated buttons on numerical keypad)

Do you use WASD? If so why?

Do you use another non-standard gaming keyboard layout? If so why? What do you use?
 
Because the arrow keys don't have enough adjacent keys to them for key bindings. Simple as that.
 
Because reload, use, lean-left, lean-right, commo rose, run, walk, crouch, prone, fire mode, grenade, melee, team chat, all chat, weapon swap...

If the offset W key bothers you, then there are gaming keyboards that specifically include a special WASD section with aligned W and S keys. Ideazon/Razer Merc and Fang for example.
 
EDSF is what I used. Allows an additional row of keys for the pinky and it's more natural for touch typists.

Q: Drop Weapon, W: Lean Left, E: Forward, R: Lean Right, T: Use
A: Crouch, S: Move Left, D: Back, F:\ Move Right, G: Reload
Shift: Walk, Z: lay down, V: Flashlight

Mouse Buttons:
Side 1: 1 (knife)
Side 2: 2 (pistol)
Top 3: 3 (rifle or switch fire rate)
 
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And if you're playing with the mouse in the right hand, you don't have to stretch your arm across your body to reach the arrows, or have to move the keyboard comically far away to reach a comfortable position.
 
djsb said:
And if you're playing with the mouse in the right hand, you don't have to stretch your arm across your body to reach the arrows, or have to move the keyboard comically far away to reach a comfortable position.
Click to expand...

This I actually thought of.

Maybe I've just been lucky to have pretty big desks, but to me pushing the keyboard a few inches to the left isn't a big deal.
 
Dan_D said:
Because the arrow keys don't have enough adjacent keys to them for key bindings. Simple as that.
Click to expand...

And because it's way more comfortable if you are right handed mouse user which accounts for far the majority of gamers.
 
I've never been able to use WASD. EVER. Always drives me crazy. I use the arrow keys as well. Arrow keys for movement, plus ctrl/shift/num 0/num1/del/end/pg dwn always gets the job done for me.
 
I use the arrow keys. I can't play FPSs any other way & I usually map everything around those keys.
 
Dan_D said:
Because the arrow keys don't have enough adjacent keys to them for key bindings. Simple as that.
Click to expand...

Fair enough.

I seem to have gotten by with my setup, but I have big hands, so its trivial to reach to other keys.

To e it feels awfully cramped to have all those tiny function keys cramped in right up against the directional keys. I really like having the dead space in between, but I see where you are coming from.
 
Dan_D said:
Because the arrow keys don't have enough adjacent keys to them for key bindings.
Click to expand...

djsb said:
And if you're playing with the mouse in the right hand, you don't have to stretch your arm across your body to reach the arrows, or have to move the keyboard comically far away to reach a comfortable position.
Click to expand...

Right there^^

Plus the fact that I tend to keep like-functions bound to the same keys across different games. I'm not going back and changing them all to something else.
 
Monkey34 said:
Right there^^

Plus the fact that I tend to keep like-functions bound to the same keys across different games. I'm not going back and changing them all to something else.
Click to expand...

I change the keys in every game I play... I guess its become part of the "optimization" that I do with the graphics, audio & gameplay options.
 
Because I frequently use the key around it including Q, E, R, F, Shift, and most important of all, the space bar.

I also find it more comfortable spacing my arms that way, compared to using the arrow key which feels somewhat unnatural for my left arm.
 
I use arrow keys, but I can do WASD if I have to.


\ delete end pgdown
enter 4
shift 1
ctrl arrows 0

Helps to have big hands, a multi function mouse and a big desk. I'm definitely better using this setup as opposed to WASD.
 
I always play with the arrow keys. I never liked WASD, although I think one other reason it's popular is because of where it's located. Using the arrow keys is a little odd because they're all the way on the right. You have to shift the keyboard left to make them comfortable.
Still, the arrows + ctrl/shift/enter, the keypad, and the keys above them work more or less fine for me. I also have a Logitech G700, which has a boatload of buttons, too.
 
Actually it was common back in the early quake FPS days where people were just starting to get used to mouse aim that people would use arrow keys, but it migrated away from this.

I used to know a real old school quakeworld player who was absolutely amazing, used the arrow keys...

Dan_D said:
Because the arrow keys don't have enough adjacent keys to them for key bindings. Simple as that.
Click to expand...

Basically this...the WASD is a good placement, plenty of adjacent keys with the control and function keys nearby, you have a nice weapon select close by from about 1-6 you can easily reach, control/alt/shift/esc/caps keys to toggle with your pinky finger and enough keys below and to the side to give you binds for whatever else you need, and of course leaves your thumb on space bar.

Some players migrated right across the keyboard a few letters to ESDF and even further in some cases, typically most people don't have the need for that, or have enough dexterity in their pinky finger to make it worth it.

I think for right handed players with their right hand on the mouse, the left hand most comofrtably sits at WASD without having to re-adjust their keyboard/mouse layout on their desk, which no doubt contributed to it being the direct evolution from the arrow keys.
 
More keys easily at reach with WASD than the arrow keys (larger spacing) on most keyboards - that gives me more options to assign things ~other~ than the normal movement/crouch/etc. Plus, that way my hands are laid out in a normal layout, instead of my left reaching across to the arrow keys (or me having to move the keyboard over that way), which helps for chatting/etc where I need to take my hand off the mouse really fast.

I used to do it your way - can't remember which game switched it, but it was one that I couldn't really reassign to the arrow keys, and I've just never gone back :)
 
Domingo said:
I always play with the arrow keys. I never liked WASD, although I think one other reason it's popular is because of where it's located. Using the arrow keys is a little odd because they're all the way on the right. You have to shift the keyboard left to make them comfortable.
Still, the arrows + ctrl/shift/enter, the keypad, and the keys above them work more or less fine for me. I also have a Logitech G700, which has a boatload of buttons, too.
Click to expand...

I've tried using the extra buttons on my mouse (Logitech G500) but I found them to be awkward to use. If I had three straight up mouse buttons like some older pre-scrollwheel mice I'd probably use the center button too, but using the scrollwheel click for functions in game has never worked for me, nor has using any of the side buttons.

Maybe its just the way I hold mice, but I feel like pressing the side buttons makes the entire mouse move to the side.
 
Zarathustra[H];1038413505 said:
Maybe its just the way I hold mice, but I feel like pressing the side buttons makes the entire mouse move to the side.
Click to expand...

It does, most competitive players I know won't use mouse keys other than for shooting, it puts your aim off.
 
Aside from what Dan said, it's because I don't want to (and can't) push my keyboard a foot to the left just so I can use the arrow keys. Besides, on most keyboards the offset between W and S isn't that bad and because of the way my hand sits at an angle, it's more natural to move it diagonally (feels like I'm moving it straight down). Also more surrounding keys as others also mentioned.

I know a guy that uses WASD but D is forward, A is back, W is strafe left and S is strafe right. I forget his other keys but I never understood how that made sense. He was actually really good in CS.a
 
Dan_D said:
Because the arrow keys don't have enough adjacent keys to them for key bindings. Simple as that.
Click to expand...

About sums it up for me. That and its more comfortable for me as a right handed mouser. I guess you could get used to anything tho. After playing consoles for a long time and using a gamepad, I thought the keyboard/mouse was the dumbest thing I'd ever seen. How the hell can you play with that? Took a few days til I finally realized how far superior that way is over a game pad.
 
I think I'm the only person who uses EDAF. S=prone, SHIFT=Crouch, W=Sprint. Lean=V/B, G=use, T=Teamchat, Y=General Chat. Z=Weapon Sheath/etc. Q and X are random. All these keys are accessable because of my natural typing position of my left hand :). All other bindings are default or edited to my likings.
 
I use WASD but not in the 'traditional' way. Most people I have seen use their middle finger to hit W and thus their hand is shifted a bit to the left. I just stuck with the normal typing stance, and use my ring finger to hit W.
 
I did the arrow keys thing for awhile and went back to WASD because it just feels more natural, and like others have stated, there are more keys next to them which makes it easier to reach. I use my extra mouse buttons for tossing grenades, opening doors, etc. depending on the game.
 
WSER - your dominant fingers are all in a row and your hand isn't in an unnatural position. Allows for much quicker strafing and movement. ;)

And yes, the arrow keys don't have any keys nearby for very quick access, even if your hands are very big. If you played any type of fast paced FPS game, it would put you at a disadvantage.
 
TwistedAegis said:
WSER - your dominant fingers are all in a row and your hand isn't in an unnatural position. Allows for much quicker strafing and movement. ;)

And yes, the arrow keys don't have any keys nearby for very quick access, even if your hands are very big. If you played any type of fast paced FPS game, it would put you at a disadvantage.
Click to expand...

Meh, I pretty much only play fast paced FPS anymore. Never had a problem, even competetively playing. Not everyone has the same length of fingers, WASD or any variation of kidna cramps my hand.
 
Zarathustra[H];1038413505 said:
I've tried using the extra buttons on my mouse (Logitech G500) but I found them to be awkward to use. If I had three straight up mouse buttons like some older pre-scrollwheel mice I'd probably use the center button too, but using the scrollwheel click for functions in game has never worked for me, nor has using any of the side buttons.

Maybe its just the way I hold mice, but I feel like pressing the side buttons makes the entire mouse move to the side.
Click to expand...

I tend to map misc. stuff on the side, although I do tend to map aim over there.
For me I have Mouse 1 as shoot, the wheel button as "use/activate", and Mouse 2 as jump.
Depending on the mouse, I tend to have run, aim, and melee mapped to the side buttons. The weird button on top of some mice is pretty worthless in a pinch, though.
Ctrl is always my crouch and Delete is always reload. Keypad 0 tends to be anything else I use regularly, but doesn't really fit one of those other things. Keypad 1 is usually grenades.
That pretty much covers 99% of game mappings right there.
 
Agree with the OP, I have a smaller Logitech Dinovo keyboard and it's difficult to use the WASD in such cramped quarters. I have 9 keys orbiting the arrow keys and a 5 button mouse which is usually sufficient for what I need to do. The extra space comes in handy and helps eliminate mistakes. I have almost the exact same bindings as the OP but I bind actions like "reload" to the thumb key. I actually used the wasd keys for Alan Wake without much issue but I never really got into it enough to care.
 
Well I started using WASD because of two things: Some games they didn't allow Arrows, but also because the keyboard type I use is not standard and is virtually impossible to find (especially in anything but a cheap media keyboard). I grew up with keyboards that had the full-sized Backspace, the "L" Enter key and the smaller Right-Shift with the \ key to it's right. That allowed me to have usage of \, Shift, Enter and Ctrl just by my pinkie. I actually never really used the END, PGDN, KeyPad keys for other stuff. Primarily this was necessary for me to play Tribes 1, where \ was Jetpack and jump I had to RMB like most games were back then. I do have no problem using WASD now though, but even if I go back and play Tribes 1 after having used WASD for a number of years, it still is awkward and just results in me not being nearly as good.

HOWEVER, I can not use WASD for racing games, or my left hand for that matter! At least to steer, as A/Z are Shift Up/Down, space handbrake, etc. Which is weird since I oddly always used my right hand to drive and left hand to FPS (I'm right handed). Also the fact that the limited amount of console gaming I've done which involves racing, that steering is done via left hand! Gaming with a gamepad and the Analog D-pad, my left thumb has far greater dexterity and precision, yet on a keyboard with the Arrow Keys it's my right hand that has the "upper hand" *taps a rimshot*

My friend, however... He uses QWES! Left-Forward-Right-Down. We've discussed it and his reasoning is that having to 'reach' for Forward feels strange and so WASD is not comfortable to use for gaming.:confused: Go figure, right? lol (Naw, we all have our preference)
 
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I'm an OG FPS player. I played on both DWANGO and DoomServ in pre-56K dial-up days.

I never could use the WASD keys as well as my Doom setup.

However, in those days, you didn't have as many keys to bind. It was basically move and strafe plus use, fire and secondary fire. That was it. Now there's all sorts of buttons. Had I know that was going to happen, I would have learned the WASD method so I could have more easily made the transition.

Since I forced myself to make the migration, I pretty well stopped playing all video games beside some old-school RPGs and such. Retro stuff. I'm barely even a casual gamer anymore.

I'm just another 30-something that can't hang with the kids anymore.

:-/
 
After giving it some more thought, even if I were to try playing left handed (which I naturally am, but like scissors etc. I never bothered to acquaint myself with left handed mouse placement) I would either use OKL; or the numpad itself. Arrow keys don't leave enough room on the keyboard below them, kind of like trying trying to use a mouse whose buttons are located where you'd normally rest your palm. Also, as mentioned, more directions for your fingers to go looking for other keys.
 
PrincessFrosty said:
It does, most competitive players I know won't use mouse keys other than for shooting, it puts your aim off.
Click to expand...

Practice or change your mouse. I can spam the side buttons on my G500 without having the mouse move when it's at the highest dpi setting. I love having on the fly dpi.
 
WiLLiSTER said:
Practice or change your mouse. I can spam the side buttons on my G500 without having the mouse move when it's at the highest dpi setting. I love having on the fly dpi.
Click to expand...

This. I've got lots of buttons on my G700 and I don't have a problem hitting them and throwing off my aim.
 
WiLLiSTER said:
Practice or change your mouse. I can spam the side buttons on my G500 without having the mouse move when it's at the highest dpi setting. I love having on the fly dpi.
Click to expand...

I think some of it related to how you're gripping the mouse, too. I tend to grip the mouse the with the "meat" of my thumb (I can still use the thumbtip for the buttons) and my pinky, so I don't really move the mouse when using the side buttons. If someone isn't gripping it on both sides, I can imagine it moving things, though.
 
Lefty = no WASD

Numpad 8456 FTW--if the game supports it. :rolleyes:

I'm seriously considering IJKL (or more likely, UIOK for the same reason TwistedAegis mentioned). So many games use numbers or functions for hotkeys that it's nice to have your hand nearby.
 
Its far easier to hit the "peripheral" keys (like crouch, walk, etc) with your pinky then your index finger.
 
Domingo said:
I think some of it related to how you're gripping the mouse, too. I tend to grip the mouse the with the "meat" of my thumb (I can still use the thumbtip for the buttons) and my pinky, so I don't really move the mouse when using the side buttons. If someone isn't gripping it on both sides, I can imagine it moving things, though.
Click to expand...

Hmm. For me, wrist rests on the table behind the mouse. My palm doesn't usually touch the mouse at all. My index finger and middle finger rest on each of the mouse buttons. Thumb mostly drags on the table/pad to the left of the mouse, but lightly grips it from the side, right finger does the same on the other side. Pinky just drags on the table on the far right, but sometimes aids in gripping the mouse from the right.

Again, I guess this is my big hands.

When I raise my thumb off of the table to push the side button on any mouse I've owned in the last 5 years, it always causes the mouse to become unbapalced and the pointer/crosshairs move.
 
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