37 replies to this topic

[Sheba]

I do wonder if anyone else here is so horrible inept at playing this game as I am.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not a MMO newbie or anything. I've played the hell out of GW1 and I'm also playing RO still. But in this game, I just suck. I was Mesmer in GW1 and I loved it and never had any real problems. But in GW2, I feel like I need ten more hands to play this game. One hand, I need for the mouse to move the camera so I actually run quickly in directions I want to run into and kite enemies, one hand I need to use to push the direction keys...and one hand I need for the number keys. Yeah, that's at least one hand more than I have. So usually, I let go of the mouse in combat, which often ends with me unable to kite and getting killed or suddenly standing in a camera angle where I see nothing and get killed. Alternatively, I just use no skills at all and can instead run around well. Uh.

My second major problem are those damn F1-F4 keys and the fact that my healing skill is in between my attacking skills. Accidently press the wrong key in the midst of battle, boom, dead. I always miss the F1 key and end up pressing either F2 or Esc or 1. (However, I also work with a keyboard where the F-keys are only half the normal size). So yeah, basically, I'm too dumb to use the controls.

But I'm also too dumb to jump. Vistas are nothing but frustrating as soon as they involve jumping. Don't even get me started on the jumping puzzles. It's not because I can't solve them, it's because I'm too dumb to jump. Wonderful.

I'm glad I don't have to depend on a healer anymore, really, but GW1 was far more forgiving with the heros and henchman so that I had more time to do things. But pressing the wrong key in a panic also wasn't as horrible as it is in the this game because I have to do everything at once - healing, defending, attacking - and my skills reflect that. Don't get me wrong, I like being able to do everything! But...I'm too inept to. Kinda makes me feel like a loser.

Anyone having similiar problems? Or having some tips?

(I'm only talking about PvE, by the way. I don't like PvP in any game I ever played and therefore don't do it.)

[Raani]

Sounds like you'd greatly benefit from choosing more comfortable keybinds.

[Lollie]

It's your key mapping. You should map skills to letters as well as numbers so your hand can reach both movement keys and skill keys. And remember to dodge when you can.

[Vagabondo]

You just have to get used to it, that's all. A couple of months playing the game and everything will feel much easier. Also, try binding your keys, I couldnt stand pressing buttons like F1 (im lazy, ok?) so I just rebinded them. Keep trying!

[MetaKnight]

You are definitely doing something wrong...
I never let go of my mouse, it sounds like a realy bad idea. I usually hod down the right click while in combat to always look from a right angle while moving around. Also with the 1,2,3,4,5 etc. being right above the movement keys I have 0 problem using them, same goes for F1,F2 etc.

Edited by MetaKnight, 15 September 2012 - 05:58 PM.

[Lollie]

MetaKnight, on 15 September 2012 - 05:57 PM, said:

Also with the 1,2,3,4,5 etc. being right above the movement keys I have 0 problem using them, same goes for F1,F2 etc.

Depends on the size of your hands for a start - I'm a female so have much smaller hands than I'd guess all of the male players in a game, so learned to get really good at mapping skills so I can play at level.

[MetaKnight]

Lollie, on 15 September 2012 - 05:59 PM, said:

Depends on the size of your hands for a start - I'm a female so have much smaller hands than I'd guess all of the male players in a game, so learned to get really good at mapping skills so I can play at level.

I didnt think of that. but still, moving your hand a little bit doesnt seem like a big issue you just need to get used to it. I usually use my thumb to move in a direction while using my skills. I say that because I rarely bind keys differently, but it sounds like a good solution.

Edited by MetaKnight, 15 September 2012 - 06:04 PM.

[Lollie]

MetaKnight, on 15 September 2012 - 06:02 PM, said:

I didnt think of that.but still, moving you'r hand a little bit doesnt seem like a big issue you just need to get used to it. I usually use my thumb to move in a direction while using my skills.

I even use a slightly more compact keyboard than usual, which helps a lot.

[Sheba]

Oh, I did try to change the key mapping, but it didn't change much for me. The more keys I have to press with one hand, the more I miss. I'm just not someone who can push keys (besides the movement keys) blindly well, I suppose. I have to look at the keyboard and in GW2, that's deadly. In GW1, I had all the time in the world, with two monks taking care of my healing and one more hero tanking for me while I sat in the back, looked where my key for interrupting the enemy was, got ready to push it, looked up again and yeah, I was still alive then. Here, not so much. I've completely given up on Mesmer in this game now and play Ele, doing a bit more damage and killing better, but yeah, I still suck. Maybe it's just not my game and I should go back to GW1. I mean, I'm level 35 now and basically can't survive anything anymore, so I busy myself doing all starting areas...

Also, my hand size is small since I'm female as well. I can't reach the 1-5 even with my small finger when I have to press the movement keys. And I'm using a laptop, where everything is even more together than on a normal keyboard.

Edited by Sheba, 15 September 2012 - 06:06 PM.

[Vagabondo]

Well, I dont like moving my left hand too much while playing, more like my fingers. Most of my skills are on keys like E, Q, R, F, Z, X, C, tab, shift... even pressing 1 or 2 is a bit of an hassle. Also, mouse buttons are very handy.

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:04 PM, said:

Oh, I did try to change the key mapping, but it didn't change much for me. The more keys I have to press with one hand, the more I miss. I'm just not someone who can push keys (besides the movement keys) blindly well, I suppose. I have to look at the keyboard and in GW2, that's deadly. In GW1, I had all the time in the world, with two monks taking care of my healing and one more hero tanking for me while I sat in the back, looked where my key for interrupting the enemy was, got ready to push it, looked up again and yeah, I was still alive then. Here, not so much. I've completely given up on Mesmer in this game now and play Ele, doing a bit more damage and killing better, but yeah, I still suck. Maybe it's just not my game and I should go back to GW1. I mean, I'm level 35 now and basically can't survive anything anymore, so I busy myself doing all starting areas...

Maybe the problem lies with the class choice. Classes like mesmer or thief are not as forgiving as warrior, for example.

Edited by Vagabondo, 15 September 2012 - 06:07 PM.

[Ascari]

For your jumping problem: experiment in a safe environment. Like stand still and get a feel for how far you go by pressing forward and then jump versus jump and the forward. Try jumping from stones to stones or other easy to reach thing where you can get comfortable with your jumping skills and how the game reacts.
It also helps lots of people to disable dodging while they do vistas or puzzles.

I used to be horrible at jumping in this game, but after practicing while normally exploring the map I'm now pretty comfortable at doing jumps. That is, as long as I'm not chatting... chat is my arch nemesis that always makes me fail at everything.

[JasmineMcCoy]

Lollie, on 15 September 2012 - 05:59 PM, said:

Depends on the size of your hands for a start - I'm a female so have much smaller hands than I'd guess all of the male players in a game, so learned to get really good at mapping skills so I can play at level.

It also depends on the keyboard. For example on one of keyboards I have f1-f12 are much further away than on another. If reaching the right keys is an issue changing the keybidding or considering a different keyboard will help, if not it's just a matter of a bit of practice and it'll get easier in short time.

[Lollie]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:04 PM, said:

Oh, I did try to change the key mapping, but it didn't change much for me. The more keys I have to press with one hand, the more I miss. I'm just not someone who can push keys (besides the movement keys) blindly well, I suppose. I have to look at the keyboard and in GW2, that's deadly. In GW1, I had all the time in the world, with two monks taking care of my healing and one more hero tanking for me while I sat in the back, looked where my key for interrupting the enemy was, got ready to push it, looked up again and yeah, I was still alive then. Here, not so much. I've completely given up on Mesmer in this game now and play Ele, doing a bit more damage and killing better, but yeah, I still suck. Maybe it's just not my game and I should go back to GW1. I mean, I'm level 35 now and basically can't survive anything anymore, so I busy myself doing all starting areas...

It takes some getting used to if you're not already good at moving around and killing at same time. I learned all my kiting and moving skills in a korean hurt game game many years ago, so GW2 and its heavy hitters/lack of defense wasn't a shock to me. You just need to keep practising - it'll come. I can't even type without looking at the keys I have to tap, yet when things start coming at me all trying to kill me, I can suddenly multitask no problems

Edited by Lollie, 15 September 2012 - 06:10 PM.

[MetaKnight]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:04 PM, said:

Oh, I did try to change the key mapping, but it didn't change much for me. The more keys I have to press with one hand, the more I miss. I'm just not someone who can push keys (besides the movement keys) blindly well, I suppose. I have to look at the keyboard and in GW2, that's deadly. In GW1, I had all the time in the world, with two monks taking care of my healing and one more hero tanking for me while I sat in the back, looked where my key for interrupting the enemy was, got ready to push it, looked up again and yeah, I was still alive then. Here, not so much. I've completely given up on Mesmer in this game now and play Ele, doing a bit more damage and killing better, but yeah, I still suck. Maybe it's just not my game and I should go back to GW1. I mean, I'm level 35 now and basically can't survive anything anymore, so I busy myself doing all starting areas...

Also, my hand size is small since I'm female as well. I can't reach the 1-5 even with my small finger when I have to press the movement keys. And I'm using a laptop, where everything is even more together than on a normal keyboard.

Playing gw2 on a laptop sounded impossible to me (my laptop cant even handle minecraft), respect xD. You should play a class thats good at tanking, I would suggest you to go back to mesmer and build him chaos>illusion>domination that will make you hard to kill just make sure you get the triple bounce and -20% cooldown for you'r staff. I love those traits and i'm lvl 65 by now ( mesmer's get better at higher levels)now I hardly die with that build but that might not solve you'r problem...

[Sheba]

I'm a magic user through and through. I tried warrior and it was indeed easier, but I didn't enjoy the class. I like shooting things with magic from afar, which is why my Ele is also a pure staff-user, and I definitely like the clothes of the light armor classes much more, too (yeah, lemme be a typical female and enjoy my fancy dresses.)

My jumping problem is more that somehow, my character refuses to jump in a timely manner while running. Maybe that's actually my keyboard, but it works fine while standing. Though I also need a long time to adjust my camera all the time so that I even understand how far the distance is. It's why I hate Vistas so much.

And sadly, I can't use a different keyboard. I'm in hospital and I'm already glad they let me use my laptop. It's pretty shitty, though, yeah.

Thank you for all your help, people! I'll try maybe remapping my keys again or going back to my Mesmer instead of my Ele. Maybe Mesmers get easier with time (she's still at 9 because I was unhappy with my damage and lack of interruption skills. I'm not much of a fan of the illusion-system.)

Edited by Sheba, 15 September 2012 - 06:16 PM.

[MetaKnight]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:13 PM, said:

I'm a magic user through and through. I tried warrior and it was indeed easier, but I didn't enjoy the class. I like shooting things with magic from afar, which is why my Ele is also a pure staff-user, and I definitely like the clothes of the light armor classes much more, too (yeah, lemme be a typical female and enjoy my fancy dresses.)

My jumping problem is more that somehow, my character refuses to jump in a timely manner while running. Maybe that's actually my keyboard, but it works fine while standing. Though I also need a long time to adjust my camera all the time so that I even understand how far the distance is. It's why I hate Vistas so much.

And sadly, I can't use a different keyboard. I'm in hospital and I'm already glad they let me use my laptop. It's pretty shitty, though, yeah.

Thank you for all your help, people! I'll try maybe remapping my keys again or going back to my Mesmer instead of my Ele. Maybe Mesmers get easier with time (she's still at 9 because I was unhappy with my damage and lack of interruption skills. I'm not much of a fan of the illusion-system.)

I now assume the problem lies in your keyboard because a bigger keyboard actually makes things alot easier + the space key doesnt work as well atleast on my laptop (bad keys and cant handle minecraft, yours is probably alot better xD)...

Edited by MetaKnight, 15 September 2012 - 06:22 PM.

[Lollie]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:13 PM, said:

I'm a magic user through and through. I tried warrior and it was indeed easier, but I didn't enjoy the class. I like shooting things with magic from afar, which is why my Ele is also a pure staff-user, and I definitely like the clothes of the light armor classes much more, too (yeah, lemme be a typical female and enjoy my fancy dresses.)

My jumping problem is more that somehow, my character refuses to jump in a timely manner while running. Maybe that's actually my keyboard, but it works fine while standing. Though I also need a long time to adjust my camera all the time so that I even understand how far the distance is. It's why I hate Vistas so much.

And sadly, I can't use a different keyboard. I'm in hospital and I'm already glad they let me use my laptop. It's pretty shitty, though, yeah.

Thank you for all your help, people! I'll try maybe remapping my keys again or going back to my Mesmer instead of my Ele. Maybe Mesmers get easier with time (she's still at 9 because I was unhappy with my damage and lack of interruption skills. I'm not much of a fan of the illusion-system.)

Mesmers are pretty tough if you build them that way. Also found necros can be pretty tanky as well (if you ignore pets), try that class too.

[Sheba]

Yeah, it's probably my laptop. It's only a year old, but, uuuh...I cleaned it once and removed all the keys from the keyboard which turned out to have been a bad idea. My 7 key is broken (I have to use the numpad for it), which doesn't make GW2 any easier and some other keys are pretty broken, too. Haha, I wanna believe now that it's not me being inept but the fault of my keyboard. GW1 and RO are still easy, even with this computer, though.

(Also, the grammar of that second sentence up there looks funny somehow but I can't figure it out...I'm sorry, English is not my native language, so I do make lots of mistakes.)

Edited by Sheba, 15 September 2012 - 06:26 PM.

[Hector]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 05:47 PM, said:

I do wonder if anyone else here is so horrible inept at playing this game as I am.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not a MMO newbie or anything. I've played the hell out of GW1 and I'm also playing RO still. But in this game, I just suck. I was Mesmer in GW1 and I loved it and never had any real problems. But in GW2, I feel like I need ten more hands to play this game. One hand, I need for the mouse to move the camera so I actually run quickly in directions I want to run into and kite enemies, one hand I need to use to push the direction keys...and one hand I need for the number keys. Yeah, that's at least one hand more than I have. So usually, I let go of the mouse in combat, which often ends with me unable to kite and getting killed or suddenly standing in a camera angle where I see nothing and get killed. Alternatively, I just use no skills at all and can instead run around well. Uh.

My second major problem are those damn F1-F4 keys and the fact that my healing skill is in between my attacking skills. Accidently press the wrong key in the midst of battle, boom, dead. I always miss the F1 key and end up pressing either F2 or Esc or 1. (However, I also work with a keyboard where the F-keys are only half the normal size). So yeah, basically, I'm too dumb to use the controls.

But I'm also too dumb to jump. Vistas are nothing but frustrating as soon as they involve jumping. Don't even get me started on the jumping puzzles. It's not because I can't solve them, it's because I'm too dumb to jump. Wonderful.

I'm glad I don't have to depend on a healer anymore, really, but GW1 was far more forgiving with the heros and henchman so that I had more time to do things. But pressing the wrong key in a panic also wasn't as horrible as it is in the this game because I have to do everything at once - healing, defending, attacking - and my skills reflect that. Don't get me wrong, I like being able to do everything! But...I'm too inept to. Kinda makes me feel like a loser.

Anyone having similiar problems? Or having some tips?

(I'm only talking about PvE, by the way. I don't like PvP in any game I ever played and therefore don't do it.)

SOunds like you could use a Logitech G13 or a Razer Nostromo.

[Alexandriea]

Props for the mention of RO. Easily one of the best GvGs ever made.

[Lollie]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:25 PM, said:

Yeah, it's probably my laptop. It's only a year old, but, uuuh...I cleaned it once and removed all the keys from the keyboard which turned out to have been a bad idea. My 7 key is broken (I have to use the numpad for it), which doesn't make GW2 any easier and some other keys are pretty broken, too. Haha, I wanna believe now that it's not me being inept but the fault of my keyboard. GW1 and RO are still easy, even with this computer, though.

(Also, the grammar of that second sentence up there looks funny somehow but I can't figure it out...I'm sorry, English is not my native language, so I do make lots of mistakes.)

Heh well, definitely remap your skill keys to letters as well as numbers (you won't have to use that wonky 7 key ever again!).

[chiclet]

I'm a girl with small hands too and I do find hitting the Fkeys a little troublesome in the middle of battle - I'm always tagging the wrong one myself since the half second to look can sometimes spell your death if you take your eyes off the screen. Then again, hitting the wrong one doesn't help much either!

Like everyone else said, practice makes it easier and eventually you won't even notice how much better you are at it. GW2 is more twitch based than most MMOs and if you've never played a game that needed this kind of multi-tasking, you really are trying to learn a whole bunch of different skills all at once which can be super overwhelming. Sticking with the starter zones is a great idea - they are more forgiving and what you need is time to get used to the skills.

What my suggestion would be though is... practice strafing and hitting attack buttons. I have strafe (run sideways) bound to my A and D keys and I prefer to run to the right (pushing D). That means as I am moving with my index finger on D and adjusting my camera with the mouse so I'm constantly looking at my target, I have my other fingers on my left hand ready to stretch to push the 1-5 keys for attacking. If you prefer, put your thumb on the D key and you'll notice that your other fingers pretty much fall right on the number keys - super easy.

Give that a try and see if it helps. If your keyboard is super small, it might be cramped but you gotta start somewhere

Oh, last thing that saves my bacon a lot. Rebind your health button (key 6) to the down-press of your mouse scroll wheel (if it has a scroll wheel that can be pushed). Fast and easy healing. If you don't have a scroll wheel or it doesn't depress, then possibly SHIFT+LEFT MOUSE BUTTON would work for you as that is also easy to do in the middle of battle.

[Levelord]

My own keyboard layout includes the weapons 1,2,3,4,5
then my heal is Q, utilities are E,R,T

Makes the skills easier for my left hand to reach.

[Elk]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 05:47 PM, said:

My second major problem are those damn F1-F4 keys and the fact that my healing skill is in between my attacking skills. Accidently press the wrong key in the midst of battle, boom, dead. I always miss the F1 key and end up pressing either F2 or Esc or 1. (However, I also work with a keyboard where the F-keys are only half the normal size). So yeah, basically, I'm too dumb to use the controls.

I feel ya there, I'm lucky with the warrior, I only have to slam f1 multiple timesand hope my burst has recharged.
I'm ok at using the controls in general (i can make cool looking battles in PvE), but in PvP everything gets thrown out the window with people being thrown across the screen, whilst some people (always the enemies) seem to be resistant to fear and knockdowns e.t.c.

one good tip I have is just to use the qweasd buttons and try to get a feel for/keep a finger on the '1' button. that way I have  a reference of what to press (or I can always spam my first skill), although I ocassionally lose coordination and end up healing myself, then dodgeing off a cliff instead of attacking something.

ooh! If you're practicing, you could always just try to pretend to be super hyper, always jumping and dodging and spinning. that usually helps me dodge things, avoid a good few attacks and jump across ravines (although I find it funny watching my character flail about in freefall, so maybe it's a fear thing?)

Edited by Elk, 15 September 2012 - 06:39 PM.

[Sheba]

Lollie, on 15 September 2012 - 06:30 PM, said:

Heh well, definitely remap your skill keys to letters as well as numbers (you won't have to use that wonky 7 key ever again!).

My 7 key is the only one I currently have remapped already, yeah. XD; I kinda do need all my skills, after all.

Alexandriea, on 15 September 2012 - 06:29 PM, said:

Props for the mention of RO. Easily one of the best GvGs ever made.

It is! Germany got Renewal only three months ago, though, and everything is totally unbalanced since then and sucks, so I'm playing GW2 for my MMO cravings only right now.

But yeah, anyway. I still believe it's not only my keyboard. I simply have to do too much at once. I think from levels 5 to 30, I only used fire attunement with my Ele, solely. I never switched once. I simply can't handle having to do all my defense and attack and healing. Playing GW2 is really stressful, actually. XD; In GW1, I had my three interruption skills, my three DoT skills and two more. Comfortable! Now I'm totally stressed all of the time. It's kinda cool, but yeah, a bit less to do would be nice. I'm already totally overchallenged with eight skills, no one can expect me to switch to attunements, too. Too much...stuff...

Thanks for all the keyboard tips, people! I'll try them all out. Kinda sad I never strafed even once so far. I'm only dodging and running and going "Aaaaah, wrong camera angle, I'm running backwards at snail's speed...and now I'm dead again."

Edited by Sheba, 15 September 2012 - 06:41 PM.

[Passive Aggressive]

I'm definitely not having any troubles with PvE. I just rebound my keys to where they will be more comfortable.  But I have complained before and I will complain again about the whole camera thing.  The fact that they don't follow you and you have to manually move them with the mouse is a bit annoying and hampers me in PvP a little.

[Mustache Mayhem]

yeah I bound everything using autohotkey.. so a lot of the rotation I use is automated

including heal support and when want to just spam all the F2-F4 in one mobs face.. just gotta make sure the pointer is over them

same with heals.. found I get more out of healing turrent early on by putting it down and then destroying it around a second later- it gives extra 1k so automated that too.. makes the game so much nicer to play when everything is on a few keys.. else your fingers are everywhere- I don't have a naga just a old g5 (which I love)

[caballo_oscuro]

try using a typing tutor to improve your speed and dexterity on the keyboard and you'll adapt to moving around much more easily.

practice with a different class first.. mesmer is intended for advanced players even tho the basics can be picked up quickly.

i find the engineer to be a good mix of mid and far so maybe run a few levels with one...

[Death Aggro]

Sheba, on 15 September 2012 - 06:04 PM, said:

Oh, I did try to change the key mapping, but it didn't change much for me. The more keys I have to press with one hand, the more I miss. I'm just not someone who can push keys (besides the movement keys) blindly well, I suppose. I have to look at the keyboard and in GW2, that's deadly. In GW1, I had all the time in the world, with two monks taking care of my healing and one more hero tanking for me while I sat in the back, looked where my key for interrupting the enemy was, got ready to push it, looked up again and yeah, I was still alive then. Here, not so much. I've completely given up on Mesmer in this game now and play Ele, doing a bit more damage and killing better, but yeah, I still suck. Maybe it's just not my game and I should go back to GW1. I mean, I'm level 35 now and basically can't survive anything anymore, so I busy myself doing all starting areas...

Also, my hand size is small since I'm female as well. I can't reach the 1-5 even with my small finger when I have to press the movement keys. And I'm using a laptop, where everything is even more together than on a normal keyboard.

Get a MMO mouse. I never use my keyboard for anything but moving and picking stuff up.

[Lazmira]

I was about to say what the poster said above me, ever thought of getting a gaming mouse? I actually decided to for this game and you don't know how much it has helped me! Literally if I was still playing with the keyboard I would have been so much slower and probably using the wrong abilities. I can certainly tell you it will help you drastically! However you need to find the right mouse that fits you! Also it does take a while to realize you can't use your keyboard keys anymore. xD

Edited by Lazmira, 15 September 2012 - 08:20 PM.