Control Schemes Part 1:Keyboard and mouse

In this new series of articles, Powerplay will feature one control scheme at any one time and evaluate the said scheme. In this article, Powerplay checks out how useful is the keyboard and mouse control scheme.


Thumbs up: With a wide range of keyboards to suit your needs, you will not be afraid of finding the right one that suits your taste. Prices are generally low and even if you get the fancy ones, they are still quite affordable. Many keyboards nowadays come in cutting-edge designs like the Wolf King keyboards, which are a first-person shooter (FPS) gamer’s dream come true. These keyboards feature several programmable keys and creative key layouts, which usually helps in improving the game of a FPS gamer by ensuring that the keys are conveniently and quickly available. The Logitech G15 gaming keyboard gets even more innovative by including an LCD panel that displays game information. Couple that with glowing keys and you have a lethal combination that is set to make people scream at. The mouse comes as an added advantage that ensures your aiming reticule falls upon your enemies as soon as you spot them. Laser mice are the way to go with great sensitivity and eerie glows that seem to make you look more powerful. Good buys include the numerous Razer and Logitech mice in the market right now. Any one of them will suffice. Did I mention that the keyboard and mouse combination is also good enough for the real-time strategy (RTS) games?

Thumbs down: As far as racing and fighting games go, the keyboard and mouse combination does not seem suitable. Playing racing games using the keyboard normally just involves pressing the left, right and down keys and constantly holding down the up key to accelerate your vehicle. The rush of adrenaline is sorely missing. Playing the game does not feel realistic enough – of course, unless your keyboard is fitted with the vibration feature. If you are playing a racing game on your PC, I suggest that you get a racing wheel. Fighting games also do not go hand in hand with a keyboard. Frantic button presses and quick reflexes, which normally results in hitting a button suddenly, quickly and hard, are what that make a fighting game. The keyboard cannot handle that for long before it conks out on you, although I must say that the many keys of the keyboard make dishing out combo moves as simple as ABC.