Your preferred method of input for the falling tetromino gam

I coined the term tetlag, and it only reinforces my point. I used to move with my right hand on keyboard, and now I move with my left on joystick. Or one handed on both sides at once with joystick. I would not describe myself as ambidextrous. But after a bit of practice it's not so bad. At first there was tons of tetlag, now there is none and I wouldn't even be bothered switching mid game if it were possible. The same thing happened when I was into TDS: at first there was tons of tetlag, but now it's no big deal. In fact, I think there's a mode in Heboris that switches the rotation system every few pieces, so people are literally switching mid game.


So in summary tetlag and your dominant hand are just being better with what you're comfortable with. It's not actually that hard to get used to different play conditions, and your current confort zone is by no means a "theoretically optimal" arrangement.


And sorry for the mini rant, but I know Nicholas takes his control scheme ridiculously seriously. Like, he used to practice a two finger key layout, pecking at the controls, because he read that reaction time was fastest with index fingers or something. Or that things are best when fingers don't leave the home row. I get the impression he often reads stuff like that, applies it out of context and without common sense, and then practices it hoping for some awesome speed gain.


Your dominant hand can't do anything your weak hand won't with a little domain-specific practice. Just like how not all pro golfers swing their dominant side. And insisting on a home row arrangement is as ridiculous as restricting Micheal Kaeshammer to only white piano keys. And people who claim the keyboard is faster than joysticks because of raw movement distance most definitely don't have a soft touch with a joystick.


I have yet to hear an argument of "x is strictly better than y" that hasn't been seriously flawed.

 

Rich: Most people use mouselook all the time, though, so they need to have movement in a seperate place. I'd explain mine, but right now I should be asleep...


CT: Can I make an attempt please? "For each individual playe, there is a control setup that they feel more comfortable with than any other. and feeling comfortable with the controls is a major part of performance." I know for a fact that my DS lite isn't my most comforatble, because it's almost too small for my hands, and I keep holding by accident.


This whole argument of one hand more than the other kinda reminds me of how schools used to be over here, where left-handed people were forced to write with their right hands. It seems retarted by today's standards, but it used to happen.


Ultimately, choice of control has to be an individual choice, which is why we have re-defineable keys for PC-based games. And ultimately, control systems have to be intuitive (or become intuitive), otherwise the players won't feel comfortable using them...

 

How about this: "keyboard/joystick/gamepad is strictly better than iPod wheel". Or "keyboard/joystick/gamepad must be strictly better than a laptop trackpad; otherwise, standard, mission, and push modes of Tetris DS would have included trackpad emulation like MPH did".

 

Quite true (I never really thought about that). I myself have always used a button to toggle mouselook, so's I could normally use/slide the mouse for precise movement where needed (balancing on a beam or narrow bridge, etc...), as well as holding down the LMB for forward motion (sliding the mouse left and right to turn to the left and right when running), and toggling mouselook only when needed.

*Very* well put, agreed 100%.

The PC Gravis GamePad has a switch on it that reverses the controls of the dpad, but unfortunately when you hold the gamepad upside down (when the switch is on) the four colored buttons are reversed, and the gamepad's cord always seems to get in the way (coming out of the bottom of the unit, instead of the top).


(re: become intuitive) Sort of pertains to what I was asking about earlier (re: where the hardware designers all left-handed), it would be really nice if they simply made and offered for sale "right-handed controllers" as well... dpad on the right, buttons on the left.

 

keyboard works best for me.

using the home row keys isn't so crazy. i use ASD for rotation, F for locking (hard or soft drop depending on the rotation system), JKL the same as left down right arrow keys (or make K firm drop), and ; for hold. it makes sense to me to keep your fingers in place the whole time, and it's a comfortable natural position for typists. i agree though that you'll get used to using your right or left hand for whatever you need. i haven't tested my speed with each finger but i use my pinkies less than the others. the keys i'm using seem to balance the workload between my right and left hand well.


i suppose the main difference for me is that i lock with my rotation hand. i thought it made sense because i had a free index finger, and i like using one hand for movement and one for locking when rotating isn't necessary. that goes along with balancing the work i guess. makes sense to me, but to each their own.

 

Well, there's nothing wrong with it, but I meant more that the world wouldn't explode if you used ASD V instead. Or ZDT H, especially with larger hands.

 

yeah i guess not

 

People who have not voted for "stick" have never tried it..

The stick is much optimized than any else support.

The proof is really simple,

the stick allow to exploit the torque and speed of almost the whole arm..

Keyboard : have you got a lot of muscle in your finger??


errr..

Ok I agree with this no negligible fact :

matt_hatter..

 

That or the sticks sold in EB Games are utter dung.

 

Or, like me, they have but only with a crappy one.

 

Optimized for TGM gameplay maybe. But I'd like to see you try setting a sub 40 seconds game in 40 Lines mode in 0G with a stick.

 

Je t'emmerde..

no I was joking..maybe you're right..

 

Hey, I know of a controller that would even be better and faster than a joystick -> http://www.chproducts.com/retail/yokes/vpp_lg.jpg <LOL>!

 

oh man, that would be difficult. haha it would be so hard to tap a piece over, everything would go far left or right unless you slowed the sideways speed way down.

 

Nobody likes the iPod wheel?

 

The fastest controller ever:

 

Nobody likes the iPod wheel.

 

well... modulating EEG brain waves is extremely slow..

but stick some electrodes directly into the motor cortex and you will gain a lot of speed, because action potentials do not need to travel along the spinal cord. but (if i remember right) you will only gain som 20-40ms + whatever it needs to activate a muscle and causing a keypress (maybe 10ms?). the rest still is time you actually need to think, including the visual signal processing cascade. so i propose that you can only gain at max 60ms in reaction time. any experts here? i only had a tiny bit of neurophysiology in highscool.

 

60ms? A 3.6 frame advantage sounds pretty big to me.

 

I'm really not surprised. I think it would be easier to play Tetris with a DDR mat than with the iPod wheel.