119411-some-feedback-about-endgame-and-the-lack-of-usability-in-general

== Content ==
			
A few weeks ago I made a post about my levelling experience. Since I still think the game is worth the time I'll spend writing this, here is some feedback on my « engdame » experience. To give some context, I've been playing the game for a month and a half now, I'm attuned, have raid access but haven't been invited by my guild to any raid yet.
 
In my book this is still the best MMO I've played, and I think it's going to be hard to move on when I'm done with it. I'm not there yet, but now that I've experienced a lot of the content thoughtfully I can fully understand why this game isn't as popular as it should be. While I think I can overcome most of (very deep-rooted I fear) issues the gameplay has, the lack of work or the lack of will to make things accessible, which doesn't mean easy by any mean, but well-communicated and easy to learn (again, not to do), may keep the game stagnating for a long, long time until some of these issues get addressed.
 
There's another major issue with this game and it's the astounding number of PvE cheats, cheeses, terrain missuses to skip most of the content but loot piñatas, but I think it deserves its own post because that's truly a game killer to me and I can't cover everything right now. For now, suffice to say that having a scientist stalker in my team and suiciding to respawn further or playing super mario for 5 minutes to skip 2 minutes of combat is a truly daunting experience. Fortunately not every group will do that but still...
 
So let's talk about the first and IMO most critical accessibility issue: control. My conclusion about the nature of default controls and the lack of customization is that the people in charge thought controls should be a part of the challenge, that it would make mastering things harder (that's the paranoid explanation) or that someone said “ok I have made some basic stuff to move characters in this game” and called it a day.
 
Here is the paradox in this game: having a precise rotation requires the use of a keyboard but precise movement requires the use of mouse. But of course everything has been done to force players to either use keyboard or mouse, not both at the same time, which either leads to shitty dps and missing moments of opportunity (try to kick something while clicking on spells) or having subpar and clunky character movement with WASD/QE.
 
What this game would have needed was action RPG type controls: the mouse cursor is locked at the centre of the screen, left mouse button fora auto attack, the right one for finisher, WASD for movement and QER/TAB/1234 for spells. I've tried several addons but they all rely on external macro software because doing such a thing is impossible and of course none of them allows players to bind left and right click. This is such a pity. So instead of making the game only about fighting NPCs I sometimes have the feeling I'm fighting against controls and their lack of options. If the devs want to see what kind of awesome stuff you can do with action rpg controls I suggest they try games like Warframe. Movement is much more complex in this game; more keys to press, more combos, more stances, but controls makes them easier to master while keeping most of the challenge the game can offer (sometimes).
 
I'm convinced this would be a huge task but changing the default controls so that players can enjoy game mechanics instead of being either repeatedly slapped in the face by npcs because keyboard movement options kinda suck or doing shit damage and being mocked by other player because you missed a kick is a necessity. I'm not even talking about options, I'm talking about default controls. They should feel good enough so that most people don't feel the need to customize them! They should be more intuitive and making people feel that if they stood in red it was their fault and not because of controls.
 
Now let's move onto the second topic: the lack of tools to give to every single player in an instance more situational awareness. I know this could be quite controversial but many dungeons requires every single player to be aware of what's happening on an area that's larger than what the video options allow us to display on our screens. Let me make this clearer: default max unzoom value is too small and audio is greatly misused. The first issue has a clear solution, I could definitely buy a 4k screen to play WS (but meh), I'm a bit tired of missing some moments of opportunities because I play a caster, I have to pay attention to what's on the ground and bosses are so big I just see their bellies and feet. Some boss rooms are also so big that sometimes I miss some nasty stuff incoming and see them too late.
 
Of course this has a simple solution. I guess I could get some addons for the first one but that wouldn't solve the second scenario issue in any way. So let's talk about audio. Instead of being used as clues to give players hints about “bad stuff incoming”, an ongoing special attack that requires immediate attention, or just a new boss phase incoming, you, wildstar devs, used TEXT popups to keep us aware of that kind of stuff. When you do it, which is rare. And that's really, really bad.
 
IMO if a game mechanic can't be communicated by telegraphs, audio, or visual cues, it shouldn't happen at all. This games relies a lot on muscular memory and there's already a lot of stuff happening on the screen. Adding text on top of it is clearly a bad choice. You have two channels to communicate stuff to your players: images and sounds. Use them both! You clearly have a pretty fat audio budget, bosses talk way too much but don't communicate anything useful.
 
So, since not everyone has a 4k screen and since maintaining sitiational awareness is absolutely critical, audio should definitely be used to expand gameplay instead of being wasted for silly taunts which are more of a distraction rather than a part of the mechanics.
 
But instead of talking even more about how audio can be used to give clues, here is a video. It's from Neverwinter, which was a game I enjoyed for quite some time. While the fight on the video look easy, it wasn't when it was released. :) Anyway, here is how I think audio should be used: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K11D5dY92Tw
Special hand attack you may not notice if you're far away from other characters? Just listen to the taunt. Some stuff to click? She tells it before it's too late to move and click. Some phase change? She says it's going to happen right before it happens. Here when there's some sound for a special attack it's always too late or happening already. That's pointless.
 
Instead of text popups, the boss talks to players. Icing on the cake, audio helps to memorize mechanics a lot better. It's a great way to stimulate memory while keeping mechanics fun and challenging.
 
The last accessibility issue could be categorized as “too bad, it's too late to change it”. Hopefully it will make sense though. I'm talking about the impossibility to get some practice on boss fights. I'm lvl 50, attuned, and (congratulations), I've been more or less power levelled. :)
 
When you die during a fight, you're out. For the rest of it, and all you can do is being a spectator. After your first death, you've been able to see stuff but you still need to practice. Of course, people can't respawn you so that you have a chance to try again and learn a couple of things. I know it's supposed to be a part of the challenge and I don't think adding a respawn mechanic to the current content would be a great idea, because all of the fights have been designed without this in mind. But still. It's punishing new players and the punishment is the inability to practice and learn. Which is of course suboptimal when you have a mix of inexperienced and veteran players in your game. Well, suboptimal is an euphemism. In other words, veteral players will carry noobs and noobs will still be noobs once they've been power levelled. Because hey, you sucked, you don't deserve to train.
 
I know it makes things more challenging. Unfortunately a team of 5 people is never required to defeat dungeon bosses or even adventures content, which means that if you suck others will carry you and your learning curve, as a new player, will be a lot more chaotic. The kinda low population also makes it hard to find players with equivalent skills to wipe a bit on a boss. In an ideal scenario with everyone having the same experience, no respawn is a great idea, but with a not so newish game, it just means new players will struggle and eventually leave due to the feeling that they can't really progress, unless they're exceptionally patient.
 
Hopefully this idea will make its way into future content in one way or another, with, let's say, some sort of challenges awarding one respawn token or something along those lines, so that new players don't feel like they're playing a carpet simulation instead of a MMO.
 
I'd have a lot more feedback about dungeons and some of it is even about too easy stuff but I feel that this post is already long enough and covers enough topics at once so I'll make another thread in the appropriate subforum when I find some time for it. I hope this won't be taken as something like “game is too hard and deserves to die” because I didn't talk about making things easier in any way. Accessibility, on the other hand, needs a lot of work and I guess something will have to be done so that people don't get frustrated because they couldn't move properly to the safe spot between two red areas, didn't have time to read the wall of text, don't have a 4k screen or can't learn how to play the game because others killed the boss without them.	
----
			
Movement issue - buy a cheap mouse with lots of buttons. I use a mouse with 12 buttons on the thumb rest.
 
My left hand never moves from the WASD keys and my left pinky rest permanently on the shift key ready to run.
 
 
So with regards to your sound issue - what about deaf people? How can they play if the only warning they get is a voice from the boss. Some raiding guilds make you have no sound so you can hear the other people speak (i've been in them guilds).
 
I understand where you are coming from, but (and this is just my personal view) all you're really posting is that you dont like the way the game is set out so here's some ways which will make it better for me?
 
They can't develop a game to make everyone happy to encompass everyone's play style . That's just not practical.   	
----
			
Honestly, if you're having a keyboard issue, I recommend getting a left hand array.  Some people have no problems, but I like the ease of using it.  I use a RAZR Orbweaver....
 
 
Like I said, it's not even really necessary.  A lot of people are perfectly fine using a regular keyboard.  I use this and my mouse.  It makes like about a million times easier in combat.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I understand where you are coming from, but (and this is just my personal view) all you're really posting is that you dont like the way the game is set out so here's some ways which will make it better for me?
 
They can't develop a game to make everyone happy to encompass everyone's play style . That's just not practical.   
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Here is the paradox in this game: having a precise rotation requires the use of a keyboard but precise movement requires the use of mouse. But of course everything has been done to force players to either use keyboard or mouse, not both at the same time, which either leads to shitty dps and missing moments of opportunity (try to kick something while clicking on spells) or having subpar and clunky character movement with WASD/QE.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
The hell are you talking about?
 
Nobody has ever had this problem using keyboard and mouse except for you as far as I can tell (this is literally the first time anyone has mentioned any of this on the forum).  There are also plenty of addons that lock the cursor to the center of the screen and give you mouse look.
 
I use Steer to lock my cursor because it can be configured to only do so while moving/in combat:
http://www.curse.com/ws-addons/wildstar/220093-steer
 
KeybindFreedom allows you to bind stuff to your main 2 mouse buttons (I don't actually use it but it says it has that feature):
http://www.curse.com/ws-addons/wildstar/220129-keybindfreedom
 
Though I don't believe for a second you need to bind anything to your main 2 mouse keys.  Most of us have some kind of gaming mouse with extra buttons on it anyways.  I have my entire LAS bound to my mouse, and I only ever use the keyboard for movement in combat.
 
If you want to see more of the field for situational awareness, adjust your FOV in the video options.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
 :rolleyes:
 
I've tried these addons and if the first one works (with a lot of work because the game doesn't allow that by default), the second one doesn't work at all. Having a 12 mouse button is still kinda useless to me if for some reasons the devs don't want people to bind stuff to the most easy to use ones. I do have all sort of expensive Razer expensive gear but none of them will feel right as long as some customization options are locked.
----
			
I can't see either of these as major issues and would have to agree with Gungan.
 
I can't say I myself or people I know find much issue with the controls or using a keyboard and mouse at the same time. People I know that wanted their mouse look locked in combat use either Steer or Deadlock addon without much issue. However if you choose not to use that, can you not use a custom profile for your mouse to further customize the bindings to your liking? I know I can change the clicks on a G600 and an MMO7...
 
Also if you're having issues with the 12 buttons try a mouse with less or a different type like a hat switch(I can only recall the mmo7 i use as having this).
 
As for the second issue, do you have any specific examples of bosses and or trash monsters you're having issues with? After my first or second attempts I can't say on any fight I didn't see or understand where something was coming from. The only exception I can think of is the recent change to Stormtalon that seemed to alter his ability triggers a bit, but thats more of an unintended overlap of his abilities that did the opposite of what the change was to prevent.
 
You may want to tinker with your FoV.	
----
			So basically some people enjoy defending the fact that control customization is lacking in some areas and that default controls make the game more or less unplayable. Surely the game has to give a bad first impression. Lately I convinced a friend to buy the game, that wasn't easy, and his first reaction was "this game is unplayable, controls are shit". I told him he could customize his stuff and his answer was "if the devs can't make default controls feel right then how the *cupcake* can they make a working game?". Ultimately I had to agree and he's now back to neverwinter and I'll pretty much keep playing this game alone. Great.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
So basically some people enjoy defending the fact that control customization is lacking in some areas and that default controls make the game more or less unplayable. Surely the game has to give a bad first impression. Lately I convinced a friend to buy the game, that wasn't easy, and his first reaction was "this game is unplayable, controls are shit". I told him he could customize his stuff and his answer was "if the devs can't make default controls feel right then how the *cupcake*can they make a working game?". Ultimately I had to agree and he's now back to neverwinter and I'll pretty much keep playing this game alone. Great.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
You may want to tinker with your FoV.
----
			There are several problems (e.g. z axis issues, controls, targeting) still remaining  with Wildstar changing to a more action combat system later in development, since this game was built as a tab-target game.  I agree that the game needs better controls that include native mouselock support, with rebound left/right clicks and automatic mouse unlock for ground target aoe.  The game transforms once you use an add-on like Lockdown and this is something that should not be relegated to an add-on.  Certainly they can use more audio, but that must be in addition to the current text both for deaf players as well as players that dislike game sounds.  But if you are having a hard time seeing the room and paying attention to casts, make sure you have adjusted your max camera distance to the highest settings in options and get the Interruptor add-on to make casts much more prominent on your screen (along with other features).The problem with being carried is only a problem because you are new and are playing with experienced players.  There is little the developers can do on this front without just making the game easier, as there just won't be a massive influx of new players.  Once you start doing content that is new for everyone this will be less of an issue as everyone will be taking dirt naps.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Like I said, you and your friend are literally the only people to ever make a complaint about the controls.  The default controls are completely standard to the MMO space. 
 
Even locking the cursor for mouse-look is nothing but automated holding down the right mouse button.
 
I seriously cannot fathom your issue because you make it sound like you only have one arm.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Max field of view isn't enough (on top of making the game really ugly). Some boss arenas are just way too big. Like the one of the flamethrower lady in SSM. I always see the walls of flames too late to move to the safe spot. This is of course just an example - there are many other ones. I'm also wondering why would anyone disagree with the devs using another tool to expand the gameplay and make stuff easier to notice. Out of curiosity, why are text popup better? And don't talk about deaf people, greatly lowering everyone's situational awareness for a very specific and unique disease (text can stay anyway for what I care) isn't a valid answer to me.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Yes, Wildstar's controls are default for tab-target games, but they are not default for action combat games.  I don't get why people defend these controls, needing to utilize an add-on for basic controls is not a good thing.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Yes, Wildstar's controls are default for tab-target games, but they are not default for action combat games.  I don't get why people defend these controls, needing to utilize an add-on for basic controls is not a good thing.
----
			
I wish MMO devs would stop defaulting the quickslot keybinds to 1,2,3, etc. and then littering the letter keys with UI trivia. C=character sheet, G=Guild panel, etc.  My left hand is prime real-estate!  Regardless, that's a peeve and nothing that deserves a call-to-arms. 
 
My mouse has a couple extra keys, one is my VOIP push-to-talk key and the other is left-strafe.  My left hand sits on a $15 keyboard.  The WASD keys have been remapped to one-click directional dashes and the LAS slots have been bound to FGBCTEXZ (the 'T-key' and interact keys have been moved to less used keys). 
 
In TOR I didn't need WASD for movement which is great because I needed those keys for skills and even then I needed Shift-key and Ctrl-key binds to cover the skills I used regularly.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
The fire walls make noise when they spawn too, and you should be camera turning looking at each direction non-stop (I assume you're talking about the last phase since they only come from one direction the rest of the time).
 
Native mouse-lock support with GTAoE targeting enabled would be great, but you're talking like the game is unplayable, and it's clearly minor issues you have trouble with.
 
I've also never played an Action-MMO with abilities bound to the mouse buttons.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Minor issues? Well maybe you don't know the kind of gaming rig most MMO players have. A lot of laptops, cheap and old stuff people got gods know where, outdated graphic cards, a 3 buttons mouse and a 5€ keyboard... Having a good experience with the most basic and cheapest setup (a 3 buttons mouse and a normal keyboard) is kinda critical if you want these people to play your game. They can be good players and nice people. And if a game requires additional equipment most of them will just quit. This isn't a minor issue in any way.
 
And this is the first game I ever see requiring me to re-bind everything.
----
			I probably haven't felt this issue because my first step with any game is to re-bind everything.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I wish MMO devs would stop defaulting the quickslot keybinds to 1,2,3, etc. and then littering the letter keys with UI trivia. C=character sheet, G=Guild panel, etc.  My left hand is prime real-estate!  Regardless, that's a peeve and nothing that deserves a call-to-arms. 
 
My mouse has a couple extra keys, one is my VOIP push-to-talk key and the other is left-strafe.  My left hand sits on a $15 keyboard.  The WASD keys have been remapped to one-click directional dashes and the LAS slots have been bound to FGBCTEXZ (the 'T-key' and interact keys have been moved to less used keys). 
 
In TOR I didn't need WASD for movement which is great because I needed those keys for skills and even then I needed Shift-key and Ctrl-key binds to cover the skills I used regularly.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Minor issues? Well maybe you don't know the kind of gaming rig most MMO players have. A lot of laptops, cheap and old stuff people got gods know where, outdated graphic cards, a 3 buttons mouse and a 5€ keyboard... Having a good experience with the most basic and cheapest setup (a 3 buttons mouse and a normal keyboard) is kinda critical if you want these people to play your game. They can be good players and nice people. And if a game requires additional equipment most of them will just quit. This isn't a minor issue in any way.
 
And this is the first game I ever see requiring me to re-bind everything.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
So basically some people enjoy defending the fact that control customization is lacking in some areas and that default controls make the game more or less unplayable. Surely the game has to give a bad first impression. Lately I convinced a friend to buy the game, that wasn't easy, and his first reaction was "this game is unplayable, controls are shit". I told him he could customize his stuff and his answer was "if the devs can't make default controls feel right then how the *cupcake*can they make a working game?". Ultimately I had to agree and he's now back to neverwinter and I'll pretty much keep playing this game alone. Great.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
You aren't required to do anything; I used the stock UI for months and didn't even have anything bound to my mouse.  I got the Orbweaver essentially because my hand was cramping stabbing buttons repeatedly, then I learned you can just turn on hold-to-click in the UI options.  The one thing that Orbweaver (the only thing I have as far as controls that most gamers don't) does that makes everything better is the thumbstick.  Essentially, my WASD isn't even under my fingers anymore, I handle it all with my thumb.  That's not something any game is going to make better by changing the default control scheme, that's just pure ergonomics and a purchased advantage.
 
Before that, I was doing just fine until a 10 hour stretch might start hurting my hand from key spamming.  That was my only control issue.  Your proposed setup would have replaced a few keys I make use out of for other skills.  Still, there isn't anything stopping you from binding your keys there, or even moving the entire binding area over.  I was given that rather brilliant idea just after headstart, where one of the forum users literally just shoved the whole keybinding to the right by a key.  They essentially bound movement to ESDF, then used the extra array of keys for easier hits.
 
My Orbweaver meant I never had to worry about that again, and there's really nothing Carbine can do to put you on the level of someone who doesn't even have his movement keys bound in the same area as the spell keys.  Sometimes, even if a game's controls are perfect, you're just not a match for more serious equipment.  There's no combination of movement keys and spell keys in any default array to make up that gap.
----
			
Ironically everyone in this thread said he had to bind spells and abilities to different keys at some point, or had to install addons, which means that the stock controls and options are really bad. They're of course what the new players will experience, and this experience is NOT good, satisfying or enjoyable, otherwise most people would still enjoy the stock controls. :)
 
It is critical because it's the first contact people have with the game, and the first hours are often make or break. Telling Carbine to ignore a critical part of the new player experience is the worst disservice once can do to wildstar.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Indeed.  My raid leader has a foot pedal he uses for dodge, for example.
 
I've also heard of a raid guild clearing GA with them all using a steering wheel/driving sim controller (though that may have been a prank:P).
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Ironically everyone in this thread said he had to bind spells and abilities to different keys at some point, or had to install addons, which means that the stock controls and options are really bad. They're of course what the new players will experience, and this experience is NOT good, satisfying or enjoyable, otherwise most people would still enjoy the stock controls. :)
 
It is critical because it's the first contact people have with the game, and the first hours are often make or break. Telling Carbine to ignore a critical part of the new player experience is the worst disservice once can do to wildstar.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Ironically everyone in this thread said he had to bind spells and abilities to different keys at some point, or had to install addons, which means that the stock controls and options are really bad. They're of course what the new players will experience, and this experience is NOT good, satisfying or enjoyable, otherwise most people would still enjoy the stock controls. :)
 
It is critical because it's the first contact people have with the game, and the first hours are often make or break. Telling Carbine to ignore a critical part of the new player experience is the worst disservice once can do to wildstar.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Ironically everyone in this thread said he had to bind spells and abilities to different keys at some point, or had to install addons, which means that the stock controls and options are really bad. They're of course what the new players will experience, and this experience is NOT good, satisfying or enjoyable, otherwise most people would still enjoy the stock controls. :)
 
It is critical because it's the first contact people have with the game, and the first hours are often make or break. Telling Carbine to ignore a critical part of the new player experience is the worst disservice once can do to wildstar.
----
			
I'm sorry, but ever MMO in the same style of WS has mouse 1 and 2 bound to the same thing.
 
Before I got my gaming mouse I just bound the keys around the WASD which you can do in WS. 
 
All MMOs like this (WoW, swtor, ES etc) are setup the same way. No where does it "force" you to rebind. People just do to make it more comfortable for their play style.
 
Christ I used to be a clicker in wow! i could heal through HC raids easily. 	
----
			
CAn you also please elaborate how the stock controls are bad? 
 
If you want the camera to stay in the middle of where you're looking just....i dunno.....hold down right mouse?	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Minor issues? Well maybe you don't know the kind of gaming rig most MMO players have. A lot of laptops, cheap and old stuff people got gods know where, outdated graphic cards, a 3 buttons mouse and a 5€ keyboard... Having a good experience with the most basic and cheapest setup (a 3 buttons mouse and a normal keyboard) is kinda critical if you want these people to play your game. They can be good players and nice people. And if a game requires additional equipment most of them will just quit. This isn't a minor issue in any way.
 
And this is the first game I ever see requiring me to re-bind everything.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
You don't need to utilize an addon at all.  You can hold the right mouse button can't you?  You have a middle finger do you not?
 
Binding things to my main mouse buttons would make absolutely no sense as a Stalker because I have more than 2 skills in my rotation.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I'm pretty sure they put quickslot keybinds on 1,2,3 because it's in ascending numerical order.  1st button is the 1st hotkey, 2nd button is the 2nd hotkey etc.  Numbers just make sense that way.
----
			
 
{| class="blockquote"
What this game would have needed was action RPG type controls: the mouse cursor is locked at the centre of the screen, left mouse button fora auto attack, the right one for finisher, WASD for movement and QER/TAB/1234 for spells. I've tried several addons but they all rely on external macro software because doing such a thing is impossible and of course none of them allows players to bind left and right click. This is such a pity. So instead of making the game only about fighting NPCs I sometimes have the feeling I'm fighting against controls and their lack of options. If the devs want to see what kind of awesome stuff you can do with action rpg controls I suggest they try games like Warframe. Movement is much more complex in this game; more keys to press, more combos, more stances, but controls makes them easier to master while keeping most of the challenge the game can offer (sometimes).
 
I'm convinced this would be a huge task but changing the default controls so that players can enjoy game mechanics instead of being either repeatedly slapped in the face by npcs because keyboard movement options kinda suck or doing shit damage and being mocked by other player because you missed a kick is a necessity. I'm not even talking about options, I'm talking about default controls. They should feel good enough so that most people don't feel the need to customize them! They should be more intuitive and making people feel that if they stood in red it was their fault and not because of controls.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
CAn you also please elaborate how the stock controls are bad? 
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I already said I use an add-on because I don't want to hold the right-mouse button down for hours at a time, and it did significantly improve the quality of the gameplay for me.  The controls are not gamebreaking (and I never argued they were), but there should at least be a simple mouse-lock in the default controls as that is standard in any other action-oriented MMO.  I have customized the controls to my liking (including add-ons and peripherals) but the controls are just another rough edge that Wildstar has, and if they want to grab the more casual player, they will need to improve the default controls.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
 
 
http://www.curse.com/ws-addons/wildstar/220693-lockdown
 
Basically what you meant correct? I really don't find the point in arguing that they should have done action rpg controls like that by default though, there's a level of disconnect /discomfort when you're firing telegraphs in my opinion. The current controls have no negative impact on me and feel great in my opinion.
 
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I think i've done it already but ok let's do this again.
 
Many telegraphs require a lot of precision not to step into them: mouse.
Executing your rotation perfectly requires the use of the keyboard.
 
Sadly the stock controls either force you to switch a lot between mouse and leyboard since spells are bound to the numpad or to just use the keyboard only, which kinda sucks when you want not to stay in red areas.
 
The inability to bind the most used spells to left and right click makes the use of the mouse not convenient at all. Because guess what I'm a normal person and I only have 5 fingers on each hand. With 9 spells and 4 keys to move it means the most convenient way to do things is to split the spells between both hands (like auto attack and finishter to left and right mouse buttons since that's the ones I use most but anything works). The left hand can also do some spell casting work since most of the times we're only using one or two fingers to move anyway. These should however be very close to WASD.
 
This is how most action RPG control works and their gameplay is at the same time easier to grasp and easier to learn - which means a more straightforward learning curve, while, in some case, having more complicated movement requirements. That's my issue with controls currently.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
No.
 
"
Known IssuesManual target doesn't work
Mouse clicks cannot be used for keybinds"
 :)
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Can you expand on this? I can't imagine anything but someone playing one-handed. I'm not sure what you're actually doing...
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Right hand on WASD and the left one on the numpad for spells? Idk that's the stock keybinds. But sometimes there are tricky movements to do, like telegraphs with safe spots thinner than my character's butt and it's clearly impossible to do with the standard WASD/QE keys only (like the cave part in skullcano, the storms in stormtalon, and basically most of the bosses and minibosses in SSM).
----
			Yeah, the average player can play using one hand for movement and attacks while the other is used for the mouse camera controls, and for those that want extra options they get a very nice mouse to keybind to. This is pretty much the norm in every MMO though, even TERA. I'm not sure what to tell you other than you may want to invest in a better mouse if you can't press keybinds on the keyboard.My setup is 1-5 on the numrow and q/e/alt+q/alt+e personally.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I would argue that the more casual MMO player has no idea about cursor lock, and has never played a game that used it.  Very few do.  I've only run into 1 game that had it in the stock UI in the last 10 years.
 
Obviously cursor lock is to your liking.  Forcing it as the default for everyone trying the game is as likely (if not more) to push away new players as it is to keep them, because there are way more MMOs that use the current default control scheme.  The current default control scheme is what is comfortable to the majority of MMO players, and why it's the setup repeated in every MMO that ever comes out now.
 
They could at some point add the cursor lock option to the default UI, but there is clearly no rush because multiple addons exist to fulfill that desire.
----
			
Advice channel is there for questions.  Most people are happy to point out addons that may help.
 
And again, you listed 3 MMOs with cursor lock.  I am only familiar with one of them.
 
WoW
SWTOR
GW2
ArcheAge
Rift
Aion
FF14
Asheron's Call
City of Heroes/Villains
EQ 1/2
LOTRO
Perfect World
Star Trek Online
Vanguard
 
All those use the same default control scheme.  If you're going to pick a control scheme that the most players possible are comfortable and familiar with just entering your game for the first time, you go with the one we have.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I assumed (which is my bad) that when we were talking about mouse-lock it would be a keybind toggle (similar to every game that has it, and most of the add-ons).  Again, if you played tab-target MMOs Wildstar has the same controls, but any action-combat MMO (Tera, Neverwinter, TESO) has mouse-lock (as a keybind toggle) as default. Again add-ons are not a part of the new user experience, nor are they generally a part of the casual gamer experience, which are both areas where Wildstar can use some improvement.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I don't think it's a particular oversight, per se (I'd never want to actually use a combat toggle considering how often I am moving one way and looking in another, especially on my Spellslinger), I don't think it would necessarily be a bad idea to have a mouselock toggle, just as long as that wasn't part of the default control scheme.  I tried the addon once (because I literally had no idea what people were talking about) and I can't for the life of me figure out why you guys would want to lock the right mouse button down like that.
 
But to each their own.  That's what addons and UI options are for, I suppose.  If that actually autoengaged in combat when I first started playing Wildstar, though, I'd have had a conniption; it felt incredibly awkward to someone who doesn't use it.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I found that I was holding the right mouse button down basically 100% of the time while I was in combat to aim my telegraphs while moving.  So I got Steer, which locks the cursor while I'm moving or in combat (I can also hold alt to break out of cursor lock if I need to).  In any case, doing that for 6 hours stretches started to give me muscle strain.  I generally don't look in directions I'm not facing because if I need to dodge something I need my visual compass to be aligned with my movement keys so I don't screw up the dodge.  It also feels more realistic actually having to turn to look behind compared to a floating head doing it for you.
 
Same reason I turned on hold to cast.  Got tired of spamming buttons, and it's more effective if there's lag.
 
 
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
I'm just so used to being able to turn and look in other directions while I'm working that's it's permeated everything I do.  Especially in a dungeon, I'd have been tearing my hair out not being able to aim a charged shot while looking to check on my position relative to the healer.  I'd have REALLY pissed my pants if that happened while tanking, I'm always spinning the camera to look behind me.  It's an old habit from WoW and later FFXIV:ARR I guess, I don't like to stop what I'm doing to have a look around.
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Not being able to rotate the camera freely is far less of an issue as melee though.  Even if you have to turn, you can almost always position yourself around the boss so you are still hitting your target and looking around.
 
As a ranged caster, well that's more of a detriment because turning a little bit can make you miss your target completely.  You learn to compensate in other ways though, and as I said, if I really need to look around I can always toggle the lock mid combat, which still minimizes the right mouse button holding time.
----
			
I play this game pretty damn close to default. The only keybinds I have changed are my sprint, target self, target next friendly player, vaccum loot, auto run and I think thats pretty much it.
 
I do play on a Razer Naga Epic 17 button MMO mouse and a Razer Anansi MMO keyboard which are fully programable. I can make any key be any key that I want it to be. Full customization.
 
I consider myself a competitive gamer and I have invested a lot of money in my computer and set up so I can be competitive. For a more casual player I can see how Wildstar might be very difficult in a competitive PvP setting but I think you could do just fine in PvE to be honest. I imagine anyone with the will to win could do fairly well with a cheap set up too as long as they have a good internet connection and meet the minimum requirements.
 
The game recommendations list MMO mouse and keyboard.	
----
			
{| class="blockquote"
Ironically everyone in this thread said he had to bind spells and abilities to different keys at some point, or had to install addons, which means that the stock controls and options are really bad. They're of course what the new players will experience, and this experience is NOT good, satisfying or enjoyable, otherwise most people would still enjoy the stock controls. :)
 
It is critical because it's the first contact people have with the game, and the first hours are often make or break. Telling Carbine to ignore a critical part of the new player experience is the worst disservice once can do to wildstar.
----