I experience on and off pain which means that playing wow (specifically using a mouse and to a lesser extent a keyboard) can be difficult at times and for prolonged periods. I’m wondering if anyone has any experience of using accessories other than a mouse and keyboard to play the game or any ideas of anything that might help?
I have a razer keypad which helps to an extent but it doesn’t eliminate complete mouse use for me which is ideally what I’m aiming for.
Im noy realy sure but i think blizz allows some 3rd party programs that helps you to play with gamepad or something similar, not realy sure how exactly it works and if its enjoyable to play on.
Gl, hope someone helps you and u can continue to ejnoy game without pain.
I personally don’t have any experience of using anything but a keyboard and mouse to control WOW. But I have worked with people that found using a standard mouse uncomfortable (mostly due to arthritis) and they had no issues with either trackballs or vertical mice. A quick search turned up a mini wireless trackball that looks like this:
I imagine this would help if you suffer wrist pain but won’t do much if you suffer finger and thumb pain.
Addons like ConsolePort can help you use a controller if you find that more confortable. Shadowlands is bringing official support for the Xbox Adaptive Controller which will make it easier to use alternative control methods, such as foot pedals. You may find the article linked below interesting (although he does still use a mouse and keyboard).
Edit:
Just stumbled across this:
I don’t know if it would be worth the effort to set up, but a Microsoft Kinect is probably pretty cheap to buy these days. And you could play WOW by waving your hands at the screen like a wizard.
While not WoW specific, I have been looking into alternatives for traditional setups like keyboards, computer mice and controllers (like for example replacing WASD with a directional stick for PC shooters).
As for something that might interest you:
Honestly there are so many posibilities out there, each with its pros and cons. It all depends on your specific condition and playstyle.
If you only need a mouse for menus and can otherwise play with a controller then maybe a touch screen will solve that for you.
If you want other solutions there are trackballs, trackpads, joysticks, and even pens, all suit different styles.
The link I provided even shows stuff I didn’t even know existed until today, like a vertical mouse that apparently has buttons on its side instead of its top and allows a different grip.
A vertical mouse or a trackball can go a long way. Paired with a decent gaming keypad it’s even better. Controllers can be an alternative too, but those pose other issues (considerably more work for your thumbs than keyboard + mouse, and you gotta hold them too), which can be worked around, but it’s not an ergonomic paradise either.
In any case, if you are experiencing pain in your hands while at the computer, the best course of action is to seek professional help, rather than relying on internet randos to give you advice. If there’s any advice you’ll take, take this one.
That’s pretty interesting.
Reminds me of some of the fight mechanics in VR (actually swinging your axe to attack / raising shield to block / waving arms around to cast different spells as Mage & physically throw fireballs / traps / shoot arrows etc).
WoW could be so good in VR.
I had no idea that they were adding support for gamepads in shadowlands but that does sound very cool, definitely something I’d be more comfortable with but as others say it’s maybe not great for prolonged gaming. Thanks!
I’ve tried one of these actually but it’s not very receptive or ergonomically designed
I did however manage to find a mouse that is shaped like a pen which is my go to mouse at the moment, allows me to do more stuff than I could on a traditional mouse even if not quite play wow as I would like. Thanks for the suggestion.
This looks awesome and who wouldn’t want to be a wizard? definitely something worth trying, thanks for that and the other suggestions
Thanks for these - I have the pen mouse that is mentioned which allows me to play so much more than I could without it. I’ve seen most of the others but there are a couple which I’ve not tried yet which I’ll keep in mind.
I’m under the care of a consultant about my pain so no worries there, unfortunately this is a fairly recent thing and I still have memories of being able to play pain free and without issue so it is pretty frustrating at times, hopefully with that support I’ll get back there
Thanks for these, I’m definitely going to try the controller and will see if any macros would work well for me.
That is very impressive, definitely gives hope that no matter the adversity it’s still possible to achieve some incredible things.