Guild Wars 2

I’m new to Guild Wars 2 and I find myself getting dizzy using the default controls, as the landscape spins so quickly around my character, while I move in different directions (with the A and D keys). The only other MMORPG that I’ve played is Tera Online (briefly) and I don’t remember having this camera issue. I’ve played lots of FPS and 3rd Person view games in the past and the way the default camera pans around in GW2 feels disorienting to me.

First, is there a way to slow down the speed at which the camera pans around when using the A and D keys while in the default camera view? The Camera Rotation Speed slider under Options only seems to change the Mouse Pointer’s rotation speed. To explain again my issue: If I hold down either the A or D key (looking or moving) the landscape spins around my character in a complete blur, which for me seems too fast.

Second, do any of you use the Free Camera option? I’ve tried this and does remedy my problem of the “spinning” landscape around my character. Unfortunately, it also adds more complexity to the control of my character. Does this Free Camera option hinder game-play down the road with more advanced end game content?

I realize that I may have to get used to controls that are different for me, but any input you have will help. Thanks.

Hmm, I’ve never used A and/or D to move my camera. Just my mouse. Maybe if you use your mouse to move the camera, it won’t spin like that. I have never heard anyone say the landscape goes by in a blur. Or, maybe, you have a technical problem, and they could help you over in Tech Support. Good luck. =)

Edit: Gee, I happened to look at my settings whilst in-game today, and noticed I use ‘free camera’, and must have since launch. Not sure what it is like without using it – the camera works fine for me (except in those cramped places we all find awkward).

I get what you’re saying but you just gotta get used to it. I’ve never seen an MMO let you control the speed of keyboard turn.

I’m sure I sound somewhat weird trying to explain my “spinning” camera view issue.

When in the default mode, the direction you move with the A and D key forces the camera to rotate the landscape, keeping your view from behind at all times. I haven’t played a game where the view rotates so fast as to cause the landscape to almost blur.

When in “use Free Camera” mode the character moves independently of the camera view and you have to use the mouse pointer to force the camera to follow. In this mode, I can also use the Camera Rotation Speed slider to change the speed the landscape spins. This obviously ameliorates the problem I’m having but makes combat a bit more difficult for me.

I’m still curious as to how many of you actually use the “Free Camera” option to manually control your view?

can’t say I’ve ever touched the “free camera” option. I remapped A and D to strafe left and right as soon as I got the game, and have only ever used the mouse to turn my camera.

GW2 sadly has certasin camera issues Id wish that Anet fixes them ASAP by improvign the camera with allowing us to zoom out alot wider if we want/need to to get an better overview.

In certain situations it would also help very much to change into some kind of Ego View that was possible in GW1, but sadly not in GW2…

I suggest you to rebind A and D to “strafe left” and “strafe right” then get used to moving your character around with the camera by holding right click.
You played fps games right? so it’s exactly like a FPS except you have to hold right click to turn your view/character around.
You do use A and D to strafe in your fps games right?

Using mouse to turn is highly recommended in most areas. When I watch a friend who’s new to the game, the first thing I notice is how slowly they respond to things and how inaccurately they move. The second thing I notice is that it’s because they’re keyboard turning.

Mathias.9657:

I get what you’re saying but you just gotta get used to it. I’ve never seen an MMO let you control the speed of keyboard turn.

Yup, this is what I figured.

BaronVillin.5936:

Google ‘immersive combat mod guild wars 2’, it makes the game play more like Tera.

Thanks! I will give this a try and it sounds like it might fit the proverbial bill for me…..

I think you’ll find the reason not many other people have noticed this problem is that relatively few people use A and D to turn.

The vast majority of people I’ve talked to and seen posting their controls in the forum use the mouse to turn and only use the keyboard to strafe left and right. Mouse turn is actually quicker, but as far as I can see the display ‘jumps’ to a new position rather attempting to pan smoothly so you don’t get the same blur effect.

I’ve just tried using A and D to turn for the first time….probably ever, and even just doing it briefly it’s making me dizzy, which never happens when I use the mouse.

I’d strongly recommend trying to get into the habit of using the mouse to turn. It’s much faster and more accurate (when running you can change direction instantly and on the spot instead of running in a circle to turn and it would solve the problem you’re having.

Be careful using mods. They aren’t supported by the game.

Actually the immersive combat mod was on reddit I believe.

Combat Mod 1.1 was found OK by ANet, as it does not alter the game files or anything.

I use free camera. I don’t find it more work, just more control. As far as character navigation, I just have strafe right and left bound (for movement) and use those in conjunction with the mouse to move.

If the mod give you and advantage over other players, for example zoom unlock gives players an advantage since it allows them to see over walls in WvW where we would not normally, you will get banned.

I’ve been using the first combat mode since last year. Going to try the immersive version to see how I like it.

Just an FYI, that Immersive Combat Mod is bannable. It gives you an advantage over regular players.

You can’t normally bind one key to multiple actions. Which is what that mod does. It allows you to do things that normal players wouldn’t be able to do.

Which according to the rules, will get you banned. So great job on advertising a bannable program and telling people you use it.

Does the GW2 SteelSeries keyboard allow you to do that with it’s macros?

If so, my mind..!

Smith.1826:

Does the GW2 SteelSeries keyboard allow you to do that with it’s macros?

If so, my mind..!

It doesn’t. It offers layers for quick switching with one key. You can’t use one key to do two different actions at the same time.

That Immersive Combat Mod does allow you to use one key to do two different actions at the same time. Something that normal players cannot do.

Thus, it gives an advantage, and it is bannable.

What actually needs to happen is for a real control set up so that we don’t have to hold down that button to mouse look and instead can map those 2 mouse keys natively to something useful.

Not sure why this set up was chosen, there are far better systems that should have been implemented.

The current mouse control is awful. The pointer gets lost easily if you don’t get it in the center of the screen when you start holding down, and having to hold down that key just to mouse look is really stupid.

Smith.1826:

SpyderArachnid.5619:

Smith.1826:

Does the GW2 SteelSeries keyboard allow you to do that with it’s macros?

If so, my mind..!

It doesn’t. It offers layers for quick switching with one key. You can’t use one key to do two different actions at the same time.

That Immersive Combat Mod does allow you to use one key to do two different actions at the same time. Something that normal players cannot do.

Thus, it gives an advantage, and it is bannable.

Creepy. Is it a default setting, or does it involve tinkering with the config file? More importantly, is there a ‘safer’ method to allow a set-up similar to what the OP requests, or what these ‘mods’ allow?

The mod wouldn’t even exist if it didn’t do what it does to have that feature. It is essentially allowing you to have full camera movement, while allowing you to still use your mouse buttons for other things.

A regular players has to hold down the mouse buttons to move the camera about, and cannot use them for anything else while they are being held down to control the camera. This mod does that, which is why it gives an advantage over other players.

The only way it would be possible to not have this mod give you an advantage, is if the mouse buttons did nothing. You still get the auto camera movement and aim with the mouse, but pressing the mouse buttons would do nothing. You would still use the keyboard to attack and such.

Otherwise, because it allows you to have full control over the camera, and use the mouse buttons at the same time (which normal players cannot do), it will always give an advantage and thus it is considered a bannable to use it. And you do realize that by saying you are going to keep using it, you are basically telling Anet that you are going to keep using this program to cheat and have an advantage over other players right? You do know you are basically telling Anet to ban your account?

The user inferface for this game is weird when lined up alongside the game mechanics.

Said mechanics scream action game. Skills fire no matter if you have a target or not, constant movement, it is pretty much a third person shooter.

But unlike a third person shooter, it have by default 15+ different keys my may want to hit during a fight. The full numbers row, F1-4, whatever you have set as dodge (unless you double tap to do so, tho i suspect it gets turned off after the first jumping puzzle). Some even play with the inventory window open so they can access various consumables (spiky fruit spam in WVW anyone?).

Contrast this to TERA, where the default is a short skill bar of only 5 slots (tho multiple heights via a modifier key).

Or Neverwinter, where you have only 6 skills up at any one time (and 3 consumables, one of them sitting right next to the big guns keys).

Or to toss in a “shooter”, Firefall. Where you have only 4 combat skills, and a weapon swap (each weapon, two fire modes).

I swear that ANet is trying to use the user interface to artificially ramp up difficulty. One item of evidence is how they soon after general release rearranged guardian hammer skills. This so you no longer could hit the skills in 2-3-4 sequence to gain easy combos. Instead you had to jump 2-4-3 for the same benefit.

SpyderArachnid.5619:

The mod wouldn’t even exist if it didn’t do what it does to have that feature. It is essentially allowing you to have full camera movement, while allowing you to still use your mouse buttons for other things.

Yeah, like not being able to select specific targets :p. For PvE – and warriors and guards, mainly – this mod is great, and you can play the same without it. I’m just not willing to hold my right finger down that long, not having to do so is a big relief for me.

It’s quite disadvantageous in PvP though. Maybe I’ll see if it’s ‘possible’, but I remember it being pretty difficult to stick to a single target. It was also a lot harder to use gap-closers as an escape, and that can suck big time, even in PvE on occasion.

You can use the mouse buttons for different things, absolutely, but you also lose out on a fair amount of control, and trying to emulate that while using this mod or “combat mode” is going to be pretty cumbersome. So no, I wouldn’t consider it advantageous. I thought you meant that it literally allowed you to do multiple actions with one button press, which IS a bannable offense.

Well…. I didn’t mean to open a can of proverbial worms about a questionable mod. I’m brand new to GW2 and played Tera Online only briefly. The game I’ve played the most for the last year is World of Tanks and they actively encourage external mods in-game, hence I didn’t question the “mod” when it was suggested to me here.

From my research, it appears to work well for it’s purpose, but to my mind adds too much complexity in changing the settings for it to be worth while. Nonetheless, if it’s considered ban-able or even unfair, then it’s off the table for me.

In retrospect, my problem appears to be that I missed the whole “Mouse Turn” functionality (with the Right Mouse Button) when I began playing GW2. Now I have re-mapped my A and D key to strafe left and right (as suggested) and use the right mouse button as intended. The annoying “spinning” problem I experienced previously while turning now is a thing of the past.

I feel that the controls are over-complex and clunky, with regard to having to hold down the right mouse button all the time, but I’ll get used to it. Otherwise, I am enjoying the game and offer my thanks to all those who contributed here……

digiowl.9620:

The user inferface for this game is weird when lined up alongside the game mechanics.

Said mechanics scream action game. Skills fire no matter if you have a target or not, constant movement, it is pretty much a third person shooter.

But unlike a third person shooter, it have by default 15+ different keys my may want to hit during a fight. The full numbers row, F1-4, whatever you have set as dodge (unless you double tap to do so, tho i suspect it gets turned off after the first jumping puzzle). Some even play with the inventory window open so they can access various consumables (spiky fruit spam in WVW anyone?).

Contrast this to TERA, where the default is a short skill bar of only 5 slots (tho multiple heights via a modifier key).

Or Neverwinter, where you have only 6 skills up at any one time (and 3 consumables, one of them sitting right next to the big guns keys).

Or to toss in a “shooter”, Firefall. Where you have only 4 combat skills, and a weapon swap (each weapon, two fire modes).

I swear that ANet is trying to use the user interface to artificially ramp up difficulty. One item of evidence is how they soon after general release rearranged guardian hammer skills. This so you no longer could hit the skills in 2-3-4 sequence to gain easy combos. Instead you had to jump 2-4-3 for the same benefit.

It really is – I’ve adapted, but it took time to understand their thought process.

And while we’re at it, relocating skills on the bar such that it is more intuitive to the individual player would be a nice-to-have. I can remap buttons, but I’d rather just shuffle location on the skill bar for a few skills per profession.

nottsgman.8206:

can’t say I’ve ever touched the “free camera” option. I remapped A and D to strafe left and right as soon as I got the game, and have only ever used the mouse to turn my camera.

Very much this. Remapping a/d to strafe is the first thing done. The mouse is for turning, not keys.