In gaming; Marksmanship or Maneuvers?

[H3Knuckles]

Inspired by this thread (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=396749).

I found the comments about FPS controls in PC's vs. Consoles interesting; I'll agree straight across that fine aim is easier with a mouse (but certainly achievable with a console controller, mastering Halo's pistol taught me that), but I find that manuevering and evasion are much easier with a console controller.

It makes me wonder which is more valuable in competitive FPS situations, a moderate increase in aim, or a moderate increase in maneuverability. I know for me I generally don't have the best aim on either platform, and agile opponents who dodge and move about more than simple circle-strafing are more of a challenge for me than someone with really good aim (which becomes a game of who's got the better gun, or who gets the drop on the other).

When I first played Halo, it was on Normal at a friends house in Co-Op; he had all these great strategies to out-maneuver opponents, but often times I could just charge them while zig-zagging and seemingly overwhelm them with sufficiently aggressive tactics. In both FPS and other game-types, this tends to be the best tactic for me (such as RTS and fighting games, and no I'm not talking about Zerg rushes in the former or infinite combos in the latter) when playing against human opponents, whereas against the AI I tend to prefer a more cautious, defensive approach.

I'd be interested to see other gamers' thoughts.

[H3Knuckles]

Oops :smack:

I assumed the hamsters would eat my post because I took too long writing it, so I had pasted it into word, and was making corrections the spelling+grammar checker pointed out when the message posted.

Manuevering should be spelled maneuvering, and zigzagging is apparently one-word. Also, it should say "friend's house." :o

Sorry about that.

[marshmallow]

It depends on the game. It's hard to generalize a hard and fast rule that covers Quake 3 and Counter-Strike 1.6.

[Least Original User Name Ever]

Aim. Aim trumps all.

Well, that and teamwork. If you're armed with a sniper rifle in, say Halo 2, and your teammates are ensuring that the quality of your life will be long and fruitful and you've got immaculate aim, you've got 20 kills before you have to ditch the sniper rifle for it to respawn. Surgical aim with the battle rifle in the same game makes for short contests and victories in your favor as well. If you can pull the trigger 4 times from across the map and get a kill when your opponent is trying to dodge it, well, you win.

Same with Counter-Strike. I've seen kids walk around with pistols annihilating everyone in their path because they could shoot a pixel off the head of your wang.

Gears of War (haven't gone online...yet) seems to be imprecise so far with its weapons. I hear the sniper rifle is very powerful online, perhaps too powerful. Who knows.

H3Knuckles, you see the videos of the Halo gods? They're preeeeeetty sick.

[Revenant Threshold]

Definetly aim, for two reasons. First of course most games give you extra damage for a headshot, so it's very much worth being able to aim better. Secondly, it's not just being able to aim in the right area, but being able to aim quicker, and while moving. This is getting into maneuverability, but if you can aim enough to strafe/juke while keeping the enemy right in your targets, you're in good hands.

[Jurph]

Again with the aim. In Half-Life I was crap with direct-fire weapons, but God have mercy on your cratered soul if I got a grenade launcher. I could lob a grenade as accurately as almost anyone with the crossbow could snipe at me, so whenever I heard the deadly tink tink tink of crossbow bolts missing me, I'd just keep moving, angle up my barrel, and put one through the most likely nearby window. Two seconds later a ragdoll would come flailing out of the upper story, trailing smoke and debris.

You might be crediting my maneuverability with saving me, but when they fire the first shot, I'm usually moving in a straight line. If they can't hit me while I'm moving in a straight line, vengeance is mine. Their aim would keep them alive, and my aim definitely kept me alive.

[smiling bandit]

Manuever in most of these games mostly comes down to juking like a hyena with diarrhea or the interminable jump-sniping.

[Least Original User Name Ever]

You know...we need Dope groups of people playing games...

Why hasn't this been done before?
Who has Halo 2, Call of Duty 3, or Gears of War?

[Sage Rat]

I'm going to have to agree. Playing Halo in my office, I became the best tactician/maneuverist we had as time progressed. But then one of the new guys developed his "twitch power" to be able to one-shot you within a tenth of a millisecond regardless of anything with the pistol. Doesn't matter how much "better" you may be than your opponent when it comes to that point. Outside of getting a lucky grenade off around a corner, you're pretty much toast no matter what unless you can develop equal reflexes.

[Revenant Threshold]

You know...we need Dope groups of people playing games...

Why hasn't this been done before?
Who has Halo 2, Call of Duty 3, or Gears of War? Hmm... there's been seperate threads for some games, but never for any online console ones, I think.... maybe a general online gaming thread where people can stick what games they play and their screennames up?