Extra Mouse Buttons: Gimmicky or Useful?

[TheRuke]

Do you think extra mouse buttons on mice are useful or distracting?

 

I play Counter-Strike a lot and it requires precise aim and concentration so I like to stick with a basic setup on my mouse. I own a Zowie FK1 which has 2 extra buttons on the side that can be programmed through a third party application such as AutoHotKey but I only use the left click, right click and the scroll-wheel. Anything that I can think of rebinding to my mouse, can be easily reached on my keyboard. Why shift my mouse hand and throw off my aim temporarily when I can just press the key on my keyboard?

 

I don't play any MOBAs or RTSs but is that the target audience? From what little I've seen, Starcraft players have amazing keyboards and crazy APM and I don't think binds/scripts are even legal in LoL or DOTA 2.

 

Thoughts?

[OfficialJsP]

Well it really depends on what games you play. I also play a lot of counter strike I use my extra buttons for push to talk.

[Silverer]

If pressing sidebuttons makes you change mouse position you're doing it wrong... all 11 macro buttons on my mouse are easily reachable with my index finger or thumb (G602)

[Taswell]

it depends on the application. I play a lot of dota and i use a razer hex with 6 side buttons, which is perfect because i can map all my items to just my mouse and abilities to my hand.

 

for something like battle field my mouse is a pain in the ass if i try to map those buttons to anything else because there's always five other button i hit on accident.

[TheRuke]

Well it really depends on what games you play. I also play a lot of counter strike I use my extra buttons for push to talk.

 

 

Push to talk & switch weap / switch to secondary

 

I use my Scroll Wheel click to push to talk and I don't consider it an extra button because it is standard with every mouse.

[Elapo]

I have a G600, solely for playing WoW.

 

There's  probably 1-2 more games where I use some of the buttons, so I'd say it depends on the game. Outside of a game, I can't say I've ever used them.

[minibois]

Meh. Indifferent about it.

I had a mouse with 2 side buttons but really didn't use it.. Now have a super simple mouse without it and I don't feel like I am missing something.

Although on my first mouse the extra buttons were not very comfortable and easy to setup, so I do think it could be helpful.

[ShadowCaptain]

SNIP

 

Some of us play more than one game and also use our pcs for productivity

[pwn_intended]

I have an 11 button mouse. That many buttons may be a little aggressive, but I would not be able to live without a "standard" 5 button mouse.

 

OP, you shouldnt need to use any extra software to program the side buttons. They are forward and back buttons by default, and whatever game you are using should be able to map those to whatever commands you want.

[TheRuke]

Some of us play more than one game and also use our pcs for productivity

That's why I'm asking for your imput!

 

What kind of binds do you have for productivity? I've recently tried AutoHotKey which has the option to automatically change things you type so that helps me write some things faster but I don't use anything mouse related for productivity.

[kenblu24]

In Counter-Strike I can switch weapons without my hands leaving the movement keys. Has saved me more times than I know. Same for Push-to-talk and crouch. I have two thumb buttons and a scroll wheel that moves side-to-side, I don't find it confusing, nor have I had problems with misclicks on the scroll wheel. I have a g500s.

[woll3]

I personally couldnt care less about buttons, the only thing i care about is how well i perform, and if a certain model helps me in that regard i am willing to give up the browsing comfort.

 

I also never bind anything to a mouse since i have to constantly be able to aim properly.

[ShadowCaptain]

That's why I'm asking for your imput!

 

What kind of binds do you have for productivity? I've recently tried AutoHotKey which has the option to automatically change things you type so that helps me write some things faster but I don't use anything mouse related for productivity.

 

Simple example, I have a button assigned to the cutting tool in adobe premier

[Alphinon]

I have a mouse with two keys on the left side under my thumb, one goes back a page and one forward in Chrome. Very useful.

[TheRuke]

OP, you shouldnt need to use any extra software to program the side buttons. They are forward and back buttons by default, and whatever game you are using should be able to map those to whatever commands you want.

Ingame options only allow for one command per button. You can make more advanced binds with Third Party software. It's easier to make changes to your binds too.

[flibberdipper]

Back and forward buttons are all I really need, TBH. A sniper button would be nice, but I would hit it by accident way too much.

[TheRuke]

In Counter-Strike I can switch weapons without my hands leaving the movement keys. Has saved me more times than I know. Same for Push-to-talk and crouch. I have two thumb buttons and a scroll wheel that moves side-to-side, I don't find it confusing, nor have I had problems with misclicks on the scroll wheel. I have a g500s.

Scroll Wheel to switch? You should also be able to hit 1 and 2 with your ring finger while still depressing your "W" key for forward if you don't use Scroll wheel.

You need to learn when it's safe to change and not. Getting caught with the wrong weapon out is just careless.

I guess the Crouch thing is preference but you could just as easily do that with a keyboard.

[kenblu24]

Scroll Wheel to switch? You should also be able to hit 1 and 2 with your ring finger while still depressing your "W" key for forward if you don't use Scroll wheel.

You need to learn when it's safe to change and not. Getting caught with the wrong weapon out is just careless.

I guess the Crouch thing is preference but you could just as easily do that with a keyboard.

 

 

Who cares? I can strafe, move forwards, backwards, talk, switch, etc. More options isn't a bad thing. My setup is just a more accurate version of the regular scroll wheel setup.

[v3nture]

Depends all on the use.

 

My two thumb buttons allow me to go back and forward on webpages which is insanely useful.

[Pankaic]

I've used a mouse that had 3 extra buttons, and now I'm using a mouse with 13. In both cases, I've found uses for the extra buttons, and even when they aren't used, they don't interfere with my gameplay. I have no trouble reaching all the buttons with my thumb, and as mentioned before, some people find it better to keep your left hand on movement keys while your right handles other functions. For exxample, when I play cs:go, and use my side buttons for crouching, opening the shop, and changing weapons 1-3, with other buttons basically untouched (although I probably shouldn't be using an MMO/RTS mouse with a low-end sensor for cs...). Since my pinky isn't accustomed to reaching down to hit ctrl nor am I able to quickly swap weapons while continuously moving, this solution works well for me.

[TheRuke]

Who cares? I can strafe, move forwards, backwards, talk, switch, etc. More options isn't a bad thing. My setup is just a more accurate version of the regular scroll wheel setup.

You're right, more options isn't bad but it might be hindering you from aiming better. Better aim and Gamesense/awarness can easily carry you out of MG.

 

Idk how your setup is more accurate when I can just as easily move around and quickswitch when AWPing. Maybe the notches or my scrollwheel are deeper but it's really easy to switch between weapons for me.

[kenblu24]

You're right, more options isn't bad but it might be hindering you from aiming better. Better aim and Gamesense/awarness can easily carry you out of MG.

 

Idk how your setup is more accurate when I can just as easily move around and quickswitch when AWPing. Maybe the notches or my scrollwheel are deeper but it's really easy to switch between weapons for me.

 

How are the extra buttons going to hinder my aim? No buttons prevent me fromholding the mouse in a certain way.

[Flurr]

Not useful for me since I play FPS games like CS:GO, but if you play MMORPG games they would probably be useful!