Do gaming mice improve your aim?

Some people say gaming mice help improve their aim in FPS, while some people say they don't improve anything. What do you ladies and gentlemen think of this matter? Does gaming mice improve your aim?

It depends on you, and the mouse. And you will keep hearing the same answers - both yes and no - depending on people's mice and their gaming style.

Do they improve your actual aim? Not in my opinion, but the tracking of your hand movements are more precise, so your aiming movements are smoother.3DayFinisher

Pretty much what he said. I use a gaming mouse but only because I like how smooth it is as well as the speed difference between it and a regular optical mouse.

I'd say so. After getting my first gaming mouse, I didn't do as well in Counter-Strike. But then aftering getting used to the sensitivity I have become a lot better than I was previously. I'm not going to say I couldn't bear using a regular mouse action because it's not that much of an impact, but I'm still glad I have it.

EDIT: Though I will say that if you're using some form of a Mac-mouse, then upgrade immediately. My friend had one of whose iMac optical mouses with the "scrollball" and 2 clicks (though there isn't an actual button, you just press down on the left or right side) and it was probably the worst thing I've ever used.

I'd say so. After getting my first gaming mouse, I didn't do as well in Counter-Strike. But then aftering getting used to the sensitivity I have become a lot better than I was previously. I'm not going to say I couldn't bear using a regular mouse action because it's not that much of an impact, but I'm still glad I have it.

EDIT: Though I will say that if you're using some form of a Mac-mouse, then upgrade immediately. My friend had one of whose iMac optical mouses with the "scrollball" and 2 clicks (though there isn't an actually button, you just press down on the left or right side) and it was probably the worst thing I've ever used.

GodLovesDead

I have a mac and yes the mac mouse you describe is terrible!

A mouse you feel comfortable with will work for you the best.

No. A gaming mouse does not directly improve your aim. What a gaming mouse does (for a player who already has skill) is let the player perfect their aim with _nothing_ hindering their performance, so the only deciding factor is skill and not luck.

If you are a competitive player, reaching into the semi-pro level, a gaming mouse is a must. Once you are accustomed to playing with one, you will never turn back.

Important factors in a gaming mouse:

1) Ergonomics, I can not stress this enough, being comfortable is the best thing you want. (So count the Razer Diamondback, Copperhead and Lachesis out of here, ambidextrous mice are fail. Only good Razer mouse is the Deathadder.)

2) Optical/Laser engine architecture, raw specifications on the box mean nothing, yes a high polling rate and high dpi does matter, but it doesn't matter as much as proven superior engine. This is why the MS IME 3.0 and Logitech MX518 are legendary in professional gaming use, it doesn't matter if you have high dpi, you need the engine base to support it.

3) Additional Keys/buttons. Your hand has 5 fingers including your thumb, so why not put them to use :)

It doesn't change a thing in my opinion, but it may give you a smoother mouse movement in general.

But for gaming, make sure you don't get a wireless mouse because they require batteries which adds weight... my MS mouse has a wire, its extremely light and so aiming and the mouse movement is very very smooth. With a wireless mouse it's heavier, your point & click will be off a bit, twich shooters will be a bit more difficult to be precise and you also have the fear of your mouse dieing in game which means you could die a couple times... or if your in wow and raiding... could cost you and your group that little bit you needed! So in my opinion find a wire mouse that fits ur hand and is easy to click too because a mouse that haves you putting too much pressure to click could cost you a kill if your playing a game like cod4 where you gotta shoot the second you see the enemy.-Origin-

Completely untrue.

Most wireless mice these days do not require you to insert AA or AAA batteries which are heavy, they have recharageable batteries inside. They are not heavy at all.

Weight is not a bad thing. Some people like having a heavy mouse. Why do you think the G5, G9 and MS Sidewinder have weight cartridges for extra weight?

Heavy weights can be superb in the right conditions, if you aren't a competitive fps player, you wouldn't understand.

As others have said, the mouse itself does not improve your aim, but it can over time make you slightly sharper. However I wouldn't recommend bothering to upgrade unless you have a terrible mouse at the moment or are taking the FPS gaming seriously (league play and such). I upgraded to an MX518 a few months back, and I love it, but it's not as though it has really made a whole lot of difference... but it is more comfortable in my hand :)

It really just comes down to how serious you are taking it.

i wanted to get a gaming mouse but my choice is rather limited because i am left handed. and a lot of internet sites do not bother to state if a mouse is ambidextrous or not (and its sometimes tricky to tell from the crappy photos they post)matt120282

Why would you ever use a mouse left-handed? Seriously. I'm left handed and I used to play CAL in CS 1.6 and CS:S. With a right handed mouse too. All you're doing is limiting your choices in life because you think you have some imposed restriction. I have been using the PC though since I was 5 so it could have just grown to me - but that doesn't explain how I've been playing guitar right handed which I didn't start until months ago.

[QUOTE="matt120282"]i wanted to get a gaming mouse but my choice is rather limited because i am left handed. and a lot of internet sites do not bother to state if a mouse is ambidextrous or not (and its sometimes tricky to tell from the crappy photos they post)GodLovesDead

Why would you ever use a mouse left-handed? Seriously. I'm left handed and I used to play CAL in CS 1.6 and CS:S. With a right handed mouse too. All you're doing is limiting your choices in life because you think you have some imposed restriction. I have been using the PC though since I was 5 so it could have just grown to me - but that doesn't explain how I've been playing guitar right handed which I didn't start until months ago.

i dont do everything left handed, for example i play golf with right handed clubs so i am willing to compromise if i can. i do also use the mouse at work right handed - but im not as quick/accurate with my right hand. it's fine for work related tasks but gaming, which generally requires much faster input, im all over the place. its like playing drunk, especially FPS games where you actually have to aim in a very short space of time.

I wouldn't say a gaming mouse improves aim, but that it improves precision, which would equate to better aim for skilled players. Won't help poor or even average players at all though, I wouldn't think, because they don't have sufficient skills for improved precision to actually equate to hitting more. In other words, you need to have good enough aim where the improved precision means you hit regularly where lesser mice weren't precise enough to give you that hit. Poor players are still going to miss just as often with improved mouse precision, because it is them, not the mouse, that causes the misses.

A gaming mouse is also helpful in that most gaming mice have on the fly sensitivity changing buttons, which can be useful when switching quickly between weapons that require very precise control and a situation where you want to do rapid strafing (such as switching from a zoom lens sniper rifle to a closs range automatic gun).

It should be noted that there are quality, high end mice that offer all of these things that aren't specifically marketted as "gaming mice" that are just as good.

Long story short, if you are a skilled gamer, once you switch to a quality gaming mouse, you will not switch back, guaranteed. If you are just a casual gamer, you may not even notice a difference.

You're prob gonna stop listening half-way in reading this, but honestly, just get a good night's sleep, excersize, blah blah, ya know.

It's the reason why you have good and bad days imo

To be quite honest, I don't really see a difference between my 800dpi logitech and my 1600dpi razer in terms of aiming and accuracy.

What really matters to me is the shape and layout of the mouse. The Razer is much more symmetrical than the Logitech and as a player that plays mainly with the tips of my fingers I find that to be a huge boost in ergonomics. Moreover, it's button placement is much more familiar to the older styles of mice I used to game with. That said, everyone's different and choosing what mouse is more comfortable and practical to you is much more important than some oddball number.