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/vr/ - Retro Games


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File: 42 KB, 500x345, ibm-model-m.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1285713 No.1285713 [Reply] [Original]

What did people use for PC gaming before dedicated "gaming keyboards"?

Pic related.

>> No.1285718

Keyboards.

>> No.1285720

>before dedicated "gaming keyboards"?
..what?

>> No.1285721

I'm still using a Model M as my keyboard. Don't feel like paying for overpriced bullshit that isn't any better.

>> No.1285731

They banged rocks together to form morse code that the computer interpreted to commands.
On average it took five men several days to fire up the vidya, but it was worth it.

I'm guessing they used fucking keyboards. Who uses "gaming" keyboards, anyway?

>> No.1285746

>>1285713
This
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyUa9q-p19c&t=30s

>> No.1285762

>>1285713
>gaming keyboards
I doubt there are people here who buy a "gaming keyboard". Except maybe for the 6gv2 they are known to suck.

>> No.1285770

A typewriter.

>> No.1285796

>>1285770
for the typing of the dead.

>> No.1285852

>>1285713
well, i'll be the one guy that's not a /v/uckhead

i would only use a mechanical keyboard.
>that satisfying clickyclicky tactile response

it was impossible playing with a normal keyboard.

>> No.1286002

>>1285852
>that one faggot that has voice activated mic talk
>never says anything worthy
>can only hear loud keyboard every 2 seconds

>> No.1286039

>>1285720
That's my reaction.

I've been strictly a PC gamer since 92, never used anything more than either stock or basic/cheap keyboards.

>> No.1286047
File: 188 KB, 500x338, 71J1HR8ACGL[1].gif [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1286047

Those were truly dark times

>> No.1286053

>>1286047
Got that gamepad with the screw in piece for 50 cents at a garage sale along with the 3.5" floppy driver diskette

>> No.1286069
File: 170 KB, 777x518, IMG_1307[1].png [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1286069

>>1286053
It was worlds better than this piece of shit, which was what we played with before the Gravis.

>> No.1286112
File: 204 KB, 2048x1536, IMG00020-20111210-0003.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1286112

Most USB and PS/2 shitboards fuck off at four simultaneous keypresses and cannot into quick brown foxes.

>> No.1286192

>>1285713
People who use "gaming keyboards" are as ill directed as people who buy headsets. Gaming keyboards are silly, overpriced gimmicks.

Just look at the real professional gamers. They don't use shitty gaming keyboards. Hell, professional quake players still use the WMO mouse.

>> No.1286341

>>1286039
me too. sort of. used my uncles' pc and sega genesis. i've been using a notebook's keyboard for over a year and couldn't be assed to plug in my logitech keyboard.
>>1286069
did that come with a gravis ultrasound? lel

>> No.1286349

>>1286112
errr. don't those gaming keeeyboards use usb too? don't tell me wireless keyboards have better bandwidth than usb.

>> No.1286356
File: 18 KB, 360x359, Sidewinder_gamepad.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1286356

What is peoples opinions on this sidewinder gamepad? I just got one from my coworker but I cant use it until I get a gameport to USB adapter. It feels really nice in your hands and I seems like it would be great for fightan games if the buttons were responsive.

>> No.1286370

>>1286356
I had one, it was okay for fighters but the d-pad gave me blisters

>> No.1286376

>>1286370
its probably better than the SNES or playstation dpad in that case

>> No.1286427

>>1286356
stiff, awkward d-pad

>> No.1286438
File: 39 KB, 640x480, joystick_quickshot_qs_113_01.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1286438

>>1286069
GTFO. The Kraft was actually a pretty nice joystick considering it was analog. Its self-centering mode was pretty stiff compared to other sticks, like this shit.

>> No.1286470

>>1285721
but model m keyboards are overpriced bullshit these days

>> No.1286507

>>1286470
Totally, went to Walmart the other day, couldn't believe my eyes, they were selling Model M's for totally ridiculous prices!
How can something that hasn't been manufactured in 20 years be overpriced?

>> No.1286898

>>1286470
I got my Model M for $20 about 5 years ago. That's not overpriced. They've, unfortunately, fallen under the same problem that retro video game have where people think they're worth more than they actually are. Look around a bit and you should be able to find one for a fair price.

>> No.1287014

I still own a keybaord I got with a windows95 computer from back it's not possible to destroy that thing. It's magic. I use a G15 for many years now, but I don't use any of the additional buttions or functions at all, it just looks fancy.

>> No.1287049

They used normal keyboards, just like any sane person does now.

The only valid reason to buy a keyboard that is marketed as a "gaming" keyboard is if it's a mechanical that you're getting cheaper than other mechs of similar quality.

>> No.1287059
File: 7 KB, 201x250, index.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1287059

I was using the keyboard that came with the 1993 Packard Bell computer I had as a kid. I used it until about 2 years ago, actually. I don't know why my parents kept the keyboard when the PC is long gone, but I appreciated it greatly when I found it in the early 2000s, appropriated, and used it for gaming. I only stopped because boards no longer have PS2 inputs and converters were simply not working properly and were giving me improper input. I hated to upgrade, but I paid stupid money for a new mechanical keyboard and its good. If you can't hear your typing over loud music, its just not right. And gaming keyboards are over-rated. Gaming mice are awesome, for all the buttons, but I don't need fancy features on a keyboard.

Best part of the old keyboard? No Windows key. No need to disable it, if its not there in the first place.

Pic related is not the PC, but it is the same keyboard.

>> No.1287063

>>1286349
Sentence was too short to fully explain the idea. I was just going to leave it at USB, but then someone might believe that PS/2 keyboards where superior. They're equally flawed for the most part, with a few good outliers.

Playing AvP2 multiplayer as a drone was hell with a crap keyboard. So many keys you have to hold simultaneously to excel....

>> No.1287067

I still use an IBM Model M13 for gaming (black, trackpoint variant of Model M), it's so sexy I never intend on using another keyboard.

>> No.1287072

>>1286507
They're really fucking solid, there's a good chance it will never break in your lifetime even with heavy (but non-abusive) usage.

>> No.1287080

>>1287059
I have a PS2 Keyboard and Mouse to USB adapter, and it works perfectly with my Model M. Maybe I just got lucky with a good converter.

>> No.1287082

>>1287059
> I only stopped because boards no longer have PS2 inputs

Manufacturers are really doing this? Pretty pathetic since it's an objectively superior standard for keyboards than USB.

On the topic of this thread, I'm pretty happy that I snagged a Model M13 for $2 at a thrift store 5 years ago or so. Apparently they're worth decent money now, couldn't tell you why since the Trackpoint isn't that great without the scroll button. Either way, it's quite nice for typing and I don't mind it for games.

>> No.1287471

Pen and Paper.

Seriously, pen and paper. PC gaming was just a novelty until Commander Keen came out and home computers were capable of more than just playing solitare.

The kind of people who would heavy into computer gaming back then were more likely to be drawn to Dungeons and Dragons or Shadowrun than the primitive cave drawing of Apple II's or Commodore 64's.

Early PC games were a pitch for companies to sell computers as a family device rather than just an IBM typewriter with a backspace key.

>> No.1287473

>>1287082
To be fair, the only people who really care about PS/2 inputs anymore are an ever dwindling niche of hardcore gamers. Face it, the controller is going to take over as the primary input for PC gaming in a few years as more and more games natively support XInput.

>> No.1287492

>>1286376
>anything better than the snes d-pad
wrong

>> No.1287545
File: 32 KB, 613x533, 171.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
1287545

>>1287471
>implying keyboards didn't exist before Commander Keen
>implying that the kind of people who would heavy into computer gaming weren't drawn to the Apple II or C64 (or presumably the Atari ST or the Amiga)
>implying that Commander Keen was the first PC game worth playing

I keep seeing that last one, and I have no idea why. There were tons of great games on the PC before that one, like all the adventure games form Sierra (King's Quest, Space Quest, Police Quest, Quest for Glory, Leisure Suit Larry) and Lucas Arts (Maniac Mansion, Zak McKracken, Indiana Jones, Loom); RPGs like the first six Ultimas, Wasteland, the Bard's Tale games, Pool of Radiance, Curse of the Azure Bonds; Strategy/simulation games like The Oregon Trail, Elite, M.U.L.E., Populous, Pirates!, Sword of the Samurai, SimCity. There was even Prince of Persia, which I think is a far more interesting platformer. And those are just some games off the top of my head, and includes only the PC.

>> No.1287547

>>1287545

Ignore that first >implying, btw. I misread the post.

>> No.1287554

>>1287471
Now this is some high-quality trolling.