You don’t need to be a professional cyber athlete to dream about instant reactions. But in many computer games, such as shooters, fighting games, PlayAmo slots, and MOBA games, success depends on it. And, after all, no matter what we sit down at the computer, not only to participate but also to win. Let’s talk about the reaction rate, useful skills, and exercises that will help improve it.
Game Chair
If you spend over an hour or two playing, comfort is important. Nothing should distract you from the process. After all, you need to literally live inside the game, not to think about how much your back hurts, not to suffer from shoulder, neck and lower back pain. The level of reaction directly depends on the comfort of your position at the computer. It’s necessary to start with the gaming chair. It should provide good support for the back, and at all levels – from the lumbar to the neck. Note the chair models with high anatomic backs and adjustable cushions. In general, the possibility of fine adjustment – chair height, back tilt, seat rigidity – are pluses to your comfort and reaction.
You should also pay attention to:
- Robust sturdy construction.
- Durable, breathable upholstery.
- Comfortable wide armrests, preferably with the ability to adjust the position and height.
- The filling inside the chair. It should be sufficiently rigid and at the same time comfortable, shouldn’t liquefy.
Yes, a high-quality gaming chair isn’t cheap. But this is the base from which you should start talking about improving your reactions at all.
Mouse and Keyboard
The next step to help you with speed and reaction is a gaming mouse and keyboard, and for some specific games, a joystick or gamepad. All other things being equal, in a fighting game, the speed advantage will almost certainly go to the one who plays with the joystick – if only because it’s more convenient. But even when playing in absolutely equal conditions, the owner of the mouse and keyboard with the shortest response time will show the best reaction. After all, in this case, your personal reaction won’t depend on the reaction of the mouse or keyboard to the press. Those fractions of a second can be important in the game.
When choosing and buying, be guided not only by the speed of key response but also by the comfort. If the first all is clear, then the second is an individual matter. Much depends on what genres you prefer, on your gaming habits and manner, on the anatomical characteristics of a particular person. In general, without going to the store, to try and touch, most likely, you cannot do without. And even better, if before buying, there is an opportunity to take something similar from a friend to “drive”.
Headset
Communication, especially in team games, is important, and it affects the reaction. The better you and your team members hear and understand each other, the faster you can report what is happening in the game, the quicker your reaction will be to any, even the most unexpected events. That’s why good headphones and a microphone are a must for gamers.
Besides the ability to communicate, a headset is also an element that allows you to better perceive the sound in the game, to determine its direction and movement. In some cases, you don’t have to look at the screen, looking for where the shooting is coming from, and you can be guided by the sound, saving precious fractions of a second. Reaction is also affected by extraneous noises, or rather their absence when using headphones.
Monitor
Prompt communication with other players is a noticeable benefit to the reaction, but remember that a person has to react to the image. The monitor is responsible for the quality of the image. If the picture on the screen is more like a pixel slideshow, there will be practically no “profit” from an expensive mouse and keyboard. The reaction speed won’t be good because of the delay or poor quality of the monitor image.
The recommended refresh rate for modern games, at which it will be comfortable, is 144 Hz. If you aren’t on a budget, look at models with a frequency of 200-240 Hz. It’s desirable that the monitor was wide-angle with a diagonal of 27 inches and an aspect ratio of 16×9. Remember about the video card, which must support the capabilities of your monitor. Otherwise, if you have a good monitor, but a weak graphics card, the monitor won’t work. The same applies to the reverse situation, when you have a good iron, but a weak monitor, you won’t unlock the full potential.
Health, Strength, and Flexibility
From the technical aspects, let’s move on to the personal ones, which have an equally important impact on reaction. If you aren’t a beginner in gaming, but a cyber athlete or aspire to become one, then, just like for real athletes, a healthy lifestyle and proper nutrition are important. Alcohol, soda, and fast food may not affect your reaction, but certainly will not improve it. Remember, you are what you eat. It may sound a little arrogant and arcane, but it is.
Your hands, your palms, your fingers, are your primary playing tool. So a lot depends on their strength, flexibility, and stamina. Common stretching exercises that guitarists, keyboardists and some other musicians do will definitely benefit you. They can be performed without any special devices, you can use exercise equipment or improvised means, such as a rubber band, an elastic band, a spring, or a flexible rod.
Strength exercises will also improve your performance. Just don’t overdo it. The joints and muscles in your fingers and palms are quite delicate. They can be easily damaged by exorbitant weights and loads. Don’t focus on strength, but on flexibility, agility and endurance. Special simulators for the development of these skills (such as a gyroscope or an ordinary wrist expander) can be bought in music, game and sports stores. They are inexpensive, compact and will always be on hand.
Another important point is to warm up and warm up. You probably know that frozen hands are poorly obeyed, especially when performing fine motor skills. Sit down at the computer only after warming up and stretching your hands well, and you will see how reaction in games will grow.
Before a ranked game, it’s best to go in and stretch in the lobby. Some games even have special warm up cards. Go into them first, as even cyber athletes say that you have to “warm up” first.
Practice
Even a seasoned eSports player can lose to a layman with a devastating score when faced with a new game. So you can’t improve your reaction time without practice. And practice is better in the genres in which you want to achieve results. Unfortunately, a day spent playing Mortal Kombat is unlikely to give any advantage in Quake, and vice versa.
You should achieve the automatic reaction and develop anticipation – the skill to anticipate events and respond faster to them. After all, it’s no secret that many modern computer games are still based on scripts – repetitive actions and events – and it’s realistic to learn to anticipate them.
