MAJOR LASER
Finally, the mouse and keyboard. I tried
several gaming mice, all designed for
shooters, all with massive DPI ranges,
and found that the simple two-button
Zowie FK1 was the clear winner. Most
CSGO players use a DPI under 800 (I’m
a 400 player) so the smoothness of
movement in this sensitivity range
mattered so much more than anything
else. Even braided cabling. No mouse,
however, affected my performance
more than using the right DPI. In short:
the correct software setting trumps
any hardware upgrade. As for
keyboards, I noticed no difference in my
performance between using
membrane or mechanical models.
I concluded the venture with a
slightly higher rank, slightly less money
in my bank account, and a sense of
what investing in gaming hardware
really buys you. All of us probably have
one potential upgrade to our systems
that we’d really feel a tangible benefit
from, and perhaps even a little boost to
our ability. But more often, we’re
investing in ourselves, committing to
our pastime and enjoying the look and
feel of a space that’s devoted to what
we love.
HARDWARE
ABOVE: (^) Look at them. Conspiring against you. Undermining your every input. We’re onto you, peripherals.
BELOW: (^) CS:GO is free to play, freeing up some frivolous upgrade budget.