Everyone Thinks Their MMO Keybinds Are Best
Spend enough time in MMOs and you discover a secret truth. We all think our keybinding setup is the most efficient, the most logical, and honestly the most elite way to play. We loudly say that everyone should do what works for them, but the moment we see a screenshot of another player’s UI or keybinds, a little voice inside whispers, "What is wrong with you?"
Massively multiplayer games are one of the best spaces on PC for deep input customisation. Between keyboard layouts, MMO mice, modifier keys, and custom UIs, you can shape the game around your hands in a way console players can only dream of. That freedom is powerful but it also sparks endless debate about what is actually optimal.
This piece takes a playful look at one particular approach to MMO keybinding, why its author swears by it, and why the MMO mouse obsession might be misplaced. Think of it as a conversation starter for how you set up your own keys, not a strict rulebook.
The Case Against MMO Mice
Modern MMO mice are built to turn your right hand into a control panel. Twelve thumb buttons, layered macros, custom profiles all promising faster reactions and more abilities at your fingertips. For many players that sounds perfect. For others it feels like overkill that creates more problems than it solves.
The argument against MMO mice goes like this. Your mouse is primarily a tool for looking around and fine movement. Your brain and wrist are busy with camera control, target selection, and cursor precision. Loading that same hand with a cluster of ability buttons can be awkward and, for some, less reliable than using clearly separated keys on a keyboard.
There is also the issue of hardware dependency. If your entire rotation is wired into a specific MMO mouse and that mouse breaks or goes out of production, you are stuck. Switching to a new model or to a standard mouse suddenly means relearning how to play your class from the ground up. In contrast, every keyboard built around the classic WASD layout is roughly the same. If your bindings live mostly on the keyboard, you can move from a cheap membrane board to a high end mechanical one and your muscle memory survives the jump.
That is the core philosophy here. Let the mouse handle the view and movement support while the keyboard does the heavy lifting for abilities. Use the extra mouse buttons if you like, but do not build your entire setup around them.
A Clean, Keyboard First Keybinding Philosophy
The showcased setup is unapologetically proud and a bit tongue in cheek about being the “objectively best” way to bind keys for tab target MMOs like classic World of Warcraft style games. The idea is to stick close to WASD and keep everything within easy reach of your left hand without wild stretching.
The base layer looks like this:
- Main ability keys: 1 through 5
- Extra nearby keys: Q, E, R, F
- Two mouse side buttons: usually called M3 and M4
That gives you eleven primary buttons you can hit quickly. The real power comes from adding modifier keys. By combining those eleven buttons with Shift and Control, you triple the amount of available actions.
- Unmodified: 11 direct access abilities
- Shift plus those keys: 11 more slots
- Control plus those keys: another 11 slots
In total that is 33 potential bindings. For most MMO classes, especially in traditional tab target games, that is more than enough to cover rotational abilities, defensive cooldowns, utility buttons, movement skills, and consumables.
On top of that, there is room to expand with keys like V and T if you really need them, though the author jokingly labels that as a sign of greed. The focus stays on a tight ring of keys your fingers can hit without leaving home position.
Ability Categories And Muscle Memory
The real strength of this layout is not just the number of buttons. It is the consistency. Specific keys are always used for specific types of abilities. Over time that builds powerful muscle memory so you can react automatically without hunting across your bars.
The recommended “commandments” look something like this:
- E and its modified versions Shift plus E and Control plus E are reserved for healing spells or defensive cooldowns
- If you run out of space on E, then R and its modifiers can also be used for defensives and healing tools
- Q is where offensive cooldowns live so your brain always associates that side of the keyboard with big damage buttons
- F is for movement skills like gap closers and teleports, though it can flex to offensive cooldowns if the game demands it
- Your most frequently pressed abilities should always be on unmodified keys so there is no extra finger work during your main rotation
- Shift is ideal for medium length cooldown abilities that you use regularly but not constantly
- Control can hold the longest cooldowns that you only need now and then
- Mouse buttons like M3 and M4 are great for ground targeted skills since your hand is already busy positioning the cursor
This category system turns keybinds into a mental map. Need a defensive now? Your hand already knows to reach for E or R with or without modifiers. Need to jump into melee range or blink out of danger? F is where your movement lives. Over time that reduces the mental overhead of playing and lets you focus on mechanics and awareness instead of remembering where you put each spell.
Share Your Setup And Learn From Others
Of course this is just one take on efficient MMO keybinding. Many players swear by their MMO mice and find that thumb grids give them faster access than modifiers. Others completely rearrange movement keys or use more exotic layouts tailored to specific accessibility needs or personal comfort.
The fun part of MMO culture is trading those layouts, stealing good ideas, and slowly shaping a setup that feels custom built for your hands. The important thing is to stay open to experimenting. If you constantly fumble your cooldowns or struggle to hit key abilities in time, that is a sign your bindings could be smarter.
Try a keyboard first layout like this one. Try an MMO mouse heavy build. Try strict rules about ability categories. Then keep what works and discard what does not. Underneath the jokes about “objectively correct” keybinds is a simple truth. The best setup is the one that lets you play comfortably, react quickly, and enjoy your MMO sessions without fighting your own fingers.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/games/mmo/debate-what-is-your-objectively-correct-keybinding-setup-for-your-current-mmo-and-why-is-everybody-else-wrong/
