Advice for a disabled player

[Dave Farrant]

Hi

I came back to Eternium a month or two ago after a long break(!).

In the meantime I have broken my neck. It's only an incomplete break so I haven't completely severed my spinal cord. However it has very significantly affected the use of my hands. In simple terms I have several paralysed fingers, total loss of touch sensation in my hands and poor finger co-ordination. I'm typing this with my thumbs because that's all can use on a keyboard these days.

I generally, almost exclusively, play the game on a Samsung tablet but I find the gestures required difficult to perform consistently. I appreciate that on a PC I could use keys instead of gestures but trying to manage a mouse and the keyboard simultaneously seems to elude me.

So the questions.

1. Is it possible to use a Bluetooth joystick to play the game on a tablet? Has anyone tried this?

2. Following from the above, on the Android version of game Is it possible to assign gestures to keys or buttons on a keyboard or joystick?

Any advice would be welcomed.

PS I did a search for joystick before posting this and came across a discussion of being very old and recalling 5.25" floppy disks. I'm old enough to have a few 8" floppy disks in my cupboard!

[Mical66]

Good Question, i play on a Kindle Tablet and also have issues with Neuropathy and have delayed motor control and loss of sensation in my fingers, i did try yesterday to play on my desktop and gameplay was easier but had to relearn buttons. Ended up going back to my tablet. I wish you luck on finding a way to continue playing, i too remember floppies and still have my original windows instilation set of discs, lol

[Shintara]

Hey Keaddor.
Again, I'm so sorry mate

I bumped your post on the Discord. Maybe someone can help you out with your issue.
As far as the 2nd question is concerned: no

Im hoping someone will have a brilliant solution for you ♡

[bojck]

Hm it should be possible to play on tablet and attack a keyboard or other controller. Perhaps drawing with one hand and pressing buttons with the other could be the best option... I guess you need to find a suitable bluetooth keyboard anyway, so you can type easier? And certainly use voice to text more.

Wish you the best recovery, or at least making the best out of what your body and mind are capable of I also had a 'break' last year, a Th8 complete SCI, but came back to playing and doing everything else that I did before...

[Travis | Support Mgr.]

Unfortunately, external controller support for Marmalade (the engine Eternium uses) is nil. Your best bet is to try playing with a PC setup.

That said, I can relate. I have been an avid PC (keyboard and mouse) gamer since the late 80's/early 90's. About 4 years ago, I cut 4 fingers off of my left hand...and if you're a PC gamer, that's devastating. The fingers were reattached, but I'm unable to flex my DIP joints enough to hit the keys. That coupled with numbness and tightness makes it so I can't use the fingers on my left hand for typing at all. So, I use my right hand (normally) and my left thumb for typing and I have to use a PS or XBox controller for PC gaming. It was an adjustment (for both work and play), but I was able to adapt and I'm sure you will, too. I went through 3 years of physical therapy 3 times a week and 4 surgeries to get where I'm at now. The human body is an amazing machine, as long as you put the work in.

[Wisp]

The human body is an amazing machine.
Best of thoughts to all the comments and sharing here on this gaming related real life issue.
Also to anyone going through things of this nature and the work involved.
That being said; perhaps if a bit better or possible; try a stylus.
In an ironic happenstance; someone just posted a video on Discord; playing on a mobile phone with two thumbs.
If there is a way to secure your device ; the way you're typing maybe be a simple not yet ideal way to get some good play in. If not just to try and possibly get better, with the two thumbs method and working your hand eye connection while you heal.
Best of thoughts.
This is a response to the original post.

[Dave Farrant]

Thanks for all the positive comments.

Just another question. In the PC game if I were to set up a macro that triggered a series of abilities, like say, vortex, magnetic trap then heatseakers, would that be considered an exploit and against the rules? ?

[papa jim]

Macros are not allowed, keymapping is ok.

[Travis | Support Mgr.]

^This^
Assigning one key to carry out multiple functions is detectable and banable.

[Dave Farrant]

Thanks all. I'm going to try an assistive track-pad that I bought a while again before I could hold a mouse.

I hope this doesn't cause any problems. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000V5GQE8

[Swamp Donkey]

Are you able to grasp a stylus? I have a Samsung S23 Ultra that comes with the stylus and I have found whilst it is not as affective as brushed finger strokes, it is only marginally worse.