just as an option like it was previously where there were alternative controls in the menu you could switch between. It doesnt have to be the default control scheme but make it available again please
Gather unknown signals from deep, silent space · By
I think the way the interactions work has been fundamentally altered a bit so it's not as easy as just flipping a toggle, but more importantly the old system of using alt a lot was bad because it constantly triggered computer/hardware shortcuts so a lot of people couldn't even do things like gently set stuff down without activating some random nvidia function or something similar
No, stop asking.
The new controls are better, you just need to get used to them. I did, and so can you.
Besides, this is an unstable shadow test build meant for reporting bugs, not playing casually. If you don't like it, keep playing the stable version or wait for the full release of 0.9.0
Change isnt as scary as you might think.
"Let’s break down this masterpiece of logic, just in case the subtleties are too complex:
Your entire argument cancels itself out. People are providing feedback on the test build exactly as intended. Good design includes options, not forced mandates."
Yeah. new controls are not good.
I'm rather new to the community and so I DONT have all that muscle memory and they STILL manage to suck, alot. They are so unresponsive and irritating! Constantly holding the button for not long enough or oh, screw you you held it for too long. Alt-ernatives would be nice.
"Figure out which thing you try to do most and make that the press action"
Well, do help me decide then: I do a lot of collecting the first couple weeks, picking up trash and cleaning the base. Once that's over, holding becomes the main thing to do, usually. And next time I have to start a new save (eg: 0.9.0c, 0.9.1...) I'll go back to collecting being the main thing.
So... Should I be switching, never getting to enjoy the fruits of a fully developed muscle memory? Should I have to "tough it up" and suffer through the first 10-20 hours or so of the early game being R-hold heavy, when I'm already struggling settle in, for the sake of a smoother experience later on? Or should I stick to R-press being collect for the sake of an easier early game, at the cost of a more annoying rest-of-the-game experience?
Besides, far as I'm aware you can only swap press and hold for R, not E.
Sounds like a skill issue if you need 10-20 hours to develop muscle memory, but if you're so terrified of changing your controls, why not just stick with picking up items being a single button press? Unless you're trying to hold multiple items at the same time, you're not going to need to make that action as fast as picking up items. And if a quarter-second delay in holding items every so often is enough to ruin the game for you, then that says a lot about you.
Ah yes, "terrified of changing your controls", as if it wasn't what I've already settled on doing every so often when I'm faced with a collect-heavy task in the game again.
The very point I was trying to make in my reply is that things are not as clear cut as one may think from your reply to Draglorr. For one, if you are to swap press and hold, it won't necessarily be a one time thing; and two, you'll have to rebuild your muscle memory, so be judicious about when to swap.
And do try to imply whatever you may about my skill or attention span or whatever your point about a quarter second delay is, but I'm old and tired and I did not come to VotV to play a rythm game and test my timings and reaction speed every other interaction.
I believe you're already aware I've already said my piece before on why hold-based modifiers are bad, so if you do wish to discuss that in depth (and I would hope you'd be doing so in good faith) I suggest you do give this chain of comments https://itch.io/post/14684652 a full read and continue the discussion there.
I definitely think the control in v0.9 is simpler and more friendly for new users, and it feels like an update the developers put a lot of thought into. On the other hand, when I first encountered the Alt control in v0.8, it seemed a bit cumbersome at first. However, once I got used to it, it allowed for much faster inputs and became quite comfortable to use (of course, I reassigned the Alt key to another shortcut that’s easier on my hand — personally, I replaced it with a mouse thumb button).
So what I want to say is this: I think the new control is a good direction for the game’s development. That said, since this is still a test build, it’s inevitable that there are many areas that need improvement. For example, the E key has different actions assigned to click and hold, but the input detection often confuses the two, causing noticeable hiccups. Also, sometimes the Shift + E combination doesn’t get recognized properly in a single input.
However, considering that the developers likely have many other aspects of development to focus on at this stage, I think improving the new control should be a higher priority than adding an option to revert to the old control.
Old controls could be configured to be very intuitive. There is no such option here - and worse, some interactive functionality now appears to be lost, as well things just take longer in general now in a game that is all about doing a ton of busywork. Some actions can be configured intuitively, but this will make other actions suddenly counterintuitive. The "R toggle" option in settings fixes some things but then turns other interactions - which may have been fine before - into unexpected and unintuitive actions.
So yeah, give us the option for classic controls - I absolutely cannot stand it in its current state. And yes, I tried - it drove me up the wall.
The problem isn't that the controls changed, it's the lack of accessibility. You’re basing 'fine' entirely on your personal preference, but dismissing someone else’s frustration as 'rage' is just condescending.
For many, the transition from 0.8.2 isn't about being 'unable' to learn — it’s about muscle memory built over hundreds of hours. Forcing a hold-action delay where there used to be instant response changes the entire 'feel' of the game. Telling someone they should 'get used to it in 5 minutes' completely ignores the fact that a toggle or a legacy setting would satisfy everyone without hurting your experience. Good game design is about options, not forced adaptation.
Thank you for your insightful comment, I really appreciate it! I've been following the discussions for a while now, and it seems many people genuinely don't understand the core problem with the new controls; they simply dismiss valid frustration as "rage" rather than acknowledging a fundamental design shift. It is crucial to remember that the version 0.9.0 is explicitly labeled by the developer as a "[potentially BROKEN and UNSTABLE shadow TEST for TESTING by TESTERS]". This means things can, and likely will, change at any moment. The game is still in early pre-alpha development, so critical feedback is important, and players shouldn't feel obligated to blindly accept every single change introduced in a test build.
For me the best comparison of the new controls is like switching from win10 to win11. Everything is more user friendly sure but you lose efficiency. Everything is sluggish and theres a delay on most your actions etc.
Same reason I didnt switch from win10 to win11 is the same reason I didnt play past the tutorial in 9.0
But again I think the new controls do have a place in the game I just dont think having them as the only option is the way to go forward and from reading all the comments here its clear that people do want both in the game. (wish people in the comments were nicer about it tho)
Hope that the feedback has been heard ❤️
Might as well throw in my two logscents.
I’ve never played 0.8 and I’m not going to, so I don’t know how new controls compare to the old.
What I do know is that new controls are quite inconsistent in their behaviour.
Just from the top of my head:
I think this is because we have too many action variants:
Way. Way. Too. Many. Actions. I believe this needs to be simplified before a consistent control scheme can be designed.
I’d suggest something like this:
Plus some options:
I think this would be more consistent and easier to get used to. This control scheme does create a problem with items like Pressure Washer, that have both left and right click functionality, but this is solveable in other ways (just change what left click does depending on where the tool is pointed?).