It's a balance between making it as easy as possible for new players to pick up vs giving experienced players the maximum amount of control.
The first version was triggered by mouse movement, and I had totally mastered it. As soon as I put new players in front of it though they would have countless instances of swinging in a way they didn't intend before starting to painfully learn the controls.
With strafing I have yet to see someone not get it instantly.
I haven't gotten it instantly. Had some trouble, actually. Because, while go right-> swing left is instinctual, more or less, the fact that the swing is also affected by the mouse movement was something I discovered and used later. And it sort of became the entire point. Because you don't kill a dude by running away from him, you kill him by swinging your mouse while running away.
As the other commenter suggested, why not add an alternative control scheme? I understand that it might be annoying to develop, because then you might need to structure your code in a different manner, but your game seems to be gaining popularity, and you'll have to address all the people bringing this up. )
I'm also a software developer. Tried my hand at making games at one point, sucked at it. Don't even really know what platform you're using for this game. But I'd personally consider adding it as a feature. Mostly because it's not something outlandish, it's controls. The basics of any game.
But, again, of course this is your project to manage. )
Just my 2 cents.
