Hey good people,
today I want to talk about something that many PC gamers haven't tried yet.
Couch gaming
And by couch setup I mean mouse and keyboard and not controller! I have a couch gaming setup since almost 2 years. Gear has changed and I have learnt a lot about the Dos und Don'ts. This is what I want to blog today and this are the aspects that I want to consider:
The couch
Not every couch can be used for PC gaming. If u want to use a mouse and keyboard you have to make sure that
- your couch is not too soft. In difference to a controller you have two devices that require your arm to have a 90 degree angle. If your back is too low this will hurt in the long run. It is different to playing with a controller.
- your couch needs to have a arm support on the right hand side that is about twice as high as your legs. This will ensure that your arm can rest comfortably and long gaming sessions are not a pain. You can also build your own arm support (squared pillows) or buy some peripherals. Here are a few examples:
Image Source: here
Image Source: here
Peripherals
- At first you will think about full wireless peripherals. (mouse keyboard headset) Don't do it. I did it and I regretted it. First of, charging is a pain and sometimes you run out of battery in the middle of a game. Second, as a pc gamer you are not used to the delay of wireless devices. As a console gamer you are used to the controller delay. But with mouse and keyboard... So you need to buy damn expensive peripherals (with minimal delay) or just go with wired.
- buy a keyboard that has a usb extension. So u can run your whole peripherals with one cable.
- Also I advice you to not go with a TKL (ten key less) keyboard. They don't feel balanced on you legs.
Silence
- Make sure that your PC is very silent. In most cases you are not alone in the living room.
- Also avoid to go with mechanical keyboards with blue switches. Go with more silent ones like the black or red switches.
TV
Not every TV can be used effectively for gaming (most console gamers miss that as well)
- don't go with the largest screen size if you don't have the distance to the couch. In difference to watching a film, in gaming you need to be able to see the whole screen without moving your head. There are quite a few calculator (like this on: click me) on the web for a good screen size depending on your couch distance.
- make sure you have a TV that has a low input lag. A good resource for this can be found here. There is nothing worse then a unresponsive game.
I hope you find these insights into couch gaming usefull. The question that still needs to be discussed is whether it is worth it. But as this is already a long post, I will delay this question to a later blog post. What are you opinion on coutch gaming? You have tired it? You have a setup?