Adjustable actuation keyboards, which allow you to set soft or hard presses to register keystrokes, are all the rage among dedicated gamers. But Valve is calling foul on one of the newest features enabled on Razer and Wooting keyboards.
Players who enable the “Snap Tap” mode on adjustable actuation keyboards in Counter-Strike 2 online might get flagged for cheating.
We’re getting deep into the weeds of keyboard tech here, so let’s take a step back for a second: Snap Tap is a function that detects simultaneous input on two different keys and only activates the one that was detected last. That difference can come down to mere milliseconds thanks to the super-fast polling rates of today’s gaming keyboards.
Gamers with an adjustable actuation keyboard and nigh-superhuman reflexes can use Snap Tap mode to move their characters in literally the blink of an eye. It’s often used to strafe back and forth incredibly quickly, notably in online shooters to throw off the aim of opponents.
In the video below, you can see an example of Snap Tap mode in action. Note how the player holds down the A key to keep moving left, but taps the D key to instantly switch to moving right, raising the key slightly to immediately return to left movement:
Valve thinks that Snap Tap crosses the line. According to its community note (spotted by The Verge), it effectively gives players the ability to perform multiple in-game actions with a single button press — something that’s a clear no-no if you do it with programmed macros. Valve says that Snap Tap is the same trick, just using hardware rather than software.
Adjustable actuation could already do this, with some keyboards able to bind up to four different actions to a single press at different intensities. But Snap Tap specifically allows a gamer with incredible dexterity to rapidly move back and forth, potentially dozens of times, using just two presses of the A and D keys.
Snap Tap is a popular new feature, but a contentious one. Gamers love pretty much anything that gives them an advantage in online matches… and other gamers love to call those very things “cheating.” Frankly, I’m not good enough at shooters to care either way, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see other adjustable actuation keyboard makers adopt the same software feature — and other competitive online games ban it.
It’s still possible to use the adjustable actuation keyboards (Razer’s Huntsman series with analog optical switches and Wooting’s keyboards that support the “SOCD” feature) in Counter-Strike 2. Just make sure you have the Snap Tap or SOCD features disabled in the settings.
Further reading: I’m not a PC gamer but still prefer gaming keyboards
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.