Different Ways to Hold HP for Mobile Gaming

All mobile games use the same control scheme, namely the touch screen. All inputs available on the touch screen will be on one side of the device the player is using. The majority, players will use mobile phones for gaming.

But the touch screen was not developed from scratch to be used to play games. Because of this, players who don’t immediately think of positions have used it to give them an advantage over other players. Below we will discuss the different types of how to hold a cellphone for mobile gaming.

Two Finger Grip / Thumb Grip

When you first start playing, this is the position taken by the players. The position with another name ‘Thumb Grip’ uses only the thumbs on both hands while the other eight fingers are used to hold the cellphone.

The two-finger grip is very intuitive and doesn’t require too much coordination between the player’s fingers. But most competitive games today have more than two types of input that can be used simultaneously. For example, in a battle royale game, players can shoot, move, and see at the same time.

These additional inputs cannot be done with just two fingers. Therefore, after getting used to the game using two fingers, players should start learning to add index fingers in their game.

Four Finger Grip / Claw Grip

By adding the index fingers of both hands, the player will now use four fingers while the other six will hold the phone. This grip is also called the ‘Claw Grip’ because of the shape of the hand when it is performed. With this, players can do four inputs simultaneously to unlock new options in the game.

For example in a MOBA game, players can quickly select an opponent’s target, use a spell, and move towards them to stay within range at the same time. The longer time it took for players who only used their thumbs might be the difference between a dead enemy, or the player himself dying.

Of course, this technique also comes with its own problem, namely the coordination between the fingers. When starting to use this grip, players may be confused about which finger to use for input and end up using their thumb instead. Indeed, players will not immediately feel comfortable using the Claw Grip. But if they keep trying to use it, they will get used to it after a few games.

Three Finger Grip / Hybrid Grip

Hybrid is a combined style in which the player uses one finger on one hand, and two fingers on the other. Although the left or right hand uses two fingers it doesn’t matter, because the hybrid grip is an intermediary of the Thumb Grip and Claw Grip.

While the Claw Grip provides more fingers for input, sometimes a fourth finger isn’t needed in certain games. In these games, players may be able to use the Hybrid Grip to make their cellphone grip stronger.

In addition, a player can also use the Hybrid Grip as the first step to learning the Claw Grip. Instead of adding two fingers at once, adding one will make the player’s transition experience easier.

Five Finger / Six Finger Grip

Some who have mastered the Claw Grip might think about adding a finger or two more to the game. But now they were about to be hit by “The Law of Diminshing Returns” which made this grip not as effective as they thought.

First of all is the screen area. Using two fingers gives the player a lot of area that they can see. Four fingers cover more area, but still enough to see the game. Using three fingers on one or both sides will cover too much of their screen and will affect game visibility.

Also, even if players can use all three fingers at once, they may not use them efficiently. The Claw Grip is enough to touch all sides of the cellphone screen, and players shouldn’t need to enter three inputs simultaneously from the same side of the cellphone.

Finally, a hand that uses three fingers will only use the other two fingers to support the cellphone. One of these fingers is the little finger which is not very strong, and may make the grip of the cellphone unstable.

accessories

If players don’t want to use the Claw Grip but still want to take advantage of it, they can purchase additional accessories. The cheapest tool is the ‘Air Trigger’ which can be placed next to the cellphone. This physical button will press the screen in a certain place, so by changing the location of the input in the game, players can activate it using the Air Trigger.

The result is a cellphone grip that is similar to using a controller. Two thumbs operate all the other buttons on the screen, while the index fingers press the shoulder buttons.

If players want to use more advanced accessories, they can buy a special gaming cellphone such as the ROG Phone. In addition to having other additional accessories, this cellphone itself has a shoulder button directly inside the cellphone chassis. This button can then be programmed to press the screen digitally, so that players are not distracted by the Air Trigger mechanism.