Is it allowed? Auto Key Repeat in Game Controller Support programs

Tarnished · Sep 2, 2022

While the ML Terms of Service explicitly allows programs to support Game Controllers, it's understandably ambiguous about what is considered "Botting" or "Hacking". I'd like a definitive yes or no on auto key repeat.

The Auto Key Repeat feature in Controller Support Programs such as "Joy2Key" will emulate repeatedly clicking a button for as long as you physically hold the controller button down.

Auto Key Repeat is what you use for Controller so that you can hold down your button to continuously attack in-game. "Hold-to-spray" is the default behavior on Keyboards, and is an essential quality-of-life feature in a game that involves repeatedly attacking for hours on end.

The legally grey area here is that Auto Key Repeat is slightly different from default keyboards in ways that some would argue grant abnormal advantage over others. AFAIK what these differences amount to in-game is that on Controller you can hold down MoveDirection+Attack to make your character Attack, move, Attack, move, Attack, so on and so forth. This is not something you can do on Keyboard, if you hold down MoveDirection+Attack you'll just sit still and attack. This difference is especially noticeable on skills like Hurricane where the auto key repeat on controller lets you shuffle and shoot around very smoothly. While you can do this as a keyboard user, your fingers would get tired after a while.

As an avid Controller Mapler, I'm going to make the case that Auto Key Repeat should be explicitly allowed despite not necessarily being a 1-to-1 button mapping because playing the game without it is plain suffering. The advantage in move-and-shooting controller provides is only relevant to a tiny percentage of the total time spent in ML - and is the lesser of two evils compared to increased risk of e-sports injuries to controller users during a long grinding session.

zeroxlr · Sep 2, 2022

Tarnished said: ↑

While the ML Terms of Service explicitly allows programs to support Game Controllers, it's understandably ambiguous about what is considered "Botting" or "Hacking". I'd like a definitive yes or no on auto key repeat.
Click to expand...

Tarnished said: ↑

The Auto Key Repeat feature in Controller Support Programs such as "Joy2Key" will emulate repeatedly clicking a button for as long as you physically hold the controller button down.

Auto Key Repeat is what you use for Controller so that you can hold down your button to continuously attack in-game. "Hold-to-spray" is the default behavior on Keyboards, and is an essential quality-of-life feature in a game that involves repeatedly attacking for hours on end.

The legally grey area here is that Auto Key Repeat is slightly different from default keyboards in ways that some would argue grant abnormal advantage over others. AFAIK what these differences amount to in-game is that on Controller you can hold down MoveDirection+Attack to make your character Attack, move, Attack, move, Attack, so on and so forth. This is not something you can do on Keyboard, if you hold down MoveDirection+Attack you'll just sit still and attack. This difference is especially noticeable on skills like Hurricane where the auto key repeat on controller lets you shuffle and shoot around very smoothly. While you can do this as a keyboard user, your fingers would get tired after a while.

As an avid Controller Mapler, I'm going to make the case that Auto Key Repeat should be explicitly allowed despite not necessarily being a 1-to-1 button mapping because playing the game without it is plain suffering. The advantage in move-and-shooting controller provides is only relevant to a tiny percentage of the total time spent in ML - and is the lesser of two evils compared to increased risk of e-sports injuries to controller users during a long grinding session.
Click to expand...

Kind of seems like paperweighting.

Ive seen people do that on Maple Island before.

they would attack then move, attack then move, repeatedly in a very weird way. They’d keep repeating that sequence even if they missed.

Paperweighting isn’t hacking/botting, but it is against TOS.

You’d still have to physically press the key/button for each attack or move, each and every time to activate.

Otherwise it’d be the software playing the game for you while you hold down those buttons.

Can still press and hold to attack or use skill normally, but idle is supposed to activate and nullify damage against mobs.

Tarnished · Sep 2, 2022

zeroxlr said: ↑

Kind of seems like paperweighting.

Ive seen people do that on Maple Island before.

they would attack then move, attack then move, repeatedly in a very weird way. They’d keep repeating that sequence even if they missed.

Paperweighting isn’t hacking/botting, but it is against TOS.

You’d still have to physically press the key/button for each attack or move, each and every time to activate.

Otherwise it’d be the software playing the game for you while you hold down those buttons.

Click to expand...

I would argue that paperweight botting's unfair advantage is in allowing a character to farm while the player is AFK. This is not something AutoKey Repeat allows you to do, the player must be present and holding down attack+move. The choice to paperweight is a separate issue entirely.

zeroxlr said: ↑

Can still press and hold to attack or use skill normally, but idle is supposed to activate and nullify damage against mobs
Click to expand...

Controller can't hold to attack without Auto Key Repeat. Idle detection will still trigger if you stand still and attack for too long with auto repeat

zeroxlr · Sep 2, 2022

Tarnished said: ↑

I would argue that paperweight botting's unfair advantage is in allowing a character to farm while the player is AFK. This is not something AutoKey Repeat allows you to do, the player must be present and holding down attack+move. The choice to paperweight is a separate issue entirely.

Controller can't hold to attack without Auto Key Repeat. Idle detection will still trigger if you stand still and attack for too long with auto repeat
Click to expand...

Idle detection should trigger.

The big issue is the Auto Key Repeat acts in a way that automatically presses BOTH Move + Attack in a repeated sequence for the user, when the user physically holds down the Move and Attack buttons.

This means that the user is no longer physically pressing for each subsequent sequence of repeated Move + Attack repetitions, thus making it a form of botting.

If holding down 2 buttons (Move 1st, then Attack button 2nd) the correct button action would be to omit Move Completely, and only Attack repeatedly since its the last button pressed and held down.

Keyboards naturally acts to omit and debounce previous key presses, and only uses the last key pressed/held, NOT both pressed and held keys.

Auto Key Repeat is also banned from Arcade FightStick competitions too (EVO 2022), wherein the advisory is for developers to code in the prevention of that form of botting.

https://www.evo.gg/rules

It's considered botting if you hold down 2 buttons, and they keep triggering in a software(botting) driven pattern.

Only 1 or None buttons is supposed to occur from being held down, rather than 2.

Using controllers would be very nice though.

If the ML TOS was changed to allow Auto Key Repeat software botting, then it could be nice to use for preventing monotonous E-Sport Injuries.

zeroxlr · Sep 3, 2022

Tarnished said: ↑

While the ML Terms of Service explicitly allows programs to support Game Controllers, it's understandably ambiguous about what is considered "Botting" or "Hacking". I'd like a definitive yes or no on auto key repeat.

The Auto Key Repeat feature in Controller Support Programs such as "Joy2Key" will emulate repeatedly clicking a button for as long as you physically hold the controller button down.

Auto Key Repeat is what you use for Controller so that you can hold down your button to continuously attack in-game. "Hold-to-spray" is the default behavior on Keyboards, and is an essential quality-of-life feature in a game that involves repeatedly attacking for hours on end.

The legally grey area here is that Auto Key Repeat is slightly different from default keyboards in ways that some would argue grant abnormal advantage over others. AFAIK what these differences amount to in-game is that on Controller you can hold down MoveDirection+Attack to make your character Attack, move, Attack, move, Attack, so on and so forth. This is not something you can do on Keyboard, if you hold down MoveDirection+Attack you'll just sit still and attack. This difference is especially noticeable on skills like Hurricane where the auto key repeat on controller lets you shuffle and shoot around very smoothly. While you can do this as a keyboard user, your fingers would get tired after a while.

As an avid Controller Mapler, I'm going to make the case that Auto Key Repeat should be explicitly allowed despite not necessarily being a 1-to-1 button mapping because playing the game without it is plain suffering. The advantage in move-and-shooting controller provides is only relevant to a tiny percentage of the total time spent in ML - and is the lesser of two evils compared to increased risk of e-sports injuries to controller users during a long grinding session.
Click to expand...

To summarize.... no (unless Staff wants to hop in and confirm or deny). The Auto Key Repeat software is a form of botting, and is not allowed.

It's considered botting if you hold down 2 buttons, and the program keep triggering in a software(botting) driven pattern.

Only 1 or None button action is supposed to occur from being held down when using a normal Keyboard without the software, rather than 2.

If you are willing to submit your thoughts in the form of a Suggestion in the Suggestion Section, then you may be able to have it be changed.

Maybe suggest this: "Auto Key Repeat software for E-sports Injuries Prevention"

https://forum.maplelegends.com/index.php?forums/feedback/

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Is it allowed? Auto Key Repeat in Game Controller Support programs

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