Buzz
For those who enjoy video games, it's likely you have strong opinions on how others should approach gaming. While the options may seem limited, everyone has their preferred style.
Whether you swear by the classic mouse and keyboard setup, have always relied on an Xbox controller, or prefer touchscreen gaming, your perspective might shift after seeing these ten unconventional ways people have mastered their games.
10. Using Fruits and Vegetables
Parents often scold their kids for playing with their food, but some individuals, like BOOM, LLC Robotater, have turned this habit into a creative skill. He uses food as a tool to interact with video games, transforming ordinary produce into gaming controllers.
By attaching sensors to potato slices, he maps each piece to specific in-game commands. For example, tapping a russet potato might trigger an attack, while stroking a King Edward potato could move a character forward. He’s even shared a Steam guide for others interested in using potatoes to navigate Skyrim or compete in Rocket League.
BOOM isn’t the only one experimenting with food-based controls. Streamer Rudeism created a banana controller to play Overwatch, choosing Winston, the gorilla who loves bananas, as his character. He initially attempted using peanut butter, Winston’s preferred snack, but found it unsuitable due to poor electrical conductivity.
The Dark Souls community also embraced this trend. A player named ATwerkingYoshi successfully completed the game using bananas, dying only 62 times. Conquering Dark Souls with unconventional controllers has become a rite of passage, but defeating the final boss by tapping bananas stands out as a unique achievement.
9. Using Musical Instruments
This is the original and iconic example that sparked the trend of unconventional game controllers. We’re referring to the individual who conquered Dark Souls using a guitar. Back in 2014, a determined gamer named Bearzly achieved internet fame by defeating one of the most challenging games of the era with nothing but a Rock Band guitar controller and an Olympian-level of perseverance. He mapped the game’s controls to the guitar’s fret buttons, effects switch, whammy bar, and “star power” detector. However, he faced limitations, such as being unable to block, perform heavy attacks, move diagonally, or pan the camera right. Despite these constraints, he completed the game in 11 hours and defeated the final boss in just three attempts.
Not content with his guitar achievement, Bearzly explored other musical instruments to tackle Dark Souls. He chose drums, an ancient instrument, specifically the plastic bongos from the Donkey Konga rhythm game. With only five inputs (six including hand claps), he ingeniously created three “control states” by pressing multiple buttons simultaneously, resulting in 18 potential inputs. After nearly a month of developing the necessary software, he completed the game in just five and a half hours—faster than many players using standard controllers.
The trend escalated as gamers experimented with increasingly absurd musical instruments. One player used a DJ turntable to defeat a Dark Souls boss, while the Overwatch community adopted turntables to play as DJ Lucio. It’s only a matter of time before someone dominates Call of Duty using maracas.
8. Using a Fishing Rod
The Dark Souls community continued to push boundaries, seeking even more bizarre ways to conquer the game. After Bearzly’s bongo triumph, ATwerkingYoshi took on the challenge using a fishing rod controller from the 2009 game Bass Pro Shops: The Strike. This obscure accessory became his tool of choice to tackle the notorious Dark Souls III.
Yoshi confidently states he can “conquer any game using any controller,” a boast he validated by defeating one of the game’s major bosses with a fishing rod designed for catching fish. The rod’s joystick for movement and strategically placed buttons on the handle make it one of the most practical unconventional controllers yet.
While most would stop at the fishing rod, Yoshi pushed further. The following day, he live-streamed a ten-hour session playing the same game using a Mario Kart steering wheel from the Nintendo Wii.
7. Using Makeup
Shifting from the intense world of Dark Souls, let’s explore something more colorful and vibrant—specifically, lipstick. Chloe Desmoineaux, a Counter-Strike player, created Lipstrike using a Makey Makey kit, the same tool used to turn bananas into controllers. Her setup involves electronic sensors attached to a lipstick tube, allowing her to control the game while applying makeup. Although she uses a mouse for precise movements and aiming, every kill is executed solely through her innovative makeup-based system.
Desmoineaux conceived Lipstrike to challenge stereotypes like “lipstick for girls, war games for boys.” Her creation humorously defies these norms while showcasing her technical creativity. The only downside? You might end each match resembling Heath Ledger’s Joker, but it’s a small trade-off for triumph.
6. Using Their Mouth
Rocky NoHands, the Twitch alias of Rocky Stoutenburgh, became paralyzed from the neck down following an accident at age 19. Despite this, he now streams professionally, playing the competitive shooter Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds using only his mouth.
He achieves this with a Quadstick, a specialized device that allows paralyzed gamers to play by blowing, sucking, and biting. While this might sound as awkward as eating soup with a knife, Rocky consistently secures solo victories in a game demanding quick reflexes and precision. Considering each match involves 100 players, it’s remarkable that he outperforms so many using only his breath.
Designing the control layout took him roughly three days, and even then, certain in-game actions remain impossible. For example, shooting requires blowing into the Quadstick’s central hole, while crouching involves sipping on the left and middle holes simultaneously.
5. Using Dance Moves
None of the control methods mentioned so far require much physical exertion. While they are technically challenging, imaginative, and mentally draining, they don’t demand physical fitness. That’s where Jayce, a self-proclaimed “dance gamer,” changes the game.
Jayce uses modified dance pads from the arcade classic Dance Dance Revolution to navigate through iconic platformers. He’s conquered games like Super Mario Galaxy, Super Mario World, and Yoshi’s Island, and he continues to push boundaries. To access all controls, he uses two dance mats simultaneously, often resorting to frantic, Twister-like movements on all fours during challenging sections.
In a similar vein, another daring individual used the same setup to triumph over Dark Souls III. Because, of course, they did.
4. Using a Bow and Arrow
We’ve already highlighted Rudeism’s banana-based controller for playing as a gorilla. But what other themed setups could he devise? Enter his bow and arrow controller for playing Hanzo, the archer. This isn’t a novelty-shaped controller—it’s a modified Nerf bow. When you pull the string in real life, Hanzo mirrors the action on-screen. Release the arrow, and your virtual foe is struck.
Still not impressed? What if he also used a dance pad to manage his character’s movements? To move left, he steps to the left. To move forward, he steps forward. By combining dance pads and Nerf arrows, he’s created a system that lets him embody his character, mimicking every movement and action of his in-game avatar.
3. By Blowing Their Noses Into Recorders
Let’s conclude with a timeless classic, Super Mario World. Despite its simple controls—jump, left, and right—a Japanese gamer managed to complicate things by eliminating physical inputs entirely. He played the game using sound, setting up a system where different pitches corresponded to specific actions. One pitch made Mario jump, while another moved him left.
To maintain consistent pitches, he used a recorder to control Mario. But instead of playing it normally, he chose to blow into it with his nose—for reasons that remain unclear. The next time you breeze through a level of Super Mario World and feel accomplished, remember that someone out there has mastered the same level by blowing his nose into a recorder.
2. Using Their Feet
Stevie Rex lives with TAR syndrome, an extremely rare genetic disorder that leaves him without bones in his forearms. This makes holding a controller or pressing buttons with his hands impossible, but he refuses to let it stop him from pursuing his passion for MMOs. His secret weapon? His feet.
Using just a standard controller and his feet, Stevie plays the MMO Final Fantasy XIV. While playing any game with your feet would be challenging, FFXIV requires quick access to numerous abilities, making it seem nearly impossible. Yet, Stevie has found a way.
Stevie’s success is made possible by the game’s cross bar system, which uses shoulder buttons to toggle between different ability bars. Originally designed to make the game more console-friendly, this feature unexpectedly became a lifeline for Stevie. With just a few buttons, he skillfully navigates the game’s fast-paced combat using his feet.
Stevie’s story gained attention after he shared a video of himself playing the game, thanking Square Enix for implementing a feature that allows him to enjoy the game he loves. This small but impactful change has transformed his gaming experience and quality of life.
1. Upside Down (Or Even Blindfolded)
LobosJr stands out on this list for playing games in the most conventional way. He sits on a couch, holds a controller, and presses buttons until he conquers the game. In short, he plays games like most people do.
However, there’s a twist: he plays them upside down. While he remains upright, the screen’s image is flipped using mods. This creates disorienting visuals and reverses the controls—left becomes right, up becomes down, and the sky appears as the ground. Navigating this inverted world adds a layer of complexity to an already challenging experience.
Playing upside down is just one of LobosJr’s many sensory experiments. Previously, he shared a video of himself playing Dark Souls blindfolded, relying solely on memory and sound cues to navigate. It’s akin to a bat using echolocation, but instead of hunting moths, he’s defeating demons.
