Vim Adventures -- Learn VIM shortcuts while screwing around

26    12 Jul 2015 02:49 by u/SwiftLion

tl;dr: Play this game, learn vim shortcuts.

I've always been a believer in expanded keyboard shortcut sets, but (in my opinion) they need the kind of 'set in stone' place in your workflow that is reserved for things like your keyboard layout. In other words: learn it once, use it forever. I use Xcode all day personally, and I use the 'XVim' plugin to get my shortcuts there. I've found that I don't even reach for the keyboard anymore, and my wrists feel so much less strain throughout a full day of coding.

I'm not affiliated with them in any particular way except that I have an account 'cuz I bought the game. Srsly, it's quite fun.

6 comments

4 u/roboticon 12 Jul 2015 03:35

you have to pay for this, right?

before doing that, try using vimtutor. then read the documentation (LearnVim is a great guide through the docs).

Also, #vim on freenode is responsive to questions.

0 u/SwiftLion [OP] 12 Jul 2015 03:40

Good link! I personally found that the game-format made it stick, but yeah.

1 u/2716057 12 Jul 2015 03:16

I don't like how I can't use numbers. For instance, 5h will move your five spaces to the left. It's one of the most powerful features of VIM, and it can be used with just about (I use this conditional, even though I can't think of anything it doesn't work with) everything!

Otherwise, it looks like a neat little game. I've already wasted 5-10 minutes on it!

2 u/SwiftLion [OP] 12 Jul 2015 03:20

You have to unlock all the keys. You'll unlock the number-based motions in a later level. Keep at it though, the puzzles get pretty crazy! I've only made it just over halfway.

1 u/2716057 12 Jul 2015 03:51

Yeah, I just got to level 3 (where you have to pay). That's where I stopped. It's an interesting concept, bit I'm not paying money for something that's well-documented.

But it seems neat for young newbies.