Quote Originally Posted by Caravel View Post
Optical mouse: Not for FPS games, use it on a consistently coloured, stable surface. I find darker sufraces are better but anything is better than a mousemat. Do not use an optical mouse with a mousemat - especially one with logos and images all over it (this is what causes the jumpy behaviour). I've had the same optical one for about 6 or 7 years and it hasn't failed me yet.

Ball mouse: Good for FPS games because you get better control from the ball (ability to turn quickly etc). Needs regular cleaning out and a mousemat is advisable.
Few points. About 5 years ago this was true, that ball mice were superior to optical mice for twitch gaming, Razer had the market cornered. Today's optical mice are far superior though, much faster, responsive, and accurate (on proper surfaces). Also, there are special... "mousing surfaces" that one can and probably should use for gaming with optical mice. Here is an example. They are made specifically so that the optical components have distinctly featured surfaces to track on. Fortunately my desk has a similar distinctive broken pattern and is very smooth, so I don't need one.