PC gaming Aim

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So for years now my aim has always been a big issue for me on not just FPS games but moba's and rts games. I don't know how to improve it too well, I have tried a sight called aimbooster but theres something about that situations that make it hard to translate a dot to a playermodel when it comes to shooting. Small moving targets and moving targets in general give me hell.
Id love to learn how to improve my aim big time

Especially now that I am playing overwatch ranked

I'm certainly no expert at FPSs but playing with sensitivity settings certainly helped me a lot. Usually I like to use a mouse at fairly high sensitivity but this isn't conducive to good aim in a FPS. Other than that, practice makes perfect.

When it comes to shooting, take a second to aim and try to project where the target will be when the bullet reaches it - then squeeze the trigger. It will improve your accuracy by 5000%.

That's not always applicable in this, though.

Overwatch for example uses hit-scan attacks for "bullet" based weapons. Stuff like Soldier-76's gun. The INSTANT you fire, is the instant it hits. There is no travel time. Some games do this, some dont. Overwatch does it for numerous weapons. "Beam" attacks like Zarya's also seem to have zero travel time.

Of course, other characters use actual travelling projectiles (fireballs or energy waves or whatever), so it differs from one to the next. Even those though are different from "bullets" in more realistic games, since compared to actual bullets these projectiles are slower than a bucket of snails. I'm sure the OP understands the idea of leading targets though. There's no other way to hit with this type of attack.

I think what the OP means though is improving aim in a general sense.


And based on what you are saying, BaneBear, your problem isnt a lack of aim, it's moreso that you want more proficiency with the mouse itself. There are a few things that can help... firstly, getting your sensitivity right, and making sure that you have a good mouse that works for you. But beyond that? It's all about practice. It's like learning to use a gamepad/controller properly. There really is no method to it; you just do it, over time. Something like Aim Booster is useful in it's way, but you're right, it doesnt REALLY translate too well into actual game use for many people. You really have to just learn this one on your own, I think.

If you want to learn how to aim well in FPS games, play the Xaero fight on Quake 3 repeatedly until you get to the point where you can beat him using only the railgun without ever zooming in, on at least "hurt me plenty" difficulty. While you're at it, tweak your mouse settings both in the games you play as well as in your OS mouse settings, try different mice, and try different surfaces for your mice.

For some games, you may even want to try using a controller, even though many PC gamers consider this sacrelige. A lot of players are more comfortable with this type of input, and some games (mostly console ports) are better optimized for it.

Don't be afraid to play practice modes or bot matches either. While some games have really stupid bots that don't put up much of a fight (like CS: GO), others (like Quake 3) have bots that can slaughter you on higher difficulties. You can play against bots as much as you want, and dial down the difficulty when you need to relax or slow things down.

My aim stays pretty consistent around 50% on games that track that sort of thing with a keyboard/mouse and drops to around 40% with a controller but it depends on a lot of other factors. Make your area comfortable, I find my accuracy increases if I am in a comfortable position and thats even true with the controller. Practice with the rail gun on Quake, Quake 3 is a good idea but any Quake will do. Also, this is one of the few areas Call of Duty doesn't suck in, I'd practice with that too.

Quake 1 doesn't have a railgun, unfortunately. That said, it's still considered to have one of the highest skill ceilings in all of FPS gaming.

Are you really suggesting a controller for games where precision is necessary? I agree they can be better at things like racing games, adventures and other stuff, but FPS, MOBA & RTS games just dont work well with controllers. There have been multiple attempts at bringing in cross-platform play with games of these types and it was always cancelled because of the imbalance. A average to good PC FPS player can beat a professional console FPS player without autoaim, and that says it all. So for improving his aim, a gamepad is a no-no.

Ive learned aiming in games through pure repetition. I played alot of CS: Source back then and just played online until i got better. I signed up for a clan and trained with them regularly. There seems to be a point where my coordination stops me from getting any better even with years of training but i became good enough. Last time i played CS:S online for longer times i had a K/D between 1:1 to 2:1, depending on some factors. Playing with bots or playing fast gamemodes like gungame etc. is also is a very good idea at least for starting...

Peace
TK

Dont use a controller for a PC FPS, is what I'll say. Just dont.

The reasons:

1, you'll be much, much slower in terms of turning/aiming speed than mouse users. Mouse users can do a 180 or 360 in an instant due to the mouse's extreme variable speed. Controller users take some time to do this, as there's a max speed for turning, and setting it too high makes it bloody impossible to even begin to aim. Using a controller in a PC FPS just stifles your reaction speed. You'll be a sitting duck in so very many cases.

2. Your aim will get SO MUCH WORSE. Analog sticks are notorious for being inaccurate. They are NOT precision devices and never were. All console FPS games work because there is an element of auto-aim involved; if you very carefully watch someone play the game, and were to slow things down, you might spot that things like headshots often ARENT actually headshots; instead, it's that they got their cursor in the general vicinity of the opponent's head, and the game corrected their aim. This may sound like cheating, but it isnt; it's a necessity. I've played FPS games with controllers with all of that stuff being non-existent; aiming is VERY hard in those, compared to being effortless with a mouse. Also, with the turn speed thing, aiming is slower. It doesnt help that there's an "acceleration" to analog movement in FPS games; it takes a moment to get to full speed.


That's not to say that controllers are bad for PC games; they arent. I play most PC games with a controller. But they're bad for this specific genre. They're also bad for RTS games or anything that plays like one. Hell, they're SO bad for those that they're nearly unusable.

I know it's considered sacrelige, but some people are genuinely more comfortable with using a controller. Of course, suggesting it in the same post as using Quake 3 to improve aiming skills was kind of foolish of me - Quake 3 is probably THE one game I would never want to play with a controller.

But, just thinking about it, it's not like traditional dual-analog controllers are the only thing out there. The Steam controller looks quite promising for games that require the precision of a keyboard and mouse, and it comes in a form factor similar to a typical console controller. Ironically, for console-style games it doesn't look that compelling to me owing to the lack of a dpad or a second analog stick.

Anyway, I remember this one anecdote on Reddit where this one person said he was at a LAN party where some guy rocked everyone at CS: GO with an Xbox 360 controller. I cried foul, but apparently some people do well playing this way. This just sort of stuck with me, and I thought that maybe it would be the solution to OP's dilemma. But yes, in most cases, for most people, a mouse is definitely a better option, especially in games without any degree of auto-aim.

The steam controller has something similiar to a laptops touchpad, still alot less precise than a mouse. And i call BS on that 360 controller story, either everyone at that LAN party was a lowbob par excellence, or the story is fake. The reason is how the thing works, the stick "pushes" the fov at specific speed and has acceleration aswell as deceleration values. So to aim precise you need to push in the exact right direction in 360° of options for 2 axis and factor in the deceleration to not to overshoot your crosshair over the enemy. A mouse in comparison is like a direct connection to you fov, movement is linear, better integrated and alot faster. While a stick is handicapped at a specific speed (wich you can change, but that makes the overshooting problem even worse) a mouse can be turned much faster with instant stopping. This isnt even console/controller bashing, this is just pure physical facts why a mouse is superior in this games and no one should use a controller unless he absolutely has to. You might be right with some people beeing more comfortable using a controller, but the OP didnt ask for beeing more comfortable. He asked how to be better.

Every input method has its place. Kingdom Hearts 2 sucks with mouse/keyboard (And i really did that, playing it on PCSX2 with a keyboard because i had no controller), Racedriver GRID gives you alot more precision in drifting then tapping your keyboard like PWM. Life is strange doesnt need the precision and is just more comfortable with a controller. Rocket League is alot more intuitive to control with a controller, Mechwarrior Online has a pretty slow and non linear way of aiming and 2 sticks seem more fitting for the 2 way control of a mech. So you see, i dont percieve a controller as sacrelige. Im just saying that everything has its place. And for fast paced highly precise PC games, a controller just isnt there...

Peace
TK

Ugh, I can't stand people who play FPS on PC with controllers. If you're playing on a console or single player, sure. I sure as heck don't want to play with someone on PC multiplayer who would willingly gimp themself like that.

My perspective is: Play single-player games with a controller, and multiplayer games with a mouse.

I played Doom multiplayer with a controller and came out third place, its actually not that bad for some modern FPS. Controllers are better then they were but yeah keyboard and mouse is preferred. I don't see why you would not play with someone based on their play preferences, yeah mouse and keyboard is better on a fundamental level but I am imagine there are some gamers that could beat you with a controller. Its all relative to what the player is used to. I think you can reach a higher level of accuracy with a mouse and keyboard but I think if you get a good gamer who is used to a controller, I think the accuracy between the two play styles begin to even out a bit.

This. KB+M is better on a fundamental level, but this doesn't mean it's what a person will necessarily do better with. The trackpoint on my Thinkpad is technically supposed to be less accurate than a touchpad, but after using it for a while I could almost never see myself going back to using a touchpad. Of course, very few laptops have had good touchpads in my experience.

If I were gaming on a normal laptop and I was offered the choice between a crappy touchpad and a controller, I'd almost definitely take the controller. With a decent touchpad, I'd probably use it for certain games, but still take the gamepad for others.

I may sound like a controller apologist, but I actually tend to prefer a keyboard and mouse for a lot of games. What annoys me is when people say "you can't play FPS with a controller!" or "you can't play sidescrollers with a keyboard!". Part of the beauty of PC gaming is the sheer amount of choice you get with your input methods, and people sometimes excel with unusual control methods.

Gah, I dunno. I feel like I can't win these petty arguments because I go against the grain of popular thought.

OP, just play around with different control methods and find what works best for you. What works for you might not work for other people, and what works for other people might not work for you, and that's OK. Everyone is different. And if I ever come across someone who can rock Quake 3 with a controller, I say they deserve a medal.