For my first post regarding content I would like to share with the community, I think it is important that I address one of the main fundamentals in any FPS game, aim, and how to get better.
Most games do differ in how the aim works for whatever the shooter may be, and sometimes, in certain games, aim isn't even the same for everyone, in that there may be different characters who have different weapons, or you may have different weapons all together than a teammate in a game like CS:GO. For this reason, I like to break aim up in a few parts, those being: pinpoint aim, projectile aim, and recoil or gun control aiming. Let me first address two terms that will come up a lot in this article, those being hitscan and projectile. Hitscan is when there is no bullet travel time or drop, your shot always goes where your crosshair is the second you click your mouse. Projectile is the opposite, the bullet or projectile takes time to get to your target, and the bullet may land lower than where your crosshair originally is due to drop and velocity. Now that you know these terms, we can get straight into the article.
Jumping straight into pinpoint aim, this is the type of aim that is your first shot, or any shot without recoil. In other words, where your crosshair is, is where your shot goes. This is the primary way of aiming with hitscan characters in the game overwatch, and is also how snipers in CS:GO work, as well as the first shot with every weapon in CS:GO. In my opinion, this is the easiest method of aim to practice; most games have a bot course, or some type of training that you can hop right into, and just practice on flicking to targets or anticipating targets movements. There is nothing you have to think about with this type of aim other than hitting the target and that's what makes this style of aim the easiest to learn. This is also the style that I am most proficient in because of the amount of time I have put into the bot training course in Overwatch as well as playing matches in CS:GO and Fortnite, as in each of these games, there are instances of pinpoint aim. Though other methods of aim are harder to practice.
Projectile aim is similar to pinpoint aim except they're two differences, bullets may have velocity or drop, and bullets will have travel time. This means you have to anticipate your opponents movement in order to hit shots, making it significantly harder to practice. Regarding drop and travel time, that can be practiced in bot training just as pinpoint aim, but learning to anticipate and hit shots is what makes this type of aim so tough. Games that include this type of aim are Overwatch's Hanzo for example, who uses a bow, Fortnite's snipers, Realm Royale's hunter class, when equipped with a bow, and many more. Learning to anticipate movement will often come with practice of course, but more simple than that, knowing your game. For example, in Fortnite, there is always a climb to the highground, so if you see someone in a 1 by 1 base, then you can shoot higher than where they are, assuming they may keep building up. In Overwatch, if you are playing Hanzo, and you see an opponent moving in one direction, you can assume they will likely continue that line of movement, so you shoot ahead of where they are to hit them. (Note that sometimes opponents will not always move in a straight line, for this vary reason; to avoid shots) Knowing basic movement in your game as well as using projectile weapons often will always lead to the victory in any duel in your gameplay.
Finally, the toughest type of aim for me at least, is recoil or gun control. This is most seen in CS:GO and PUBG. Recoil is when, after your gun's first shot, your gun's bullets move in a pattern or just kick up entirely. The reason why this is so tough at first, is because the only way you improve at this type of aim is with practice, and so much of it that it becomes muscle memory. This is easier in CS:GO because every gun has a pattern of recoil that never chances, which can be practiced in custom maps over and over until these patterns are glued in your head. Though in PUBG, there is no practice mode or workshop so the only way to improve is by playing which is hard to do when you have to loot, find the gun you want, and find people or a safe place to practice. Another thing that makes recoil control much harder than the other two is that you have to think about it while your shooting. Pinpoint aim is thoughtless because your shot goes where your crosshair is, and with projectile aim, you only have to think about your shot before you take it. With recoil, you have to think about controlling the spray, not standing still too long, being aware of your surroundings, and so much more, all whilst shooting. Sure, you have to think about a lot of other game sense things with every aim type, but recoil can be really hard if you don't have patterns as muscle memory. So what it comes down to is play, play, and play some more, until it is second nature. I will say to help though, make sure you start your mouse on the upper part of your mouse pad
Equipment
It is really tough to have good aim with terrible hardware, so if you wan't good aim you have to make sure you have proper gear. While most of my guides cover PC gaming, I will say that console is pretty limited, because what you get is all you can have to make your aim great. PC however, you have many more options, and quite a few things to think about. First off is your computer itself, you should make sure you are getting at least 60 frames per second in every game you play assuming your monitor is 60hz, and I'll get into monitor refresh rate in a different article. If your computer is good, then you need a good mouse pad and mouse. Most people with little gaming knowledge will not find a need for a big mouse pad because of how high their sensitivity is, which I'll get into later, but that is not a good thing to have. You should have a mouse pad that is ideally a foot tall at least, and around a foot wide. Then, with a good mouse pad, comes a good mouse. Many brands have good mice but my personal favorite brand is Logitech. I have used many logitech mice, some of my favorites being the G303, which has been replaced by the G302 in stock, which isn't great for FPS games, the G502 mouse, which has many buttons for mmos or for Fortnite building controls, and my current mouse, the G Pro gaming mouse, which I love for FPS games, because of a great sensor. Other great brands include Razer, Zowie, and Corsair. There are others but these are my favorites. In the end this will run you around $20.00 for a good mouse pad, and $60.00+ for a good mouse.
Sensitivity and DPI
Most mice have DPI or Dots Per Inch settings in their specific gaming software, which the user can set. I recommend having a low DPI, going with 1 of 2 options: 800 or 400 DPI. These are low and therefore more accurate, and allow for the most customization in the game regarding sensitivity. See your DPI will remain constant, but you can change your sensitivity in each game to further adjust your aim. I personally use 400 DPI if you were wondering. A simple guideline for me, in the games I play is I usually look to be able to turn 275 degrees with one full swing of my mouse across my mouse pad. Most people will say you only need to turn 180 degrees, which is true, but I like that slightly higher sens for more mobility in-game. A good way to test this is go up to an object in game and if you can turn slightly past 180 degrees whilst starting at said object, then your good to go. Finally, you should always make one adjustment to your sens if you start playing a new game, make sure it is at a good and comfortable sens, and then if you consistently lose fights purely because your sens is too low or high, then adjust accordingly. Also, don't always look to be changing your sens as it will only mess you up more, using one sens is the most beneficial as you will grow used to it, and become as good as you can be. Low sens is usually better for games, as it makes shots easier to hit, even if it feels SUPER slow at first.
Thanks for checking out my guide to aiming in video games, I hope you enjoyed, and remember to look forward to more content like this in the future.