How to Aim in CS:GO

What Is Aim in CS:GO?

Aim is one of the most important things in any FPS game. If you can't shoot fast and accurately, you can't play effectively. Shooting is the main sense of the game. Millions of players spend hundreds of hours playing Counter-Strike just to shoot at their enemies.

In CS:GO, shooting is a core skill, and aiming is an integral part. To become a good player, you must eliminate your foes faster than you can think about it. In this legendary first person shooter, you have to make decisions instantly when your enemy attacks you!

Set Up Your CS:GO Crosshair Settings & Sensitivity

Like in other games where players have to shoot a lot, the overall gameplay of CS:GO heavily depends on the crosshair settings. It doesn't matter what weapon you like to use. These settings are equally important for shotguns and sniper rifles.

When it comes to the crosshair, 2 scenarios are possible. The first one is to adjust its settings yourself. You go through dozens of them until you achieve the perfect sensitivity, size, etc. Of course, this will take a very long time.

The second scenario is more preferable: just use the settings of real players. Foremost, these are pro gamers. Just open Google and enter a query like s1mple crosshair. You'll quickly find settings like in the image below.

Why should you play with crosshairs from the best CS players? Because their settings have been tested in thousands of battles. This doesn't necessarily mean that they'll suit you and you'll start killing every enemy with ease. However, they'll do as a starting point.

If you're a beginner, we recommend that you choose the static version of the crosshair. Most pros prefer it. As for sensitivity, crosshair placement, and other settings, the optimal combination can only be found over time. Be patient, practice more, and you'll succeed!

Configure Mouse Sensitivity

Remember a simple rule: the lower you set your mouse sensitivity, the more accurate your aim will be. The main thing is not to make it too low. Otherwise, the reaction time to your hand movements will increase and you won't be able to quickly target your opponents with the crosshair.

The mouse sensitivity which pros choose ranges from 2 to 4. This is easy to see if you watch a couple of Youtube videos where cool players show their settings. Try some of them to improve your aim. Start practicing today, and the results won't be long in coming.

What is Mouse Sensitivity?

Sensitivity is one of the mouse settings that determines the speed of reaction to user actions. The higher it is, the faster the pointer moves when you work with your mouse. The sensitivity is configurable in Windows and in the game.

What Is CPI & DPI?

DPI and CPI are abbreviations for characteristics that in some way determine the performance of a mouse. The first one stands for Dots Per Inch. Let the DPI be 900. In practice, this means that the mouse will inform the PC 900 times when moving 1 inch. As for CPI, it's Counts Per Inch, or the same as DPI. DPI/CPI is the key to effective shooting in competitive games like CS:GO.

What's the Best DPI/CPI for CS:GO?

As we mentioned before, your mouse sensitivity should be low so you can aim and shoot more accurately. Its optimal value is between 300 and 1000. Pros usually prefer around 400. Higher sensitivity doesn't work well with games where you need to quickly shoot your foes.

What other mouse features are important besides DPI/CPI?

1. Design and ergonomics.
2. Number of buttons.
3. Connectivity (wired/wireless).
4. Sensor type (laser/optical).
5. Size and price.

How to Calculate Real CS:GO Mouse Sensitivity

To aim well, you must consider sensitivity directly during the game. It's calculated with the following formula: Mouse DPI * Game Mouse Sensitivity Settings. Let's say the DPI of your mouse is 400. The sensitivity is set in the game as 2. Therefore, the value is 400 * 2 = 800.

Best Mouse Settings for CS:GO

The best settings are those that allow you to aim effectively and take out your opponents with lightning speed. Still, you can use the settings from the table below if you don't know where to start your aim training.

Find a Perfect Crosshair Placement

A typical rookie mistake is to aim at the sky or the ground. Actually, you should keep your crosshair at the so-called headshot level. Don't look for your opponents from above or below. Try to move your crosshair only left and right.

You can deviate from this rule depending on the map terrain. Headshot levels directly depend on it. To learn them, you'll have to explore all the popular maps, from Mirage to Vertigo. Unfortunately, there is no easier way to find the perfect crosshair placement for each location.

You should also learn to pre-aim at the spots where your foes are most likely to be. In addition, it's good practice to master the art of pre-shooting. Thanks to this, you'll be able to eliminate your rivals without entering into battle with them.

Develop Your Shooting Technique

Steam Community users identify 3 main shooting techniques in Counter-Strike: tapping, bursting, and spraying. Your aim training should include mastering all of them. Next, we'll take a closer look at what each technique consists of. Let's start with tapping and its features.

Tapping

Tapping is the same as single shots. During encounters with your rivals, you must fire 1 bullet per shot from all the weapons you use. To win, aim at the opponent's head. Among other things, this technique is perfect for long-range fights. Its advantage is also low ammo usage.

Bursting

This is a mid-range fighting technique. You should fire 3-4 bullets from Glocks, assault rifles, or other weapons per burst. The good news is that you don't have to worry about gun control. Since the number of bullets is small, you almost never have to watch the recoil.

Spraying

This technique is most effective in short-range encounters, especially when you're facing 2 or more enemies. Spraying means you're putting as many bullets into your foes as possible. The problem is that every weapon in the game has its own spray pattern. Although you must learn each of them, we advise you to start with the 10-bullet pattern.

Engage in CSGO Aim Training to Sharpen Your Skills

Even the best CS:GO players couldn't aim at first. The secret of their current skill lies in the fact that they practiced a lot. If you want to shoot like them, you'll have to spend a lot of time on aim training. What is the best way to do this? Download special maps!

These maps are something like aim trainers. Their designs are developed in such a way that gamers can improve their skills of fast and accurate aiming. To make deadly shooting second nature to you, download the following maps from the Steam Workshop:

Fast Aim/Reflex Training

Official Page

This aim training map will help you to master your tapping skills. Once you join the game, you'll be confronted by an infinite number of bots. Your opponents are armed with knives and cannot reach you. You'll be able to significantly hone your tapping skills by playing on this custom map.

Recoil Master – Spray Training

Official Page

This is one of the best aim trainers for players who seek to learn how to control recoil. Experienced gamers are advised to start training with the AK-47. When its recoil patterns are no longer a secret to you, it'll be much easier to master shooting with the rest of the weapons.

Training_Aim_CSGO2

Official Page

Some aim training maps become very popular after their releases. Training_Aim_CSGO2 is a great example of this. At the time of writing, this map has over 7,000,000 subscribers!

To start playing on this aim training map, you need to choose your weapon. Then you'll shoot at the red dot that appears on different targets. It'll train your reaction and muscle memory.

Know Your Weapons: Understanding the Arsenal in CS:GO

If you don't know the features of your weapon, neither the right mouse sensitivity nor the crosshair placement will help you. Imagine that you're armed with a rifle. To shoot effectively with it, you must stand still. Otherwise, your bullets will fly past your enemies. We think this is a good explanation why you should be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of your guns.

Making a Good Choice for Beginners

SMGs

Shotguns

Note the links below the images. They lead to the weapon category pages on the CS:GO Wiki. You'll be able to get detailed information about all types of guns there. For your convenience, we provide similar links in the following subsections.

SMGs and Shotguns have several important benefits. Let's start with the fact that controlling them won't require much effort from you. You'll also be able to fire them at your opponents without interrupting your run. If you're a beginner and don't know where to start training in shooting, feel free to choose these guns as your first weapons.

The Most Efficient Weapon

AWP	M4A4
M4A1-S	AK-47

These are the most effective weapons in the whole game. Although a sniper rifle can kill any enemy with one shot, it's expensive and requires a certain amount of skill. Your priority weapons are the AK-47 and both M4s. Most often you'll shoot with these.

The Most Challenging to Aim

Negev

M249

These weapons may seem to be the most powerful in the game at first glance. Nevertheless, the battles in CS:GO have little in common with real life, where you can eliminate dozens of enemies with a machine gun. The M249 and Negev are only good for holding back enemies. It's extremely difficult to master them.

Tips & Tricks to Help You Improve Your Aim in CS:GO

Counter-Strike is not only a unique game in every sense, but it’s also a long-term project. The developers are constantly working on improving it by adding new mechanics and modes. That's why it's been fun to play for over 20 years.

To get the most out of this legendary game, you must shoot like a real terminator! Effective shooting is impossible without accurate aiming. Here are some simple tips that will definitely improve this very useful skill.

Play a Warm-Up Match

A warm-up match will prepare you for the upcoming battle. It's something like sports training. You do a few sets of simple exercises and your body becomes ready for higher loads. The same goes for CS:GO. Shooting at weak enemies smoothly flows into combat against other gamers. Be sure to warm up before your matches.

Build Your Muscle Memory

Imagine that you're moving towards your destination when suddenly an enemy attacks you. Without thinking at all, you point the crosshair at your foe and kill him. You must have been in similar situations. This is what muscle memory is all about.

How to build it? Play, play, and play! When you're done, play again. Unfortunately, muscle memory cannot be developed otherwise. This skill can only be improved by doing the same type of activity regularly. There is no other way.

Enhance Your Flick Aim

Flick aiming is a technique for quickly capturing an enemy in the crosshairs. To do this, you must move your wrist from side to side to prevent your opponent from escaping. If you've never done anything like this before, it'll be difficult for you to train on opponents in online battles. So, start with bots. They move much slower.

Use Crouch Effectively

Crouching reduces the spread of bullets, making it easier to aim. When you crouch during a firefight, you can avoid getting killed. Most players keep crosshairs at headshot levels. Crouched targets move out of range of their weapons. Use it to survive.

Other useful tips

1. Learn to control recoil.
2. Try not to reload your weapon if there are enemies nearby.
3. Master the art of strafing.
4. Explore the main features of all popular maps.
5. Don't get into long firefights.

Conclusion

While we've given you a lot of advice in this post, we want to repeat the most important piece again: PRACTICE. Aiming cannot be mastered without it. Play as often as you can and you'll begin to quickly target all your rivals. That's all. See you soon on our blog!

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