In the sport of archery there are physical techniques to ensure consistent and accurate aim. In first person shooter games we don’t often think of it as a physical process – but it is. You’re familiar with the process of sitting down to use a mouse – but there are other physical practices that can be used to unlock god-tier aim. Here are my key technique to having consistent aim in Overwatch and similar FPS games.

Keep your head level and straight.

Your inner ears are the centre of balance for the entire body. When you keep your head level and straight something interesting happens when you aim. Firstly, because the screen is no longer shaking relative to your vision – targets become much easier to see.

You may be familiar with the phenomenon of your eyes ‘glazing over’ as targets on the screen become more chaotic and you start tracking them only superficially (missing shots in the process.) This virtually doesn’t happen when you keep your head straight.

Secondly, because targets are easier to track, it ends up becoming a matter of mechanical skill whether you hit targets. You can start to develop consistent, reproducible aim, even when tired.

Relax your body when you shoot.

During matches there is a lot going on which produces stress. When you’re stressed you will miss more shots. To practice this technique you should focus on slightly relaxing the muscles in your body as you shoot. This technique will help manage stress in-game and it will also help prevent shaky aim.

Directly look at the target to shoot.

I know this seems obvious but it’s not always easy to do. When targets move erratically your eyes become taxed from having to constantly focus. Sooner or later you may start relying more on peripheral vision and overall prediction to hit shots than direct focus. That is when you’ll miss.

The challenge is finding a way to maintain precise focus on targets you shoot at all times. Will you need to blink more? Will you need to occasionally look away to recharge? You will need to track the target precisely with your eyes at all times otherwise hitting them is just luck.

Don’t move the mouse with your clicks.

Imagine you’ve done everything right. You’ve lined up the perfect shot: the cross-hair is on the target. So you go to shoot and still you miss. Why is that? Well, if you’re anything like me just the act of going to click is enough to move the mouse ever so slightly. So that by the time you end up clicking your cross-hair is no longer on the target.

What you need to do is shoot in such a way that clicking doesn’t move the mouse at all. The best hero to learn this technique with is Hanzo on a custom game because you’re not going to get headshots consistently if you can’t master clicking without your mouse moving around.

If you master this last technique it will take your aim to a level you never thought possible. You’ll be able to do feats that seem super natural.

To recap:

1. Keep your head level and straight.
2. Relax your body when you shoot.
3. Ensure you precisely track targets with your eyes.
4. Don’t move the mouse with your clicks.