A redirect in Rocket League is exactly what it might sound like. When the ball is off-target, a player can redirect the ball into the net such that the pass is turned into a goal seamlessly. Redirects come in all different forms and difficulties. For example, a simple redirect shot would be when a player shoots the ball along the ground and misses the angle. The nearby teammate would notice the shot was not on target and go to aid the shot into the net. Below is an example of a simple redirect goal.

Redirects don't end there, though. In fact, you can redirect shots from the air, from a wall, from the backboard or even from the ceiling. These types of shots are accessible from any spot on the field, but as you would expect some areas require a higher amount of skill to redirect the shot into the goal than others.

There are factors that might affect how effective or accurate a redirect shot is. These are:

The angle your car is at. You can control this by using the air roll button.

The speed that your car is going at. Often, being stationary is a much more controlled way of hitting the shot.

Which way you flip into the ball. This can get confusing when upside down from the ceiling or sideways on a wall.

The distance that you are at from the goal you are wanting to score in. The further away you are, the easier it is for the enemy team to save it.

The Angle of Your Car

The air roll button has been used over time as a 'showing off' trick. It is often associated with freestyling while going for an aerial shot or is used to hit much more difficult shots such as flip resets. However, it is much more important than you may imagine. Angling your car in the air will affect the direction the ball will go in. Below is an example of me hitting the ball off the wall in a right-up position compared to hitting it whilst air rolling upside-down.

Although where you hit the ball will play a factor in this, there is no denying that air rolling can change the direction of the ball completely. Going for an aerial without air rolling will make the ball go either forward or upwards if hitting the ball into the center. However, if you are upside down, the ball will almost always go downwards rather than upwards.

Bearing this in mind and also acknowledging that you will also have a flip to play with, this will help you in hitting a redirect shot. The Rocket League Youtuber 'Pulse Fire' shows the effect of air rolling in his 'Rocket League - Redirect Training Pack!' video. Especially at the 42 second mark, you can see the effect of hitting the ball while upside down when the ball is hit quite high in the air.

The Speed of Your Car

The speed of your car is the second factor that will affect the accuracy of your redirect shot. The speed of your car is most likely dependent on the speed of the ball that has been shot towards the goal. If your car has too much momentum and you flip into the ball, you might find that you will have a much slimmer chance of hitting the shot. Again, this depends on the speed the ball is moving at, but it is important to note that you can score a redirect shot whilst being completely still or moving very slowly.



Which Way You Flip into the Ball

Though this might sound basic, this goes hand-in-hand with the air roll point I discussed earlier. When air rolling to achieve the perfect angle you need to score the redirect, you have the choice of using your flip or not. Using your flip will use a lot of power and this might negatively affect your accuracy. However, having that extra power behind a shot can sometimes aid your precision and placement on the goal.

Below is a clip of me air rolling upside down and flipping to gain that extra height on the shot.

If I hadn't flipped on this shot, the ball will have likely gone downwards and rolled across the floor. However, flipping allowed me to gain height on the ball, which was a lot more unpredictable for the enemy team. Not only did it gain height, but it also gained a lot more momentum than it had previously, and the faster your shot is on the net, the less time the other team has to react and counter it.

The direction that you flip all depends on the way that you air roll, so it is important to make sure you have your air roll sorted out before you decide to hit the jump button again.



The Distance You Are at

This is another simple point but also crucial in your planning of a redirect shot. If you are deciding that you are wanting to try this shot, make sure to check where you are on the field. If you still find that the shot is worth going for, you will need to decide how much power to put behind your shot in relation to your distance from the goal.

In more basic terms, then:

If you are close to the goal you are wanting to score in, you might consider using less power

If you are far away from the goal you are wanting to score in, you may wish to use more power as this will be more unpredictable, meaning the enemy team won't be able to counter the attack quick enough.

As mentioned, power comes from the way you flip into the ball, the speed you hit the ball at, and the direction your car is facing as a result of air rolling. So be sure to consider all these points if wanting to go for a power shot on the net.

Overall, there are many factors that are going to affect the way you hit a redirect shot. It is important to remember, however, that these shots can be scored from anywhere on the field. The only difference is that the factors discussed above will need to be considered in different ways if, for example, you are wanting to score a shot from the ceiling versus if you want to score a shot from the ground.

Luckily, there are many training packs on the in-game training system which will allow you to practice these redirects from every position on the field. So get out there and train so that you can become an ultimate team player on those online matches.

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