Introduction

CSGO is a beloved game not only for its mechanics that have an extremely high skill cap but also the tactical elements behind each play. Many people like to focus on the different ways you can improve your aim and movements, training maps and death match being favourites but you can actually climb the ranks without being a great aimer. I myself managed to get to LEM before the rank changes by basically having a tactical mind, using sound and nades to outposition my opponents and always give me a little advantage in any 1 on 1. Today I’d like to talk through some of these things that will allow you to improve with none of the focused training that is required to have a better aim.

Sound

The first step that will allow you to get the jump on any opponent is using your sound to the greatest possible effect. There are many forms of sound you can use to your advantage and the most important of these are footsteps. Footsteps allow you to do tell how far away an opponent is and where they might be playing based on the type of sound they’re making. When you have a greater understanding of each map you can basically visualise where they are defending site from or as a defender the exact time they will walk out from around a corner into your crosshair. It’s basically like having wall hacks without having to take a vacation. Listening to shot sounds and reloading is also very important as it allows you to have the ideal time to push. This can be perfect to push a smoke after the opponent has sprayed it or to pick off an AWPer after they shoot to get what is essentially a free kill. Other map specific sound indicators such as vents and ladders on Nuke or Mirage can prepare you very specifically for knowing where an enemy is and what they might be doing. For example, if I’m a T player intending to push Mid on Mirage and I hear the vent break for Sniper's Nest, I know that I will reach Mid and be able to hold the angle before their player can even contest it.

If you hear wooden footsteps, it's likely someone is rushing to peek Palace as an example

Strategy and Communication

You might be the best aimer in the game but the fact of the matter is it’s a 5v5 game and at the top ranks you need to work with your team to succeed. There are a number of strategies in CS that range from “rush B” to “Aim the smoke at the third cloud 3 inches from the left and throw .3 seconds after jumping forward while walking,” which all can be successful to some degree. Obviously I’m not going to go into specific in-depth strategies here, but you’d be surprised about the knowledge the general CS community has when it comes to smokes and strategy. This obviously ties in with communication. Talk to your team, ask them if they know any strategies and try to coordinate with each other to put together an offensive. On defense, communicate where you’re playing and if you hear any movement or nades. Being clear and effective with what you say is key here. You don’t want to cause your team to over-rotate or get one of your teammates killed by making them look somewhere an enemy isn’t. As a side note, if you get upset with a teammate try venting at them with your mic turned off, and then once you’ve calmed down, explain what went wrong and you’ll probably get better results.



I think if I shoot this smoke midair it should land somewhere on site?

Positioning

Moving on from strategy positioning is another key element in improving your play. Understanding the top places to defend sites and the best angles to attack will help you without actually improving too much. This kind of relates to strategy in the sense that positioning will depend on what you’re trying to achieve and the kind of tools you have at your disposal. For example, if you’re a Terrorist on Cache and you’re hitting A with just a Tec 9, you might want to cut to Forklift and keep it close range rather than running to Quad where an M4 or AWP has every opportunity to take you out. Similarly, as a CT you want to be aware of what the T side might have at their disposal. Try to avoid playing close angles against those deadly SMGs if you have an M4 and remember to keep changing positions, if only slightly, to keep the T side on their toes. Make sure you understand the point behind every strategy you run. If you are on an eco doing a full rush and you end up baiting your team or going somewhere else and getting there late, you may potentially lose the round for your team.



No one will expect you to be standing in the open! (That's because it's bad... please don't do that.)

Conclusion

CSGO is an FPS game at heart and shooting people before they shoot you is obviously a core gameplay mechanic. However to be the best at shooting people before they shoot you, a little thought often goes a long way and having better positioning, strategy and awareness than your opponents is the first step to success. Many of the great pro players and teams aren’t the best aimers. On that point some of the best ways to improve these skills, especially strategy and positioning, is to spend some time looking at what the pros do and how they react to certain visual and sound cues. You might as well improve while being entertained! So with that I implore you to spend some time outthinking your opponent and you won’t be forced to outaim them.

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