CS2 Fundamentals: How to Master Prefiring

Ever hear the phrase “all aim, no brain”? As ridiculous and funny as it sounds, that age-old phrase still rings true today for lots of old and new players. Aim without proper game sense and awareness only gets you so far, and the same can be said for all the IQ in the world with zero mechanics.

Check out more CS2 gameplay and settings guides on our blog:

CS2 Guides

Counter-Strike 2 is not just about running around the map hoping to get kills and plant the bomb. It’s about knowing angles, how to peek them (such as counter-strafing or jiggle-peeking), and predicting enemy team positioning. In these instances, there’s nothing better than pre-aiming a spot to start shooting once it’s in the line of sight. This is known as prefiring.

Prefiring in Counter-Strike 2 Explained

Prefiring in CS2 and pretty much every other first-person shooter is the act of shooting at expected enemy positions even before you see them or confirm their true location. Lots of factors, including knowledge of common angles, crosshair placement, muscle memory, and other aiming skills, go into a successful prefiring technique.

The first step is to pre-aim a certain position on the map, usually behind a wall or at a certain angle that cannot be seen yet, and swing out just enough so that your crosshair placement lands at head level (in most cases), where you anticipate the opponent would be.

Counter-Strike 2 also rewards accurate shots and punishes movement error, so be sure to counter-strafe upon swinging out to ensure first bullet accuracy, since the first shot is usually what people intend to kill with when prefiring.

How to Improve Pre-Aim/Prefiring in CS2

There are lots of practice aim maps or servers that have their own prefiring modes, equipped with all the common angles and hiding spots for enemies. You can practice how fast you’re able to peek out and how efficiently you can kill someone, especially considering both time and ammunition.

Simply playing in competitive matchmaking is also the next best way to improve naturally. Prefiring works for a reason, and that’s because hiding spots in certain maps get repetitive, no matter how many years have gone by. Having a pretty good understanding of map layouts and how the enemy team plays will give you a significant advantage when checking angles.

Twitter Giveaways

Daily skin giveaways on our Twitter

Join