6 Tips to Improve Your Map Control Ability in Games

Do you want to be able to dominate every tactical spot in a competitive game?

Well, it's the right time to enhance your map control ability.

The map control skill is an essential aptitude that can give gamers a strategic advantage over opponents.

It involves having enough knowledge about the active area to dominate every tactical point on it literally.

But to achieve this result, there are some ways to know and apply.

In this article, you'll discover some easy tips to implement in your game sessions to improve your map control abilities and become a more successful gamer overall.

What Is the Map Control Ability

Map control is the ability to perfectly understand a game zone to take advantage of this knowledge over the opposition while limiting the opponent's possible actions.

It involves in-depth comprehension of the active environment and the fact of completely dominating the active area.

Usually, the more knowledge you get, the better you'll be in the game and the more chance you have to control all critical zones.

And when you own them, you literally get tactical advantages over your opponents and higher chances to win.

However, the map control ability also depends on the game type you're playing, so what you must know and do can be different from one game to another.

In Which Games a Good Zone Coverage is Key to Win

Owning an area can be especially handy in the following games:

• FPS games: CS:GO, PUBG, Call Of Duty, Valorant, Fortnite, Overwatch 2, Apex Legends, Paladins
• MOBA games: DOTA 2, Leagues of Legends, Arena of Valor
• MMORPG: World of Warcraft, Lineage 2, Guild Wars 2, Black Desert Online, Lost Ark, New World

Now that you know what we're talking about and where this skill matters, let's discover some tips to improve your aptitude.

6 Tips to Enhance Your Map Coverage Ability in Games

Here are some tips to enhance your gameplay by improving your zone coverage ability:

Apprehend the Game Area Mechanics

Comprehending the game mechanics is the first step to becoming familiar with the location.

You need to understand all the rules, obstacles, and other features of your environment to manage it properly.

To be simple, if you know what's available to you in-game, then it will be easier to control the map.

Here are some general actions to use and adjust in your games to get enough knowledge of the active zone:

In competitive FPS games, the area is more often called battlefield or battleground. Having a good understanding of the active battlefield can help you know the following:

• Where to take cover when under fire
• Where are the hot spots with actions
• Where to shot from a distance
• Where to use your grenades
• Where are the routes to reach strategic points faster
• Where are the areas with objects you can use to your advantage
• Which zone to control for a maximum outcome impact

In competitive MOBA and MMORPG games, the map is also called the battlefield, battleground, and sometimes the zone.

And to dominate the zone, you have to understand as much as the FPS games about the active environment.

MOBA games are also a bit tricky as there have the following:

• Critical points that highly influence the outcomes of big fights by providing huge advantages
• Key events that affect early and late strategies
• A zone that evolves with time and influences all players' behaviors and possibilities

In fighting games, good map knowledge is about knowing exactly how to take advantage of items you can find.

It can involve the following:

• jumping on the map borders to pass behind an opponent
• picking up some battle items that provide more damage
• knowing all possible background items with potential collisions, you can take advantage of

And finally, in racing games, especially when playing real simulation ones.

The map control is then about knowing each race, each turn, and each pit stop area so you can take advantage of this knowledge to:

• approach turns with a better trajectory
• anticipate them by slowing down without braking
• know when you can pursue the race even with low gasoline remaining, so your car is faster

However, even though racing and fighting games also benefit from good map knowledge, the map control notion is only applied to FPS, MOBA, and MMORPG games.

In fact, as the primary goal for owning a map in FPS, MOBA, and MMORPG games is to dominate the zone, the area coverage concept is applied only to these game genres in competitive gaming.

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Understand Your Opponents' Tactics

Knowing your opponents' strategies is essential for having better area coverage.

You should try to learn their usual tactics and find out what they usually do on specific maps or areas.

This way, you can plan ahead and anticipate their movements to take countermeasures at all times and turn the tide of battle in your favor!

To accomplish that, you can try out some games using the matchmarking system and find some random players to play with:

In most FPS, you'll likely find players knowing all tactical areas to camp with their favorite long-range weapon.

Other players will always be at the front line and use their flash grenade first in low-vision zones, then rush in to clean everything.

But with a bit of time, you will notice the exact locations where these kinds of actions happen, so your next moves will be more rational, and you'll be able to take countermeasures easily.

In MOBA and MMORPG, you'll face players in groups, too, which requires a different approach to your observation.

Ignore them for too long, and you can be sure that the late game will be a nightmare for you.

Sometimes, it's just too difficult to carry a round when you miss the early game.

But MOBA and MMORPG also have dynamic environments that highly influence the game with various timed events that provide huge advantages and can change a round issue in seconds.

Your opponents are most likely to get these bonuses as soon as possible.

They are either yours or theirs.

Better to get them first so.

Know precisely when these events trigger, and you'll be in the right direction to understand your opponent's tactics!

Know Your Strengths and Weakness

Knowing your weaknesses and strengths is essential to becoming your best player.

When you play video games to win, you must identify areas where you could improve and focus on them.

Additionally, it's crucial to understand how to best utilize your strengths on the game location.

For example, for those who are experts in spotting camping spots before opponents, you should make sure to use this knowledge to your advantage as much as possible by taking strategic positions to control those areas.

But even if you do not possess a particular strength, practicing different skills such as map movement and awareness pays dividends so that these abilities can become stronger over time.

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Move Quickly

Whether playing to rank in divisions or for fun, moving fast is also essential to having reasonable map control and taking advantage of the environment.

To practice your movement speed, you should try different routes to get you faster from one point to another.

In shooter and MOBA games, consider all the shortcuts and paths you can follow to get in a better position faster.

Also, try using smokes, flashes, skills, or other tools and aptitudes to hide your movement during critical moments.

When you move faster than your opponents, you not only have more time to set up your next moves but also can take different approaches to surprise them as they will only expect you from certain spots.

Don't forget that your overall movement speed can also be improved by picking up the right gaming accessories.

Getting a suitable gamer keyboard and a gaming mouse with customizable in-game controls and shortcuts makes a big difference in your speed.

It's especially true as you can easily trigger multiple actions with one key pressure, such as buying equipment at the game round beginning or when you have to upgrade it after a respawn.

The more time you gain from your actions, the more time you'll have to move on the map!

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Practice Group Collaboration

In addition to focusing on your strengths and weaknesses, it's also vital to consider collective tactics for working with teammates.

Good group coordination is fundamental for any team-based game, such as FPS or MOBA games.

Communicate strategies with your squadmates, including which objectives should be prioritized, when it's safe or dangerous to move together, and which locations would benefit from more coverage or defense.

When everyone involved knows where they should be and what they should be doing, map control will be significantly easier for your teammates and yourself.

So be sure to get proper gaming accessories for that, such as a gaming headset with a mic or a microphone with a pop filter for a crystal-clear voice when you provide instructions!

Improve Your Field Vision

Field vision is an integral part of gaming and involves spotting important locations, areas, and features in the area.

But to get a clear vision, you must have enough pixels on your screen.

After all, you can't expect to compete against your opponent with a low resolution.

The more pixels you can display on your screen, the more field you cover.

So be sure to get a gaming monitor with a high-resolution and good refresh rate to see everything in the zone!

You'll quickly notice that your map control skill has suddenly improved.

And that's it for these tips to enhance your map control ability

By following them, you'll soon find yourself dominating every tactical point of any game zone with ease!

Remember: practice makes perfect, so make sure to spend time mastering the game layout's various aspects before jumping into competitive matches.

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Good luck, and have fun!