As you change things, remember that it might feel strange and wrong at first – give it a few games before you change them back, so you have a chance to get used to playing on the new settings.
How to Find the Best Camera Settings for Rocket League
The best way to find ideal camera settings for Rocket League is to look at what the pros use. Since Rocket League is a competitive hobby – or in some cases, a job – for them, they’ve spent a lot of time figuring out what the absolute best settings are for the game. Even within the ranks of Rocket League’s top players, there’s a lot of difference for their settings. They can give you an excellent place to start, but you have to test it out and adjust each setting for yourself to find which best suits your playstyle.
Camera Preset
The camera preset is a way for Rocket League to set its preferred settings. Since you’re going to adjust the settings to work for you, the custom option is what you’ll end up seeing in that drop-down.
Camera Shake
Camera shake is literally the movement of the camera through which you’re watching the action. In general, it might be better to turn it off so that it doesn’t remove your focus from your objective. Most players who are serious and competitive about Rocket League do not use camera shake simply because it is an unnecessary distraction. Having the camera move around might be nice for immersion, but it doesn’t give you the optimal view for competitive play. All you have to do is remove the checkmark from the Camera Shake box to disable it. It’s easy to toggle it back on if you’re playing some games with friends and want a more immersive but less tactical experience.
Field of View
The field-of-view is a measure of just how much screen space you can see when you’re zoomed out. If you like to have a larger view of the field, then a higher field-of-view measurement will be good for you. You may get an advantage from being able to see what other players are doing, as well as have an easier time tracking the movement of the ball down the field. Some players prefer to follow their vehicle more closely and to escape the area’s distractions. Those might set a tighter field of view. Here’s an important point to consider: a higher field of view can decrease your frames-per-second and hurt the performance of the game. When you see more of the screen, that’s more information your computer has to process and display. If your computer struggles with Rocket League, you may want to keep the FOV measurement low. However, while the default FOV is 90, many experienced players prefer to play between 100 and 110. Try starting with 110 to see whether you like the larger difference, and then test it a bit by lowering it by 2 in each subsequent game to determine which you want to keep in the long term.
Distance
Distance is very similar to the field of view setting because it’s a measure of how far from the back of the car your camera is. Popular values for professionals land between 260 and 280. As with setting up your FOV measurement, a good way to test it is to set it to the top value of 280. Move it down by five every few games to see if you prefer that viewpoint better than the one before it. One thing to keep in mind is distances in the game will look different as you adjust the distance and FOV measurements. You might have a difficult time tracking the ball at first. If that persists as you get used to the new settings, try lowering the distance a bit to see if it’s easier.
Height
Height is a measure of how far above your car the camera sits. This is critical to be a competitive Rocket League player. If the height is too low, you can lose track of the ball. If the height is too high, you can lose control of your movements – especially the precision movements in those intense, essential moments. Try setting the height to 110 to start, the most common setting for professionals. However, looking at different players, you’ll see that settings range from 70 for Ganer up to 150 for Fairy Peak. So feel free to experiment to get a better idea of what works best for you.
Angle
Most pros keep their angles in the negative to have an easier time spotting other players. You’ll see them go as low as -7 degrees for Mummisnow, but most players stick around -4 or -5 degrees. Since so few pros put their angle into the positives, it’s better to start by positioning yourself at -4 degrees to see how that feels. Don’t delve into the positive angles unless you really dislike playing at negative ones because a positive angle is a much less competitive setting.
Stiffness
When your car suddenly boosts forward, the camera doesn’t always follow it closely. Sometimes it takes a second to adjust – and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. This is what the stiffness value measures. Having a high stiffness value means the camera sticks more closely to your car. However, it also means you might miss out on the things happening on the field as your position rapidly changes. A lower stiffness value means the camera might be farther from your car, but you have a better view of the playing field. Professional Rocket League players use a wide variety of stiffness settings. Express plays at 0 while Drippay plays at 1.0. Try starting around 0.5 and then adjusting to see which stiffness works best. Most players can find a comfortable value between 0.30 and 0.70.
Swivel Speed
When you want to change your view of the field, you can manually move your camera. Swivel speed determines how quickly that happens. If you want to get to the correct position more quickly, you can choose a higher swivel speed. However, that speed means you get less control, and it’s easier to overshoot the place you’re trying to look. A lower swivel speed means the camera moves slower. You might not be able to get the view you want as quickly, but you’re also less likely to keep going once you land on it. There isn’t really an ideal swivel speed, which is apparent when looking at the wide range of swivel values the pros use. However, many of them come near the average value of 5, which is an excellent place to start. Try practicing your swivel speed by moving the camera to a location on the field that you want to see. Check whether it feels too slow of an adjustment or whether it’s so quick that you have trouble controlling it. Once you know, adjust as needed and then try again.
Transition Speed
You don’t rely on a single camera in Rocket League. Moving from the car camera to the ball camera is one way to ensure you can make the quick adjustments needed to win a match. Transition speed determines how fast this happens. When you set it higher, the switch happens fast. When it’s adjusted to being lower, it takes a little more time. Too much time means you can’t see what you need to see to complete a maneuver. Too little time might be uncomfortable and disorienting. Pros play at many different transition speeds, anywhere from 1 to 1.9. Start at 1, which is the lowest. Move between 1 and 1.1, then 1.2, and so on until you find one that’s comfortable for you.
Invert Swivel and Toggle
Invert swivel simply changes the way the swivel feature works. Instead of moving in the default direction, it moves in the opposite. That’s purely a matter of personal preference, though most people prefer not to change to invert swivel. Another setting to consider is whether you want to press and hold to swap to the ball cam or whether you prefer a toggle function instead. With press and hold, the camera stays on the ball cam only as long as you’re holding down the assigned key. With toggle, it switches until you press the key again. Most pros and players, in general, prefer to use the toggle feature, although some like Fireburner prefer to hold the key. Try both to see which you prefer. At the end of your time adjusting settings, sit back and remember: the best camera settings for Rocket League are the ones that work best for you. No matter what the pros use, if you get better utility with a different setting, use that one instead. It’s all about personalization and making sure you work your way down the field without dropping the ball.
