The Perfect Controller Button Configuration? (XBOX1 Controller)

[Pass Plays]

I started playing this game when it came out in Spring of 2015 and have about 5800 hours in. I started out on Keyboard/Mouse for the first 1500 hours or so, then switched to a controller thereafter. I have changed controller button configurations a couple of times since, always trying to find that "perfect" configuration that lets you perform any mechanic that you would ever need to do in Rocket League in a comfortable and ergonomic way. I have tried using both a regular XBOX1 controller and also a Fusion Power A with rear "paddles" for extra versatility in button mapping. But as the game has evolved and people have gotten more skilled and developed more complex mechanics, it has become more difficult to settle on a button configuration that has all the answers.

I recently changed controller configurations again, for what I hope will be the last time. I believe I have come up with the best configuration possible for Rocket League using a standard XBOX1 Controller.

I am sharing it below, and the reasons why I chose what I did. I welcome any comments or improvement suggestions people may have. Hopefully this will help new players or anyone else who is struggling with taking their game to the next level using the default or other inferior button configuration.

My configuration is as follows:
(I use index fingers on the bumpers, middle fingers on the triggers, thumbs on the sticks and buttons)

Gas: A
Brake: X
Boost: B
Jump: R Bumper
Ball Cam: L Bumper (hold)
Air Roll Left: L Trigger
Air Roll Right: R Trigger
Power slide: L Trigger
Scoreboard: Y
Pretty much everything else is default

So first, generally speaking, it is advantageous to be able to independently push any combination of buttons. I tried to best spread out the functions to accomplish that. If one finger must control two buttons, they should be two buttons you would never need to push at the same time. In Rocket League, two buttons that would never need to be pushed at the same time are brake/reverse and boost. Thus, I mapped them as X and B respectively with Gas (A) in the middle.

Mechanically speaking, pressing gas while boosting does nothing extra beyond what you would get by just pressing boost. However, being able to seamlessly transition from boost to just gas is obviously critical and can be accomplished by "fat thumbing" those buttons, rolling your thumb to one or the other or both at the same time as needed.

Conversely, pressing gas and brake at the same is functionally significant. Doing so causes what I will call a "half brake"; it slows down and eventually stops the car but not nearly as quickly as if you were holding only brake. This can be useful when ground dribbling and other situations where controlling your car's speed more precisely is important. This is also accomplished with the "fat thumb" technique on the A and X buttons. Controlling gas, boost, and brake all with your thumb is awkward at first, but you get used to it in time and it ultimately is just as accurate as any other control configuration.

Being someone who has used the left and right triggers for brake and gas respectively (default) for most of my playing time, I anticipate the question "but what about the analog function of being able to brake or gas a little or a lot depending on how deeply you press the trigger?" First, in my experience the times that you need to be that precise with the gas or brake button are few and far between. The only time it really comes into play is when dribbling along the ground, and even when I was dribbling while using the old configuration I found myself more often tapping or "feathering" the triggers rather than holding them halfway down. Feathering the A button accomplishes basically the same effect as a half pressed trigger, and I feel it is actually is more precise, you just have to get used to it. Second, the analog triggers are much better utilized as air roll buttons, which I will expand upon below.

Until this latest configuration change, I had been using the default single “hold” air roll button in conjunction with the stick. This has obvious limitations in that you can’t turn the car and air roll at the same time which critically limits what you can do in the air. If you have any hope of developing upper level mechanics, freestyling ability, tornado spins, etc., you must map a dedicated left and/or right air roll button. In my previous button configuration I had mapped X to right air roll in order to open up these possibilities, but it always seemed like an awkward solution. How does it make sense to have a single L/R “hold” air roll button and then also a dedicated right air roll? Plus, my right air roll button was not analog so it was 100% air roll speed whenever it was pushed. Eliminating that whole mess and switching to a dedicated Air Roll Right and Air Roll Left on the analog triggers provides the ultimate aerial command. You have complete control over both the yaw and roll, both direction and speed, all independently. I know it will take a long time to master, especially transitioning from a single air roll button. But there is literally no other configuration possible that could offer more aerial control.

Because you can only use the powerslide when you are on the ground, and you can only use air roll when you are in the air, it makes sense to map both functions on a single button, which is what I have done with the Left Trigger. I suppose there are some situations where you immediately land on the wall or ground after air rolling, such as after a half flip, and you could accidentally power slide a little bit before you can let go of the button, but it hasn’t been an issue for me. You can just as easily have the powerslide on the Right Trigger if that is more comfortable for you.

The rest of the functions ended up where I had buttons left to put them. Do what feels comfortable to you. The Y button is in an inaccessible spot given the rest of the configuration, so I put the scoreboard there because that is the least important button, mechanically speaking. Some people use the claw grip and bind the ball cam to the Y button but this seems awkward to me, especially when fat-thumbing the buttons below. I think the L bumper is a much more ergonomic place for the ball cam. Personally I like the “hold” version rather than the “toggle” version for ball cam because I always know whether it is activated or not. I tried the toggle version for a while but sometimes I would accidentally push it twice and toggle it back off, and for situations like high aerials sometimes you don’t know if it’s on until it’s too late. And it is distracting to have to glance down to see the ball cam indicator and adjust if necessary. The hold ball cam takes some getting used to but it offers much more consistency and it is definitely the better option in my opinion.

Well, that’s pretty much it. Feel free to comment.

[lollars]

gas on A is not good you can drive slower but its not the same as on a trigger

[Specific Beef]

Triggers = Brake, Accel
LB = Powerslide and Air Roll (basic)
RB= Boost
Y = Camera
X= Air Roll L
B= Air Roll R
A= Jump

[Brunn]

Whatever works for you, but I wouldn't advise that to new players. I 100% agree that having both boost and jump on the face buttons is bad (even though most pro players do that), but having accel and brake there is something we don't do since the PS2 era.

I use the same config as the player above me, except I don't have Air Roll L and R* and just use B for camera, X for Rumble items and Y for Scoreboard.

* Theoretically you're right, having specific Air Roll L and R buttons gives you even more control, but imo that's something minor and even pro players often just use Powerslide.

[Pass Plays]

Originally posted by Kiko Navara:

Whatever works for you, but I wouldn't advise that to new players. I 100% agree that having both boost and jump on the face buttons is bad (even though most pro players do that), but having accel and brake there is something we don't do since the PS2 era.

I use the same config as the player above me, except I don't have Air Roll L and R* and just use B for camera, X for Rumble items and Y for Scoreboard.

* Theoretically you're right, having specific Air Roll L and R buttons gives you even more control, but imo that's something minor and even pro players often just use Powerslide.

Just curious, why do you think having accelerate and brake on the face buttons is so bad? I'm not saying it is necessarily the ideal way to layout acceleration control per se, but for the overall configuration it is better in order to free up the analog triggers for air roll.

I had basically the same configuration you described before I changed to this one (adding X for Air Roll Right much later), I just felt like I hit a plateau with it. There were advanced mechanics I simply couldn't do or were made unnecessarily complicated with that configuration. I had also previously tried independent air roll L/R on non-analog buttons for a while like Beef described (for me it was rear paddles on a Fusion Power A) but being able to control your air roll speed along with direction makes so much of a difference I decided to make this change.

One other issue with my old configuration was that I always found myself holding down gas when it was on the trigger. It became kind of part of my grip. This led to me to unintentionally overaccelerate at times, particularly in the air. Some people don't realize that holding gas (without boost) in the air actually provides very slight additional acceleration. See video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoOWKG3xv7U. This is great when you are low on boost and need to make an epic save or fast aerial, but can really screw up a precise air dribble or ball flip reset when the additional acceleration is unintended (especially when your car is not always pointing directly at the ball). Having boost and gas on the face buttons forces me to be more aware of when I am pressing gas, and it helps me to use just boost when making precise aerial movements which has made a world of difference for me.

I understand that pros get by with all kinds of different button configurations, but they have invested thousands of hours into perfecting their mechanics using them. At that point there is no way they are going to start over from scratch with a new config, but that doesn't necessarily mean that their configuration is best. They are just extremely talented and able to adapt. I'm not that good I guess, and I felt I needed to start over with a more ergonomic configuration in order to take my game to the next level. I guess what I am saying overall is that I wish I would have started with this configuration from day one, and I am just offering it as an option to new players so they maybe they aren't in my position later.

[TommyEV]

Default with air roll on RB/R1.

[Brunn]

Originally posted by Yeoman:

Just curious, why do you think having accelerate and brake on the face buttons is so bad? I'm not saying it is necessarily the ideal way to layout acceleration control per se, but for the overall configuration it is better in order to free up the analog triggers for air roll.

It makes sense, having Air Roll L and R on the shoulder/trigger buttons must be better than rolling with X and B like I'd do (if I used it). But everyone is way too used to accelerating and braking with the triggers, I just wouldn't advise those settings to someone new that's all.

Whenever I play an old game where you accelerate with face buttons, it just feels so weird.

I just realized the first Xbox's face buttons were analog, so your config makes sense. But you're the first person I know of who owns those, and anyone on 360, Xbone, Playstation or any other modern controller would be losing the ability to drive more slowly.

[SparsePrawn891]

nah you lost me after you said air roll is x and b, do i need to use my dpad and use quater circle foward to do a right flick?

[Pass Plays]

Originally posted by SparsePrawn891:

nah you lost me after you said air roll is x and b, do i need to use my dpad and use quater circle foward to do a right flick?

I'm not sure what you are asking... my dpad is for chat, I assume you mean stick. But anyway, good flicks are all about the "cradle" (see video below) and having complete control of the way your car moves in the air should make that setup easier and more consistent. I'm still getting used to my new configuration and was far from mastering flicks anyway, but with practice I expect I will be better than when I was using my old config.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWdheraunb4

[SparsePrawn891]

Originally posted by Yeoman:

Originally posted by SparsePrawn891:

nah you lost me after you said air roll is x and b, do i need to use my dpad and use quater circle foward to do a right flick?

I'm not sure what you are asking... my dpad is for chat, I assume you mean stick.

im just making a joke. i was using fighting game termology such like

quater circle foward = dpad down and do a half circle right

the joke means that fighting game buttons are complicated like how your button config is confusing to me.