If your Rocket League team wants to have success, rotation is a key element. Despite the importance of correct positioning on the pitch, it’s still something that is often overlooked – even by many pros.

Our new training guide takes a closer look on the rotation in Rocket League. We spoke with Kevin “Skyline” Carvalho from Mousesports about rotation, positioning and how you can train these gameplay mechanics to become a better Rocket League player.

Skyline, in your words: Why is a good rotation essential to a team’s success?

I think having a good rotation is essential to not get lost in a 3v3 game. If you start having bad rotations, it will not only affect you, but also your teammates as they will have a hard time knowing what you’ll do.

What are the most common mistakes you see players make when it comes  to the rotation?

Probably that they don’t fully rotate and that they don’t go to the backpost to rotate on defense.

“It all comes down to awareness”

Rocket League is a game where often every player is all over the pitch and not bound to a certain position. How do you get to the perfect timing of knowing when to rotate to another position, when to move forward, when to retreat for defense?

It all comes down to awareness. Knowing where your teammates and your opponents are, and what they’re doing, will help you find the correct timing to move forward or retreat. For example: if they’re already both upfront, you’ll most likely stay somewhere around the middle and be ready to move forward or retreat if needed.

What is the best way to train the rotation? Are there certain trainings that one can finish to become better?

There isn’t really any “training” for rotation, it’s all about understanding how it works and simply put it into practice in a game. I recommend you to watch Gregan’s video “Tabletop Tactics”. It’s probably the best way to really understand how rotations work.

What are the key strategies and differences between the rotation on offense and the rotation on defense?

The difference between offense and defense rotation is that in offense you’re trying to put as much pressure as possible on your opponents by trying to be in a perfect spot for your mate’s pass or to intercept an opponent’s clear, and in defense you’re always trying to cover the net and the backboard as much as you can.

When it comes to rotation in an important match: how important is communication about your rotation between the teammates?

It’s really important to always know where your teammates are to always have the perfect position. This way you create opportunities or you break opponent’s chances to create a dangerous situation for your team.

“Don’t fall into passivity”

How do you manage rotation if you just play Solo and not with a team that knows each other inside out?

It’s always harder to play with people you don’t know. I’ll always suggest to play a little bit safer overall, but don’t fall into passivity because it’ll make you play slower. Always keep the same pace of rotation, just don’t push too hard upfront or stay too much in the back. And always be careful of cutting your teammates.

You’re playing for Mousesports together with Tigreee and Alex161. Tell us a bit about your rotation on the pitch and the different roles each team member fills in the rotations?

We try to not be bound to a certain position all the time, we can’t really give ourselves “roles”, everyone can do everything.

What is your best tipp for beginners who want to learn about correct rotation and stop chasing the ball across the pitch?

Like I said, I recommend watching some of Gregan’s videos as they’re useful for both beginners and advanced players, it’ll teach you what a good rotation is.