Dribbling and flicks happens constantly throughout every single Rocket League match. From clears on defense to attacking on offense, every Rocket League player must be able to have control of the ball around their car. Good dribbling and effective flicks make a huge difference when advancing the ball. If you can consistently know how to get around the defender with dribbles and flicks, you have a much better chance of winning the game. Here are a few tips and tricks, as well as some well-known flicks, to help you get past your defender!

Improving Ball Control

Firstly, improving your ball control is the most important. If you can control the ball around the nose, hood, and the rear of your car, then all the dribbling and flicks referred to in the rest of this article will be much easier.

The best way to improve your car control is just time in freeplay or in a custom training. First off, let's practice keeping the ball on the hood of your car. The fastest way to bring the ball up to the hood of your car is to have the ball rolling towards your car. Drive into the ball, thus popping it up onto the hood of your car. From there, just practice driving around with the ball, keeping it on the hood of your car.

The main thing to notice is that the ball goes to the opposite side of your car based on what direction you go. If you drive too fast forward, the ball will fall to the back of your car. If you slow down too much, the ball will fall to the front of your car. If you turn to the left too much, the ball will fall to the right, and vice versa. A good thing to practice is to practice bringing the ball down from the floor left and right of your car to the top of your car. This will help maintain consistency to get into dribble situations.

Going up and down the field while turning, and maintaining control in the car builds consistency in your game. Once you get used to controlling the ball around your car, you will begin to notice the same things that continue to happen. If you continue to practice control, you will be able to control these things in game.

Here is a video from Rogue's Cameron "Kronovi" Bills:

Dribbling

90% of Dribbling is being able to control the ball. The other 10% is what you can do with that ball control. Being fluid in your motions can make the difference between a failed dribble and a successful dribble that results in a goal. Here are a few tips in the field of dribbling that if you become consistent at, you won't have a problem getting balls past your opponents.

Ball Camera vs. Car Camera

The ability to switch between ball cam and car cam is extremely important in dribbling situations. Dribbling only in ball cam forces you to watch your screen continuously move around surrounding an object that is not what you are controlling. Dribbling only in car cam doesn't allow you to see past the ball and you would have less control over the car. Practice switching back and forth between ball cam and car cam within the thick of your dribble. Personally, I choose to make flicks and bounce dribble in car cam, but I rather would be in ball cam for simpler dribbles.

Bounce Dribbles

Bounce dribbling is an essential skill in every player's arsenal. Bounce dribbling is where, on a bounce, your car continuously hits the ball right as the ball bounces, forcing the ball slightly forward on a bounce. From this position, you have the ability to do multiple things: control the ball on the top of your car, perform a powershot, fake the defender, etc.

Changing the Direction of the Ball

This tip is self-explanatory. Go into freeplay, and practice continuously changing the direction of the ball. Most dribbles are successful because of a sudden change in motion. Practice changing the direction of the ball, whether that be in the air or on the ground with a carry or with a bounce dribble. Keep practicing this in freeplay and keep trying it in game!

Here is a video from Rocket League Creator "Flummp":

Basic Flicks

Flick happen when you use both of your flips in a way that flings the ball off of your car at a greater speed. Flicks are the hardest thing to explain with paragraphs. Players get better at flicks by just continuously trying them over and over, fail or success. As you continue to practice flicks, you will begin to notice commonalities of what works and what doesn't work. Once you find what works, continue to get more consistent at that controller movement.

Here are a few common situations where flicks succeed and fail:

If the ball is on the rear end of your car and you double flip forwards, you will just flip under the ball, leaving the ball behind. Instead, when the ball is in this position, backflip flicks are most successful. Most often, a backflip flick would send the ball flying up in the air or behind you.

If the ball is on the front of your car and you double flip forwards, you will have a very successful flick where the ball is launched in front of you. If you backflip, the ball will just roll off in front of you.

If the ball is on the front corners of the car, if you double flip diagonally, it will also result in a successful flick.

Here is a video from Cloud 9's Mariano "SquishyMuffinz" Arruda:

Advanced Flicks

Now that basic flicks are out of the way, let's move on to some more advanced flicks. Some of these flicks require more mechanical skill and consistency. Some of these flicks you may not need to always use, but when you can, they will be extremely successful if done correctly.

The Delayed Flick

There are several versions of the delayed flick, so I will be focusing on it with a generality. The delayed flick is when you simply jump into the air with the ball controlled on your car. Your second jump will be used to flick the ball however you'd like, in whichever direction you'd like.

Here is a video from Rocket League Creator "Kevpert":

Musty Flick

The Musty Flick was created by Rocket League Community Member and Creator, "amustycow". The Musty Flick is where your car, while in the air, is angled downward under the ball. Then, by doing a backflip, your car will fling the ball forward at an unexpected speed. It has been used several times by professional players, and just looks really, really cool.

Here is a tutorial to do the Musty Flick from Musty:

Tornado Flick

The Tornado Flick, also known as the 180 flick, was popularized in a showmatch between Joonas "Mognus" Salo and Otto "Metsanauris" Kaipiainen. A tornado flick consists of jumping with the ball in the air, keeping the ball above and in front of your car. Spin 180 degrees in the air, and then backflip, launching the ball forwards. It is quite flashy, and honestly isn't used too much in competitive gameplay. But nevertheless, it is still extremely useful.

Here is a video from Rocket League Creator "MERTZY":

Conclusions

Dribbles and flicks are another part of the game that can be the difference between you scoring and you ruining an attack. Being able to control your car around the ball is essential. While some of the flashy flicks are enjoyable, I'd recommend just spending time in freeplay, driving the car and the ball around and figuring out the physics for yourself. Then, move on to some of the more complicated motions. With practice comes consistency!

Good luck in your next Rocket League Match!

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