It has almost become a popular phrase in Rocket League to say, "I'm a Platinum/Diamond player but play like a Champ player." This revolves around the idea that you are better than your teammates and completely shifts the blame for your losses on them. However, although on one or two occasions your teammates could be having a bad day, it is never fair to consistently shift the blame onto them for not advancing to the next rank.

Assume It's Your Fault

In fact, it's always a good idea to assume that a goal from the opposing team is your fault. One useful way to check what mistakes you made in your game is to save every replay in your ranked matches. Rewatching your games from not only your own perspective, but the perspective of your teammates, can make you understand what you might have done wrong in conceding a goal.

Of course, not every goal will be entirely your fault, but to see what you could have done slightly differently so that the chances of the goal happening had been decreased significantly, will help in self-improvement more than you might think.

Bearing this tip in mind, you may come to notice one particular issue with your own gameplay, as well as the gameplay of your teammates, which, unsurprisingly, is perhaps the largest factor in not advancing forward.

Lack of Consistency

Staying consistently good in Rocket League is maybe the most challenging and most difficult skill to master. Those of the highest rank sometimes even struggle to maintain consistency, and this can come down to multiple factors:

• Your mentality on a particular day, affecting your gameplay as you are not focusing purely on the game alone.
• Not playing the game in a while. Even leaving the game for a couple of days and returning back will make your gameplay feel different, and you are more likely to miss shots than if you were playing on a regular basis.
• Becoming agitated as a result of frequently giving up goal opportunities, conceding goals, or simply just losing games. Being angry at the game causes you to rush for balls and perhaps even ball-chase, and this is bound to make the situation much worse.

Although consistency, indeed, comes along with time, there are things you can do in order to improve your consistency relatively quickly.

1. Come up with a schedule to stick to.

This is particularly effective for those with busier lives, so that the right amount of Rocket League practice can be done each day. Professionals, such as Jos "ViolentPanda" van Meurs tend to commit a couple of hours per day. For more information about this, you could check out my previous article "The Lifestyle Of A Rocket League Professional - A Guide With ViolentPanda", where Violentpanda discusses his practice routine with his teammates.

Having a schedule for every day means that you are playing the game on a regular basis, and so the mechanics and your gameplay as a whole will not fizzle away with time.

It is even a good idea to practice different aspects of your gameplay on different days. For example, one day you can practice your mechanical ability in custom training and Free Play, whereas another day you could train yourself solid rotations and how to position yourself on the field. Alternating in this way reduces boredom, too, which in terms of mentality, will improve your consistency.

2. Enter small tournaments.

There are lots of tournaments available for those lower ranks, which do not require any payments to enter. These can be a great help to you and your team's synergy and team plays. Practicing in a more competitive environment than just an average ranked match will solidify your team's ability to efficiently work together.

Even though you may lose your first tournaments, having that experience in a competitive area will give you that slight advantage over others in ranked gameplay, especially if you play with a team that you have a lot of synergy and time with, as this also improves your general consistency.

3. Take a break when you feel agitated.

As mentioned previously, when the opposing team, or perhaps even your own team, begins to annoy you, you should consider taking a breather. Having half an hour away from the game after a few tough losses will reduce tension and make you less likely to make silly plays in your next few matches.

Alternatively, shutting the game off for the day is sometimes a good option. Yes, this article is about staying consistent, but you won't get too far if you are infuriated by the game such that you completely lose concentration, as this is a crucial factor in becoming a brilliant player. Generally, keeping a straight mindset is good practice and this all revolves around your own personal discipline.

Overall, consistency takes time, and these three points will guide you in the right direction. Unfortunately, there is no shortcuts to take in terms of consistency as a whole, and this is what makes it the most challenging skill to acquire in Rocket League. When comparing the gameplay of a diamond player, for example, to a champion player, the mechanics may seem fancier, the rotations may look cleaner, and the gameplay may seem faster, but the overarching difference is simply consistency.

Again, though, the highest ranks see players who can be inconsistent. But as much as we'd love to be able to get it perfect every single time, we are only human, so go gentle on your teammate if they seem to be having a rough time, because with time, comes consistency.

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