Considering that soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world, it should be no surprise that it would be one of the games in Switch Sports.
In this game, soccer is a lot like a slower rocket league…and not in cars.
If you are not sure how to play soccer better, don’t worry. We’ve got you covered.
We’ve put together Switch Sports soccer tips to help you win more often when playing with friends or online adversaries. Let’s get started!
Pay Attention to the Tutorial
This tip might be a bit too obvious, but it is important and especially valid for new players. The tutorial will let you know ways to hit the ball that change how it travels across the field.
Knowing all that might be essential to get the ball inside the goal. Sometimes, a good kick might surprise your adversaries even if don’t you seem well-positioned.
Besides kicking, the tutorial also teaches you how to perform a diving header. This technique is excellent for when you need to hit the ball but can’t quite reach it with your feet.
Here are all the controls that you should know in order to be a good Switch Sports soccer player:
- Move: Unlike in other sports, you can use the control stick to move when playing soccer.
- Kick the Ball: You can swing your right Joy-Con to kick the ball in different ways. Swinging it to the sides makes the ball go left or right. Swinging it from up to down makes it go straight and forward. Finally, swinging the Joy-Con from down to up also makes it go forward, but the ball also goes up.
- Dash: Hold ZL while moving to run across the field. Note that you have a stamina bar, so you can’t be running all the time.
- Diving Header: Swing both joy-con controllers down at once to make your character dive in and hit the ball with their head. Your character will jump forward and headbutt the ball.
- Hold ZR Before Kicking: This is the assisted way to pass the ball to a teammate. It can be the difference between kicking the ball around and playing soccer.
Work on Your Passes
Passing is one of those skills that can make you look great and ensure many victories. If you want to score goals, passing is key. There are two ways to pass.
You can simply kick the ball to make it land at an advantageous position for your team. This can be a bit hard, and it will take a while for you to do it well.
As mentioned above, you can also hold ZR before kicking to use the game-assisted pass. Good passes might cause defending players to get confused about what to do next.
A good pass is a very subjective concept. It all depends on how much space there is between your teammate and the defender and where all your teammates are on the field.
That being said, knowing when not to keep the ball is a crucial skill that all soccer players need to learn eventually.
Learn From Others
One of your best sources for improvement will come from better players, as long as you pay attention to what they do.
You can learn a lot about what to do and how to be successful by observing how others play and watching them in action.
The more experienced you become, the more you’ll be able to see what’s going on around you in terms of gameplay, strategy, formations, positioning, etc.
Then, when it comes time to make moves that are advantageous—and not just risky—you’ll have a much better understanding of when and why those decisions are important.
Don’t Waste Your Stamina
Keep an eye on your stamina. It is the green circle right next to your character. This will limit how long your character can sprint during a match.
The ability to pick your moment—and then make it count—is what separates great players from good ones.
When playing as part of a team, try hard not to move into another teammate’s space. Cover the are where they are not and pay attention to your adversaries instead of just looking at the ball.
If you keep running after the ball while it flies around, your character’s stamina will be constantly depleted. Without stamina, you won’t be able to position yourself better throughout the game.
Practice Makes it Perfect
You can’t just start playing and expect to have some innate talent that allows you to play well immediately. This is especially true if you don’t know much about soccer.
And even if you are familiar with the sport, this is Switch Sports, not the real deal. You will have to use some time to adjust and get used to the controllers, the giant ball, and the game’s weird physics.
It will take time and practice for you to get good enough at it that you start winning more games than you lose, but through consistent practice, you will get better.
It took me a long time to learn how to serve fast in Tennis, too, so don’t get frustrated if you take some to master how to kick the ball.
