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{{notability|date=June 2010}}
{{original research|date=June 2010}}
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In [[video games]], '''strafing''' is the technique of moving the player's character from side to side, rather than forward and backward. In the context of [[first-person shooter]]s, it refers to the movement alone, even when no weapon is being fired. Sidestepping is an integral part of any first-person or third-person shooter as it allows the player to dodge incoming fire while keeping their view aimed at their target.

==Circle strafing==
[[Image:Circlestrafing animation.gif|thumb|250px|The blue player circle strafes counterclockwise around his red adversary, while firing continually. Red, unable to keep track of the moving blue, misses his shots.]]
Particularly in [[first-person shooter]]s (FPSs), '''circle strafing''' is the technique of moving around a target in a circle while facing it. Circle strafing allows a player to fire continuously at an opponent while dodging counterattacks. By rapidly circling the opponent, the player evades the opponent's sights. Circle strafing is most useful in close-quarters [[combat]], where the [[optical flow|apparent motion]] of the attacking player is the greatest, and thus the chance of disorienting the opponent by making him lose track of the attacker is higher. The effectiveness of the circle strafing maneuver is mitigated when the opponent's weapon fires [[projectile]]s that [[hitscan|travel instantaneously]], or fires a large number in a [[machine gun]]-like fashion,<ref>{{cite news|title=AI Game Engine Programming|author=Brian Schwab|year= 2004|publisher=Charles River Media|pages=30|isbn=1584503440}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=June 2013}} although this effect can also be countered by employing firing techniques such as [[deflection (military)|deflection]], also known as 'target-leading'. This technique is especially effective when employed as a form of lag-jumping where the sync speed between the two players affects the defending players ability to defend themselves. When latency is high this can lead to the oft-seen phenomenon of two players circling one another, both missing by a considerable margin, until one player unexpectedly collides with an obstacle and is slowed sufficiently for the other to target them.

Many shooters will allow players to zoom down the sights of a gun or use a scope, usually exchanging movement speed, field of vision, and the speed of their traverse for greater accuracy. This can make a player considerably more vulnerable to circle-strafing, as objects will pass through their field of vision more quickly, they are less capable of keeping up with the target, and their lowered speed makes dodging more difficult.

==Straferunning==
[[Image:Perpendicular Vector Addition.svg|left|thumb|A diagrammatical explanation of straferunning.]]
Particularly in first-person shooters (FPSs), '''straferunning''' (known as '''speed-strafing''' among players of ''[[GoldenEye 007 (1997 video game)|GoldenEye 007]]'' and ''[[Perfect Dark]]'', and as '''trichording''' among players of the [[Descent (video game)|Descent]] series) is a technique that allows a player to run or fly faster through levels by moving forwards and sideways ([[strafing]]) at the same time. The game combines these actions and the player achieves roughly 1.4 ([[square root of 2]]) times greater speed compared to moving in a single direction. The method used by the game can be demonstrated using [[Vector (geometric)|vector]] addition. ''[[Pathways Into Darkness]]'' was one of the first games to allow straferunning.

The games in which straferunning can be employed treat forward motion independently of sideways (strafing) motion. If, for each update of the player's location, the game moves the player forward one unit and then moves the player to the side by one unit, the overall distance moved is <math>\sqrt{2}</math>. Thus, in games with such behavior, moving sideways while simultaneously moving forward will give an overall higher speed than just moving forward, although the player will move in a direction diagonal to the direction being faced. This feature is even more enhanced if moving along three axes (e.g. forward + left + up), providing <math>\sqrt{3}</math> (roughly 1.73) times greater speed, in games such as Descent.

==See also==
*[[Dogfight]]
*[[Pylon_turn#Combat_use|Pylon turn]]
*[[Strafe-jumping]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Game Jumps}}

[[Category:Competitive video gaming techniques]]
[[Category:Video game gameplay]]
[[Category:Video game terminology]]

[[it:Strafe#Straferunning]]

Projective superspace - Revision history

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