Xbox – How to circle strafe with a chopper using an Xbox 360 controller

To circle strafe with a helicopter in any game you have to understand some things about helicopter controls.

There are three main controls, the cyclic, the collective, and the pedals.

• The cyclic tilts the helicopter to the right, left, forward, and backward. (Like leaning in a direction.)
• The collective makes the helicopter go up and down. (Like climbing or squatting)
• The pedals rotate\turn the helicopter to the right or left. (like turning your head)

To circle strafe (or orbit while facing the target) you will need to tilt the helicopter to the right with the cyclic, while using the pedals to keep the helicopter pointed at what your circling.

To orbit to the right you would tilt the cyclic right, while turning the pedals left. In human terms, you walk leaning to the right(cyclic), and then keep your torso turned to toward what you are circling (pedals).

I'll try to translate to controller controls later.

Update for Comments: If the bird just spins like a top and falls to the ground then you are using to much pedal, and need to tap it less often. More likely you are loosing altitude as you strafe pointing at the target. This is normal helicopter behavior; I'll explain.

When a helicopter tilts in a direction, some of the force used to lift the helicopter is taken away to be used to shift the helicopter. This means you also have to increase the collective, or make the helicopter go slightly up while you execute the maneuver.

In most games there is a balance point of strafe and lift. This means you tilt(cyclic) the bird enough that full throttle (collective) keeps you at the same altitude. After that it's just a matter of rotating the bird (pedals) to keep it pointed where you want it.

Sorry, I haven't been able to translate to xbox controls yet.