Pinned down under enemy fire and desperate for survival – is there anything you can do? Luckily, some games have a solution in the form of a blind fire mechanic. Discover the meaning of blind fire in games with us!

What is blind fire?

Blind fire is a term referring to firing a weapon without aiming, usually from behind cover, in FPS (first-person shooter) and TPS (third-person shooter) games. Shooting action is performed without using the sights or crosshair, often by extending the weapon over a cover.

Using blind fire prevents a player from exposing themselves to enemy fire and allows them to apply pressure without putting themselves at risk, or at least lowering it. While it increases the character’s safety, it often sacrifices accuracy and overall damage dealt to enemies.

Blind fire meaning in games

Despite often being inaccurate, blind fire can play an important role in various situations, such as waiting for health or ability regeneration, covering teammates, escaping to safety, or making a last desperate attempt to harm enemies while being pinned down.

Here is how blind fire works in three popular video games:

  • Gears of War: Reloaded: players taking cover behind walls and various obstacles can press a button to fire over or around their cover without aiming, which is often crucial for survival in a series that encourages cover-based combat instead of rushing.
  • Tom Clancy’s The Division 2: just like in Gears of War, Tom Clancy’s The Division promotes a cover-based gameplay featuring blind fire as a mechanic essential for survival in both co-op missions and PvP modes. Press a designated button to fire without aiming and apply pressure!
  • PUBG (PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds): while this game does not feature blind fire mechanics per se, its distinctive hip-fire often mimics blind fire’s characteristics, especially when peeking from behind a cover or shooting above obstacles.

Blindfiring, even if not implemented in a straightforward way, plays a significant role in many shooters. While it cannot be considered the main mechanic in most of them, shooting from cover often saves players in intense situations and may be an important, although underrated, part of their strategy.