Best controller settings in MW3: Aim assist, sensitivity, deadzones, more

Kurt Perry
PS5 and Xbox controller in front of blurred MW3 gameplay.

Having the best controller settings in MW3 is crucial for adapting to this year’s fast-paced gameplay, with your aim assist, sensitivity, and deadzone options playing a huge role in how successful you can be.

Fine-tuning your settings is an almost never-ending task for Call of Duty players. You’ll alter your sensitivity slightly, play with different aim assist settings, and adjust your deadzones to find the sweet spot, but soon enough you’ll feel the need to change things up again.

While this process may be tedious, it is essential, as not having optimal controller settings will jeopardize your gameplay. The tricky bit is figuring out which settings you should use, with that task getting increasingly difficult as Sledgehammer Games adds more options in every update.

Taking a look at how many of the top pros and streamers set up their controllers and assessing all of the options available, here are the best controller settings to use in Modern Warfare 3. If you’re a battle royale fan, be sure to check out our best Warzone controller settings too.

Best MW3 Controller settings

Input settings

Button Layout PresetDefault or Tactical
Bumper PingOff
Flip L1/R1 with L2/R2Off
Stick Layout PresetDefault
Controller VibrationOff
Trigger Effect (PS5)Off

Deadzone Input settings

Modern Warfare 3 introduced a feature that allows players to test if their controller has stick drift. The Deadzone Input Test shows a diagram of both the left and right sticks plus both triggers. All four can be tweaked to account for stick drift and overly sensitive triggers.

Lowering your Deadzones to be as low as possible results in the most precision. However, you may need to increase the Left and Right Stick Min if you experience stick drift to avoid your aim moving by itself. Your Stick Min settings should match your stick drift percentage seen on the test diagram.

For example, if you have 2% stick drift on either axis, then Left and Right Stick Min should be set to at least 2. However, a slightly higher value is recommended as stick drift will vary slightly as you play. For most players, 5 on both sticks and triggers will work great.

The best deadzone settings to use in Modern Warfare 3.

Aiming settings

Aiming

Horizontal Stick SensitivityBetween 5 – 10
Vertical Stick SensitivityBetween 5 – 10
ADS Sensitivity Multiplier0.90
Vertical Aim AxisStandard
Tactical Stance Sensitivity Multiplier1.00
Aim Response Curve TypeDynamic
Aim Response Curve Scale1.00
ADS Sensitivity Multiplier (Focus)1.00
ADS Sensitivity Transition TimingInstant
Custom Sensitivity Per ZoomOff

Aim Assist

Target Aim AssistOn
Aim Assist TypeDefault
Third Person ADS Correction TypeAssist

Motion Sensor Aiming

Motion Sensor BehaviorOff
Screenshot of the best aiming setting to use with controller in Modern Warfare 3.

Best Gameplay settings

Movement Behaviors

Automatic SprintPreference
Slide Maintains SprintPreference
Sprint/Tactical Sprint BehaviorToggle
Auto Move ForwardOff
Tactical Sprint BehaviorPreference
Grounded MantlePreference
Automatic Airborne MantlePartial
Automatic Ground MantlePreference
Slide/Dive BehaviorTap to Slide
Plunging UnderwaterTrigger
Parachute Automatic BehaviorOff
Sprinting Door BashOn
Ledge Climb BehaviorMantle Only

Combat Behaviors

Aim Down Sight BehaviorHold
Change Zoom ActivationSprint/Tactical Sprint/Focus
Equipment BehaviorHold
Weapon Mount ActivationADS + Melee
Weapon Mount Exit DelayMedium
Tactical Stance ActivationADS + Down Button
Tactical Stance BehaviorOn Toggle
Interact/Reload BehaviorTap To Reload
Armor Plate BehaviorApply One
ADS Stick SwapOff
Backpack ControlDirectional Buttons
Depleted Ammo Weapon SwitchOn
Quick C4 DetonationPreference
Manual Fire BehaviorPreference
Akimbo BehaviorPaired

Vehicle Behaviors

Vehicle Camera RecenterShort Delay
Camera Initial PositionFree Look
Lean-Out ActivationMelee

Overlays Behavior

Scoreboard/Map/Stats BehaviorToggle
Ping Wheel DelayModerate
Double Tap Danger Ping DelayModerate
Wheels BehaviorHold
Screenshot of the best gameplay settings to use on controller in Modern Warfare 3.

Best Aim Assist settings

While playing on a controller, it is always essential to ensure Target Aim Assist is On. Besides just making sure that Aim Assist is on, players also must consider the different Aim Assist Types.

We recommend using the Default Aim Assist Type. While Black Ops Aim Assist was particularly popular in MW2 and in the early days of MW3, changes to aim assist now mean that Default is the best aim assist to use.

Here are the aim assist settings available in MW3:

  • Default: Traditional aim slowdown near target used in Modern Warfare games.
  • Precision: Strong aim slowdown that only kicks in when aiming closer to the target. Recommended for accurate players.
  • Focusing: Strong aim slowdown that also kicks in when narrowly missing the target. Recommended for players new to analog aiming.
  • Black Ops: Traditional aim slowdown near target used in Black Ops games
Best aim assist settings to use in MW3.

Best Aim Response Curve

Modern Warfare 3 offers three types of Aim Response Curves, each coming with its own distinct feeling for your thumbstick movements.

Most MW3 players will lean towards the Standard Aim Response Curve, but we recommend giving Dynamic a go and learning how to use it. The setting allows for much finer control than the other options but requires a bit of a learning curve.

  • Standard: Simple power curve map from aim stick to aim rate
  • Linear: Aim stick maps directly to aim rate
  • Dynamic: Reverse S-curve mapping for fine aim rate control

How to change controller settings

Changing your controller settings in Modern Warfare 3 is an easy enough task. All you need to do to access the appropriate menu is follow these instructions:

  • Launch either Modern Warfare 3 or Call of Duty HQ on your platform of choice.
  • Once on the main menu, press start.
  • Use either RB or R1 to change to the settings tab, represented by a white cog.
  • Finally, click ‘Controller’ to access controller settings.
Controller settings UI in Modern Warfare 3.

At the end of the day, the best controller settings come down to personal preference, so if one or more of our recommendations don’t work for you, then it’s easy enough to make your own specialized adjustments.

Load up a Private Match with bots and tinker around with the settings until everything feels exactly as it should. Once you’ve done that, you’ll want to optimize other areas of your game by using the best MW3 loadouts and best PC settings for FPS.

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