Titanfall 2 is Respawn Entertainment's 2016 shooter, published by Electronic Arts and added to Steam on 18 June 2020 after years as an Origin exclusive. It runs on two layers at once: a Pilot who wall runs, slides and double jumps through the level, and a Titan, a forty foot mech that drops from orbit when your meter fills. The nine mission campaign puts rifleman Jack Cooper with a Vanguard class Titan called BT-7274 and runs roughly six to seven hours, including Effect and Cause, a mission that hands you a device for switching between two time periods mid firefight. Multiplayer is six versus six across modes such as Attrition, Bounty Hunt and Amped Hardpoint.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. Speed in Titanfall 2 is preserved rather than granted, so chain a wall run into a slide into a jump and never come to a stop on flat ground
Speed in Titanfall 2 is preserved rather than granted, so chain a wall run into a slide into a jump and never come to a stop on flat ground.
2. Call your Titan behind cover or on a rooftop rather than in an open street, because the drop itself is announced and enemy Titans will be aiming at it
Call your Titan behind cover or on a rooftop rather than in an open street, because the drop itself is announced and enemy Titans will be aiming at it.
3. Rodeo an enemy Titan for its battery, then hand that battery to a friendly Titan for a health chunk and a temporary shield rather than keeping it
Rodeo an enemy Titan for its battery, then hand that battery to a friendly Titan for a health chunk and a temporary shield rather than keeping it.
4. The Grapple is not only a movement tool, it also pulls light targets toward you and can redirect your fall mid air to break a sniper's lead
The Grapple is not only a movement tool, it also pulls light targets toward you and can redirect your fall mid air to break a sniper's lead.
5. Ion draws its shield, its Laser Shot and its Tripwire from one shared energy bar, so firing the Splitter Rifle carelessly leaves you without a Vortex Shield
Ion draws its shield, its Laser Shot and its Tripwire from one shared energy bar, so firing the Splitter Rifle carelessly leaves you without a Vortex Shield.
6. Northstar's Plasma Railgun does far more damage when fully charged, so a half charged panic shot is usually worse than waiting an extra second
Northstar's Plasma Railgun does far more damage when fully charged, so a half charged panic shot is usually worse than waiting an extra second.
7. Ronin should Phase Dash out of a fight the moment health drops rather than chasing the kill, because it has the least health of any Titan except Northstar
Ronin should Phase Dash out of a fight the moment health drops rather than chasing the kill, because it has the least health of any Titan except Northstar.
8. Play The Pilot's Gauntlet repeatedly at the start of the campaign, since it is a timed course with a leaderboard and it teaches every movement input you will use for the rest of the game
Play The Pilot's Gauntlet repeatedly at the start of the campaign, since it is a timed course with a leaderboard and it teaches every movement input you will use for the rest of the game.
9. Effect and Cause hides collectibles in both time periods, so switching eras in a room you have already cleared often reveals a Pilot helmet you cannot otherwise reach
Effect and Cause hides collectibles in both time periods, so switching eras in a room you have already cleared often reveals a Pilot helmet you cannot otherwise reach.
10. The Kraber fires a travelling projectile rather than a hitscan beam, so lead a running Pilot by a body width or more at long range
The Kraber fires a travelling projectile rather than a hitscan beam, so lead a running Pilot by a body width or more at long range.
Advanced Strategies
Role Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For Ion (A-Tier):
- Focus on Wall running and slide hopping combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: R-201 Carbine
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Scorch (A-Tier):
- Versatile approach that handles any situation.
- Core gear: Volt SMG
- Stat priority: Balanced stats
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how Titanfall 2's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Wall running and slide hopping + Titan meter and the orbital drop: A Pilot can run along any wall for a few seconds, double jump, and slide downhill to gain speed that carries into the next jump. Combined with Titan meter and the orbital drop, your titan builds on a timer that damage, kills and objective work all accelerate, then drops from orbit onto a spot you mark.
Titan cores and dash meters + Rodeo and battery swapping: Each Titan has a core ability that charges through combat and changes the fight when it fires: Ion has Laser Core, Scorch has Flame Core, Northstar has Flight Core, Ronin has Sword Core, Tone has Salvo Core and Legion has Smart Core. When paired with Rodeo and battery swapping, a pilot can jump onto an enemy titan, tear out a battery and jump off, which damages that titan and leaves you carrying a battery.
Pilot tacticals and kits scaling: Every Pilot picks one tactical: Grapple for movement and pulling enemies, Cloak for approaches, Pulse Blade for a thrown sonar ping, Stim for a speed and healing burst, A-Wall for a forward firing shield, Phase Shift for stepping briefly out of reality, or Holo Pilot for a decoy. Pilot Kits add passives such as Power Cell for faster tactical recharge or Fast Regen for quicker healing. Grapple and Stim dominate movement focused play, while A-Wall and Holo Pilot suit players who hold ground.
Weapons Efficiency
| Weapon | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| R-201 Carbine | Players learning the movement system who do not want the gun to be another problem. | The standard issue assault rifle and the most forgiving Pilot weapon in the game, with controllable recoil and enough damage at every range to never feel wrong. |
| Volt SMG | Aggressive movement play where you close distance before firing. | A high rate energy submachine gun with almost no recoil, which makes it brutal in the hands of a Pilot who is already moving fast. |
| CAR SMG | Mid range duels while keeping the fast time to kill of an SMG. | Hits harder per shot than the Volt with more recoil, and holds up at medium range better than most submachine guns. |
| Kraber AP Sniper | Long sightlines on maps like Exoplanet where you can lead a moving Pilot. | A bolt action anti-personnel rifle that kills a Pilot in one hit almost anywhere on the body, with a slow projectile that must be led at range. |
| EVA-8 Auto | Interior fights, Live Fire mode and anyone playing around close quarters routes. | A semi-automatic shotgun with a fast follow up shot, built for interior fights and rooftop ambushes. |
Location Efficiency
The Pilot's Gauntlet (Campaign mission 1): The campaign's training course and a timed obstacle run with a global leaderboard attached. It is the best place in the game to learn wall running, sliding and double jumping, because failure costs nothing and the clock tells you exactly how much you improved.
Effect and Cause (Campaign mission 5): The fifth campaign mission and the one people remember, built around a wrist device that snaps you between the facility's ruined present and its working past. Enemies, walls and floors all change with the switch, so a blocked route in one era is open in the other.
The Beacon (Campaign mission 6): The sixth mission, set around an IMC interstellar communications beacon and its support facilities. It is the most vertical stretch of the campaign and where the Ronin Titan loadout is found.
Angel City (Multiplayer, all levels): A multiplayer map rebuilt from the first Titanfall and released free after launch. Its mix of narrow streets, interior rooms and rooftop routes makes it the map most often used to teach new players how the two layers of combat interact.
Boomtown (Multiplayer, all levels): An industrial multiplayer map with tight interiors and long exterior lanes running between them. Scorch and Ronin thrive inside the buildings while Northstar and Tone own the open ground, which makes it a good map for learning Titan matchups.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Playing the multiplayer like a standard shooter by walking and holding angles, which throws away the movement advantage the entire game is built on.
- Dropping a Titan in the open the moment the meter fills, then losing it to two enemy Titans before it has fired a shot.
- Rodeoing an enemy Titan and keeping the battery, when handing it to a teammate is worth far more than the small boost you get from it.
- Picking Scorch on open maps like Exoplanet, where the fire abilities never reach and the chassis has no ranged answer.
- Skipping the campaign because the game is known for multiplayer, which misses Effect and Cause and a six to seven hour run widely rated among the best shooter campaigns of its decade.
Pro Quick Tips
- Speed in Titanfall 2 is preserved rather than granted, so chain a wall run into a slide into a jump and never come to a stop on flat ground.
- Call your Titan behind cover or on a rooftop rather than in an open street, because the drop itself is announced and enemy Titans will be aiming at it.
- Rodeo an enemy Titan for its battery, then hand that battery to a friendly Titan for a health chunk and a temporary shield rather than keeping it.
- Start with Scorch, switch to Ion when ready
- Invest in R-201 Carbine above everything else
- Clear areas in order: The Pilot's Gauntlet → Effect and Cause → The Beacon → Angel City → Boomtown. See our maps guide
- Wall running and slide hopping + Titan meter and the orbital drop together are stronger than either alone
More Titanfall 2 Guides
- Titanfall 2 Titanfall 2 Overview
- Titanfall 2 Best Builds
- Titanfall 2 Tier List
- Titanfall 2 Walkthrough
- Titanfall 2 Beginner's Guide
- Titanfall 2 Weapons Guide
- Titanfall 2 Combat Guide
- Titanfall 2 Boss Guide
- Titanfall 2 Maps & Locations
- Titanfall 2 Crafting Guide
- Titanfall 2 Classes & Characters
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