Introduction
Since my blog entries are infrequent and the potential audience for this post may not know me, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Michael Martin, better known by my gamer tag, "Umby." I hail, generally, from Atlanta, GA (GPS/postal service seems confused as to what city my address is actually in) and frequent Smash 4 tournaments around the area. I've been in the competitive scene for Smash since late 2007. Never was good in Melee, was comparatively at a similar skill level in Brawl as I am now. I've gotten my feet wet in other competitive fighting games such as, Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, Persona 4 Arena, and a little bit of Tatsunoko vs Capcom, so some concepts I learned from these games, I've been able to translate into my Smash gameplay. Initially a Marth main, I've transitioned to a Fox main in Smash 4.The purpose of this particular blog entry is to help some of the lower level players step their game up to the next level. I am by no means a top player, as a matter of fact, I frequently get 9th and occasionally 7th place at most of my local tournaments. Pretty mediocre by my standards. I am by no means a technical player, despite how flashy I may occasionally look when I move (of course, playing Fox helps that illusion). However:
- I do think while I play
- Despite my lack of overall game knowledge, I am very rational in my thoughts in discussions
- The few higher level players I know personally and respect seem to imply that I'm at least overall solid as a player
That said, I'm in that awkward spot where I know and experience some of the troubles people having improving in a competitive environment, but have had at least a little insight into the thoughts that go into higher level play. Hopefully the thoughts I convey here will help make that small step onto the Plateau of Mediocrity, so that those ready to grind past that level will have a foundation. Let's get started.
Suit Up!
Before we even get into playing the game, it's important to play comfortably. Maximizing your efforts revolves, in part, of making sure your inputs and movement are crisp and minimizing as many input errors as possible. This part caters more towards personal preference. Like buying a set of new clothes, you may need to try out certain things to see what fits you. This can range from:
- Literally the type of garments you wear (i.e. some people wear gloves for a better grip / due to sweaty palms. If it's cold, of course make sure you have the proper gear to stay warm (or don't if you prefer the chill). Some people use Gunnars / No Scope glasses to prevent eye fatigue, if that's your issue.
- Music - Some people need to drown out the distraction of the crowd behind them, some people need a rhythm either to stay calm or get hyped up. Whatever your reasoning is, make sure you have some good, functioning earphones.
- Controls - This requires the most experimentation. By general consensus, some controllers and controller settings are recommended for both general and specific inputs, but make sure you use what is the most comfortable for you. For example, I use a GCN Controller. I make two separate tags for two different controls; one for Fox, where I change my C-Stick to "Attack" and one for Marth / Everyone else where I leave it on "Smash." In both cases, I use "Grab" on my X button, add an extra "Attack" on my R trigger, and turn the in-game Rumble feature off. You'll see a lot of different and weird things, so don't be afraid to try stuff out!
Now these are all just examples and suggestions. If all you need is the bare minimum, don't feel like these options are "enhancers." They are simply there to compliment the player.
The Mindset
I've been paying attention to what some of my local players are saying post-match / post-tournament. Comments range from "I should have beaten this person," to "I don't know how to deal with this character!" Some of you may be especially disappointed in your tournament placings due to this, but there are some key things you need to remember and acknowledge in order to improve:
You're Ass.
You have the potential to be a great piece of ass, but at the moment you are the backside of a stereotypical, anemic, white girl.
But...
Don't enter a match or competition thinking you can't win. How can you play at your best if you don't believe you can even be on top? The road to improvement is more than just wanting to improve- it's wanting to *win.* The mind of a worm (that knows he's a worm) still needs the heart of a champion to crawl out of the dirt.
A loss is a loss.
"It doesn't matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Winning is winning!" Maybe you could have won if you did something different. Good. Acknowledge that you've made errors and learn from it. Don't blame the match on those errors, though. All anyone cares about is the result. YOU care about them for your personal growth, however. Don't brood over the loss, but reflect on your gameplay. The ability record your matches greatly helps with this. Take the L and move on to the next round or event.
Improvement comes over time (and sometimes in pieces).
This is obvious, but in the eagerness to gain power, we tend forget this simple fact. Maybe you got wrecked in a matchup you're unfamiliar with. That night you ask your colleagues what you can do to improve in the matchup. You receive sound advice on what to do, but on the next encounter with your mortal foe, you still get wrecked, despite the small improvements you've made. THIS IS NATURAL. Playing is more than applying "X" to "Y" and expecting immediate and drastic results. Along with what to apply, you need to know how to apply it. Along with those, you must actively process in-game factors as they happen, which is linked to your situational awareness, processing speed, and reaction time. These are internal aspects which, if they are lacking, may need to be worked on separately before you can move forward. Even in other fighting games, players use alternative games and activities of varying genres to improve on such aspects as reaction time. Sometimes you just need to play the match more with what you've learned, and look for ways to apply it each time. Maybe you can even have a training buddy to help you practice in specific scenarios. I won't expound on this for now, but make sure you understand the basic concept.
Composure
A tricky segment, as it varies from player to player, but it is important, nonetheless. Often, especially for new tournament-goers, we find ourselves caught by tournament nerves. Maybe in a high-octane match, you're sooooo close to closing out the match, you get the jitters and make several technical mistakes. Ideally, while you may not want to always be calm, you want to be composed enough that all of your decisions are sound. So many matches have been lost by the player in the lead from being over-eager to close the game. When the adrenaline is flowing, sometimes nature overrides our rational thought, and we pay for it. I can't give solid advice to provide resolution for this, but it must be addressed so that you may work towards finding your own solution. As aforementioned, some players find solace in playing music during their games. Breathing practices are a tried-and-true way. When you lose that stock, take a second for yourself before you leave the platform. Whatever you have to do, find it, or you may find yourself SDing at 0% when your opponent is 150% on their last stock.
I wanted to address this in the "mindset" category because it is linked to how you feel and think about the game. All of what I've mentioned thus far is what I've taken in as a player, and the more I became attuned with it, the more composed I've become. I lost a match? Losing is frustrating, but I take comfort in the fact that I can learn from it to improve for the next encounter. I've come to terms that I am going to lose at times, and that's fine. At this point, the loss isn't important. There are other things to waste my brain energy on.
Think of this as a circumvention to getting frustrated. Frustration leads to bad decision making and sometimes, unwarranted blame, neither of which are supplemental to progress. This is a competitive environment, yes, but in part, it's a fun game that we love to play. They key is to drown out negative energies with positive thoughts and ideals.
Consume and Adapt
A little League of Legends humor there for some of you. :D
Adaptation is one of the most dynamic aspects of any fighting game, in my opinion. Here is where you transition from the character vs character and tie in the players (Player + Character vs Player + Character). Here is where you truly put your matchup knowledge to work. Here is where you punish your opponent for dash attacking all the time.
Here is where you force your opponent to wise up, or lose.
The Download
Your first goal is observation. There is so much information flowing in, I know, but when it comes to breaking the opponent, it is imperative to observe what they are doing. Any habits that you can find, it is your job to anticipate and exploit them. Even if you simply become more adept in defending or avoiding their offensive habits, this is an EXTRAORDINARY step in the right direction. Hell, the moment you learned to shield grab an incoming attack (...you do know how to shield grab, right?), you took a step in the right direction. But to reiterate, you must OBSERVE. Here's an idea on just how to do that from a post I recently made on Facebook:
This is just my method, but your peripheral may be advanced such that you can pick up on your opponent, just like that. Once again, video review is also helpful here. There are things that you miss in the moment that you can catch when you're able to just step back and watch. Hell, sometimes you just need to be hit by the same thing 3 times before you realize what's happening. That's fine too.
Once you've read your opponent's book, you'll need to publish it. This will vary, obviously, based on the player/character matchup, but you'll need to pick the right option for the right situation. I'll refer to shield grabbing, once again, because it's quite possibly the most common and relatable punishment scenario. I learned, earlier on, during my time playing Brawl, when playing an opponent of a lower level than I, I would run into "dumb" things and take unnecessary damage for it. However, some of these opponents had a tendency to dash attack or otherwise attempt an unsafe move, both of which I could shield. From there, whether the most optimal or not, the easiest option would be to shield grab. You'll find similar scenarios in some of your matches and it's up to you to figure out the best way to deal with it with your character. Make sure to ask your character's fellow players or visit character-specific forums if you're not completely sure. There's knowledge to be found everywhere.
The more optimal your punish, the more you can potentially frustrate your opponent...
And we just address what can happen when you're frustrated, didn't we?
Same Bus, Different Driver
Have you ever thought to yourself or witnessed someone saying something along the lines of,
"I play with Player A's Diddy and I do well. I know the matchup and Player B doesn't place as well as Player A. I should be able to beat Player B,"
only to get rocked, soundly, by Player B? There are character-vs-character specific things that you can exploit in any matchup, yes, but different playstyles among different people can make crucial changes into how you have to approach or defend against them. If course, when you play someone familiar, you're better prepared for what they can do with a character, but you often have to download the next player to make sure you succeed.
I'm going to reference a couple of players in my state, Limbs and Newly. Limbs is a Luigi main who often places above me. I have had a chance to play him numerous times in bracket. While I have a losing record, I believe I've put up a good performance, such that even when our matches aren't as close, he has to work for it. Currently, I believe I've slowly made improvements vs Luigi as a whole. Now, in one tournament, I played against Newly. I've seen him play several characters, but in our first match in the set, he decided to play Diddy. Not sure how frequently he plays the character, but in my time playing against him in that matchup, I didn't consider him a threat. He decided to play Luigi afterward (still not sure how frequently he uses the character), and while I still had it in my head that I was the better player, based on viewing some of his habits, I did much worse than when I played against Limbs, someone I'm more used to playing. I literally got 0-death'd off of one grab on Delfino on game 3, early in the first stock. In another case, I got to Loser's Finals against my friend, Justice, who is a Luigi main. Prior to our last set, I had a consistent winning record against the man. Was up 2-1 in a best of 5 and lost an entire set, not making the correct adjustments, while he in turn did everything he needed to do to win. It's very easy to slip up when you lack a certain respect for your opponent and fail to adapt, so throw underestimation out the window in serious matches.
Character Substitution
Let's make it clear that changing characters is not (necessarily) the answer to your problems. Sure, a lot of people gain a proficiency in one character and pick up 1-2 more to deal with characters that have a very strong advantage vs that main character, but trying to pick up a new character is not going to immediately solve any troubles that you may have. If you are going to pick up a new character for that purpose, ask yourself these questions:
- Who / what am I having trouble with?
- Why do I have trouble with it?
- Can I alleviate this trouble with extra effort through my main character?
- What all characters can I use to viably deal with this trouble?
- How, specifically, do these characters deal with this trouble?
- Which of these characters do I enjoy playing the most?
And once you acknowledge that using an alternative character may not automatically yield results:
- Am I willing to put as much time into learning this character as I do my main?
It's easy to say you want to learn Pikachu to handle the Fox and Diddy matchups you have so much trouble with, but that's not an indication that how to win those matchups just comes naturally to you by playing the character. Even then, for all you know, you, as a Ganondorf main, probably just had to make a few adjustments to your gameplay in order to better handle those matchups with your main character. However you decide to handle the situation, these are crucial questions to ask yourself AND answer. Otherwise, you may just be wasting time better spent on personal improvement.
Afterthought
The thoughts I've laid out here are relatively broad, I think. I do my best to provide examples for you to better relate to, but the reality is that no one can specifically tell any individual how to be better at what they do. All I can offer is some form of guidance, from my perspective, and provide some general information and suggestion so that you can think and make better decisions for yourselves. Everyone enjoys a different way of playing and must figure out a way to make the game cater to their needs. When I solidified myself as a Marth main, at one point I asked my colleagues, "Instead of being a zoning / trapping character, what tools can I use to be a more aggressive Marth?" I got varying answers to my question, but that's not important. What is important is that you use as much information as possible to make the game work for you. It's not always easy, sometimes it may not even be viably possible, but it's important to think and ask questions. It's important to experiment. It's important to observe and learn. It's important to be willing and able to change how you perceive the game. It's important to give it time. No matter how much you improve or intend to improve, don't forget that it's also important to have fun. Make winning a high priority, but don't make it your entire reasoning for playing the game.
That's all from me for now. If you have any comments or want to pick the brain of mediocrity drop some comments. Hopefully, whoever reads this finds it useful. If not, well that shows you just how much even I have to improve as a player. Learning never ends.
Peace.
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