Fukua Why I Hated Fighting Games

[PieceDigital]

So I completely blow at this game. I have never been into fighting games since I was into video games. The closest I'd ever come to playing a fighting game was Street Fighter 4 that I got for Christmas 2012. I didn't like it and traded it in at GameStop (so I made two shitty mistakes simultaneously).

But ever since I started watching Tru3Ta1ent play Mortal Kombat X recently I felt a sudden urge to try and get good at Skullgirls, the only fighting game I own (I could also play DoA4 or Tekken, which are F2P on PS3, but so few people play this version of DOA and Tekken has a limit to how many games you can play in a certain amount of time). The key advice that Tru3 gave that really got me going was this: "GO into training mode, practice a combo over and over and over, drill it into your brain, then try it online."

So that's what I ended up doing. I picked a champion. Originally I was gonna go with Squigly but I didn't like having to wind up all of my attacks. Keep in mind, I'm a noob still. Anyway, I ended up picking Fukua. I figured out a combo and practiced it over and over until I got it almost every time. Then I tried different approaches into executing the combo. Then I figured out some other filler shit to do when I couldn't land the combo. Eventually I felt ready to try... the CPU (wah wah ;-;).

Normal was too easy so I kicked it up to hard. It felt pretty normal, I guess. It was (and is) hard enough. I'm able to beat the computer most of the time but I still know it's not completely valid since the computer always know what you're gonna do. Never the less it certainly helped me get my head around fighting a moving and attacking target.

Then, tonight, I went online. I found a match. It was a duo, Beowulf and Ms. Fortune. I won with just a sliver of HP!

I couldn't be happier right now! Well, maybe a little bit but this is pretty damn awesome. I've won some fights in Tekken, but in a game like Skullgirls where combos and mix-ups are so important I'd say this is a bigger victory for me.

I learned a few things about me and fighting games tonight, exactly why I hated fighting games:

• I always lose. I have no idea why
  
  
  
  If you do any coding this image might make more sense to you, but if you change the words around it'd still apply.
  I lose all of the time. It sucks to lose. What's worse, however, is not knowing why you lost, beyond "they beat the shit outa me," and how to fix the issue, how to get better. Thanks to Tru3 and that one bit of simple advice I think I've finally found square 1 and am on the right track.
  
  
• "HALP!" I say to myself in my head
  I don't know how to get help. Pretty self explanatory. I mean, asking for help is a general issue of mine so it's no surprise.
  P.s., if anybody likes helping noobs, and isn't toxic, just HMU! (this is the best assistance inquiry I can muster)
  
  
• I'm easily discouraged by imaginary shit talkers
  I literally just imagine people berating me on how much I suck and how I should quit. "Uninstall" is a pretty common response from toxic League of Legends players to other players that are having a bad game. I got that response a few times and it still rings in my head. I'm a pessimist so I'm pretty receptive to negativity, less so to positive feedback.

I hope that after this point I wont be so ready to give up up Skullgirls, or fighting games in general, after this little sign that I can actually learn and can actually improve.

As of right now I'm just gonna ride this victory high while it lasts :3. Ciao!

P.s., give Tru3Ta1ent a follow on Twitch!

 

[Cas Chronon]

Well.... Noice.

I think you're on the mark comparing fighting games to programming. Similar to programming, fighting games work somewhat accordingly: You need to create something from the assets you have been given.

What are your assets? Everything your character(s) can do (all attacks, strengths, weaknesses). What will you be creating? A strategy YOU know that works against an opponent (combos, neutral game, mixups, resets etc)... in other words an executable :). You also need to adapt to different playstyles that your opponent has too.

Understanding the Neutral Game and Combos are the fundamentals to learning how to play this game, since you'll be integrating them within your strategy.

I would not reccomend Squigly or Painwheel if you're trying to get started since I've heard they have the highest skillcap.
I started out with Fukua and Big Band, then I moved on to Eliza, Beowulf, Filia(somewhat) and Parasoul(somewhat)

I, by no means, am an expert at this game, so my understanding and advice may not be correct in any manner but it's important to understand that there is no official guide to the game. Whoever plays it must adopt a playstyle THEMSELVES and through experimentation and testing (optimizing and compiling your code) you can improve and innovate. Everything I've listed above is a summary of what I've come to understand about the game and is probably the reason I still get bodied by high level players. But YOU can have a completely different understanding of how everything works. That being said there are absolute aspects that must be learned (character matchups, move priority) to a concrete level along with the fundamentals.

So even though I'm not as good as a top level player I can play the game at a decent enough level to find it fun.

So, if you're looking to have fun with what the game has to offer, start figuring out a simple combo in training mode. Apply it to the different levels of AI in Arcade Mode until the Nightmare mode is a breeze and then go and test your debugged solution online against other players of your level.

This game is comprehensively diverse so if the overall gameplay suits you, it's all up to you to find that one character that makes sense to play as.

And I still have imaginary shizz talkers as well... although not as much.

Anyway I hope that helps.

 

[Nevins]

Interesting read. You mentioned possibly wanting help: if you ever want a weekend set on PS3 (depending on our connection- I'm norcal), let me know. I'd use Beowulf since I'm a beginner w/him & subs, mains, whatever you want. Hope you enjoy the game and fighters as a genre.

 

[Flotilla]

My biggest advice would be to play real people and don't give a damn about losing, because everyone loses early on. Playing against actual players will help you learn faster than playing against any CPU.

 

[PieceDigital]

My biggest advice would be to play real people and don't give a damn about losing, because everyone loses early on. Playing against actual players will help you learn faster than playing against any CPU.

How soon should I move from CPU to human? Because I can still lose half my HP to the CPU sometimes.

On a side note I was able to beat the CPU Beowulf only losing 100 HP. So I'm kinda glad about that :3

Interesting read. You mentioned possibly wanting help: if you ever want a weekend set on PS3 (depending on our connection- I'm norcal), let me know. I'd use Beowulf since I'm a beginner w/him & subs, mains, whatever you want. Hope you enjoy the game and fighters as a genre.

I'm not sure how bad it will be on the complete opposite side of the country (I'm in Virginia), but you can add me and we can try.

 

[Flotilla]

How soon should I move from CPU to human? Because I can still lose half my HP to the CPU sometimes.

ASAP. Playing with the CPU is a very poor substitute for playing with people!

 

[MysteriousJ]

Opposite advice from me: play against the cpu until you're bored and want more of a challenge. I like to get comfortable with a character's hit confirms and movement without the pressure of fighting another person.

 

[PieceDigital]

ASAP. Playing with the CPU is a very poor substitute for playing with people!

Opposite advice from me: play against the cpu until you're bored and want more of a challenge. I like to get comfortable with a character's hit confirms and movement without the pressure of fighting another person.

Both good advice, I think. I played against people yesterday and got a little salty that I couldn't do so much as pull of a simple level one (super? ultra? IDK the correct term).

 

[Zero8teen(DG)]

Both good advice, I think. I played against people yesterday and got a little salty that I couldn't do so much as pull of a simple level one (super? ultra? IDK the correct term).

You make me very happy :) I absolutely enjoy hearing about how new people to the genre are learning things from the start and are improving. It just gives my heart a warm feeling. ( I know that I'm weird :P)

Anyway if you want to play sometime on steam or on psn I'm more than willing to play and give some basic advice. Keep up the practice and please don't be discouraged by losing.

 

[Wolf_Punk]

Learn what you can do with what characters and figure out your play style. Me personally I stick with Beowulf and Cerebella because both are hard hitters, can take a lot of punishment, and have short and sweet combos. Personally my play style has always been defensive/poking only recently I started using grapplers and learned how they can be feared and turn a match around with one good read.

Learning your moves and mix ups is essential, nothing beats knowing what will work and how it will work. Also if you go to training mode try to use your tactics with the mind set of your attacks being blocked or evaded. This will not only help you with your execution but will give you reaction capability incase your moves are blocked or evaded.

Last bit I can give is pick who you liked regardless of execution difficulty. Nothing beats playing a character you personally like regardless of high or low tierness. I play Street Fighter 4 and main Vega, when I began I lost nearly every match I did, now I'm too the point that I rarely lose with him. Build your confidence in yourself and your characters. Treat them as the, being you and you will see yourself fighting much harder.

Hit me up on PSN if you wanna spar.

 

[Snackysnacks]

>HALP

http://steamcommunity.com/groups/skullgirlsgetgood
Ive been following and assisting in many of these beginner groups and get good is one that is holding up really strong. Weekly sparring matches every Sunday and a tournament at the last Sunday of every month. During the weekly sparring the commentators will pair you with someone of equal skill and try to break down things you do well, what to look out for, and area's to improve.

This community was born from the skullgirls subreddit http://www.reddit.com/r/Skullgirls/ so if you want, you can chill with us there

So for now, add yourself to the steam group, talk to the members and get to know them. I also recommend adding anyone after a match you feel is around you skill level and just ask to run sets.

>IM LOSING AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHY

For supplement material on this i really recommend the SRK fighting game primer found here: http://shoryuken.com/srk/FightingGamePrimer.pdf

This guide, thought written for street fighter 2, goes over basic fundamentals that apply to nearly every fighting game. This guide will go over frames, mentality, reads, momentum, mixups, "footsies", execution... The list goes on and on.
More importantly though, it goes over the biggest concept all beginners players need to work on, blocking.


>I'm easily discouraged by imaginary shit talkers

The second you free yourself from the typical top 8 online games and visit a smaller community where you wont face a "go kill yourself" on a daily basis your quality of life will improve. Seriously, i have a really hard time going back to league, dota, and csgo after I've been playing these smaller games with such an embracing community. Not to say there arnt toxic players in the fighting game community, but as long as you are not a hot-head egomaniac you should be able to find a group of people here willing to embrace your learning experience.


If you don't mind, ill add me on steam.

 

[4Leaf]

To Piece Digital - There's this anime about kendo called Bamboo Blade. One of the episodes deals with the soul-wrenching despair one can get after exerting a lot of effort toward mastering something, and yet still meeting with failure after failure after failure.

It's something you'll feel a lot once you get serious about fighting games. But all you really have to do is take a quiet moment or two, bite your lips, be honest about your failings, and get ready for the next battle.

What's in it for the participants? Some outsiders will sneer that the whole thing is just a big waste of time, but I for one know that the time I've spent in fighting games has toughened me mentally and taught me many things that I can apply to real-world problems.

So... keep at it.

 

[Slap]

If you want I can play a few games with you. My steam is http://steamcommunity.com/id/DerSlap