In dire need of help

[Surf]

I love blazblue. Hell i love fighting games. Ive had CS since day 1 and its basically the first fighter I tried to become completely serious in. These is far from my first fighter though. I played fighting games since I was 8 but I was just a masher for all that time till now. Ive played most of the street fighters and many other fighters. I got BB cuz i loved Guilty Gear. Well lets get to the point of this discussion. No matter what i do, no matter how much i study frame data, combos, mix ups, resets, and everything else. I nevcer get past a certain point in any fighting games. Ive played MVC3 lately and the game aggravated me and was a little too fast paced. So ive been playing BB again the past week or so. I mained Hazama and Hakumen but dropped Hakumen once the new patch came out and picked up Tsubaki. Ive been study and training non stop but to no avail. Im bested by noobs and advancec players alike. The same with MVC3. Over the past few months Ive been obsessing over the fighting game scene and I want to be at the level of playing at tournament or have a 200+ PSR. Rem,ember ive been playing this game ever since it came out. I want to become great but its just not working at all. No matter how much I try. Im sorry for the long post but Im at a complete lost. Please someone give me some advice

[YukiBlue]

I'm no Pro, But Here is what I do/Did.

1) Pick a Main - You should be interested in this character, you should want to learn them, every detail of them. Then head over to that Characters Section.

2) Challenge Mode - Try your best to finish it. You get some satisfaction afterwards, and you also learn what moves do what, and what to do in any given situation.

3) Character Forums - Introduce yourself, find Combo's, ask and answer questions, all whilst perfecting your Tsubaki.

4) Watch JP Players - Watch what they do, and see how you can improve. For my Bang, I watch Dora, for Hazama, Buppa, JP Pro Players are invaluable for you.

5) Blockstrings/Pressure/AA - Learn fine, intricate details, Frame Data and whatever.

6) Have Fun - It's just a game, have fun and enjoy yourself.

Also, Playing Dustloop users is great, I've played a few and it's a good laugh, as well as an awesome experience.

(List in no particular order...)

[Airk]

There are some good threads with very solid advice over in the Beginner Mode section:

Level up my game?

The process of learning a character

And probably others. For this sort of advice, that's probably where you want to be - there, or a character specific forum, anyway.

[Rhiya]

Use and understand the knowledge you have.

Knowing Ragna has a 2A>2C fatal frametrap, for example, doesn't mean jack if you never take advantage of that knowledge (which is to say, you either watch out for it after Ragna 2As or you use it yourself).

Basically, [break your autopilot] x N

[Surf]

Im no beginner like i stated. I read 80% of the Tsubaki related threads her and ive completed all her challenge mode missions. Alot of people say im great at fighting games but im still not convinced. Mainly because i drop almost everything i remembered online or offline. I can whop the CPU senseless. But when im against an actual person I clam up. Maybe my problem is autopilot. Beleive I know the game, a crap load about it. But that knowledge doesnt prevent me from getting bodied and it continues to baffle me

[Rhiya]

Being able to body the CPU has never meant anything. Same with being able to complete challenge mode. In fact, going all COMBO PRACTICE TIEM or playing like you're trying to body the CPU will get you bodied.

And if the knowledge you have isn't helping you, then either you A) aren't using it, B) haven't worked up the exec to use it or C) don't have knowledge about that thing at all. Again, knowing =/= using. Every input you make should have a purpose. If that isn't happening, you're going wrong somewhere.

[Surf]

I think the biggest issue is i dont have anyone to play with offline at all. No one i know plays the game to my point so im forced to play online in sometimes in a lagtastic environment. I dont just proactice combos in practice mode. I practice all the resets and what ifs too. Like was if the block Tsubakis 6B while doing my block chain or if they predict my tiger knee 236C crossup. I try out alot of situations but when they are actually presented in a real match i completely freeze up

[mAc Chaos]

How many matches have you played online?

[Nini Heart]

Well you need to stop choking. Do you know why you're choking? Why do you just freeze up in actual matches? Could be you need to play more to get used to the dynamics of an actual match.

[Surf]

All together Ive played a little over 200 or so matches. with my percentage being around 40% or something. So i should be used to actual matches but it doesnt really show at all

[Mucky]

200 matches is nothing. I have more than that on characters I don't even play. The fact that you freeze up in the first place is proof you aren't used to actual matches. Hell, you could have 2k matches and still freeze up from time to time if you aren't used to a particular match-up or player.

Being competitive at a tournament level takes a lot of time. You're looking at people who have played since CT and have over 10k netplay matches on record.

[YukiBlue]

I've played 2000+ Matches and still slip up every game. Not always in a major way, but I still drop the odd combo, or screw up some silly input (623x:v:). This could be because I play a lot of characters, or maybe because im just not up there yet.

Takes longer than a few thousand matches hombre.

[Surf]

Alright then ill just keep at it until the feeling goes away and im used to it. thank for the input guys. i guess i was just getting frustrated from it so much it just didnt make me improve at all.

[Halcyone3]

Reading the forums for strategies, knowing resets and optimal combos, reading frame data, and everything else mentioned here is sure nice to have, but the main reason for clamming up, too much autopilot, and the like is that you just lack experience. Knowing all of the info about the game inside and out matters extremely little if you don't have the savvy to adapt to situations on the fly. Experience is also not something u just get by playing 200+ fights, experience takes time to build up. If you are expecting to sit down and be a pro in a few weeks you are going to be severely disappointed.

As hypocritical as this may sound given i've personally only been to a single offline tournament due to not having the time and how online is my main way to play BB, online is just not very good for learning to play the game seriously. Even if u had 6k games in the bag, the vast majority of those are practically no help due to lag, and a large part of the remainder isn't either since the average online player is not looking to improve and is content with abusing lag tactics, which just fosters bad habits on their opponents (you).

If you honestly want to get good at the game, try to find an offline scene. If that is impossible, try to make one. If you can't be bothered to, get some players who u have a very good connection with and are also interested in improving, and play them, A LOT.

[thrash242]

I feel you, bro. I'm in almost exactly the same situation. I've been playing on and off since I was about 11 or 12 and SF2 was new (so, about 20 years now), but I've been an utter scrub until the last few years or so. I dabbled in Soul Calibur and Tekken, but I decided that I really prefer 2D fighting games.

I also have the problem of not having any friends that play. I have a couple friends that play SF, but they're pretty scrubby/casual and they refuse to play BB because it's "too weird".

I recently found an place in Houston about 30 minutes away that has Japanese cabinets and has CS2, so I've been going there on a weekly basis (and getting utterly destroyed by everyone I play). I lose most of my matches online by far.

...but I'm going to keep at it. I'll get decent eventually.

Edited June 1, 2011 by thrash242

[Eshi]

Being good at any fighting game is a lot of work. It will take a while for you to gain the experience necessary to understand what distinguishes a top player from an okay one. Freezing up in actual matches is not an unusual problem, everybody does. It takes a long time for one to internalize all of the tactics they've been practicing in training mode and know when it's time to apply it.

IMO the best way to level up is to watch japanese players and pay close attention to why they do they do for each particular match-up. Like, what normals they use the most, what setups they are and are not doing, how they approach zoners. If you lose a match to someone you think you shouldn't have, reflect on what the main reasons were for it. If there was some move you couldn't get past, check its frame data and figure out how best to stop it. If there was some setup you kept falling into, recreate it in training mode and figure out how to avoid it. The key to becoming a top player is understanding every situation the appears in each match-up and realizing every loss happens for a reason that can be fixed with more research.

Take everything with a grain of salt online though. Even the best players lose random matches to much worse players because of lag, so don't get frustrated.

[Nini Heart]

Alright then ill just keep at it until the feeling goes away and im used to it. thank for the input guys. i guess i was just getting frustrated from it so much it just didnt make me improve at all.

Just play a lot. The best thing is having offline players. Any fighting game is fine IMO. It will teach you pressure, how to deal with it, how to clutch it out, how to not be nervous etc. A lot of new players generally have a lot of trouble because they've only played online, so they don't know about the stuff you learn by playing actual offline opponents. My first fighter was Smash, and I learned about dealing with pressure, nervousness, losing control and keeping a cool head under strain. All that knowledge has transferred(somehow) to all the other games I play. If you can't find an offline BB scene, try to find one for another FG you're interested in. It will definitely help you out.

[Dacidbro]

If you take it seriously, I don't think any game will give you a stronger "nerve feeling" than Marvel 3. Play that game in tournament, suddenly the pressures of every other game feel tame IMHO

Also, what most people are saying is true. I've been a tournament caliber player since the start of CS1 (And this is also the first fighter I've been serious about), and have probably clocked somewhere between seven to ten thousand offline matches since then. Even still, it's possible I'll have a completely brain-dead response occasionally or freeze for a second if confused or put on the spot in a high stress situation.

Just keep practicing, with live opponents. Preferably offline with a better player, so you can get feedback, but take what's available.

Edited June 2, 2011 by Dacidbro

[YukiBlue]

If you're like me, and have no Offline scene (North East England, People) The only advice I could give it watch Pro Players, Guys who play your character, and more or less learn how they deal with the shit other characters can do.

Also, Play moar, and moar.

And also play people better than you. You dont learn much playing, say a level 20 if you're level 50. (Unless he is one of those Assholes all over XBl that make new accounts to play a single character they have about 2k Game experience with)

[Surf]

The thing about playing fighting games seriously affected how i played any other game is true. Ever since ive delved into the fighting scene i look at games at a more analytical level. And ive become better at them. The main problem probably is i have no one to play offline like i said earlier. I tried to get my friends into the game. i let 3 of my friends borrow CS and none of them got to into it. It sucks to have to play in the scrub or lag filled environment of online constantly. I watch vids constantly of top players and i have a notebook full of freakin notes and post its on info lol but i understand u guys in meaning thatll itll take a long while before that info is implemented into my game. I always record the replays of matches ive lost or barely won. All watching them have really made me realized the problems i keep making. the main one was my habit of ending my blockstrings with 6C with Tsubaki which is just a nightmare lol. I fixed that problem and many others by doing so. So little by little my mistakes r becoming few. I know my problems already such as my hit confirms suck (sometimes i dont think ill hit them and when i do unexpectedly i dont continue the combo) and im my fingers r still getting used to playing Tsubaki instead of Hazama (ive repeatdly done the command for mizuchi raikazan instead of tsubakis DD, which actually cost me a match) I wish i had someone waaay better then me to play offline. But i seriously cant find one

[Eshi]

no offense but if you live in florida then I have a hard time believing there's no one to play with offline. Have you posted in the florida thread to see if anyone lives near you?

[Surf]

I was just on the florida thread reading and such. Havnt seen anyone in my particular area but i do see people that like about an hours drive away.

[Nini Heart]

If you're serious, you could try to set up meet ups once per month or more depending on your resources and your drive to get better. Having a scene one hours drive away is a godsend if you ask me.

[Surf]

problems are i dont have a car. and absolutely no one i know would be willing to drive me for an hour so i can "level up" lol