Renvalt

Okay, when's the next Dustlooper session taking place? I'm forcing my way in - whether anyone here cares or not.

I've never really felt like any of my gameplay improved when I went back into training mode. I don't feel depressed or weighed down by my losses after a while, though I just can't see myself being happy from giving it any less than my absolute best. I mean, right now my absolute biggest desire is to beat everyone here that's given me advice (Airk, Yuki, StarDemon, etc), but I know (and have known for a while now) that as I stand I'll just lose if I even attempt. And if I can't even beat someone using Stylish Mode (or even the CPU on a difficulty other than Beginner) then I clearly won't be able to win even two loss breakers (which is my goal for the time being - don't aim for huge win streaks, just try to break loss streaks with sporadic wins) against you guys. The longer I maintain a loss streak, the worse it gets. I can't just "stop" and have fun, as that would mean I'd have to put getting better on hold - and in that time, you guys could get even farther than I am now, forcing me to work harder to close the skill gaps between myself and aforementioned Dustloopers. And just to clarify: I'm not aiming to beat you guys so that you'll respect me or anything like that; I'm simply wanting to win to gain confidence and get over my grudge against losing to you all. Yet I'm willing to admit that I'm a scrub right now (though admitting that is very shameful for me, as this doesn't seem to be a place that really takes delight in BlazBlue scrubs). 'Course what do I know? I'm just a scrub - I'm not showing effort on getting better at the game, and I'm not having any fun losing. Why should I question you, who know it all and can at least hold your own out there in tournament level play (and take tons of losses like Terminator takes bullets)? I'm more or less mad at myself for thinking I shouldn't suck so bad and feeling "entitled" to a specific speed of progress, then realizing I'm not getting what I felt "entitled" to and throwing a fit because of it. I'm not having fun whether it's the scrub kind or the play2win kind (both for different reasons). EDIT: FYI, I am enjoying playing BlazBlue to some degree, as I haven't even touched SF4 or GG compared to BB, and the only other fighter I can stand to touch in my PS3 library is Arcana Heart 3 (and I suck at that game too, but I strangely keep playing it along with this). So I AM having fun with this game - I just can't figure out why.

70 losses?! How is it you can withstand that much?! I'd be sobbing buckets/roaring expletives before I even hit 30 losses, let alone 50. I can't even last 10 losses. How do you do it? What's your secret?

I laughed too once I got what you meant. I didn't think anyone cared enough to remember that - it's not exactly a legacy I'm fond of. In any case, thanks for all the words of wisdom.

I know that much. I've noticed that there are certain things I used to do when I first started this game that I no longer do now. Part of the whole "getting better" process, I'd imagine. And as for Jourdal's channel, I think I'd really love if I could stuff my second hard drive full of vids of pro Hakumen players (I believe Spark's one of them, and I did watch a few of his vids of BBCP, but not intently). If anything, I feel I would need to watch those vids in a sense of "why did he consider that approach" or "why did he choose to block instead of using Drive counter for a combo"? As a player myself, personally I feel that my own improvement will need to come from patching up problems in execution (like not botching Zantetsu or even Renka) as well as just learning those fundamentals with normals (I confess to having terrible issues with jump cancels or air dash cancels, and I absolutely cannot high jump without isolating it as a single action without a preceeding action or follow-up). But yeah, I want to get better. Can't really say "why", but I know I do. This is like the third time I've bought the game again. And despite Hakumen's playstyle clashing with my ideals (I'm more of a berserker who likes a rabid bull offense as opposed to Hakumen's "chill and calm defense"), I confess that he's the only character I can stand to look at. Character love wise, I want to play with him - I just feel like fitting myself into his playstyle is going to be like re-aligning my teeth with braces. It's gonna hurt like all hell (mentally at least), but I think I may be better for it at the end of the day.

Would that apply even to matches where my opponents were using Stylish instead of Technical/not using their mains and using some character that totally clashes with their playstyle? If so, does that effectively mean that I care more about the game than I thought? I mean, I always thought it weird. I'd resell CSEX from time to time (probably because I needed money for something, whether another PS3 game or food or whatever), but then I'd have the strong urge to buy it again. Same with a lot of other games - I'd quit, but then return and not be able to give a straight answer as to "why" I had quit or "why" I'm playing the game again. I know it's definitely not just "taking a break", but there's zero explanation otherwise. Same with why I play BlazBlue over Guilty Gear - I can't explain why, I just do. I'm not focusing on increasing my number, rather I'm (incorrectly) using the number as a means of judging my opponent's skill level. Because I'm interested in playing against players who are just as good as me, if not slightly better or worse. Yet if I were playing to learn, and that was all I was allowed to do because (theoretically at least) other players had said they would not played me until I "learned" enough, then I would simply not care about BlazBlue or any other game as much. I might decide to beat the game's single player/story mode on a whim to get a story clear or a 100% clear, but I'd never truly enjoy that. Games that have more emphasis on competition are games I pick up because I want to test my mettle against others, whatever skill level they may be. A CPU foe will have set ways of playing, but that doesn't excite me (especially when they have gimmicks you wouldn't find in tournament play, like SNK Boss Syndrone-esque gimmicks/moves/whatever). Also, I'm not going to use Stylish myself - but not because I find it cheap. I actually think it's far more restricting than if I were to play with Technical - at least with Technical, I can use two punches and not worry about the A having vaulted me into a Gurren and now suddenly I'm down one Maga and vulnerable because I'm still in rec frames. If it amuses you, I don't actually keep track of my losses in the long run. It's just super long ass streaks where I'm losing because of stagnant thinking. AKA not adapting to whatever my opponent was doing. So I basically back out and play a new opponent because I feel it's switching up the strategy I'm facing.

So as I was playing Ranked Matches with Hakumen a bit ago, I noticed something. I tend to get angry when my opponent either A)wins using Stylish Mode, or B)wins because they were worlds better than me. With B I know I'm going to be terribly outmatched, so at least I can take losses like that with some semblance of "oh well, at least I tried", but with A I feel like they weren't even being serious about playing against me. And that actually pisses me off because each match I go into, whether it be ranked or non-ranked, I treat as a tournament-style match. There may not be any prize money on the line, but this "make or break" mentality I get helps me give every fiber of my being into playing against my opponent. I play games to gradually get better, and I feel more relaxed if my opponent is at or around my skill level (like one tier weaker or stronger). It's like a Little League baseball player being thrown into a World Series match (or Major League match) and expected to contribute to the team's victory - except I lack those Hollywood gimmicks you often see those kids gifted with (i.e. Like Mike, Angels in the Outfield, etc.) My question is: if I'm treating all of my games as a "make or break" situation where one loss would psychologically tell me that "you're out of the running, you effectively suck", am I doing it wrong? Is this mentality of "give it your all because you only have one shot" damaging my ability to grow as a player? If yes, how should I go about ditching it, or how would I play the game while still retaining it? tl;dr Is taking your opponent seriously to the point where "winning and losing mean more than they should" a bad idea when trying to learn and get better at BlazBlue, or any FG (or game) for that matter?

Hazama? Really? I don't quite understand why he's easy. Jin, maybe, but HAZAMA?! How on earth is HE strong and easy? I thought that privilege went to Noel.

Really? I always thought it was cliche of the FG pros to use the basic starter character as a basis for an insult of one's skill (Ragnafag, Ryuscrub, etc). I avoided them simply because of how common the stigma of weak players using those characters seemed to be. Was worried over nothing~ And I'll try and seek out that Leonil fella - he seems like a good person.

Would anyone care for a few rounds in about an hour or two? I need some grub in mah belly before I start doing anything.

That's kinda what I don't get - what's with people saying that only "scrub casuals who don't play seriously" play Ragna? Isn't that logic kinda, well, flawed?

I could seriously use some counseling on the matter of picking Ragna. Half of the reason I don't like picking Ragna is because a lot of players tend to use his "overpowered" status as a means to bash the player as a whole - i.e. "You can't win unless you use broken-tier Ragna", or "Yeah, you're just a tier-whoring fag", or "Those who play Ragna never play BlazBlue seriously". I realize I'm not supposed to give into these kind of assholes, but driving people away because of something that's considered "overpowered" and "broken" is what scares me in trying out Ragna. Ragna seems to have the very things I need to properly learn FGs - and he's offense oriented as well. But just the idea of getting picked on for playing a "Typical Overpowered Shotofag" makes me afraid to play Ragna as a whole. I want to main Ragna, but in the rare case of those whiny losers, is there anyone who plays somewhat like Ragna that I could main as a means to shut said idiots up? At least this way I can get both my main and sub out of the way as far as choosing.

Yeah. My bad, sorry.

Well that's good to hear. Still doesn't change my mind about how I feel towards a good chunk of SSF4AE's community (granted there are chunks of good people; it's the "child thugstarz" that I can't stand).

Or "ass husbando" if that floats your boat. It's true that you should pick the character that you like best. However, if you're only getting fun out of the game BECAUSE of that character, or because of their theme, and not actually focusing on winning, then yeah, you're gonna trip and fall. Either that, or those Melty freaks had no idea what they were talking about. EDIT: My response to the OP below: I need to apologize. On a general level, anytime someone says the words "Street Fighter", I immediately assume they have an ego trip and are out for fame/glory/etc. Especially when you mention Yun or any character like him, since I consistently hear people whining about him. But I had no idea that Yun was nerfed. Because I've not seen anyone talk smack about him no longer being a god tier. My bad, I should probably back out of this one. These guys definitely know what they're talking about.

Airk, I think this "kid", whoever he is, wants a character that simply has one move that's like a guaranteed "win" button. This is just my take on it, but it seems the inquiring individual here (in this case, the OP's friend) has some kind of a "right to win" complex. Not unlike myself to some degree, and DEFINITELY not unlike Star-Demon. @OP: Ask your friend this - is he looking for a character with a cheap "guaranteed to win" move that will ensure he wins and wins all the time? If so, I think his problem may be an inflated ego, which you may want to look into hitting him to cure it (or some other less bold and brazen method). I'm pretty sure everyone knows that Yun's Dive Kick is considered an airborne normal, and from my experience, no character I know has that. Furthermore, you said he was considering Mu-12, but was that because of looks? Tell him to stop it with the "playing character love" if he wants to even remotely have a chance of "winning". Because ignoring everyone else as a potential investment is not only shortsighted and ignorant, but also severely limits your knowledge of the game - and that's one part of what helps one "win".

I want to say GGs to Kuro, Storm, and anyone else I played (I'm not gonna remember all the names). Had fun, and definitely need to change dat sig to Ky. Furthermore, Ace, I took your advice regarding SF4 and I still don't see what this whole topic of "flow" of the match is supposed to be that SF4 is supposed to teach me. All I see is my butt gettin' whooped over and over.

Saphri, technically my one goal when doing Versus is to come within at least 30% Health of stealing a round. I can't steal a match because I know my opponents are too good and are able to do combos. Me? I have simple execution problems on Fireballs (and don't even get me started on that DP). The problem isn't always doing them in training - most times if done solo I can do them quite well. However, force me to slap 'em in a combo and I start whiffing more (and it gets even worse if I have a live opponent threatening me with damage). My mentality comes from the 90s era thought that you were good if you beat the boss and/or secret boss without dying. Oftentimes that meant abusing - you guessed it - damage. The more damage something did, the better your chances of beating the game and thus "being pro". Outdated mindset I know, but I don't know a way to psychologically stop thinking that way. It's like it's rooted deep down.

So Saphri, let me ask you this: How do you resolve a mentality issue that forces your mind to brutally rush through the match - a mentality born from inexperience - because you don't really have a plan that can't be countered by someone who knows the game far more than you do? Furthermore, if "improving" isn't going to be fun, then what point does playing the darn game even serve then? I play games to have fun, but if improving ignores that fact, then why the hell even bother?

That gamer psychology... perhaps you can diagnose what's wrong with my menality? Usually when I'm playing, I have a set strategy - try to get in strings that do damage. So often when I'm just jumping around, it's actually my intent to do a certain special or overdrive (for example, Chipp's 41236K or 632146H when I'm far away). If it looks like I'm jumping around just randomly, it tends to be the fact I whiffed the stupid input by hitting 7 or 9 somehow (like I said, my hands are friggin big and the game's controls think I'm intending to do something I wasn't). In training mode, pulling these off isn't too much of a problem. The issue however arises as soon as there's resistance thrown at me. I thought it was an issue with the fact I was slow, but then I realized it might be bigger than that - looking at my gameplay, it seems stiff and uneducated. Even during an AH3 session before I got GG, one of my friendlies noticed I wasn't really putting pressure on him, to which I responded that I thought pressure was being able to keep doing damage to your foe (at which point he bluntly stated I have no clue what pressure is). That said though, I stopped trying to play these games to make stuff like EVO and really just played to enjoy things that have always made me smile - the audio and visual aesthetics. Things like this make losing at least tolerable (though I *do* want to get better eventually). tl;dr - I appear to be jumping around because of whiffed inputs that I'm attempting to nail, I don't block and play stiff because my philosophy of victory is damage = king, and I think I have no idea about basic (?) concepts like pressure and just overall FG theory. But I play games to have fun.

Hey, Star. Y'know what I think you should do? Face against me. I get my arse kicked on a regular basis, so I think your level may be around mine or possibly higher. I'm not one to care about winning or losing anymore, since I've found my area of thrill for FGs, but at the very least if you somehow manage to win, it could possibly give you a confidence boost. Ya have my PSN (it's on the previous page, and I even go to lengths to make sure my post profile has it), so just give me a PM and we can schedule a few rounds. That is, if you truly want to ditch this personality of a hopeless dog (it took me a while, but hey, I found it).

Assuming MA to OR and vice versa doesn't suck lagwise (given the horror stories I've heard of the netcode), I'd gladly take you on! Another Chipp user would be kickass in more ways than one.

I see. Thanks for the links, btw. @Zdrav - I lol'd hard. Very informative and humorous. Thanks!

PSN: renvalt32 Main: Chipp Location: Springfield, OR

Yo, wassup? I just got GG a couple days ago, and while I'm quite satisfied with it (having a blast with Chipp as my main), there are some things I don't quite understand. I'm guessing that Chipp's 41236K>D is a Roman Cancel, but I'm not quite familiar with (or even really know) False Roman or even Faultlessing. These terms aren't really something I understand (I've heard the announcer say "False Roman" in Training Mode, but I'm not exactly sure what I did to get him to say that). As for Faultless, I'm not even sure what that is (Osuna mentioned it to me, but he didn't bother to explain it to me), and as such have no idea how to pull it off. He said something akin to 66 4P+K 4H/6H if I recall. I figure it has something to do with dashing since he mentioned a dash command, but beyond that I'm clueless. And not really part of my main set of questions, but how is one supposed to deal with Boss I-No's Machine Hearts of Death? I only managed to figure out one pattern that I thought unavoidable, but I'm still not really clear on how it works or how to beat it. And is the secret Order Sol fight accessed in much the same way as the Unlimited Mu-12 fight in BlazBlue (AKA a no-loss-no-continue run on any difficulty while doing at least a certain amount of Overdrive KOs/Insta-Kills)?