Does anyone else feel like online is holding them back?

Laswagga

[09] Warrior
So, lately i've been cursing out a good bit of the people on my PSN and a couple of my subscribers on my youtube page when we play. Not because i've lost to them, but because they play like garbage.

I play SF4 more than SCIV at this point, and I get angrier and angrier every time I get online. I spend hours on end in training mode to get my links down pact. I've had countless offline sessions with many people, each a bit better than the other and I can honestly say that against any opponent, I can definitely hold my own.

But when it comes to dealing with lame ass tactics, and people who really don't know how to play the game (or simply aren't interested enough to learn) I find myself growing frustrated by most basic of bullshit. For instance, assholes who abuse the hell out of Focus attacks, or idiot ryu players who are content with mashing the shit out of qcf+p no matter what the situation is.

With all my practice, and what skill I have to show for it. I only find myself using about 10% of everything i've learned, be it because i'm playing some scrub or because of lag issues, it just feels like one massive waste of time and it has really begun to piss me off in both Soul Calibur AND Street Fighter.


Anyone feel the same?
 
I definitely know how you feel...
I'm not going to say that I am fucken great at any of the games I am playing,but I do train hours upon hours to try and at least get decent.
What gets to me the most is when I lose to a low attack...THAT I SEE COMING,lol.
I know that's a reaction issue that I have to fix myself but sometimes for me it's just impossible to keep focus sometimes. My mind is to much on the "win this round!!!" status.. lol

But yeah,now a days,I just try to relax and remind myself that it's just a game and am playing casuals with my friends and should be having fun.
 
I definitely know how you feel...

What gets to me the most is when I lose to a low attack...THAT I SEE COMING,lol.
I know that's a reaction issue that I have to fix myself but sometimes for me it's just impossible to keep focus sometimes. My mind is to much on the "win this round!!!" status.. lol

But yeah,now a days,I just try to relax and remind myself that it's just a game and am playing casuals with my friends and should be having fun.

lmao ya theres nothing like seeing an attack coming and bein like damn im about to die *time slows down*...no wait thats just LAG
 
And it was for this reason, I play FPSs and whatnot online (stuff that aren't fighters, fighters are my favorite genre)

Unless you have offline comp or can travel, then either you play the online modes or you don't. For the games I take seriously, I don't play them online, unless its with close or long time friends.(and they know, I really don't like too)

Instead. Keep my reflexes(ability to react quickly) in check with an FPS/shooter game. Keep my mind sharp(keeping an eye open for possible solutions) with mobile/portable Puzzle games. Then I hit up fighting games practice mode and practice execution and move timing, then practice not til I get it right, but til I can't get it wrong. But at the same time, this routine is completely pointless if you don't play AGAINST people on a regular basis. Therefore, you don't really know what to practice against and it becomes a waste of time.

So has online play held me back?
Not really.
 
I definitely know how you feel...
I'm not going to say that I am fucken great at any of the games I am playing,but I do train hours upon hours to try and at least get decent.
What gets to me the most is when I lose to a low attack...THAT I SEE COMING,lol.
I know that's a reaction issue that I have to fix myself but sometimes for me it's just impossible to keep focus sometimes. My mind is to much on the "win this round!!!" status.. lol

But yeah,now a days,I just try to relax and remind myself that it's just a game and am playing casuals with my friends and should be having fun.

What this person said.
 
If I could figure out how to merge this thread with the "Online/Offline" debate thread I would (it keeps giving me errors).
 
I really don't see how this is an online vs offline debate thread.

This thread is not a discussion about what is better, for whatever reason. Its about feeling like you can't learn anything from fighting people who don't care to know the game as well as you do. This can happen both online and off, it just so happens that i'm talking about online. How does that require a merge?
 
If these people are your friends on psn...

...but they're garbage players...

...why are they your friends....


.....twlight zone.......
 
Even though I'm not that good, offline would be so much better and I would learn the game in an actual consistent environment. I agree.
 
Hi laswaga. Sounds like we need to have a <3 2 <3. I've never played you online, however I have met and played you once in person. I understand what you're talking about. It applies in both offline and online.

Practicing stuff in training mode is great. That perfects the timing required to execute things on the proper frame, and makes them become second nature so less effort is required to preform them. You're burning them in your mind so if your opening move hits, you automatically flow into the next part.

However, being able to apply those in actual combat are where skills come in. Anybody can learn JF combos, or 184 damage wall combos as an example, but to be able to execute it when it counts is another story.

You're not going to get your big combo every round, and if you are fishing for that, then more often than not, you're going to let alot of other opportunities to make damage pass you by. Trust me, I know this from experience. I can recall many times where I've fished for CF's only to allow my opponent to trickle my health bar to nothing. It's really not worth the stress and frustration you're putting your self through by waiting for that moment. I imagine you playing stiff as a board, ready to break if too much force is applied. You need to loosen up. Relax. Have fun.

If someone that you're playing is just throwing attacks out and you're trying to throw them back at him, then you're going to look like two kids in a slap fight. You need to keep aware of what they are doing. If they aren't playing with much flash, or setup, then you have the advantage already, because you've got more discipline. What you may not know is when they are putting themselves at a disadvantage, and what attack you should use to guarantee that it hits, or is at least pushing the momentum in your favor.

For example... Whenever you play Mitsurugi, they love the BB. It's fast, has good range, good damage, and gives them a +4 frame advantage on hit. Now, most of these players don't know that it's exactly 4 frames of advantage. They just know that if they throw out another BB, that you will lose if you throw out a move. So say for instance, Mitsu hits you with a BB, and you suspect that since he attacked, that now it's your turn, so you try something like 4K or whatever. Mitsu does BB again and you get hit by a BB again. So now you think quick because I know you're a smart guy, and maybe you think that the move you used was too slow, so you try something quicker like a 2A. Mitsu does BB and you lose again. Do you see the pattern? Lets look at it from the opposite perspective.

Say you get hit by Mitsu's BB. You know that you are at a disadvantage now so you hold guard after getting hit. Mitsu does BB again, just like in the first scenario, but this time you block it. Now Mitsu is at a -6 frame disadvantage. You have just turned the game around in your favor, just by blocking. Now you are able to 4K, and if Mitsu tries to BB you will win. However, like in the first scenario, the Mitsu is aware that he is able to BB again after the first BB hits and you can't interrupt it, so the same could be said for when you block the BB. He could very well know that he's at a disadvantage. So keep that in mind.

Test out your opponent. Take your time. Walk around the stage a little bit, and watch what they do. Keep your finger close to the guard button in case they come out swinging. If they are coming at you, they are looking to attack, so be prepared for that. If they are walking sideways with a little angle towards you, then they are able to preform 8wr moves so you need to be aware what would come out of them. Could it be a low they use? Mid? High? Depending on how fast the attack is, usually determines how often it is used. The faster the attack, the more use it will get.

Every match will be different as your opponent is going to try and adapt to your previous strategy. And will most likely be adapting during the first round as well. So you have to have more than just a combo or JF's to beat them. You need reflex, and reaction. Tricks, precision, dexterity (being able to execute same stuff on 1p and 2p). Anticipation is useful too. It relates closely with reaction but is a lower form of it. Some stuff can be seen on reaction, some stuff needs to be anticipated. Especially if they have frame advantage.

An easy example of this could be when your opponents soul gauge is flashing red. Most of the time, they will become more aggressive than they were before, and this is because they are "anticipating" you using strong attacks to force them to block. They become more aware, and sometimes wreckless during this. They know that the more damage they make, the more their soul gauge will regen. You'll see alot of quick attacks one after another here. Also alot more movement. At this point you should be focused on not trying to break their soul guage, but instead, make sure you take your advantages when they are given to you. They will most likely be the ones pushing the fight at this point. Whats most important is winning the round. Not trying to CF.

I know you want to do big combos with Setsuka. You need to set those up properly. Post GI is one of the most effective ways to achieve this. However, I bet you haven't practiced "GI~Bread and Butter Combo" in training mode eh? It requires another step however with some practice it can also be done as second nature, or habit. Stepping, opponent whiffs, and moves that have severe frame disadvantages to the point where they become punishable by your combo starter are other methods to do your BnB. However the latter requires you to study your opponents framelist, and also become familliar with the animation of the move so that you can recognise when it's been used.

An example of this would be Mitsu's bA. I'll use Voldo as the punishing character. Mitsu's bA is pretty unsafe, to the point of being punishable. It doesn't look like it though, but it is. An easy punish would be a simple AA. However, Voldo is able to do 66:B, 66B, 66:B, 2A+B~236B for roughly 60ish points of damage. As a punish! This requires practice to do as the timing is strict, but this is just to give you an idea of how important it is to study the other characters a bit so you know when you can hurt them bad. Doing it with consistency will show your opponent that if they want to try something like that, it'll cost them. At higher level play, your opponent may even stop using the move all together. Limiting the attacks they can use on you is key to winning consistently at higher levels. This obviously can't be said for online play. Though you can technically still punish with that, you might just have to dumb the punish down a little bit. It sucks, but that's what online is. I'd love to 66:B a Kilik that likes to do B+K, 6B everytime they do it online, but thats simply not possible. Doesn't mean you can't still try sometimes. Having fun is what is important. So long as you feel you played well should be enough.

There is alot more to this as well like mixing up your attacks and stuff, but I'm sure you're already aware of that as I said before, you're a smart guy. If any of this doesn't apply to you, then I appologise for wasting your time. I just felt the need to say something to you as I don't like seeing you get upset like this. Take care, brother.
 
jesus enk.....
you put me and my wall of texts to shame.

anyway, i despise online. my stance is very similar to rek's. except that i dont play fps.. other than that, i try to keep my playtime offline.
 
So, lately i've been cursing out a good bit of the people on my PSN

Well there's your first problem, lol.

I really don't see how this is an online vs offline debate thread.

Oh but it is! Maybe not a debate per se, as just further evidence as to how there's no comparison between the two. But the thing is man, you can't change people on the internet most of the time. And the few times you can, it's by utilizing constructive communication methods, not getting mad at them for doing some dumb shit. Of COURSE they're gonna do dumb shit, look at all their wins online! Mad skills!

Most of them just aren't gonna be able to see the other side of things, because a) they have an entire internet worth of people to beat with those kinds of tactics, and they take it as positive reinforcement without considering the other side of the coin, and b) anything that beats them can be written off as "cheap" or "broken" due to the vast majority of gamers and even popular gaming media buying into shit like that.

So I mean, you're really just pissing into the wind on this one man. Online will never be offline, and you're never gonna be able to prove your point on the internet by swearing at someone that such and such move wouldn't work without lag. They just won, all they're gonna say is "u mad?"
 
You guys are completely missing my point.

Let me be more clear.

I'm trying to say that ONLINE or OFFLINE, I feel like playing with people who are not higher or at my own level are holding me back from improving my game, what game and if i'm online or not is irrelevant to my discussion. And as far as online being bad and me just now getting it........

REALLY?

Do you really believe i'm JUST NOW figuring out online is bad?
Come on 8WR, give me more credit than that. Jesus.
 
Have you tried posting this at shoryuken.com? I think they have the medicine you desire. Good luck to you.
 
You guys are completely missing my point.

Let me be more clear.

I'm trying to say that ONLINE or OFFLINE, I feel like playing with people who are not higher or at my own level are holding me back from improving my game, what game and if i'm online or not is irrelevant to my discussion.

So... this is a "I can't find any decent competition" thread?

Online Matchmaking?

Best of PSN?

I'm sure you could find someone to kick your ass, go to an offline tournament or something.
 
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