We’re closing in on the one month mark and things are going pretty strong. Local tourneys abound (I’ve participated in four already), we just finished a very exciting Winter Brawl tournament, and next weekend is the much anticipated Final Round. Thanks to all these opportunities to get out and compete, not to mention the fact that we’ve had the game long enough to begin developing real strategies, it’s natural that almost everyone is focused intently on improvement. I’m right there with you.
This week’s column is the product of a number of conversations I’ve had with various people over IM, in private messages, and in person, all on the subject of improvement. While the particulars are always, well, particular, I still found myself returning time and again to a handful of overarching themes, specifically with regard to the countless ways we get inside our own heads and undermine our chances for success. Oftentimes we end up struggling not only against our opponents, but also against ourselves and the detrimental thought patterns we allow to take hold in our spongy, traitorous little brains. So in order to save myself the hassle of having the exact same conversation a million more times, let’s just go ahead and have a heart to heart about it now, just you and me. So without further ado, let's get into a few specifics.
Self-Mindgame 1: “I can’t do ____ against ____.”
Fighting gamers, in my experience, have an unnecessary tendency to think in absolutes. Whether it’s “never do” this or “I’ll never be able to” that, these sorts of thoughts are dangerous because they impose artificial, arbitrary limits on play and improvement, respectively.
Self-Mindgame 2: “I will never be any good.”
Most broadly and most importantly, don’t allow yourself to think “I’ll never be a good player.” It may seem unnecessary to say this part, but this is actually the conversation I end up having the most frequently with people. It’s easy to become discouraged after getting shined up by a great player, which is when this negative absolutism crap really takes hold. Don’t let it. Fighting games are about process more than results; matches and tournaments end, but you’re always allowed to keep working and improving. Who cares if you lose 100 straight games, provided you learned something in the process? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: everybody had to start somewhere. Each and every good player out there is proof that good practice pays good dividends, so become situationally retarded. Forget the loss, but remember the lesson.
Self-Mindgame 3: “I am Billy Badass!”
At the other end of the spectrum from “I’ll never be any good” we find unwarranted self-satisfaction, which is an equally dangerous sort of thought. Do everything in your power to avoid falling into the trap of thinking you’re good enough already, because, frankly, there’s no such thing. Confidence is an almost universal trait in top players, but never contentment. As soon as you allow yourself to be satisfied with your ability level, you lose some of the fire that helped you improve. You also become immediately vulnerable to everyone out there who’s still grinding it out, looking for ways to get and maintain that all-important marginal edge. It’s critical that all of us remain focused on improving and refining our game whether we’re in contention to win majors or just hapless bracket fodder.
A helpful corollary to this is practicing honest self-assessment. Are you actually the greatest ever? What are your real strengths? What are your real weaknesses? How can you start improving upon them? These are important questions that each of us needs to be asking ourselves and answering with ruthless accuracy. You’re under no obligation to share these assessments with other people, so there’s no reason to soften the blow. Instead, embrace a no-excuses mindset. Pretend there are no such things as bad matchups, bad characters, and so on, and focus exclusively on what things you can tighten up to give yourself the best possible shot at winning. I do this sort of thing briefly after every game I play, and in much more depth after every session or tournament I attend, and it really does get results.
Self-Mindgame 4: “Everyone’s stupid but me.*”
*Only I may say this with any degree of accuracy.
In addition to looking inward, it’s important to talk with skilled players about what you can do to improve. Players both in your local scene and here on the forums are generally quite willing to work with people and help them get better. As such, the community becomes an incredibly valuable resource for improvement. Many people seem put-off by this to an extent. Asking for advice might seem like tacitly admitting someone else is a better player, which can be galling, but beating ass should always trump personal pride in these matters. Talk to people, get feedback, and collaborate on strategies. See if what other people identify as your potential weaknesses match up to what you saw in yourself, and then devise ways to work past those issues.
Similarly, don’t reinvent the wheel. There’s no special prize for discovering on your own things that everyone else already knows. Don’t believe me? Go calculate the force of gravity, publish your work, and see whether or not you end up getting a Nobel Prize in physics. If people already know optimal strategies and combos for your character, use them. Tweak and innovate, of course, and make sure you understand what you’re doing, but save yourself as much time and hassle as humanly possible.
Self-Mindgame 5: “All I need is . . .”
Many players become fixated on one particular thing they can’t yet do, convincing themselves that this
one move, combo, tactic, or gameplay element is all that stands between themselves and greatness. I’ve come to call this the “engineering mindset” because it almost characterizes a person’s gameplay as a broken machine that’s just in need of one crucial repair. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case, and usually when a player finds his holy grail like this, the expected massive improvement doesn’t materialize. That, of course, makes it very easy for some of the above self-mindgames to take hold, which is definitely not a good outcome. Fighting games are incredibly complex hybrids of technical, mathematically-governed systems and the grimier elements of human psychology. Feeling things out, understanding your opponent, and developing a sense of the more organic, less quantifiable elements of gameplay are just as important as anything that could reasonably fall under the engineering mindset fallacy, if not more so. Focusing all one’s attention on measurable and neglecting these elements is ineffective and a recipe for disappointment.
Homework:
These are just a handful of the topics I find myself discussing, but taken together I believe they constitute a decent cross-section of mindsets to be avoided. Now it’s your turn to chip in. Tell me about the mindgames you’ve played with yourself in the past, how they’ve screwed you, and how you overcame them. What are some of the other major obstacles when it comes to improvement? How do you train and get better?
@Original_Hater
This week’s column is the product of a number of conversations I’ve had with various people over IM, in private messages, and in person, all on the subject of improvement. While the particulars are always, well, particular, I still found myself returning time and again to a handful of overarching themes, specifically with regard to the countless ways we get inside our own heads and undermine our chances for success. Oftentimes we end up struggling not only against our opponents, but also against ourselves and the detrimental thought patterns we allow to take hold in our spongy, traitorous little brains. So in order to save myself the hassle of having the exact same conversation a million more times, let’s just go ahead and have a heart to heart about it now, just you and me. So without further ado, let's get into a few specifics.
Self-Mindgame 1: “I can’t do ____ against ____.”
Fighting gamers, in my experience, have an unnecessary tendency to think in absolutes. Whether it’s “never do” this or “I’ll never be able to” that, these sorts of thoughts are dangerous because they impose artificial, arbitrary limits on play and improvement, respectively.
While it’s not a good policy to do stupid or reckless things in serious play, taking moves completely out of your arsenal because they’re unsafe, beatable, or what have you, doesn’t do any favors. News flash: Pyrrha Omega has a very scary punisher, but you’re probably going to need to employ a few unsafe moves if you want to beat her. Winning in SCV or any other fighting game isn’t about perfection or safety, but instead it’s about out-thinking and outplaying your opponent. Part of this is absolutely about limiting your risk, of course, but many new and intermediate-level players pare down their move lists far too aggressively when faced with a scary punish. Remember that the more options you have, the more dangerous you are. The more things you’re willing to do, the more your opponent must keep in mind when defending. Rather than simply writing off large chunks of your offense, it’s better to just use them more sparingly. Think of your health as a resource that you can spend in order to keep your opponent worried about multiple options. Be practical—don’t take anything out of your arsenal until and unless your opponent forces you to do so.
Self-Mindgame 2: “I will never be any good.”
Confidence is sexy, or so they tell me.
A more pernicious sort of “never” comes from deciding that certain things are altogether impossible. If you find yourself saying you’ll never be able to beat a particular player, never be able to execute a difficult combo, or even thinking that opponents will never scout a favorite strategy of yours, you’re making a serious error. Specifically, you’re doing the other guy’s work for him. I know, I know, you’ve heard it all before, and it reeks of scummy self-help garbage, but there’s actually some truth to it. Any time you assume you’ll lose or that you can’t learn something, you’re indulging in classic self-sabotage. Here’s a useful thought experiment: try ditching all of your negative expectations for a while. Whether it’s consistently making tight punishes, executing Alpha Patroklos combos, or even something as simple as making sure you attempt a throw escape every time you’re grabbed, replace “never” with “not yet,” and see what happens.Most broadly and most importantly, don’t allow yourself to think “I’ll never be a good player.” It may seem unnecessary to say this part, but this is actually the conversation I end up having the most frequently with people. It’s easy to become discouraged after getting shined up by a great player, which is when this negative absolutism crap really takes hold. Don’t let it. Fighting games are about process more than results; matches and tournaments end, but you’re always allowed to keep working and improving. Who cares if you lose 100 straight games, provided you learned something in the process? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: everybody had to start somewhere. Each and every good player out there is proof that good practice pays good dividends, so become situationally retarded. Forget the loss, but remember the lesson.
Self-Mindgame 3: “I am Billy Badass!”
At the other end of the spectrum from “I’ll never be any good” we find unwarranted self-satisfaction, which is an equally dangerous sort of thought. Do everything in your power to avoid falling into the trap of thinking you’re good enough already, because, frankly, there’s no such thing. Confidence is an almost universal trait in top players, but never contentment. As soon as you allow yourself to be satisfied with your ability level, you lose some of the fire that helped you improve. You also become immediately vulnerable to everyone out there who’s still grinding it out, looking for ways to get and maintain that all-important marginal edge. It’s critical that all of us remain focused on improving and refining our game whether we’re in contention to win majors or just hapless bracket fodder.
He'd never lose at all if he didn't play low-tier.
A helpful corollary to this is practicing honest self-assessment. Are you actually the greatest ever? What are your real strengths? What are your real weaknesses? How can you start improving upon them? These are important questions that each of us needs to be asking ourselves and answering with ruthless accuracy. You’re under no obligation to share these assessments with other people, so there’s no reason to soften the blow. Instead, embrace a no-excuses mindset. Pretend there are no such things as bad matchups, bad characters, and so on, and focus exclusively on what things you can tighten up to give yourself the best possible shot at winning. I do this sort of thing briefly after every game I play, and in much more depth after every session or tournament I attend, and it really does get results.
Self-Mindgame 4: “Everyone’s stupid but me.*”
*Only I may say this with any degree of accuracy.
In addition to looking inward, it’s important to talk with skilled players about what you can do to improve. Players both in your local scene and here on the forums are generally quite willing to work with people and help them get better. As such, the community becomes an incredibly valuable resource for improvement. Many people seem put-off by this to an extent. Asking for advice might seem like tacitly admitting someone else is a better player, which can be galling, but beating ass should always trump personal pride in these matters. Talk to people, get feedback, and collaborate on strategies. See if what other people identify as your potential weaknesses match up to what you saw in yourself, and then devise ways to work past those issues.
This actually works on a couple of levels. Hurray!
Similarly, don’t reinvent the wheel. There’s no special prize for discovering on your own things that everyone else already knows. Don’t believe me? Go calculate the force of gravity, publish your work, and see whether or not you end up getting a Nobel Prize in physics. If people already know optimal strategies and combos for your character, use them. Tweak and innovate, of course, and make sure you understand what you’re doing, but save yourself as much time and hassle as humanly possible.
Self-Mindgame 5: “All I need is . . .”
Many players become fixated on one particular thing they can’t yet do, convincing themselves that this
one move, combo, tactic, or gameplay element is all that stands between themselves and greatness. I’ve come to call this the “engineering mindset” because it almost characterizes a person’s gameplay as a broken machine that’s just in need of one crucial repair. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case, and usually when a player finds his holy grail like this, the expected massive improvement doesn’t materialize. That, of course, makes it very easy for some of the above self-mindgames to take hold, which is definitely not a good outcome. Fighting games are incredibly complex hybrids of technical, mathematically-governed systems and the grimier elements of human psychology. Feeling things out, understanding your opponent, and developing a sense of the more organic, less quantifiable elements of gameplay are just as important as anything that could reasonably fall under the engineering mindset fallacy, if not more so. Focusing all one’s attention on measurable and neglecting these elements is ineffective and a recipe for disappointment.
Homework:
These are just a handful of the topics I find myself discussing, but taken together I believe they constitute a decent cross-section of mindsets to be avoided. Now it’s your turn to chip in. Tell me about the mindgames you’ve played with yourself in the past, how they’ve screwed you, and how you overcame them. What are some of the other major obstacles when it comes to improvement? How do you train and get better?
@Original_Hater
