Most of us, at some point during our competitive lives, have thought something along these lines: "I know I would have beaten that guy if I spent as much time playing the game as he does." In fact, it's because enough people have explained to me that I only won a match because, instead of practicing, they spend all of their free time having sex with supermodels, making irrational amounts of money, and curing cancer all at once that I'm writing this column and sharing some of my most closely guarded nerd secrets. Consider it a thank you to all of you sex-having, bill-stacking Nobel laureates out there for doing so much and asking so little in return.
Whether you're a walking bye, a mid-level player looking to improve, or even a seasoned tournament pro, the importance of how you practice cannot be overstated. Now re-read that last sentence. How you practice is more important than how long you practice. One of the most crucial differences between elite players and the people whose faces they're stomping simply comes down to practice habits. With a little bit of planning, it's possible to squeeze a lot of benefit out of even a short practice period.
Work Smarter, Not Harder
Having had the distinct misfortune of watching many, many less than stellar players flail about in practice mode, I can say with extreme certainty that "just winging it" is, by far, the least effective means to improve one's skills. Remember, we're on a tight schedule--every second we spend in practice mode is a second that beautiful women (or men), the global economy, and millions of cancer patients all suffer without us--so it's imperative to waste as little time as possible. As such, let's start by outlining our various deficiencies, then devise a plan to hit everything as quickly and brutally as possible. Practice mode tends to be most useful for the following:
• Basic knowledge/execution
Spend time learning your character. Make certain that you can execute moves and combos reliably. In most cases, this is a relatively minor hurdle. In some, such as Setsuka or Cervantes, continual practice is necessary. Recognize these needs and budget accordingly.
• Information gathering
Learn the properties of your character's moves. Are they safe or unsafe? Do any have tech crouches or tech jumps? What are your best punishes? However, this category also includes gleaning information about other characters, such as learning punishment and practicing how to cope with specific moves and tactics.
• Scenario re-creation
Replaying common situation that arise in match-ups and determining the most reliable counters.
• Experimentation
A little freestyle, but with a purpose. Playing around with maximizing wall damage, experimenting with nonstandard counters, etc.
Of these, scenario re-creation is worth the most in-depth analysis. Soul Calibur games have outstanding practice modes; we can record, play back, and otherwise tweak variables in order to re-create almost any scenario that might arise during game-play. This is perhaps the most crucial difference between haphazard and effective practicing. Of course, it's not enough to simply re-create a mixup situation and find one way out of it. We must look for universal solutions.
Take, as an example, Raphael's 4(B) into prep stance on block against me, a Cervantes player. Let's say I identify that the Raph against whom I play is really abusing this particular tactic against me. I can record the moves in practice mode and play them back, experimenting with various counters. I may even find specific defensive answers to whether he follows with an A or a B, and so on. What I really want, though, is a universal answer. In this case, I call upon the information I gathered about my move properties, remembering that my 1B has a built-in sidestep. Tweaking my practice settings and experimenting some more, I quickly learn that blocking a Raph 4(B) means I can use my own 1B to stop every option available to him.
The above example showcases using the peculiarities of an otherwise less than stellar move to completely stuff an otherwise annoying mixup scenario. Connecting the dots, as it were, is purely the result of effective practice.
In point of fact, most characters have incredibly situational moves like Cervantes' 1B. It simply falls to you to discover and implement them. Remember, when re-creating a mixup scenario, try everything. You might find a universal solution. Only if you fail to do so should you practice situational tactics.
The next question, of course, is how you identify the situations to practice. This is where analytical, intelligent play pays real dividends. Even if you only have an hour or two per week to play against humans, you can capitalize on it by making mental notes of which moves and scenarios give you the most trouble, then going into the lab to find the most solid counters you can. Beyond that, simply utilize your spare time to good effect. We all have downtime every day; taking an idle moment to wonder about how a particular mixup can be defeated might be all it takes to significantly step up your game.
Ultimately, it doesn't necessarily take countless hours to have a deep understanding of one's character. More important is being analytical, having a plan, and executing that plan. Rather than wasting time learning how to defeat the computer on its hardest difficulty, effectively use your practice time to suss out the most effective counter-tactics to common situations. It is guaranteed practice will reward you handsomely.
Homework:
What are your practice routines? How do you get the most out of every minute you spend training? Also, what are some quirky, situational move properties possessed by your character? Let's build a library of universal counters.
My Editor was too busy banging supermodels AND sleeping to get this article up on time.
Whether you're a walking bye, a mid-level player looking to improve, or even a seasoned tournament pro, the importance of how you practice cannot be overstated. Now re-read that last sentence. How you practice is more important than how long you practice. One of the most crucial differences between elite players and the people whose faces they're stomping simply comes down to practice habits. With a little bit of planning, it's possible to squeeze a lot of benefit out of even a short practice period.
Work Smarter, Not Harder
Having had the distinct misfortune of watching many, many less than stellar players flail about in practice mode, I can say with extreme certainty that "just winging it" is, by far, the least effective means to improve one's skills. Remember, we're on a tight schedule--every second we spend in practice mode is a second that beautiful women (or men), the global economy, and millions of cancer patients all suffer without us--so it's imperative to waste as little time as possible. As such, let's start by outlining our various deficiencies, then devise a plan to hit everything as quickly and brutally as possible. Practice mode tends to be most useful for the following:
• Basic knowledge/execution
Spend time learning your character. Make certain that you can execute moves and combos reliably. In most cases, this is a relatively minor hurdle. In some, such as Setsuka or Cervantes, continual practice is necessary. Recognize these needs and budget accordingly.
• Information gathering
Learn the properties of your character's moves. Are they safe or unsafe? Do any have tech crouches or tech jumps? What are your best punishes? However, this category also includes gleaning information about other characters, such as learning punishment and practicing how to cope with specific moves and tactics.
• Scenario re-creation
Replaying common situation that arise in match-ups and determining the most reliable counters.
• Experimentation
A little freestyle, but with a purpose. Playing around with maximizing wall damage, experimenting with nonstandard counters, etc.
Of these, scenario re-creation is worth the most in-depth analysis. Soul Calibur games have outstanding practice modes; we can record, play back, and otherwise tweak variables in order to re-create almost any scenario that might arise during game-play. This is perhaps the most crucial difference between haphazard and effective practicing. Of course, it's not enough to simply re-create a mixup situation and find one way out of it. We must look for universal solutions.
Universal solutions like oil, which will always work and never cause us any problems. Ever.
Take, as an example, Raphael's 4(B) into prep stance on block against me, a Cervantes player. Let's say I identify that the Raph against whom I play is really abusing this particular tactic against me. I can record the moves in practice mode and play them back, experimenting with various counters. I may even find specific defensive answers to whether he follows with an A or a B, and so on. What I really want, though, is a universal answer. In this case, I call upon the information I gathered about my move properties, remembering that my 1B has a built-in sidestep. Tweaking my practice settings and experimenting some more, I quickly learn that blocking a Raph 4(B) means I can use my own 1B to stop every option available to him.
The above example showcases using the peculiarities of an otherwise less than stellar move to completely stuff an otherwise annoying mixup scenario. Connecting the dots, as it were, is purely the result of effective practice.
Going into practice mode will produce this result from your casual friends. Be warned, cheater!
In point of fact, most characters have incredibly situational moves like Cervantes' 1B. It simply falls to you to discover and implement them. Remember, when re-creating a mixup scenario, try everything. You might find a universal solution. Only if you fail to do so should you practice situational tactics.
The next question, of course, is how you identify the situations to practice. This is where analytical, intelligent play pays real dividends. Even if you only have an hour or two per week to play against humans, you can capitalize on it by making mental notes of which moves and scenarios give you the most trouble, then going into the lab to find the most solid counters you can. Beyond that, simply utilize your spare time to good effect. We all have downtime every day; taking an idle moment to wonder about how a particular mixup can be defeated might be all it takes to significantly step up your game.
Ultimately, it doesn't necessarily take countless hours to have a deep understanding of one's character. More important is being analytical, having a plan, and executing that plan. Rather than wasting time learning how to defeat the computer on its hardest difficulty, effectively use your practice time to suss out the most effective counter-tactics to common situations. It is guaranteed practice will reward you handsomely.
Homework:
What are your practice routines? How do you get the most out of every minute you spend training? Also, what are some quirky, situational move properties possessed by your character? Let's build a library of universal counters.
