Some of you may notice that during your Soul Calibur V "career", you start to stagnate with your character. There are no more combos to learn, no more little tricks for your character. You play and play, but you feel that the outcome of a match is up in the air.
"It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle."
You are stuck because you miss one simple principle:
You cannot play everyone the same way.
That's not just people- that's characters. You cannot play against different characters the same way. You just can't. If you’re playing against Astaroth the same way you play against Natsu you’re missing out on large parts of the game. You need to change your methods to fit the situation.
You know yourself, but not your enemy.
Set aside your basic gameplay and begin to individually study other characters. This is known as gathering matchup data. Studying your matchups augments every single aspect of your game; because you can play against characters at maximum efficiency there is no energy wasted thinking and more resources funneled towards reading your opponent.
This is what separates casuals from real players. Proper matchup study will put you far above the general playerbase to possibly rival actual tournament players. If you are a weak player, it is the one thing 100% guaranteed to make you stronger. Got poor basics? Matchup study will cover that right up. If you are a strong player, it will make you near-unbeatable.
It is work- it does take time- but if you put in the investment now, you are unlocking a depth to the game that is incomparable to anything else- the true splendor of fighters.
If the flowery explanation doesn’t pique your interest, let me put it more simply.
Studying matchups = more wins.
Let’s take a minute to define matchup data.
What is matchup data?
Matchup data is any information that helps you make better decisions in the fight.
It could be a general overview (space out Viola, stay away from close range);
it could be notes on a stance (ducking counters most options from Mitsurugi’s MST);
it could be an observation on strings (you can step right the last hit of Cervantes’ BBB if you block the first two [but you can't step left!]);
it could be frames (Patroklos’ 3B is -16 on block).
You are looking for any sort of advantage, any sort of information that will help you win.
Generally, an easy way to start off gathering matchup data is by looking at a block punishment list. Some of you may already have these lists made for you- check your respective Soul Arena. (Here is Algol’s; here is Patroklos’; here is Nightmare’s; here is Natsu’s; etc., etc.)
If you do not have this list, or if the list is incomplete, it is easy enough to make your own. Head over to the wiki, bring up your character’s frame data and the character you are training against, fire up training mode, and start testing moves.
(As an aside, it’s important that you eventually familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of training mode. Our own Fahros has a video on the subject. If you want to skip right to where he explains the record function, it is here. Training mode is not just for practicing combos and inputs, but for simulating combat situations. I’ve spent many hours in training mode testing and identifying options for any given situation, even though I don’t necessarily “practice” in the conventional sense.)
Having a simple punishment list (duck here and punish with wrB; step this and punish with 22K; block x move and punish with 236B; if this move whiffs, punish with 3B) and adhering to it will greatly increase your survival ratio.
Of course, you don’t need to limit yourself to punishment. Take notes on certain situations and what you see (Pyrrha’s B+G throw can be teched; if aPatroklos is spamming 33B you should be careful about backstepping; a common sequence for Astaroth is 44B block, 44A.)
If you really want to delve deeply into it, go into a particular character’s Soul Arena, and read through everything there. You’ll find setups, tech traps, and common situations that the character goes through. Sometimes, vocal players will even tell you the character’s weaknesses without you having to ask. Arm yourself with this information and use it against the players you come across.
Do the thinking now so you don’t have to think in the fight.
I don’t know about you, but for me it’s pretty hard to remember frames and tactics off the top of my head when I'm being punched in the face.
After you’ve compiled your list (and a few notes) it’s time to reinforce your data, and you do this by- what else?- playing.
The Feedback Loop
This particular method I learned from Belial. Shouts out to Captain Russia, he knows what’s really real.
It is specifically for online play- unless your opponents don’t mind you glancing at a “cheat sheet” in front of them between rounds at your offline venue.
(These are big pictures. Click on them to see.)
I keep a binder next to my Playstation, like so:
In this binder is the matchup data that I have compiled for all characters.
When I play online, I open up the binder. I look to see who I’m facing (is it a Natsu? A Nightmare? A Yoshimitsu?) and I flip open to that page in the binder. I take glances at it between rounds to remind myself that, “oh, this is punishable, oh, I need to watch out for this.”
Now, if you are playing randoms, this can be pretty hard to do on-the-fly. You need something more sustained, more controlled, to learn.
In the Global Colosseo, you can read users’ profiles and find out who their “main” is, and take a longer time preparing (reading your data) before going into the fight. You can also do this in Player Match rooms, seeing who people play and then quickly reviewing your material before fighting.
The absolute best way to do this, however- is to fight a long set, a continual series of matches, one-on-one.
1-v-1
Sets are the preferred style of play for most offline players, as compared to the “endless stream of opponents” typical of online play. You’ll fight head-to-head sets in casuals (“for fun”), at tournaments (these are particularly short sets), or perhaps even for money (!)
Long sets in particular provide one particularly valuable thing- the accumulation of lots of experience in a very short amount of time.
Online, you can set up a 1v1 room by going to Player Match, setting the Player Count to 2 and the Private Slots to 1. Create the room and then invite someone to play.
(You can invite friends; people you’ve met randomly online; people here on 8WR. Ask around, network to find new players of all different types. Don’t be shy- people want new friends! Really!)
Try to keep them there for at least 8 matches (if they are the type to leave, try to keep your challenges to a “ft2” or “ft3”). This shouldn’t be a problem, as most players will play along for an indefinite amount of time.
Since you control who you invite into the room, you most likely know beforehand who you’re playing against, and what character they use. You can open up your matchup book and read it freely from match to match and round to round, applying information from it as you go.
This strengthens your matchup knowledge the more you do it- your punishments become faster and more decisive, your situational knowledge starts to increase. You inoculate yourself against common tricks and setups and increase your defensive capabilities, keeping you in fights longer.
Now, as you’re playing, you may notice that some of your data is inaccurate- you can’t physically do what you wrote down, you can’t JG this or punish that in time. Your opponent may start using techniques or strategies that you have not thought of before. This is what you want- remember this. Save your replays if at all possible.
When you are finished playing, review your replays, think back to what gave you trouble into the match, and then go back into training mode and start updating your matchup data. Find new solutions that will work for you- maybe you need to dial back your expectations on punishment; maybe you need to look more closely at your frames, spacing, and options after getting hit by a certain move. Try out everything; attacking, moving, Guard Impact, just start throwing stuff out until you find what works. You are using the new information you have gained from playing in a real, uncontrolled environment, and refining the data that you already have.
(As an aside- when players say they are “labbing”, or “hitting the lab” for a certain character after a loss, they are gathering and/or refining matchup data. They may not put it on paper, but this is what they are doing.)
Once you have studied these new situations well, you can go back and challenge the same person or character again, and repeat the process. (This can go on as long as you want until you are satisfied- continual refinement can be a lifelong process. This is the “infinite replay value” of fighting games.)
Closing Thoughts
Matchup study can be quite a bit of work. Collecting data on every character in the game is a massive task. Thankfully- you don’t have to stress yourself about it; you can take things one step at a time.
Try picking a character you really dislike playing against. Maybe it’s Xiba, or Voldo, or Leixia. Anyone at all, where you think “I wish this character weren’t in the game.”
Put together an anti-list just for that character. Just one list- it doesn’t have to be too long, and it doesn’t have to be extensive. It doesn’t have to be 100% correct, either. Just put something together with a little bit of study.
Then, go find players who use that character. Find them by looking at user profiles online, find them by asking around 8WR. Friend them and invite them to a 1v1 room.
This is quite literally “confronting your fears”. If you have the right attitude about losing you will overcome your difficulties. Don’t stop for anything.
If you win the majority of your matches due to what you’ve learned from your studies- you’re probably not scared of that character any more. If you lose- take those replays, figure out why you lost, and then dive back into studying again.
When you have reached a level of competency that you are happy with against that character, move on to the next one.
Take your time- move at your own pace. This is a game, it is supposed to be fun. Don’t overwork yourself- just know that you should set aside some time to study when you can.
Just putting in a little work now will pay off big dividends in the future.
"It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle."
You are stuck because you miss one simple principle:
You cannot play everyone the same way.
That's not just people- that's characters. You cannot play against different characters the same way. You just can't. If you’re playing against Astaroth the same way you play against Natsu you’re missing out on large parts of the game. You need to change your methods to fit the situation.
You know yourself, but not your enemy.
Set aside your basic gameplay and begin to individually study other characters. This is known as gathering matchup data. Studying your matchups augments every single aspect of your game; because you can play against characters at maximum efficiency there is no energy wasted thinking and more resources funneled towards reading your opponent.
This is what separates casuals from real players. Proper matchup study will put you far above the general playerbase to possibly rival actual tournament players. If you are a weak player, it is the one thing 100% guaranteed to make you stronger. Got poor basics? Matchup study will cover that right up. If you are a strong player, it will make you near-unbeatable.
It is work- it does take time- but if you put in the investment now, you are unlocking a depth to the game that is incomparable to anything else- the true splendor of fighters.
If the flowery explanation doesn’t pique your interest, let me put it more simply.
Studying matchups = more wins.
Let’s take a minute to define matchup data.
What is matchup data?
Matchup data is any information that helps you make better decisions in the fight.
It could be a general overview (space out Viola, stay away from close range);
it could be notes on a stance (ducking counters most options from Mitsurugi’s MST);
it could be an observation on strings (you can step right the last hit of Cervantes’ BBB if you block the first two [but you can't step left!]);
it could be frames (Patroklos’ 3B is -16 on block).
You are looking for any sort of advantage, any sort of information that will help you win.
Generally, an easy way to start off gathering matchup data is by looking at a block punishment list. Some of you may already have these lists made for you- check your respective Soul Arena. (Here is Algol’s; here is Patroklos’; here is Nightmare’s; here is Natsu’s; etc., etc.)
If you do not have this list, or if the list is incomplete, it is easy enough to make your own. Head over to the wiki, bring up your character’s frame data and the character you are training against, fire up training mode, and start testing moves.
(As an aside, it’s important that you eventually familiarize yourself with the ins and outs of training mode. Our own Fahros has a video on the subject. If you want to skip right to where he explains the record function, it is here. Training mode is not just for practicing combos and inputs, but for simulating combat situations. I’ve spent many hours in training mode testing and identifying options for any given situation, even though I don’t necessarily “practice” in the conventional sense.)
Having a simple punishment list (duck here and punish with wrB; step this and punish with 22K; block x move and punish with 236B; if this move whiffs, punish with 3B) and adhering to it will greatly increase your survival ratio.
Of course, you don’t need to limit yourself to punishment. Take notes on certain situations and what you see (Pyrrha’s B+G throw can be teched; if aPatroklos is spamming 33B you should be careful about backstepping; a common sequence for Astaroth is 44B block, 44A.)
If you really want to delve deeply into it, go into a particular character’s Soul Arena, and read through everything there. You’ll find setups, tech traps, and common situations that the character goes through. Sometimes, vocal players will even tell you the character’s weaknesses without you having to ask. Arm yourself with this information and use it against the players you come across.
Do the thinking now so you don’t have to think in the fight.
I don’t know about you, but for me it’s pretty hard to remember frames and tactics off the top of my head when I'm being punched in the face.
After you’ve compiled your list (and a few notes) it’s time to reinforce your data, and you do this by- what else?- playing.
The Feedback Loop
This particular method I learned from Belial. Shouts out to Captain Russia, he knows what’s really real.
It is specifically for online play- unless your opponents don’t mind you glancing at a “cheat sheet” in front of them between rounds at your offline venue.
(These are big pictures. Click on them to see.)
I keep a binder next to my Playstation, like so:
In this binder is the matchup data that I have compiled for all characters.
When I play online, I open up the binder. I look to see who I’m facing (is it a Natsu? A Nightmare? A Yoshimitsu?) and I flip open to that page in the binder. I take glances at it between rounds to remind myself that, “oh, this is punishable, oh, I need to watch out for this.”
Now, if you are playing randoms, this can be pretty hard to do on-the-fly. You need something more sustained, more controlled, to learn.
In the Global Colosseo, you can read users’ profiles and find out who their “main” is, and take a longer time preparing (reading your data) before going into the fight. You can also do this in Player Match rooms, seeing who people play and then quickly reviewing your material before fighting.
The absolute best way to do this, however- is to fight a long set, a continual series of matches, one-on-one.
1-v-1
Sets are the preferred style of play for most offline players, as compared to the “endless stream of opponents” typical of online play. You’ll fight head-to-head sets in casuals (“for fun”), at tournaments (these are particularly short sets), or perhaps even for money (!)
Long sets in particular provide one particularly valuable thing- the accumulation of lots of experience in a very short amount of time.
Online, you can set up a 1v1 room by going to Player Match, setting the Player Count to 2 and the Private Slots to 1. Create the room and then invite someone to play.
(You can invite friends; people you’ve met randomly online; people here on 8WR. Ask around, network to find new players of all different types. Don’t be shy- people want new friends! Really!)
Try to keep them there for at least 8 matches (if they are the type to leave, try to keep your challenges to a “ft2” or “ft3”). This shouldn’t be a problem, as most players will play along for an indefinite amount of time.
Since you control who you invite into the room, you most likely know beforehand who you’re playing against, and what character they use. You can open up your matchup book and read it freely from match to match and round to round, applying information from it as you go.
This strengthens your matchup knowledge the more you do it- your punishments become faster and more decisive, your situational knowledge starts to increase. You inoculate yourself against common tricks and setups and increase your defensive capabilities, keeping you in fights longer.
Now, as you’re playing, you may notice that some of your data is inaccurate- you can’t physically do what you wrote down, you can’t JG this or punish that in time. Your opponent may start using techniques or strategies that you have not thought of before. This is what you want- remember this. Save your replays if at all possible.
When you are finished playing, review your replays, think back to what gave you trouble into the match, and then go back into training mode and start updating your matchup data. Find new solutions that will work for you- maybe you need to dial back your expectations on punishment; maybe you need to look more closely at your frames, spacing, and options after getting hit by a certain move. Try out everything; attacking, moving, Guard Impact, just start throwing stuff out until you find what works. You are using the new information you have gained from playing in a real, uncontrolled environment, and refining the data that you already have.
(As an aside- when players say they are “labbing”, or “hitting the lab” for a certain character after a loss, they are gathering and/or refining matchup data. They may not put it on paper, but this is what they are doing.)
Once you have studied these new situations well, you can go back and challenge the same person or character again, and repeat the process. (This can go on as long as you want until you are satisfied- continual refinement can be a lifelong process. This is the “infinite replay value” of fighting games.)
Closing Thoughts
Matchup study can be quite a bit of work. Collecting data on every character in the game is a massive task. Thankfully- you don’t have to stress yourself about it; you can take things one step at a time.
Try picking a character you really dislike playing against. Maybe it’s Xiba, or Voldo, or Leixia. Anyone at all, where you think “I wish this character weren’t in the game.”
Put together an anti-list just for that character. Just one list- it doesn’t have to be too long, and it doesn’t have to be extensive. It doesn’t have to be 100% correct, either. Just put something together with a little bit of study.
Then, go find players who use that character. Find them by looking at user profiles online, find them by asking around 8WR. Friend them and invite them to a 1v1 room.
This is quite literally “confronting your fears”. If you have the right attitude about losing you will overcome your difficulties. Don’t stop for anything.
If you win the majority of your matches due to what you’ve learned from your studies- you’re probably not scared of that character any more. If you lose- take those replays, figure out why you lost, and then dive back into studying again.
When you have reached a level of competency that you are happy with against that character, move on to the next one.
Take your time- move at your own pace. This is a game, it is supposed to be fun. Don’t overwork yourself- just know that you should set aside some time to study when you can.
Just putting in a little work now will pay off big dividends in the future.
