So I’m a relatively new FG player. Even though I have been playing fighting games all my life, the first one I really tried to learn and understand was SF4 Vanilla. I’ve always sucked at that game though but I am pretty good at MvC3 and so I’ve decided that I’m going to enter a weekly tournament held at a hobby shop next week or the week after depending on when I have the time.
Now don’t get me wrong, even though I say I’m pretty good at MvC3, I’m not nearly as good as some people on this board and I guess I’m a bit nervous. I’ve only played this game online and don’t know what to expect. Not sure how big these tournaments get nor the average skill level of the players.
So any tips? Anything I should prepare for? Should I even expect to do well? Recommend a training regimen maybe? I’ve already started to hit Training mode in its pure form to re-learn the timing of my loops and resets (I’ve always trained with lag simulation on since I only play online) but anything else?
Keep calm. Have fun, it’s your first battle. Play some casuals beforehand, if possible.
Don’t expect to win, wins in your first tournament are bonuses.
As you play more against local competition, you will pick up player tendencies and patterns. Learn how to counter and defend against these.
Is the tournament advertised here on SRK or similar FG site (neoempire, etc.) ? If so, it will be great for levelling up. If not, then the level of competition is usually very mixed… you may even place very well in such things… but of course it’s more difficult to level up in said situation.
• Even though it’s a competitive environment, people are friendly. Stay humble, talk to people. Most will give you advice during casuals if you ask … but don’t be surprised if some don’t.
• Some people shit-talk, it’s just part of the environment.
• Shower before you go… don’t contribute to eau de Tournament.
• Accept that you’ll probably be nervous as hell, and won’t perform as well as you’re expecting because of it.
A lot of the reason tournament players do as well as they do is because of experience that only comes from going to tournaments. So don’t be discouraged if you don’t do well. It’s your next step toward leveing up, and like anything else there will be some growing pains that come with it.
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[]Practice: the more muscular memory you have, the lesser nervousness will hurt you;
[]Do not have high hopes: it is your first tournament, after all;
[]Get to know the other players there, and try to play with them offline more often;
[]If available and if it will not cause trouble to the organizers, play during free play as much as you can;
[]Check other players’ matches, and ask about the strategies that seem overly dominant: odds are they know how it can be countered, even if they do not feel like giving too many details before the tournament is over;
[]If thinking about the game will get you too nervous, consider offering help for the organizers to act as a judge, which will keep you busy with things other than simply waiting for your next match to start.
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