Personally, I’ve always played at my best when my emotions are low, because I can think clearly and my neutral game is so much the better for it. I have to have a really calm state of mind to play optimally. On the other hand, I’ve talked to people that have said they play a lot better when they’re angry. I’ve always found that interesting because when I get upset my logic and decision making fly out the window, and it starts to have a damper on my play (i.e. I stop watching closely for jump-ins so they subsequently don’t get AA’ed). Overconfidence/excitement can do this to me too, although the negative effects are far less potent.
Typically, the calmer I am, the more solid I play.
However, I got into a really bad spell of tranquil fury/depression/apathy earlier and started doing significantly better in 3S by playing like a complete asshole and not giving a single fuck at all.
Not sure what to take from that.
My reflexes and ability to read get better when I’m angry.
Actually I don’t know if that feeling is anger or if it’s just me wanting to win really badly.
It really depends on what kind of emotion you’re talking about. I think that universally, everyone plays significantly worse when they’re sad, tired, or scared.
But some people can turn extreme happiness or anger into fuel for playing at their best. It’s rare, but possible. Generally, tournament champions always try to remain as calm as possible. Extreme emotion usually serves to cloud your judgment and cause you to act impulsively.
I am always in control. I could not tap into the flow of time otherwise.
I play more aggressive when I’m pissed. Aggressive > Defensive 70% of the time.
I dunno but I need adrenaline in my blood and get really into the game in order to perform well and be fast enough.
Maybe it’s because I’m new to Street Fighter 4 and I’m not really used to react and think that quickly but when I’m calm and relaxed I feel slow and sluggish.
I work the same way in Dota 2 though and I’ve played that game for the past 8 years so I dunno.
I need to get myself “hyped” not necessarily angry.
When I’m frustrated I can’t always flip that switch though.
There’s a difference between being emotional and being focused.
You have to stay focused in the game in order to get your reactions and keep your hands on-point. That’s required in every game.
I play a lot better when I’m really emotional so I started dating a girl who breaks up with me every time I go to a tournament.
I thought everyone played better when they’re insanely pissed off?
Always play better when I’m happy or having fun. I think it also helps when you’ve got teammates you have good team chemistry with.
I play awful when I’m upset, to the point that I can only win a set if I wait on character select for about 10 seconds after I lose a game of MvC3 because that game probably involved some bullshit and I’ll be upset about my decision to waste time and money playing MvC3. I am bipolar though, so I imagine I’m probably more upset than the average guy.
being pissed helps reaffirm my resolve and to play better especially if im losing to nonsense that i shouldnt be losing to.
It helps me pick out those spots/points of play the opponent is using to beat me and i put my focus into taking that away from them.
You may beat me but you aint beating me with that bullshit. (sometimes its not bullshit but still saying it that way makes me feel better).
From there it may take me a second if i dont know the engine good enough to find a solution but ill find it from that the anger drifts and I can freeform alot better.
being angry should be a stepping stone to help you step up you game because admitting frustration is good to help you refocus
it shouldn’t be the space of mind you want to be in throughout the whole match.
channel your anger the right way and it helps curve your play in a good direction.
Worse, definitely worse. Rage and despair tend to be the most common things bubbling up after a long play session and those tend to make me reckless and my defense just goes to pieces.
The calmer I play the better I am. Back when I played Third Strike with my roommates, I was actually able to get to the point where it just felt like some sort of zen trance as I systematically dismantled everyone in the apartment repeatedly. I don’t get that so much with SF4, but I think that’s mainly because now I’m facing people who are significantly better than me.
One odd thing that seemed to help early on was just being slightly inebriated. I was always pushing too many buttons so being just a tad drunk slowed me down enough to the point where I was a little more methodical. That didn’t last though. Once I learned to stop pushing so many buttons normally it just left me with worse reflexes. It’s kind of irritating that I can’t play drunk because a lot of matches could certainly drive a man to drink.
It seems to work in reverse too somewhat. Once I feel the adrenaline start flowing I find myself pushing buttons and making mistakes more often.
It depends because there’s 2 types for me:
“I don’t care” pissed off mode. Pretty much just me hitting buttons and doing stupid things despite my better judgement.
SSJ “Fuck you” pissed off mode. Speaks for itself.
When I’m angry I get worse…significantly. Not thinking right…the usual.
Anger usually comes with an adrenaline rush. Adrenaline heightens your senses, sight, hearing, reflexes, etc. However, along with anger also comes a decrease in logic and reason. Therefore, if you are playing against someone who has better reflexes and is simply beating you on ability, anger “may” help you play better. However, playing calm may allow you to win simply by out-thinking your opponent. The games I play usually require me to out-think my opponent, so remaining calm is the optimal choice… but one can’t help but get angry from time to time.
I can deal with pretty much any emotions while playing, positive or negative. The one thing that gets me is woman drama, whenever there is some of that in my life my game suffers for it.
Right, off to grind out some BB combos 
For whatever reason, my emotions never come into play during the fight. It’s like before I may get nervous and after I may be happy/sad, but during the actual fight I just go into Daigo mode and become robotic. Helps me in some situations, probably hurts me in others. Keeps my mind clear at least.
If I’m nervous I tend to play extremely passively and let stupid things slip that I normally wouldn’t (obvious jump-ins, ect.)
I play my best when I’m having fun.