Okay so Ive had kof13 for awhile now but I haven’t really played it much. Ive messed around with trials and played a few player matches (about 300 total) so I get the gist of the game. I practice my bnbs and hops but after that im not sure what I should be doing in the training mode. Should I just play matches to get a feel against some of the tactics people use for their character. Ive watched alot of videos pertaining to the neutral game fundamentals and such but when it comes to training mode im not sure what i should be doing. I also practice my anti airs but what else am I missing.
Greetings Supah and welcome to KOFXIII!
In training mode you need to practice hit confirming (turn CPU dummy on crouch and random guard. Try to visually confirm you cr.B’s into full combo carefully upon seeing the hit sparks). Try to avoid using the trials as a reference, as the majority of them are either far too impractical or not optimized. A good source for learning the characters BnB’s and additional KOFXIII info is here: http://dreamcancel.com/wiki/index.php?title=The_King_of_Fighters_XIII - the characters you wish to know more about are on the very bottom page for your research.
Also keep in mind that that movement in general in this game plays a very pivotal role, thanks to the overall speed of the game. Continue to train on general movement hops, hyper hops and the like so that you will know how to apply a functional offensive game while taking advantage of the game system and speed. Gradually work on character BnB’s until you get a feel for them in terms of situational use and muscle memory. Then carefully work your up towards more complex combos, but remember to keep the game fundamentals in mind while participating in a match - gradually apply what you have learn in the match as you improve. Another thing you can train yourself on is block punishment and reacting to particular situations - learning how to defend. There are even a few moves that might “seem” safe on block but they are not - utilize your character appropriately and practice punishment/whiff punishment as you go along. Take advantage of the record feature to replicate a situation that you might have heard of or ran into within a fight so that you will learn how to deal with your opponents offense, set ups, or a particular match scenario overtime. Be sure continue watch videos on KOF matches so that you’ll be able to understand what is going on as you train yourself. Practice careful use of your normal moves so that you can be able to apply your offense, anti-air appropriately, poke, and combo after the said normals. Again, this is a very fast paced game, so be sure to condition yourself so that you can adjust to the games fundamentals, proactivity - be sure to your characters options as well by conducting research via KOFXIII match videos and information management on the said characters from the forums and the wiki sites. You’re certainly going to have a lot of fun with this game as you make progress.
Thank you very much for your help. I plan on doing the things you’ve mentioned, question though if im using random guard and im practicing a cr.b block string should i set the dummy to crouch or will the dummy still block while standing.
Set the dummy to crouch. If the dummy blocks, discontinue your block string (the majority of light normal moves will usually leave you with the frame advantage). If the dummy does not block in time with your attack, conduct the BnB.