Hello! I feel like I’m in a bit of a bind right now.
I started playing Street Fighter IV in June of last year and frankly, I haven’t improved much at all.
Things like spacing, defense, and the like aren’t coming to me nearly as quickly as I thought they would be and I’ve begun to realize it’s because I’ve been trying to move onto bigger things without having mastered basic fundamentals yet. My execution is also still pretty sloppy.
A few other problems is there’s not much of a scene here, so I don’t get the opportunity to have exposure to good players, and I don’t have a big group of people online to play and practice with either. I’ve got one friend who I play with a lot and we’re about the same as far as skill goes and I think that’s part of the problem for both of us.
I really am committed to this, though. This genre has been more fun for me than the shooters that I’ve mastered over the years. It’s the most fun I’ve had in years, really, and the social aspect of the community is also really interesting to me and the depth of gameplay really gives me something to invest in.
I’ve also since moved to Street Fighter x Tekken and will likely stick with it.
Anyway, basically what I’m trying to say is I could definitely use some help. Having more top level players to play with (online, as it’s unfortunately my only option at the moment) would give me a lot to take from.
I’d also like your thoughts on which characters I should be playing that could help me master the basics before moving towards more advanced play. I know Ryu’s an obvious choice, but I’m not sure who I should have for a second character right now.
Thanks in advance. 
Well there go you…you have to crawl before you walk as you said.
Unfortunately, I don’t know a “basics” team for you in SFxT…I say go through the roster, pick a team you like, and stick with them.
You can go into training mode and practice some fundamentals with a friend online I think.
As far as the social aspect…have you tried looking for a local scene in Regional Matchmaking?
I doubt you live in the the middle of nowhere with no access to transportation.
That link may quite possibly be the greatest thing I’ve ever seen.
I’m surprised at how many people don’t take the time to browse the sub-forums here…
I assumed Regional Matchmaking was an online-related sort of thing.
I’m not, posts like these come up literally every other day.
The first thing I would suggest is to continue to play SSF4: AE 2012, which in addition to being a better game than SFxT, will give you the knowledge to dominate in SFxT, which is basically like baby’s first SF4 with a cooler roster and a lot more (shitty) mechanics.
For non fgs I really enjoy trying to 100% achievements or unlock all the guns in a game like BF3 or whatever, so what I like to do is come up with a list of ‘techniques’ like combos, setups, resets…anything really, and write them down in a notebook or journal or something. Then keep doing them until you can do them efficiently. Its a really good feeling and will make you want to continue to play and get better. A lot of people say “set goals then accomplish them” or something equally vague but writing shit down in a list and then trying to do it consistently really helps me out. Also listening to music or podcasts in training mode helps.
