I have been practicing links for a while, but I can’t pull them off consistently in real matches. I talk to some of my friends about going into training mode against the CPU and practicing my links against resistance. Some of them said it was a good idea because it may simulate the pressure I would feel in a real match, but others say that there’s not much to gain from fighting against the CPU because they frame-read all of my attacks. I want to get more opinions about this matter.
Practice against the computer mainly for counters and execution. Be aware of when you’re “truly countering” and when the computer is allowing you to counter. Playing against real opponents as you would against the computer is what leads many to have a “flowchart” playstyle.
not all AIs are created equally. just because ST AIs can read your input and react very well doesn’t mean SSF4 comps do. just because a comp uses a perfect reaction doesn’t mean it’s a practical one, hell it doesn’t even mean it’s the best reaction even if human players could pull it off consistently.
second, just because a computer is resistance doesn’t mean that the pressure from a computer is the same as it would be from a person.
to answer your question though, yes it’s practical. but IMO, you’d be better off going to the training room and setting the dummy on auto block.
last thing I wanted to say: just like the poster above here just said, there’s a misconception from playing comps that plagues players who train using them. just because a comp does something, responds a certain way, or is vulnerable to something doesn’t mean a human will be. as a matter of fact, even if you find something works on one player, don’t assume it works on another. instead of exploiting the weaknesses of the char’s user, exploit the weaknesses of the character they’re using. that way, no matter who uses that character, the weight of their weakness will be on them.
Since you asked about learning to hit links, I have found that playing the computer in ssf4 with auto match turned on can help you improve your links. For example, if you are going to play ranked matches with Balrog, set the computer to easy and practice your bread and butters with rog while u wait. I was able to learn to do his loops and links just by doing that between matches. Just decide what combos or links you want to practice and you’ll get them for free during the down time between ranked matches.
Another thing to note is that you can learn some things from playing the computer, especially on higher difficulties. Oftentimes the computer will counter your attacks or play in a pre programmed method. Discovering the hole in the computers program (I believe there always is one intentionally left in there) can be rewarding and the method of discovering that “hole” can sometimes translate to dealing with human opponents.
Auto-block and random block are useful (and record, if the game has it). I wouldn’t take anything you do against the CPU too seriously; winning or losing against them doesn’t mean much compared to human players.