Online Pretenders

I’ve noticed a trend facing people online in HD Remix and SSF4 where you will play the first round against someone and they will be just ok in skill, but then the rest of the game they just own you all around. Why do people online pretend they aren’t very good for the first round and then come back and annihilate? Why not just go strong the entire time? Any thoughts?

They’re most likely in auto pilot mode for the first round because majority of online players suck and can be beaten by simple tactics like anti airing and basic zoning. Then when they realize the other person (in this case, you) knows what they’re doing, they snap out of auto pilot mode and play good.

Also many people use the first round to feel you out. Kind of dumb in a one game set but still.

Yup, it’s like a gamble every time, the other dude could be sandbagging so when you turn it up he’s ready for it.

K-Groove.

PFFFF K-Groove ain’t shit when you got Uncle Phil Groove.

i find it worse when you meet somebody who is good/better than you and you feel like you are just starting to adjust as the end of round two happens.

Op: also, it could be a problem with your game. Do you overly rely on one tactic? I have been on both side of this. Your one trick might be enough to pull out round 1, but the other guy figures it out, takes it away and you have nothing else to win with.

i thick the correct term is called sandbagging!

It might not be that they are pretending. I know that my main style of play is getting to know my opponent the first round, then applying it to the next 1 or 2 to win. I’ve been perfected in a first round, the other player probably that I was a scrub, then I came back to win the game.

But I’m sure some of those people really do do that. Some people probably just want to fuck with people, make them pretend they are good, then they actually play for real. But I know for me I’m just feeling my opponent out. Trying to download them.

I’ve had people in Tekken 6br do NOTHING the first round, hoping you’ll toss out all your good shit beating a non-responsive dummy, so they know what to look out for in the next 2 rounds. Never show it ALL off in the beginning.

I’m not the greatest player, I have a few different play styles. In my experience the first round the opponent plays like it’s their first time, then the next rounds they are on par or slightly to greatly better than me. The latter happens a lot more in SSF4 (I’m terrible at that game) than in HDR.

I do it in pool all the time except I put money on it.

It’s called hustling. Don’t knock it. :tup:

I can understand this mindset. Kinda like the arcade days with MVC2, if i was going up against someone i never played, i kinda took it easy on them at first. Picking characters i rarely used, toning my game down, and seeing where it goes.

If its a newbie i do NOT want to utterly destroy them, its good to have more players around. If you totally smash them to dust the first rounds, they might get intimidated and quit. Even if i beat them, i TRIED to make it look at least like he had a fighting chance, to encourage more rounds, and hopefully i could teach him a thing or two. Those instances where it turned out to be somebody good and he destroyed me, then i switched it back up to my best.

I have not yet tested the waters of online play yet, but if its chock full of newbs then i could see myself behaving the same online.

Honestly, destroying newbs with no mercy is like an expert Samurai going around picking fights and beasting on untrained citizens. Nobody is impressed, he just looks like a jackass.

Like that one scene in Kung Fu Hustle?

[media=youtube]W9neVUzw85w&feature#t=04m22s[/media]

If you’re asking this, you’re probably a scrub. In whichcase, guess what? Even for players who know what they’re doing, it can take a round to properly adapt to whatever retardation you’re willing into existence.

It’s called HERP DERP NOT ALL OF US SRK ALL THE FUCKING TIME AS OUR MAIN TACTIC.

But whatchoo gonna do when the round begins?
and whatchoo gonna do when you block dat hit?
Whatchoo gon’ do when yo’ opponent’s full-screen,
spammin’ tiger shots, preventin’ you from proceedin’?

I fucking love you.

…the fuck’s your problem?

Troll aside, I have friend’s who do that to people, I don’t though, unless it’s an extreme case, then I sandbag so they’ll get a little esteem boost. Case in point, a girl was playing BBCS at a con recently, never played before, let alone on a stick. Wasn’t using Beginner mode either. I helped her along on that, then I let her have 1 round, and then got serious until the last leg of round 3, where I just let go of the stick, and held my hands up while she killed me. She made an esteem flip from that, it was all good, nothin’ more to it.

Ummm… Shoryuken?

I found out SRK’ing during those moments make me S-Rank.