How to go from thinking causally to competitely

[RhythmikDesigns]

So here's my dilemma:

My first DOA game was DOA 4, and I was a decent player but admittedly no more than a causal player. My only offline experience was against a few of my homeboys, so the majority of my experience came from only play.

I'm dumb excited about DOA 5 and want to dive head first into it competitively, but I'm sure how to go about changing my causal mindset to a more competitive one.

Any suggestions?

 

[RoboJoe]

The difference between casual and competitive mindsets is the willingness to learn. Spend some time here reading and and asking questions and soon you'll find yourself learning a lot. In my month or so here, I know a decent bit more than I did before and the game isn't even out yet.

Here's a thread for asking any questions you want about the game, it's a good place to start for any general questions: <a href="http://freestepdodge.com/threads/doa-q-a.714/"></a>

 

[Awesmic]

I dunno if I'm giving all the right suggestions, but as a person who has been through a lot of shit to gain that competitive mindset over the years, I believe I can relate, so I gotta say something.

From my experience, it's not only important to be willing to listen and acquire as much knowledge as you can, but to apply it at your own pace as well. Some people rush in too eagerly to want a faster pace, but overcompensate themselves to a point where it become a chore, and their initial love of the game is practically drained before they readjust themselves to the level of fun competitive players have. This is not to say I'm making assumptions about you, but I've seen this happen many times over the years. At the same time, there are exceptions.

Before I answer the question in my own words though, I gotta question to ask... what honestly drew you into the game that makes it fun for you? Do you have a favorite character or characters? What drove you to want to play the game competitively?

 

[Matt Ponton]

If you have specific questions about strategies and game systems, just ask them in a polite respectful manner and I'm sure you'll find plenty of people looking to help you out. Not saying that you won't be polite or respectful, but you'll be surprised how often that happens. Every competitive player started off as a casual player.

You'll find that taking those steps, improving your skills, and congregating with the community will lead to a lot of great fucking moments. I look forward to seeing where DOA5 takes this community and its players.

 

[Rikuto]

So here's my dilemma:

My first DOA game was DOA 4, and I was a decent player but admittedly no more than a causal player. My only offline experience was against a few of my homeboys, so the majority of my experience came from only play.

I'm dumb excited about DOA 5 and want to dive head first into it competitively, but I'm sure how to go about changing my causal mindset to a more competitive one.

Any suggestions?

Problem solving skills is the biggest difference in mentalities, and denying your natural anger that stops 99% of prospective players.

Try to take something from every single loss you suffer. Instead of saying "What the fuck" when you lose and getting pissed like most people do, force yourself to evaluate that loss. First determine why you lost, what caused the detrimental situation leading up to it. Is there a way out of that situation? Look for one. If it doesn't exist, ask yourself what you can do to stay out of that situation while keeping yourself a threat.

Do this in serious matches, and casuals. Do this constantly. If you're winning, look for ways to win more convincingly. Always... when you become lax with this, you stop learning.

Learn. Learn constantly. Learn about characters you won't even use.... go out of your way to do this. Those who lack information seldom win.

 

[RhythmikDesigns]

Thanks guys. I really appreciate the suggestions. I'm willing to learn and I have the patience it'll take because I know it won't happen overnight.

@Awesmic
I can't really point to one factor, it was just fun to play. I main Zach, but like to play with Christie, Kokoro, Hayate, and Brad Wong too. My overall drive to play it competitively comes from getting back into fighting games altogether (currently playing SCV), and the fact that I've always been involved in some form of competitive activities (basketball, beat battles) but haven't the last couple of years. And like I said before, I have fun when I play the game.

 

[akhi216]

I'm not a competitive player but my advice is to go in practice mode and train against every dummy by first having them perform every move; first learn to block the move(s), learn to counter them while blocking, then learn to counter them while in stun. After that play against a dummy of your main with your main at the highest difficulty to help learn some techniques/strategies that you've overlooked. Then play against a dummy of your main at the highest difficulty with every character except your main to get a better feel for your main's strengths and weaknesses.

*you can stop here but it wouldn't do you any good*

To take it to the next level, repeat all of the steps above with all of the characters. You may find a new main in the process.

Don't stop there, fight online with every character to get a feel for what character best fits your playing style against humans. After that you can either have a new main or keep your old one with more experience and a better feel of the game.

This is all done with being able to pull off at least 90% of a characters moves. Also you'll need to learn some more advanced combos.

I don't do all of this because I don't have the time for it (translation: I'm too fucking lazy and scared to get out of my comfort zone with my main lol).

 

[d3v]

Be open minded. Don't box yourself in with a set of mental rules. Be prepared to adapt and use whatever works.