Genre Newbie Struggles

[Arriator]

I've been trying to get into fighting games for several years now, on-and-off, bouncing off most conventional entries for one reason or another, but usually not because I dislike the *concept*; it's the sheer execution barrier. So when a friend offered to let me play their copy of TEKKEN 8 through Family Share, I figured sure, why not, the teaching tools in this game feel relatively well-designed -- and, so far having enjoyed myself, I've been dabbling in Arcade Quest with Reina. Regrettably, it turns out that my fears have come true; the Tornado tutorial for Reina contains a series of inputs that I simply struggle with to do, but at the same time, I feel like using Special Style is a cheap shortcut and won't really get me anywhere. Thoughts? Was Reina a suboptimal pick to start with? Am I weird for trying to avoid Special Style, or even for struggling with (what I assume to be) basic inputs for the rest of y'all?

I want to get into these games because a lot of my friends play them, but it's been such a struggle. The training and learning tools in this title are what convinced me, and yet, all I'm finding myself with is a big tutorial box telling me to do inputs I struggle with while the CPU ghosts in the Phoenix arcade keep trouncing me... Any advice? I don't want to just give up on an entire *genre* that my friends adore, in part due to my own success with at least arena fighters (the original Dissidia FF), and in part due to, I concede, peer pressure, but if enough voices suggest I reconsider, then I may in fact need to.

Will give the game this though: The music is fire.

[p00se2]

https://steamcommunity.com/app/1778820/discussions/0/4147320536951162839

learning resources ^

[Super Cosmic Space Magnet]

Hi there! Welcome to the world of Tekken!

First and foremost - yes, there is an execution barrier to some characters. The core characters that the game's lore revolve around are called "The Mishimas", and they unifying trait that they all share is they require complex execution in order to perform their signiature moves.


This list of characters is: Jin, Kazuya, and Reina.

Other characters are rather infamous for their high execution ceiling too - Bryan requires complex inputs to use his best moves, and Lee requires complex inputs to even function at a basic level (giving him a bit of a reputation as being a character for showboats).

All is not lost, however! These characters still represent less than half the cast. The wave inputs were (and still are) impossible to me, so I picked up Lars - and have absolutely loved it. You still need to get familiar with the command list, but the physical button-pressing requirement to execute his moves is more manageable. A few characters I'd suggest looking at with lower barriers to entry are:


Asuka: Defensive powerhouse with lots of parry options, and short combo routes that are quite easy to link together.

Claudio: Midrange specialist with a short command list, and what we call "good buttons".

Lars: All-rounder with amazing combo potential.

Acuzena: Aggressive counterhitter with relentless pressure.

Viktor: "Just press Triangle lmao".

Shaheen: Simple inputs, but I have no idea what his strengths/gameplan are because I don't think I've ever seen one.

[Arriator]

Originally posted by Super Cosmic Space Magnet:

This list of characters is: Jin, Kazuya, and Reina.

Drat. I loved Reina's design and what I've played, I quite like her mobility and the sort of "flow" she has. To be honest, I was considering Zafina, I like her vibe. Maybe Leo? We share nationality!
...Also, Acuzena is utterly insufferable.
Still -- maybe when I'm feeling a little less demotivated I'll give it another go and feel my way through the roster a bit more casually. Thanks for the input, genuinely -- next on my to-do list is to not try pressing buttons while my opponent is still mid-attack sequence. Windups are... Something.

...To be honest, I'm more surprised by how hospitable this place is. I was expecting a much more... different environment around here, if I'm going to be a little blunt. I appreciate it, though; genuinely!

[olligo]

Hello Arriator, I think as long as you are having fun with us you might improve over time.
I am also not the best beginner and struggle with those long combos, feels like we are in the same boat.
Even if I lose 10 games in a row in ranked, I will continue to play and enjoy the game.
I mean if you played Tekken 8 for over a 100 or 150 hours it was already worth it.
Look at other games you bought and havent played for over 100 hours for example and were also good, there are many :-)!

If you learn a new attack from week to week you are still improving even though it is slow compared to other players.

[Super Cosmic Space Magnet]

Oh, Leo is a good pick too! Similar playstyle to Lars - a couple of stances for mix-ups and a versatile kit of decent basic tools. They're also a good choice for a character if you're still new to fighting game control schemes.

As for the community, it varies quite wildly from thread to thread. Threads where someone's venting frustration, trying to write a tier list, or anything where the word "woke" has been used, are inevitably a complete cesspit of hostility. Threads where someone has earnestly asked for help/advice at the game tend to get earnest replies - it's how I got started on my Tekken journey too. I think there's a general understanding that for all our differences everyone is on their own journey of self improvement, and helping welcome people into our world benefits us all.

If you find you're getting annihilated by sequences people are using online, then you can download their ghost after the game. The ghost will replicate their playstyle and not deviate from it - you can then practice against it in singleplayer to get familiar with how to beat it. It's a very useful tool.

[Eremur]

Originally posted by Arriator:

I've been dabbling in Arcade Quest with Reina. Regrettably, it turns out that my fears have come true; the Tornado tutorial for Reina contains a series of inputs that I simply struggle with to do, but at the same time, I feel like using Special Style is a cheap shortcut and won't really get me anywhere. Thoughts?

Man, I know precisely what you mean. Playing Reina as well, I got stuck in that exact spot. I could do the first two moves (2, then 4), but then none of the follow up hits on the second line ever seemed to come out. If that's where you're getting stuck, then I found the problem was that I was trying to press the next button when the current move hits, but with the tornado that leaves them too late. You need to hit the next button before your current hit connects, even though (to me at least) that feels really counter-intuitive. But once I had that down, basically all the combos in the game became much easier.

[-★- sevenfoodsandwich -★-]

If you are struggling with a Mishima input on Reina, there is a shortcut for her and Kazuya. Instead of the usual f,n,d,df. The shortcut is f,n,df. The motion feels similar to double tapping forward, though slightly off on the second tap.

The window after f, for either shortcut or normal, is quite long on Kazuya, even after a short dash, and I imagine it might be long for Reina as well.

It's so long that when I dash to get closer, and try to do df3 half a second later on Kazuya that I accidentally Hell Lancer.

[Arriator]

Originally posted by Eremur:

Originally posted by Arriator:

I've been dabbling in Arcade Quest with Reina. Regrettably, it turns out that my fears have come true; the Tornado tutorial for Reina contains a series of inputs that I simply struggle with to do, but at the same time, I feel like using Special Style is a cheap shortcut and won't really get me anywhere. Thoughts?

Man, I know precisely what you mean. Playing Reina as well, I got stuck in that exact spot. I could do the first two moves (:TEKKEN8_Joystick3:2, then :TEKKEN8_Joystick3:4), but then none of the follow up hits on the second line ever seemed to come out. If that's where you're getting stuck, then I found the problem was that I was trying to press the next button when the current move hits, but with the tornado that leaves them too late. You need to hit the next button before your current hit connects, even though (to me at least) that feels really counter-intuitive. But once I had that down, basically all the combos in the game became much easier.

The rhythm for combo inputs is something that I confess I struggle a bit as well, the input buffering seems very much integral to Tekken - but yeah, I might just dive in and try a different character! Who knows.

I really appreciate all the help y'all have been giving me. I refuse to let an entire *genre* beat me!