Mental Kombat - A guide to a healthy Fighting Game Mindset

Knowing is half the battle, they say. And they are right.
It DOES matter what your mindset is when you engage in an activity, be that a hobby or your job.

Want to fight better?

Think better.

INTRODUCTION - Background and Considerations

WELCOME!

What you are about to read here, are not mere ramblings of a madman. While the former is also true in some sense (heh) the fact of the matter is that Sirlin has written an entire book on this, that's worth reading if you are interested in the subject of fighting game philosophy, mentality, strategy.

Does this guide include hidden secrets that suddenly make you win your losing matchups? No.
Will this guide help you handle your losses better? Definitely.
Will you become a better player if you take these things to heart? Quite possibly.

The point here is that there are so many angry people in Fighting Games and so many of you kids add me to share your anger with me even if you beat me, that as senior veteran player I felt a need to point out the obvious.

IT'S JUST A GAME.

STOP LETTING IT GET TO YOU.

WINNING - Something you MUST Understand

I encounter a lot of kids these days who simply don't understand how to lose and learn from it, they act like all they deserve is free wins and are outraged and surprised and omg offended if you win against them.

If you enter a match where one side wins and one loses, the chance of you losing is pretty much on the table.

PERIOD.

There are also the kids who win and then act like they're somehow suddenly world renowned superstar champions of the most important thing in the entire world.

Let me tell you something you might not have understood so far:


Winning or Losing is all the same in these games, it makes no difference, there is always a next match, there is always more to learn, to practice, more people to face.

And there is always someone who can defeat you.

ANGER - Defeating Yourself

People who grew up on Dragonball or any number of shonen anime know the trope where the main hero Enrages and kicks serious butt. Unfortunately in real life this is only moderately true. There is what to say about the healthy aspects of adrenaline, but this is not a medical paper and I'm hardly qualified to speak on that.

Instead I'll tell you this:

If you lose it, you lose.

A majority of the characters in Mortal Kombat (and a good few in other games) were designed to confuse and possibly upset you if you try to fight them. If you ever faced archetypes such as a runaway zoner or a footsie* character, you'll know how frustrating it can get. The emotion here is "I just want to fight and you keep running away". You need to understand that these things are by design. They are intended. It's not the other player calling your mom a rake or a shovel, but rather it's how the game works and more importantly:

THERE IS A WAY AROUND MOST THINGS. Stop getting mad.

Yes, there is an answer to most of what you encounter. Whether it's a guessing game like in the case of an away- or towards-throw / high-low mixup**, or understanding frame data, there is what to learn and what to Practice at all times.

So whatever you do, remember:
Keep cool, be cool.

OBSERVATION - How to replace anger with knowledge

Let's say you're fighting Jade in MK11.
She keeps sticking that giant staff in your face, wiggling it and hitting you out of everything, and then jumping on your head.

It's okay to get mad but it's not going to win you a match. Instead, identify which move she used either by trying it yourself or by watching the replay and seeing the button input. This is what Practice Mode is for: You can try everything for yourself in a controlled environment without the risk or frustration of losing.

Make it a habit that if you lose to something, program the AI in practice mode to repeat it and then try to find ways around it. If you aren't all that familiar with Fighting+Game+Fundamentals Let Me Google it For You.[lmgtfy.com]

heh heh.

Point here is, again, instead of getting angry, ask questions. Why did you lose? What could you be doing better?

Not gonna lie, some things in MK games are just bad. It's what it is.
Getting angry however, won't change any of it.

TERMINOLOGY

ARCHETYPE - Fighting Game characters have styles of their own much like real martial arts do. These are usually:

• Rushdown - These characters need to keep the Pressure on the opponent. Get in and keep going.
  
• Zoner - These try to Keep you Out, keep you away. Also known as Keepaway characters.
  
• Hybrid - These are moderately effective at all ranges if the Fighting Game is balanced.
  
• Setplay - These want to get you in a situation and force you to play their own strategy.
  
• Bruiser - Grapplers do some of the best damage usually, dealing in throw-based strategies.
  
• Footsie - They boast excellent range and poking tools but struggle to get in or keep out effectively.

There are more and there are combinations and variations but the general idea is that if you identify the archetype and strategy of a character you can find their weaknesses. If they have any. Sadly MK has a thing for the OP but you can work around that - by picking OP too.

MIXUP Guessing is a common gamble you take against a fair few archetypes in fighting games. Rushdown and Setplay characters especially like to make you guess whether you'll Block standing or crouching next. These Mixups are usually not Reactable - meaning you have to Read your opponent and figure out what's next.

CONCLUSION, ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There we go, I covered some simple thoughts that will help if you listen to me.
Will you stop feeling angry and helpless? Probably not for a while.
Will you be able to overcome it if you remember what was said here? Oh yes you will.

Listen, I keep telling myself these things every time the anatomy of the game and my own flaws combine into failure to succeed. It's okay to feel things, but don't let it ruin your fun.

I mentioned http://www.sirlin.net/ptw it's worth reading for real.
A better more elaborate read than my little writeup here.

See you in game.
Kick my butt.
If you can. :)

[darckness]

:)

[Dog]

sex!

[Ronin]

In gaming (as in life) you only grow by facing challenges outside of your comfort zone. And that means experiencing failure. A lot of it. Sure.. you'll win here and there, but failure is the state you'll spend most of your life in.

Learn to embrace failure. Learn to be comfortable in discomfort. Learn to enjoy losing. Because it's the only state in which you'll grow as a human being and make true progress. Nothing is gained by victory as you've just did what you already know and got lucky that it was enough.

And be humble in defeat. Congratulate your opponents on their skill and thank them for the opportunity to learn they blessed you with.

Or alternatively.. you can be an addicted child who chases nothing but the dopamine rush of victory and doesn't care about anything else and give into your anger if that craving isn't satisfied. You'll grow too. But into a despicable human being that will have a hard time in life.

Choice is yours. As OP said: Mindset is everything.

[2MuchRice]

Theres a video out there where Daigo of evo moment #38 fame goes to a school and gives a talk about himself. talks a lot about what it means to lose and why he plays

[Why, Vern?]

I cited him because he's easy to read, makes good points and his stuff is very fun in my opinion. Feel free to cite others in here who wrote about game theory in regards to getting mad at games or being a scrub. It won't go amiss to see it from more angles.

[2MuchRice]

we can cite other people that have said more or less the same thing. that's all im saying

[Why, Vern?]

Please. Everyone knows he's a hack. But he's a revered hack and he's totally right in this case.

[2MuchRice]

>sirlin
how long are we gonna pretend he's not a hack

[Why, Vern?]

Nah, all original thoughts.

[Vyolenthings]

copypasta and a half dude hell yeah