Note: Mentok the Mindtaker suggested that someone write a blog about improving fighting game skills. Here's my contribution.



I hope other fighting game fans get in on this idea as I'd love to compare the different philosophies. There are a few preliminary steps to the process. The first is to find a game that you can dedicate yourself to. You also have to accept that you may end up not liking the game after putting tons of time and effort into it. For instance, I really liked Street Fighter IV until I started to think about it competitively. I feel that the game is too sloppy and unbalanced to play seriously. The more I played it, the less I liked it. The second preliminary step is to start to analyze your abilities. In my case, I don't have great reflexes but my execution is good. I prefer rushdown, in-your-face characters over patience. This analysis should be pretty general and provide a basic framework of what you can do versus what you need to do. Once you've thought about these concepts, it's time to start down the path of the fighter.

Step One: Define your goals
This sounds simple and basic, and it is, but it's extremely important. In my view, there are two paths: the master on one game and the jack of all trades. Over time, I have always enjoyed being good at multiple fighters rather than master one. I like the variety in the genre and this approach allows me to enjoy it. Many fighting game fans would probably call me a scrub but fuck that. Being a master of SFIV but not knowing how to play Samurai Shodown sounds like a sad existence to me. If you decide to take this path, I recommend putting in a lot of time into Super Street Fighter II Turbo: HD Remix. That game requires strict execution and will teach you the most common movements required in almost all fighters - quarter circles and dragon punch motions. If you elect to master one game, choose a new one. If you jump into Marvel vs Capcom II or HD Remix, life will be very hard for you as there are many players who have studied those games since their initial release. This puts you at a disadvantage of about 10 years in experience and mastery of the fine points. It's not an impossible feat but it's damned close.



Step Two: Get an arcade stick
I'm sure many players will disagree with this, but there's a reason. Fighting games are designed for arcade hardware, which features a joystick. Would you play an FPS using an SNES pad? Think about that. Sticks offer many advantages. For instance, if you're performing a hadouken motion which ends with forward+punch, you can hold the punch while performing the quarter circle and then release the button once you've reached forward and the move will still come out. Welcome to the world of negative edge. The motions required in fighters are more easily done on stick, especially considering the pathetic d-pads on the current console controllers. Another advantage of a stick is modding. Modding allows you to get to know the hardware and how it works as well as tailoring it to your preferences. There's a reason that most top players use arcade sticks. If you're anti-stick, find a controller with a good d-pad and 6 face buttons; the Saturn controller is the gold standard in this case.

Step Three: Practice
Hit the practice mode and learn the moves and combos of the characters. Study as many characters as you can. Once you've mastered a character, hit the arcade mode to get some idea of your skills against the AI. Once you've mastered beating down the AI, find players to compete with. I love getting a few good players together and playing a few games and discussing the finer points of the game engine in the process. All experience is valuable and almost everyone has something valuable to share with others.



Step Four: Research
Now that you're outfitted with the hardware, have gotten some practice and set your goals, it's time to research. I recommend going to SRK at shoryuken.com and reading the strategy sections. There are tons of good information abot almost all fighters. Register there, if you'd like, but do a lot of reading before posting. That group is very intense and it's best to understand the social rules before diving in. There is a lot of interesting information to be found. Frame data is useful at a basic level. I prefer to view it less technically than some; If one move takes 5 frames to come out and another takes 2 frames, that informs you which move is faster and how it can be used effectively. Read as much as you can about the game engine, the match ups and move priorities as possible. This will lead to a deep understanding of the game on both practical and academic levels. I'm one of those players that likes to know why something works as much as how it works.

Step Five: Strategy
Read strategies and then modifying them so that your character is unique and interesting even if that is not the optimal way to play said character. Think of the advantage that creativity affords you. If an opponent constantly expects spammed fireballs and you charge in with physical attacks, it throws off the opponent's game. A large part of improving your game is learning solid tactics and mind games. Start to notice your opponent's patterns and counter them. The opponent will think that you're inside their head and force them to change their strategy. The idea is to stick to your strategy and force the opponent to modify their approach. It's also important to learn to control the pace of the match. If your opponent is rushing in, back away or throw them and force the pace to slow down. If you have a good life lead, back away and force them to catch up to you.Your basic goal is to force mistakes and then capitalize.



Step Six: Play
You're now armed with every necessary component to improve your game. You've chosen the games you want to get good at, you've studied the engines and mastered the execution. All that's left is to play and play a lot. I prefer to play people who are slightly better than I am. Trouncing someone and being trounced is not fun. Beating someone who is better than you is rewarding. Close matches hold more knowledge than blow outs. When I find a fighter I love, I play it daily for a few weeks and then take some time off so that I can return to the game with a different perspective. This allows me to overcome bad habits and to keep my game fresh.