I like to move it, move it!

Hey All,

Remember that dance song from the mid 1990's "I like to Move it" by Wil.I.Am? It was one of those songs that you could see Jim Carey, Will Pherrell, and Chris Cataan jutting their heads too. It always reminds me of my younger days when I used to be a goaltender for a high school ice hockey team. That song always seemed to come on when someone would get scored on. If we scored, it would come on, and if I got scored on as well. I liked the song, but I hated hearing it when I would be on the short end of the straw. It does remind me of one thing though...Defense. I've been thinking a lot about improving my defense lately in Street Fighter. I realize that I need to block more. Sure, I do some blocking, but I've come to realize that I need to ride out block strings longer. Longer than I think I should. It's really easy to get hung up on watching mind games, mixups, offensive strategies when watching a fight video, but it wasn't until recently that I really started focusing on just how long some of these guys will sit there and block! I watch the vids and try to think "Ok, when would I have caved and thrown out a poke or tried to tech a throw". More often than not it is much sooner than I should have.

What if I would have never blocked or only blocked some of the time when I was playing Ice Hockey? It would have been pretty dismal most games. I try to think of SSF4 in the same sense. I have to play goalie and ride out many shots on goal if I want to give my offense a chance to succeed. They can't score goals constantly, but when they do score I want to make sure those goals count and that I just don't give away what my team has earned. To translate this to SSF4. When I'm given the momentum or any chance to do some damage my defense needs to reciprocate by not allowing the opponent to do the same thing. It is something that must be focused on intently and with extreme patience.

One thing that someone said in a blog on SRK that has stuck with me is that I need to embrace those situations where I am being forced to block and tech throws. I should almost purposely put myself in those situations so that I can get as comfortable as possible when they count. This makes total sense to me. Online play is just practice anyway and if defense is my weakness then why not practice it by resisting the urge to reversal or jump out of the corner at the first opportunity. Who cares if I end up losing? I can just look at it as another hockey practice.

Having the balls to fight Alex Valle

Hey folks,

So last weekend at the level|up tournament in SoCal that I was fortunate enough to attend I got the 'one off' chance to fight a Street Fighter legend: Alex Valle.

I went to the tournament with the intention of having a couple of drinks, watching some great matches, and getting caught up in the hype. There was no shortage of those things, but also there was this "Beat The Pro" segment that I had read about on the level|up website, and heard about on the "Wednesday Night Fights" stream. In my bravado, I had told myself that I would definitely register for it at the tournament. Once I got to the tournament, however, and saw the spectacle, the huge screen, the crowd (150+ easily), and the big names (Jwong, Choi, Ortiz, ShadyK) I began to feel intimidated. I began to take a reality check and tell myself that 'I'm a six month Ryu player wanting to take on the best 15 year Ryu player in the country in front of all of SoCal on a massive screen!? I can't do this.'. I didn't want to be a laughing stock, the comic relief in a sea of otherwise intense matches going on.

So when they announced "Beat The Pro" registration for the fifth time I had all but made up my mind until Alex Valle got on the mic and said something that struck a chord, "I want to see every tournament player in here on the list for "Beat The Pro". If you want to ever be a top player in this game and your name isn't on this list to fight me then you don't care about being the best you can be." Alex looked at me after he said this and I began to think about his statement. I thought about a year ago, I thought about learning to throw a fireball on a stick in April of 09', I thought about the countless hours of training mode, and the rage inducing online matches, this blog that I write, and my desire, despite my life, work, and time constraints, to be a top player in SF4. I thought 'how can I walk out of here with any self respect in regards to SF4 if I don't at least register for the chance to play?'. I also thought what if I don't play? I get to watch the tournament, but an opportunity passes me by that I can never get back and there will always be that 'what if?' factor. So I went up to the table, and put my name in the drawing.

The list of names was a long one, 80 people at least. When I saw it I was almost comforted in a way. I mean, I registered, if I didn't get picked to play...at least I registered right?

Alex announced that he only had an hour to play and so only a few people would get the chance.

I was the first named called.

No backing out now, I went up to the stage. Talked to Alex briefly and sat down at my station. I tried to feign nervousness. I mean, I'm a Navy veteran that has had to deal with intimidating instances on more than one occassion so my hand remained steady plugging in the stick, my voice calm and confident when talking to Alex, but underneath it all I was a bit of a wreck.

The first round began and all of my training went out the window. My gameplan? Don't get perfected. But, I did more than not get perfected, I picked up the first round! I looked at Alex and he gave me a nod and a smile. He and I both knew that I got lucky, but in that moment I knew that I had forged a memory that I would have never had had I not had the balls to get up and fight Alex Valle that day. Sure, I went on to eat mixup after mixup, bait after bait, and my nerves made the entire thing a blur, but the experience was something that can't be taken away. It was a private lesson from Mr. Alex Valle himself, not in how to option select, not in how to set up frame traps or baits, but in how to overcome your nerves, your preconceived notions, and stand up and fight in front of everyone. Without this valuable lesson that can only be taught in this manner, I would possibly never become a top player. Alex knows that this aspect of performing in front everyone and trying to do your absolute best while remaining calm, despite the nerves is the X factor that made him the winner of so many past tournaments and the player that he is today.

So, if you're on the fence about attending a local tournament, or you are afraid of embarrassing yourself, or maybe you are a tournament player that loses it when too many people start watching remember that its the experience that counts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqwTxjx4KjQ


I'll be back next week with some thoughts on how to improve execution and a few notes on what I saw in my match with Mr. Valle.

Your life for 100 damage? Your life for....100 DAMAGE!?

Hello again,

So I was at a local ranbat playing casuals against one of the top players in my area and he said something to me that struck a chord. It was the third round of a Ryu Vs. Abel match and I had Abel on the ropes. Abel had Ultra and I was closing the gap and trying to get past his standing light kick and forward middle kick footsie game. I was throwing out a few random pokes trying to bait something...a jump, but mostly an ultra when I thought to myself "This guy knows that I know a fireball would be stupid right now, so maybe if I throw an EX Hado at mid-screen range it will surprise him and land me some of the damage I need to A: Win and B: Advance." Wrong Answer. I get close enough to his 'grill' and go for it only to be Ultra'ed through on reaction for the loss. He turns to me and says "Resist the temptation, man... your life for 100 damage? Your life for....100 DAMAGE!?", of course he was referring to the EX fireball that I threw and its 100 damage output. I read somewhere on Gootecks' website that the number one difference between top players and everyone else is smart Risk vs. Reward decision making. The majority of us who play Street Fighter think we are doing something smart like the above mentioned situation only to find out that it was maybe the dumbest thing we could have done. We think we are going to 'pull a fast one' on a good player and win. But, when you think about gambling your life for 100 damage, the answer seems pretty cut and dry....don't do it.

This is not to say we shouldn't take risks. Taking smart risks is how good players win. It's deciding when to take a risk and what the reward might be and also what the punishment might be for such risk. I often wonder "How can someone think so clearly about risk vs. reward so quickly while they are playing?". The answer is probably experience. The more you play, the more you see situations and strategies, and the more you see different kinds of opponents the easier it is to adjust to them.
So, like everything Street Fighter related we just have to keep at it and ask ourselves if we really want to put our lives on the line for 100 damage.

Well, it's off to California this week for work. I'm out there for three weeks, and will be fortunate enough to attend the "Level Up Tournament" hosted by Alex Valle. It will be fun to be at something in-person that I would normally be watching over the internet. I wanted to enter, but registration closed pretty quickly. I would have most likely been dominated anyway as my major achievements include reaching G2-D and beating a 40 year old drunk guy who had never touched a controller before...oh well, there is always next time eh?

How I learned to learn from match videos

Hey all!

I've had a revelation recently in regards to watching match videos. Normally, when I watch match videos I'm watching it with the same sort of mindset that I have when I watch a television show or a movie. I'm watching and waiting for the rise and fall of tension, the drama, and the end result. I never intend to watch match videos this way, but it is almost like my brain goes on auto pilot and says "entertain me!". For instance, I'm watching Daigo fight Iyo in the gamestop national finals, but I'm not 'seeing' what is going on. I'm not taking anything from it other than 'Wow, that was awesome! Holy shit, FULL SCREEN SUPER! Daigo is sick...etc, etc..". I've watched countless match videos, but never really learned anything from them. Like in the film "White Men Can't Jump" when Wesley Snipes character told Woody Harrelson's character he is "hearing James Brown, but he's not listening to James Brown". I thought I was learning, and sure, I was picking up some tidbits i.e. a cool combo or punish, but to really get something out of these videos I've had to approach watching them in a different way.

There are a few things that will always happen in every round of every match of Street Fighter with maybe the rare exception. Someone will always get knocked down, and someone else will always have the advantage of a knockdown, and going a step further than that someone will always be trying to get in for a knockdown while someone else will be trying to avoid it while fishing for their own. These are situations common to us all and the key to unlocking true match video analysis. Some questions I've found myself asking since I've discovered within myself the ability to analyze are as follows: How did Player A get around Player B's fireballs? Maybe he jumped? Ok, how was he able to jump? Was it a psychic jump or was it based on pattern? Did he somehow condition the other guy and bait him into throwing it?". And, conversely, now that Player B just got hit with a big combo and is knocked down what is he going to do? What would I have done? Did it pay off for him or did it fail? Would my way have worked better? What did player A do to keep the pressure on? If applicable, what did he do to give away his momentum?. How did player B get in on Player A without jumping? What pokes are they using? Why is player A getting combo'd? Is it because player B conditioned A to think he was going to throw?

Basically I've had to ask "Why?" the pros do what they do down to the random jab from full screen to the seemingly random vertical jump at mid-screen. By questioning these things I've been able to at least attempt to get into the heads of these players. Consequently, I've been asking myself "How would I have handled that and how is my game different from theirs?" My hope is that I will re-program my brain to always think of the smartest answer to these questions during my own matches. With enough proper match video analysis it really is only a matter of time, like all things Street Fighter.

If you are already doing this or learned to do this after sometime I'd be interested to hear if you saw a big difference in your improvement and how it made you a better player.

Until next time, glhf.

A Footsies Experiment

Howdy partners,

What are footsies and how does one get better at them? When I first started Street Fighter (wow, its been damn near a year) I heard the term footsies, but had only a very basic and abstract version of what the term actually meant. It's an abstraction with many different meanings in a way, and kind of hard to pin down with short definition, but recently, as Jeffrey Lebowski aka 'the dude' once said "New shit has come to light".

Street Fighter is like a game of paper, rock, scissors. We've heard this a lot, and most of the time this can be applied to the wake up game. You have to ask yourself often "What should I do now that I'm knocked down?" and, conversely, "What do I do now that I've knocked him down." Now combine this with "Simon" that old memory game that starts out really simple and then mindfucks you by level 3. If someone knocks you down, and then goes for a throw, you have to log that into memory banks, you then prepare for it next time, he either goes for a throw again, or he goes into a block string, or does nothing (there really is a plethora of options) and it becomes about remembering what your opponent did before and reacting to it or learning his pattern of lights and sounds if you will. If you played the memory game right your defense holds up and your opponent will either adjust to the game of 'Simon' or he will continue to fail.

Now take this school of thought and apply it to ground game. I'm talking fireballs and normals. This is really the secret of 'getting in'. Jumping rarely works. We've all discovered this yet some of us just can't stop doing it. It's because it's kind of a high risk/high reward maneuver that pays off on a lot of lower level players. It's also a very lazy way to play the game. Alex Valle talks about thinking of the stage as a soccer game. You have to push your opponent into his goal (the corner) and he is trying to do the same to you. Well, how do you do this? It's not easy! It's a lot easier to jump in on someone who doesn't anti-air well, but against someone who does you really have to be creative. I've really begun to ask myself 'what buttons does this guy like to press and from what ranges'. For instance, you are fighting Ken as Ryu. This Ken likes to use f.mk to c.mk. If you notice that happening you can answer back with a counter poke. For Ryu c.mp will stuff f.mk and c.lk will stuff Ken's c.mk more often than not. If you can predict what the Ken player is doing based on his pattern (essentially you are playing simon here again) you can use the proper counter poke to push him back. So, you really have to watch what pokes your opponent is using. Now to go a level beyond this, you can bait your opponent into using the pokes you want him to use and punish them. If you are two steps ahead, you are going to win.

Maj has some sick articles under the strategy section of shoryuken.com entitled "footsies 101". It's a highly recommended read that goes far more in depth on footsies than I do here.

So here is my gameplan... I'm going to play a month without using special moves. I'm going to master my normals as Ryu. I'm not only going to master them, but I'm going to master baiting people with them and I'm going to master what normal beats out what. I'm not going to care about winning and losing. Winning and losing to me will be something like this...I win if I land my poke or successfully bait something, and I lose if I do neither. SHGLBMX (top socal blanka and super cool guy) told me that is what he did to improve at the footsies game. This month I go back out to socal on a work trip, but the following month I will starting this venture. I'll see you all when I get back!

Some updates

Happy New Year!

I've been really binging on SF lately, more so than the usual. I stayed home for the holidays and had plenty of time on my hands to get down and dirty in training mode and get some matches in online as well as offline. I've read in more than a couple of places that to really get a combo down you have to practice it 100 times on both the 1 player and 2 player side. So I've been working this idea as best as my ADHD will allow and I've now found the ability to hit a crouching jab after a solar plexus strike which leads to all kinds of focus crumple opportunities for big damage with Ryu. So, its a small addition to my arsenal, but fighting games are about baby steps. I've also been fighting consecutive matches/sessions a lot more online. I feel like I'm starting to break through that 'losing' barrier that I talked about in one of my first blogs. I'm not getting down on myself after a loss, rather I'm shaking it off rather quickly, and learning from it. This has been my biggest hurdle as of yet playing street fighter. I think if someone already has the natural ability to not get angry or demoralized after losing multiple fights then they are one step ahead of probably the majority of us, but fact of the matter is, most of us are very competitive and they have to deal with this challenge. How have I done it? I had to shed the ego a bit. It's a tough thing to admit, and even though I knew I was bad, I guess I thought that I had a better aptitude for fighting games than most people. Where I got that notion I still don't really know for sure and while I do see the sky as the limit I know that I have to take my lumps like everyone else to get there.

I fought Chris Hu's Ryu online a few hours ago. That guy is a beast. I added him to MSN after a post he made at one point. He didn't have a whole lot to say when I told him that I can BnB consistently and FADC consistently into ultra (at least on the 2 player side, haha). He even went so far as to say I sounded too confident. That may be, I don't know, but anyone that knows me knows that I've been far from confident in my playing. We had a set of 5 in which he won all of them, all rounds, but I took heart in the fact that I was hanging in there. It didn't feel like total domination to me. It was, but it wasn't. There were some rounds that I could have clutched out had it not been for him clutching them out instead. In one instance he focus dashed through a close fireball and FADC'ed me into Ultra. It was awesome, not going to lie. I really appreciate Chris taking the time out to play me and hopefully when he gets some time he wouldn't mind breaking down for me some of the things I need to work on. After that I fought SHGLBMX in a first to five. SHGL has an awesome blanka and he kind of dicks around with some other characters as well. It was a good set that he could have ultimately won all matches off had he been playing blanka the whole time. It's very laggy when we play given that we are on opposite coasts, but I felt a did well, and I felt that I played better against his blanka than I have any other time I've fought him. I even picked up a round I think, so that was nice. Dude's a beast. So, I've been trying to up the level of competition online and only fight known players, or players that just blow me away in champ mode. I never really have played champ mode much until a couple of days ago, but honestly the level of competition there is better, and I can meet people to have player matches with later, so its win/win.

Offline I went to my first local gathering last night for casuals. It was really cool! I took a friend who is brand new into fighting games and we sat around on couches talking stick mods and watching fights for a few hours. It was nice to get my first real taste of fighting some of the local competition outside of the odd match here or there at a tournament. I beat a couple of people, and lost to a couple of people, but it was interesting getting advice while I was playing and it's just another rung in the ladder as far as experience playing in front of people as well as just meeting people to play with regularly. Everyone that I have met from the fighting game community thus far has been personable and willing to help. Only a little arrogance here and there, sometimes people take that approach when they are very good at something and someone is seeking out the free knowledge that they had to earn the hard way.

I'm in a quandry for SSFIV...do I stick with Ryu or move on? I actually really like Ryu, but it would nice to be a little more mobile. Time will tell eh? I read an interview with Kokujin and he said he kind of just picks his character based on how they feel. I might try that approach.

Until next time, keep at it.