Can't win a single game anymore

[Speedstinger]

Hi, I'm new to the smashboards, but i've been having a really freaking horrible issue over the past two days.

I can't win anymore. I'm not that bad at smash, I was at 2.8 million gsp two days ago, but since then I've dropped down to 10,000 and i'm so pissed off.
I've saved every battle in the vault to watch over and take mental observations on what i've been doing wrong. I can't come up with anything meaningful. I don't spam one move, I don't make too many predictable plays, and I don't do outright wrong things. (Of course there were things battle to battle that I saw in the recordings, but nothing overlying all of them that constitutes me losing this much)
I've begun to dread the game. Its fun if you occasionally win, and even more fun if you win a lot. But seemingly out of the blue, I come crashing and burning down, and I don't enjoy the game because of the sheer amount of losses that i've gotten over the last two days.
I want to like the game, but if my skill continues to falter, i'm not sure it will hold up.
Has anyone ever had this happen? If so, how did you get out of the "slump?"
I'd really appreciate if someone could shed light on this, i'm willing to take anything as an answer, even if it boils down to "you suck at the game"

I'd like to clarify, I totally believe that my losses are all on me. It is my skill thats lacking here, not something wrong with the game or the others playing it. I'm just asking if anyone can help me with the issue, as I can't find anything elsewhere.

Thanks for taking the time to read this, and have a great evening

 

[LightLV]

Its called being tilted. You're on tilt.

You're more concerned with winning than playing and you aren't logically thinking about the game anymore, likely playing purely off salt and autopilot. It's common with competitive games and typically results in the worst performance you'll see from yourself. I've dropped multiple ranks in fighting games due to playing while on tilt.

Stop playing, do something else, come back later once it's not bothering you. Might take a few hours, might take a few days. It's pretty much the only cure. You'll notice an immediate improvement.


And this is the most important advice:

The way to avoid being tilted is to stop believing that you're supposed to be winning while you're playing.

People rarely get mad at losses when they believe they're still learning the game. It's when they start thinking they're good that it becomes an issue. Accept that you're not that good, acknowledge that your play has flaws and go forward with the idea of improvement, not advancement.

 

[popemanz]

yes

Its called being tilted. You're on tilt.

You're more concerned with winning than playing and you aren't logically thinking about the game anymore, likely playing purely off salt and autopilot. It's common with competitive games and typically results in the worst performance you'll see from yourself.

Stop playing, do something else, come back later once it's not bothering you. It's pretty much the only cure. You'll notice an immediate improvement.


And this is the most important advice:

The way to avoid being tilted is to stop believing that you're supposed to be winning while you're playing.

People rarely get mad at losses when they believe they're still learning the game. It's when they start thinking they're good that it becomes an issue. Accept that you're not that good, acknowledge that your play has flaws and go forward with the idea of improvement, not advancement.

 

[XERXES92]

Tilting is definitely a big issue here. Like others have stated, try taking a break and come back with a clear head.
Besides that, just keep putting in the practice. Try finding a training partner slightly better then you to coach you and point out your weaknesses.

 

[Oneiros5321]

Yup, whenever you're on a losing streak, don't push yourself too far.
It can be really frustrating and at some point you can even fail basic things that you think you have mastered.
Take a step back, play something else for a few, don't push yourself too much (don't do the opposite either, meaning don't play only to increase your GSP)

It's okay to lose sometimes but if you're doing well and all of a sudden you start losing all your matches, it doesn't mean you're suddenly bad at the game, it just means you need to do something else.

I short, whenever you get frustrated or mad at the game, take a step back.

 

[Diddy Kong]

Play casual matches for a while, and play in random rooms instead of Quick Play online. Play more with friends, see the fun stuff in the game. It doesn't HAS to be all competitive. If you are playing to win alone, because losing frustrates you, your sub conscious is already setting itself up for dissapointment. Play a different character, or stick with one that suits you best.

 

[kraw23]

You should also see if you can find some IRL people to play with - I can get angry to the point of swearing at the monitor when playing online, but in person I'll just give a compliment to my opponent. You also don't have to deal with laggy matches which is the thing that tilts me the most.

 

[zipzo]

Instead of giving you any advice on keeping perspective, how about instead you post a video of your replay and then we can all see just how bulletproof your gameplay is and see if your frustration is warranted?

 

[MG_3989]

It’s definitely tilting. I used to tilt in a ton of games and lose ranks fast, Hearthstone, Overwatch, etc...

What I learned is play the game for fun and it doesn’t matter how good you are right now all that matters is improving. This way you can look at loses and be ok with them. I’ve actually had some of my most fun games that turned out to be loses. Again it doesn’t matter how good you are because you can always get better and losing is an important part of that. It’s not like it’s a tournament with money on the line and even if it was it would still be wise to take that mindset. Players that don’t get tilted understand that losing is a part of the game and a part of improving and every match has an opportunity to learn. Also the most important aspect is to just have fun. There’s no point in playing the game if it isn’t fun for you

 

[Crystanium]

So you keep losing. Take a break. It's not the end of the world. You can pick up the game again and start over. When you enter a match, you need to think about the possibility that your opponent just might be better than you. This should help you so that you don't underestimate your opponent. If during the match the opponent doesn't feel as difficult as you initially expected, then you shouldn't have a problem winning. Always realize that you can potentially lose. If you don't want to lose, work for the win. If you do lose, don't take it personally.

I think you're focusing a lot on your GSP. I understand the feeling. It's an incentive to play, and when your GSP drops, there's something psychological going on. If you'd prefer to play against people without focusing on your GSP, check out Smashcords. You can find anyone to play against and ask for advice on what you could work on. Hopefully you will be given advice, take it, and then develop better strategies from it. SSBU is still young. You have time to develop new skills and strategies. For the time being, I'd say take a break for a day. Don't be so full of yourself that you think there isn't anyone else out there who is better than you.

 

[EGsmash]

Seconding play someone IRL if you can. Getting tilted is easier online because over-aggressive play tends to be punished by the basics of online play itself - you have fewer reaction frames due to latency, frame-perfect inputs can get dropped altogether, and moves buffer further out. If you get tilted, you're hitting buttons harder, faster, and with less purpose, and online WILL hurt you for that. People who are exceptionally good online are often used to playing in the syrupy void, and are just executing strings of reliable moves that they've rehearsed rather than reacting in real-time. You've really got to know your matchups when playing online because you are just not going to be pulling out tournament-level responsive play. It doesn't help that there are a LOT of just toxic matchups with how badly balanced the game is, but there isn't much to do about that.

Playing someone IRL, especially a friend, you're much less likely to get salty over a loss and much more likely to give props to a well-fought match. Playing randos online feels very impersonal - like you're playing a machine that you know you should be able to beat but just can't - like playing The Boss in WOL without spirits. This is especially bad since they removed taunting in Quickplay: there's just no good way for you or your opponent to really communicate during the match to let each other know you're humans too.