Q&A Game Play Advice and General Discussion

[sGale]

This may be a pretty broad question but how do you improve on your fundamentals? Things like reading, adapting, pressuring? I've been plateauing hard recently but I still have the drive to improve. Thing is: I notice that I'm not picking the right options compared to my opponents, rather, I react to the stuff they do and just try to hit them with any combo-starter and try to hit them. I realise that this is the wrong approach to the game but I can't seem to grasp the mindset you're supposed to have. I'm not looking for an immediate solution, but I'm barely improving at any rate.

 

[Amazing Ampharos]

How do you be unpredictable? I use jiggs who seems to have limited options for approaching, so I'm stuck with short hop aerials and sometimes a throw or dash. However the short hops are very predictable and easy to counter, and dash attacking/throwing usually doesn't work well.

Also, how do you cope with input lag in FG? I feel like I'm unable to punish a fair amount of moves simply because the delay prevents my character from attacking until the opponent is able to shield or roll again.

Finally, how do you deal with opponents who constantly roll everywhere and occasionally use throws, jabs, smash attacks, etc?

Thanks! :D

Jigglypuff is not an easy character to be unpredictable with; predictability stems from both player skill and diversity of character toolset. The first area you can always work on, but as long as you play Jigglypuff, you're playing with a short deck in the second area. On some level, you will have to accept being a bit predictable and worry more about refining your best techniques and winning through precise gameplay instead of relying on surprise.

That being said, recognize that your timing, spacing, and movement are all variable and in your control. Jigglypuff has extremely strong air control; you can hit a shield with an aerial and fade out past punishment range easily. You can also wiggle in and out of range, faking attacks and punishing whiffs by your opponent. Your attacking options pretty much come down to "jump at them and do an aerial, jump at them and do Pound, or try to grab them" so you can't be all that tricky there; focus on the movement to confuse and mix up your opponent. You mentioning that you always just short hop is also worrisome. You can use full hops, mid-air jumps over the stage, etc. to add more dimension to your aerial approaches and fakes. If your character is Jigglypuff, you have license to view the ground as your jump refresher; it's okay to spend a lot of time in the air.

Honestly I find online lag unbearable. My only advice is to seek our your local scene if at all possible. I know one definitely exists in Ontario.

My above post to the previous player should hopefully tell you a bit about opponents who roll way too much. Most characters can dsmash rolls pretty easily or if they lack time or confidence turn around and jab or grab them, but I wouldn't try that with Jigglypuff unless the roll is really badly spaced (Jigglypuff does have excellent grab range). As Jigglypuff, controlling your movement to restrict their options and tagging the roll with a quick short hop aerial will probably be mostly best. Do note that your nair hits all around you and is your quickest option; if you don't have time to bair someone rolling behind you, nairing them is a lot better than getting nothing. It also bears note that online lag makes rolling far, far harder to deal with than it is in offline play since the lag just eats into your time to react.

 

[Eonn]

*insert awesome advice here*

Thanks! One more question, how do you land effectively (in general)? With Jigglypuff I can try to make them whiff if they stay on the ground, but they can wait out my jumps or jump up and attack me. With other characters I don't have many other jumps to fake them out with either. Jiggly's dair doesn't have as much priority as in melee, and I don't think the nair hits players directly below you (or at least it can't outrange their attacks). And obviously air-dodging isn't very viable because of the landing lag.

 

[Amazing Ampharos]

Thanks! One more question, how do you land effectively (in general)? With Jigglypuff I can try to make them whiff if they stay on the ground, but they can wait out my jumps or jump up and attack me. With other characters I don't have many other jumps to fake them out with either. Jiggly's dair doesn't have as much priority as in melee, and I don't think the nair hits players directly below you (or at least it can't outrange their attacks). And obviously air-dodging isn't very viable because of the landing lag.

There isn't a universal option, and that's one of the core defining elements of the smash 4 engine. In general, landing is intrinsically unsafe; aerials and airdodges have landing lag, and your opponent can create "checkmate" situations in which you're forced to eat a hit as you touch the ground. Playing around that reality on defense while trying to create those situations on offense is a big topic in general.

The best you can really do is use whatever tools you do have to make the trap hard for them to set. Use your air control to try to weave to stage locations that are difficult to cover, definitely using platforms and ledges as appropriate. Any aerials you have that are high priority and/or safe can be of great use, and a lot of characters have special moves that can either affect momentum in useful ways or have air to ground transition properties you can use to get down. Airdodging can be a useful answer; the landing lag is punishable, but if your opponent commits to an attack that is too early, the airdodge very well can avoid it and the landing lag can be covered. With Jigglypuff you definitely will be using your mid-air jumps to cover this (if you jump away from one trap, they will almost assuredly not have time to set another and you can either get down or even punish them for whiffing something), your aerials have pretty low landing lag so you can poke out with them as opponents chase you (and don't forget Pound for your high priority attacking needs), and with your high aerial mobility, there's no reason you should ever have to come down directly on top of them unless it's a match-up where you want to (your dair isn't super high priority but it will beat several things, depends on opposing character) so if you need a more horizontal confrontation you can often force that. If you're feeling really gutsy, you can in theory Rest almost anything; it is frame 1 invincible. Just... don't be wrong if you go for it since, if you are wrong and don't hit, you probably die, and if you hit but don't kill, it's probably not worth it.

In short, you should be reasonably confident in winning air to air confrontations because Jigglypuff is good at that, and if they stick to the ground and try to trap you, you just have to be really slippery to the point that them extending to trap you is more likely to get them hit than you. Jigglypuff is kinda a rule breaker in this metagame in that she's designed to do things that are generally bad with other characters, but she does at least have probably the best toolset to break the rules and jump around all day anyway.

 

[Aktsumi]

don't you think that smash 4 controls are very slippery? It has a very noticeable latency input like the controller is delayed and out of sync. for example it takes 32 ms in melee for the game to respond to the controller whereas in the wii u version it takes 150ms. I find that this really screws up my timing and gameplay alot but those players like amsa and ken has a very good grasp on it. the shield has delay and dashing is really hard. (normally i would dash close to the opponent and quickly roll back as a defensive position but I could finish the controller input 1/4 of the way when the character is actually rolling.) could maybe dual online with me and test my habits and timing? I don't have a wii or brawl so I cant play melee or project m and I don't intend to

my ign is Soulxxd or Aktsumi thanks

 

[Ankalagone]

Hello people, I have a prob at Sm4sh :

I play like Roll > Smash > Roll > Smash with every Character

If you have some tricks to reduce my Rolls and smash, could be realy appreciate. ^^

 

[Aktsumi]

Thanks! One more question, how do you land effectively (in general)? With Jigglypuff I can try to make them whiff if they stay on the ground, but they can wait out my jumps or jump up and attack me. With other characters I don't have many other jumps to fake them out with either. Jiggly's dair doesn't have as much priority as in melee, and I don't think the nair hits players directly below you (or at least it can't outrange their attacks). And obviously air-dodging isn't very viable because of the landing lag.

Hungry box is a very good jigg player, that being said you have to observe competitive players who plays your character so you can know how they handle situations and such

 

[KittyKyat]

Hello people, I have a prob at Sm4sh :

I play like Roll > Smash > Roll > Smash with every Character

If you have some tricks to reduce my Rolls and smash, could be realy appreciate. ^^

Knowing that you're doing that is half the battle. With Little Mac, I think you can get away with it to an extent if you're not doing it like every other time, but what you should do is just practice shielding rather then rolling. A lot of the time, a shield will suffice and not be as punishable as a roll. Sure, you might get grabbed, but it's better then taking a charged smash to the face after you get read. Rolling is a nice thing but you should only do it sparingly, kinda as a way to surprise the opponent, rather then doing it as your main defensive option or worse, movement option.

 

[Ankalagone]

Knowing that you're doing that is half the battle. With Little Mac, I think you can get away with it to an extent if you're not doing it like every other time, but what you should do is just practice shielding rather then rolling. A lot of the time, a shield will suffice and not be as punishable as a roll. Sure, you might get grabbed, but it's better then taking a charged smash to the face after you get read. Rolling is a nice thing but you should only do it sparingly, kinda as a way to surprise the opponent, rather then doing it as your main defensive option or worse, movement option.

Alright, I'll try my best to work on. But what about Smash spamming ? ( I already try to play with aerial but I have some difficults to knock out ennemy with B-air )

 

[KittyKyat]

Alright, I'll try my best to work on. But what about Smash spamming ? ( I already try to play with aerial but I have some difficults to knock out ennemy with B-air )

Are you using the C-stick for smashes? If so, you can go to the options and switch it to attacks, so your c-stick forces you to use tilts more often. If it's otherwise, you'll just have to work through it, breaking a habit is hard. Best way is to just be punished for it, and realize that you have more options then smash attack. And with the B-air, just practice hitting it. Only way to get better is to practice right?

 

[ChaosFalcon]

What would be the general basics thing to know for getting into competitive smash?

 

[shadowrohas]

I want to know if there's some sort of "unorthodox training method" to getting rid of my roll habit.

In times of stress or pressure (i.e. the person I'm playing against is much better than me and I'm aware of that) it makes me panic and resort to rolling. In other words, I roll more against better players than inexperienced ones, which I know, is really bad.

I was thinking maybe binding my L and/or R buttons to something that isn't shield so that I would be forced to think of other movement options aside from rolling (because I wouldn't be able to), but I wouldn't really be able to shield either...

I've been punished a ton for rolling but I still can't get it out of my system, so I really want a way to kind of force it out, you know? Can anyone help me with that?

 

[SwoodGrommet]

Uh, knowing how to play the game. I don't know how to put it any simpler; there's no magic tech or combo I can teach you that will make you ready for competitive play.

However, I'll make a list of the bone bare basics anyway.

Make sure you have a main.
Learn you main inside out.
Know how to make use of your entire moveset.
Know how to tech the ground and stage.
Learn match ups.
Learn to punish.
Learn how to read and predict your opponent.
Learn how to keep calm during a game.

So basically, to get to competitive level, you play the game. I suggest Smashladder to play against good opponents. Make sure to ask for advice. Just go play and get better, good luck.

 

[COLINBG]

@ ChaosFalcon , Do you have acess to tournaments? Do you have any friends with whom you can play offline regularly? I see you have chosen mains from every smash generation on your profile, did you play a lot in the past, or are you only now trying to get better at the game? How regularly can you play? These are all things that would be useful to know before we try to help you.


I'll assume you're entirely new to the game (which might not be the case, but anyway). You basically want to:

- Try every character a couple of minutes in Training mode, maybe do a couple of matches with them too. This way you can get a basic idea of how every character works. Do they have projectiles? Are they fast? Do they have a good recovery? Get to know these kind of things.

- Once you explored every character a little, try to pick the one you're the most comfortable with. It's possible you'll be naturally attracted to one character in particular, which is great. You might also not really know what character you want, in which case either continue experimenting, or pick one that inspires you (either the design, the character in general, etc). Alternatively, you can go for a character that is generally considered ''high tier'', because you'll have an easier time with them. Whatever you do, try to pick one character for now, and keep in mind you can change your main later on.

- Try to learn the basics of the game. What is a forward tilt? How do you tech? Learn the terminology of smash, and learn how to control your character. Know what each move does, what range and cooldown it has, what kind of knockback and damage it deals to the opponent. Learn to vector and pivot. These are all things you can easily find online tutorials for.

- Keep practicing with that character. Against real player offline is what works best, so try to do that if possible. Playing against a more experienced player who can give constructive criticism is probably the best way to learn. Don't be afarid to go to tournaments and ask questions. It can be intimidating, but I'm sure a lot of people will gladly give you advice and help you progress.

- Try to gather information. Read what you can on this website; it can be advanced techniques that you'll try to incorporate in your gameplay, or information on other characters. With experience and research, you'll eventually know the match-ups well, know the other characters' movesets well, and you'll get better at handling different MUs. Playing different characters from time to time also helps to do this, and at this point you can really choose the character that fits you the most. Watching matches of high level players on YouTube or streams on Twitch is also useful.

There's not much else you can do. The two things that will make you better are really practice and knowledge of the game. Also, it takes time to get good. You won't become pro in a week, so don't give up if you don't see results immediately.

Make sure you have a main.

That is not mandatory, even at a high level. You can do very well without a main, but for someone trying to get competitive, I agree it's the way to go, at least at first. The rest of what you said is what a new player should be doing pretty much. Just be careful with Smashladder, you will never get the same level of feedback you'd get from playing offline, and online play sometimes lag a bit or has small input delays. While it's still a good tool, use it sparingly.

 

[HeroMystic]

I was thinking maybe binding my L and/or R buttons to something that isn't shield so that I would be forced to think of other movement options aside from rolling (because I wouldn't be able to), but I wouldn't really be able to shield either...

Over reliance on shield, rolling, and even air dodging are all bad habits. So yes, getting rid of the shield button is a good way to be forced to think of other movement options.

Of course, I wouldn't care much about winning under these terms, as the point is to kill your reliance of the shield button.

 

[ChaosFalcon]

Thank you for the advice, I have a few mains that I play with regularly. Funny enough I was watching shofu's video on smashlader while reading this. I have a group offline that I can play with and I've been watching pro matches off of vgbootcamp. For tournaments for practice and such, would you suggest looking on smashboards or somewhere else?

 

[Superbat]

I have a problem in which whenever I'm at a disadvantageous position I shield. Almost 90% of the time I get grabbed. When I spotdodge its telegraphed and people just wait again to grab me. Plz help

 

[COLINBG]

Depending where you live, there might be more or less tournaments. I know New Jersey and California have huge smash scenes. I'm not too sure outside of the US, but every relatively big city has some sort of smash tournaments going on. You can do a quick google search, or look in this forum to see if you can find anything about your region.

You seem to already know the game, and since you have a few mains, you can either continue to play them like you already do, or choose one that you wish to perfect. Even if you don't make a conscious decision about that, you'll probably end up gravitating towards one characer eventually though.

What you have to do now is really just learn the game more. Read and be active on the forums of characters that interest you, but also characters that you don't play, to get to know them better. VGBootCamp hosts a lot of tournaments, so it's definitely a good thing to watch. Streams of high level players in general are good, as well as their youtube channels. I personally sugest watching FOW's stream (1fow1 on Twitch), because he's a top level player who knows pretty much what he's doing with every character in the game. He streams up to 9 hours a day several days per week, and gives a lot of tips to use/fight every character, so you could learn a lot from this.

If you have a group for offline play, then it's also a great thing. Try to play as often as you can with them, because it's the best way to progress. As you play, you'll be more and more comfortable in excecuting combos, advanced techniques, making reads, punishing, pressuring, and all that stuff.

 

[ChaosFalcon]

Thank you for all the advice, I will take what you have said and try to put it to good use.

 

[Steffano]

Alright, so I know I'm bad. I roll, and I miss attacks all the time. But I have so much questions. There is a massive powergap between the other player and I. He moves so fast, there are various instances throughout the video in where he just constantly hits me with aerials. Forgive me I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to all of this, that's why I'm here, I literally want to "git gud". When he does a down smash with Mario it's feel as if it's instant. He lands, he then hits my landing with the down smash, Or when I would try to land he would always hit me with a jab right off the bat. How does he do this? For example with Samus as well he would always hit 2 aerials really quickly. I've tried doing aerials like that consequently but there is always a gap when I do it, they aren't as quick or fast as his Samus' aerials. Is there a secret to this? How does he perform those aerials really quick and followed up? How do I play really aggressive like him? He hardly gave me any breathing space. I've went to my locals and played this dude who was even better. I couldn't even move, I was just getting hit from 0-120. How do I recover from those edge guards that's also a real big problem for me, that's why I get juggled around. What's the alternative to rolling? Is there a guide to not roll so much? Is there a guide to do all of these uppers? I play really mediocrely and predictable, how do I git gud guys? Please, help me. I want to play like this man, I want to play like he does. Thanks guys, I'm looking forward to getting all the feedback, haha.

Note: I'm viewing the video from my phone and it seems to be really bad quality, please let me know if you face the same problem so I can re upload it. Edit I can't seem to post it, I need 10 post. Moderator if this is in the wrong place, please move it, thank you.

m youtube com/watch? v=T7y5TYDp1jo

 

[FightingPorygonTeam]

I don't see why you think the other player is so much better. I'm not as good as you, but I think I can give you some tips:
- Mix up your dash approaches more. At some point your opponent expects it, so use this expectation to catch him off guard with something else, like a delayed attack or a grab.
- Use your jabs and fast attacks more often, or at least in pressure situations. You seem to get caught charging a down smash when your opponent uses a faster attack. Jabs can keep you safe and sometimes make you follow up with a smash.
- Use your shield.

 

[NegaNixx]

youtube com/watch? v=OYWXCTKKDV0 -The Neutral
youtube com/watch? v=tqPn3f7Wjk8 -Zoning
youtube com/watch? v=uvTrJo3DNog -Reads

These are some Smash Theory videos on some basic concepts by False, a competitive smash player. This should help you out, Just remember that your character`s range is higher than most others. Use that to your advantage. Learn which of your aerials have little lag, and which of your attacks come out the quickest. Hit up your character`s board on the site and look up guides on general things.

 

[SwoodGrommet]

Vs Falco​

The most obvious thing to me about this match was that you made very little use of your shield. You rolled a ton and spotdodged a little, but you didn't use your shield very well. You rush into things a lot, so my advice is to take things slower and think about what you're doing. Try not to look at what your character is doing, but what at your opponent's character is doing. If you shielded more, you could have punished more.

You roll when there is no need for it. For example, at 2:00, you sent Falco off the stage and he is attempting to recover. As he's offstage, you roll back and forth a few times. There's really no need for it, and I don't want to come across as being ignorant here, but it's usually a sign of a reliance on rolling. Instead of rolling, perhaps you could have positioned yourself at the ledge in anticipation of his return to the stage, i.e, if he get-up attacked, you could have reacted by shielding and punishing. Or maybe you could have took it a step further by jumping off the stage and stage spiking his recovery with Bair. Fox and Falco's recovery is very gimpable; when you see them hovering in flames, not moving, jump down and spike or stage spike.

Work on improving your punish game. He used attacks with a lot of end lag, like his Fair, and you missed the punish.At around 3:06, instead of punishing his end-lag, you rolled away.

Vs Samus
​

Again, work on using your shield more. You were over-aggressive, running into projectiles and aerials a lot.

At around 5:52, Samus fully charged her Charge Shot. When this happens, be aware that your opponent is going to want to get rid of it as soon as possible, especially since you were at kill percent. Getting killed by that Charge Shot is definitely an indicator that you were playing far too aggressive, and rushing in without thinking. In the future, remember to play much more defensively when your opponent, be it Samus/Lucario/Robin etc, has a fully charged projectile like that. Expect them to throw it out. They'll most likely use it when you're recovering back onto the stage, when you are up in their face, or when you're offstage and near the blastzone. This mistake ties into not using your shield.

Vs Mario
​

At around 6:52, you used Dark Pit's multi-hit jab. Although it worked this time, I would not recommend using it often. Pit/Dark Pit's multi-hit jab is very risky as it pushes people back and out of it very quickly. However, their 1-2-3 jab is very good, and works as an excellent spacing tool. If you're used to using the multi-hit, I know it can be a tough habit to break. Just get used to holding down the A button instead of rapidly pressing it. The only time I would use the multi-hit would be when my opponent is recovering from the ledge. If you stand at the ledge and use the multi-hit, they will get caught in it if they try to get-up attack, jump up, or stand up from the ledge.

You throw out laggy moves often. You D-Smash a lot when your opponent is not near you. Dark Pit has excellent moves to close the gap between him and the opponent. Try using F-Tilt and D-Tilt, both have excellent range to poke at your opponent. I also think it would be advantageous if you learned how to short-hop. Maybe you know this already, but don't implement it in your games. Short-hop fairs are good for spacing out your opponent.

I don't think you use your aerials enough. At around 8:18, Mario was jumping all over the place, and you tried to hit him with grounded moves a lot. Dark Pit has fantastic aerials to make good use of. Next time your opponent keeps to the air like that, use your Fairs and Nairs to keep the pressure on.



Welp, I was bored, and that's what became of it. Hopefully you found my long-winded essay somewhat useful. Ask if you're not sure what I'm talking about in parts of that.

 

[Steffano]

Thanks a lot to everyone, especially to swoodgromet. You're right I don't think when I play, I'm going to work on that from now on. It's really hard for me to try to observe my opponents habits, or to react to their moves, any tips or any videos that I can watch to stop playing so recklessly and without thinking? The videos Neganixx posted helped a lot, if anyone could post more videos like that it would be a lot more helpful. From all of your feedback I've learned is that I should shorthop more (which is hard for me, I've been trying to do it, but the habit of doing group attacks is too much) use shield more to approach, and stop rolling. I felt that I could punish a lot of Falco's moves but I really couldn't touch him then because I rely to much on close combat. If I had instead use my forward air to punish those moves I would have been better, correct? I also learned that when projectile users have a charged shot I should play with more caution. I also have a problem with Toon Links projectiles, any tips to cope with that? Finally I've learned that Dark Pit's Aerials combined with a Short Hop always Auto Cancel. Down tilt into down tilt. Can I also do Jab 1-2-3 -> down tilt -> down tilt? I've also noticed that when I get thrown in the air, there is like a hurt animation in where I can't move for a few milliseconds and that is where my opponent would follow with a second aerial. I'm still looking to find if anyone here knows how to do the aerials that follow up instantly. Thanks for the feedback guys.

 

[Nobie]

Keep in mind that Mario's down smash is one of the fastest down smashes in the game, so it's not just your opponent successfully reading you but using a very effective tool for catching an opponent close by.

 

[NegaNixx]

Here's a Tip's guide for Dark Pit and Pit smashboards com/threads/pit-dark-pit-tips-tricks-guide-by-cobbs.386291/ It
should help a bit with your game. I got it from the Pit and Dark Pit boards.

Jtails also has a video for the two of them.

Guide: youtube com/watch?v=nR1Znxxa_hA
For Glory: youtube com/watch?v=__kifIwy03Q

Hope these help.

 

[Noso]

Sorry to be a shallow well of information, but the biggest tip I can give you is that your mix up game was a little predictable, and you didn't use shield quite enough, leading to you getting punished as well as running into traps (this is a game of rock paper scissors after all, excluding one makes your game weaker).

also, off topic, why is your recordings set to 6/29/2015, it's REALLLY bothering my OCD since that's my birthday.

 

[Gavos112]

I've played SSBWiiU a month after it came out, competitively. And now, I hit a dead end after coming to a conclusive fact:

I suck.

But I want to un-suck, starting now. Looking for a training partner, preferably one very skilled, with a stable Internet connection, and ability to voice chat with me.

Thanks in advance.

 

[SapphSabre777]

Hello, I need some really big tippers right now, because I am sucking hard.

After a harsh realization on the ladder, I thought that an offensive approach to things with any character was bad because I was going to get punished, even when they were vulnerable. I tried going unpredictable, but it didn't work. No matter what, I was getting hit.

I was scolded for rolling as well, so I thought it was my defense that was suffering. I decided to shield and spotdodge only, rolling very sparingly, as well as spacing myself to try and punish. What ended up happening was that people grabbed me, people read me, and everything happened to me that could happen.

The icing on the cake was that roll spammers and such were getting the better of me everytime. I had enough, and I needed to talk to you all about what I should do next.

I have bad fundamentals...and I need to know what to do. I need to know what offensive and defensive tendencies to do, because I'm unfortunately a one-dimensional thinker thanks to my disabilities and slow-thinking, it is difficult to process things fast. Should I just hang up the towel because of my limitations of myself as well as the lack of free tutors?

 

[PD | Lewd]

Hey forums. My friend and I are going to be doing doubles this weekend at a local tournament, and I was just wondering who I cshould pick according to who he picks. He says he'll be using Marth, Robin, and Puff. I'll be using ROB, Dedede, and Shulk with falcon as a backup. Could you all pick out a couple of combos for which of these characters would go best together and why?

 

[GdspdUblkprzdnt]

Rob and puff

 

[PD | Lewd]

Not criticizing or anything just curious. Why do you think rob and puff would be a good pair?

 

[Eonn]

I'm also interested in finding a training partner who is obviously better than me and is able to voice chat.

 

[Wintropy]

As many others in this thread have mentioned, I am at a strange spot in my Smash career. I'm not a poor player by any means, I've been playing Smash for years and am often complimented for my skills, but I still feel like I'm not improving at all. I've reached a plateau, and try though I might to improve, I seem to fall into bad habits and get discouraged - even in For Glory, and although it's not a great area in which to test one's skills, it's the best I've got right now.

I'm not asking for specific advice, as anything I could ask has already been covered elsewhere in this thread. The only question I really have is thus:

Do I just need to keep learning?

 

[KittyKyat]

As many others in this thread have mentioned, I am at a strange spot in my Smash career. I'm not a poor player by any means, I've been playing Smash for years and am often complimented for my skills, but I still feel like I'm not improving at all. I've reached a plateau, and try though I might to improve, I seem to fall into bad habits and get discouraged - even in For Glory, and although it's not a great area in which to test one's skills, it's the best I've got right now.

I'm not asking for specific advice, as anything I could ask has already been covered elsewhere in this thread. The only question I really have is thus:

Do I just need to keep learning?

Personally, I'd recommend something like Smashladder or playing some people from around here rather then For Glory, but that's just me.

Why?


Well, you need to talk to others to help connect what you might be doing wrong. Sure, you're going to fall into bad habits, have issues, and the such, and correcting them is what you have to do to improve. You're only as good as your competition. But I will say this, keep learning. Learning will help as much, but I'd recommend trying to have a way to communicate with who you battle, to try to learn from your mistakes and have them help you, even if you're getting frustrated with your losses. I've kinda been in the same place as you, but you gotta work through it, and battle tougher foes, and, most importantly, try to ask what you might be doing wrong. There's only so much you can see through your own eyes, so having someone else see it will truly make you a better player.

 

[Gavos112]

Personally, I'd recommend something like Smashladder or playing some people from around here rather then For Glory, but that's just me.

Why?


Well, you need to talk to others to help connect what you might be doing wrong. Sure, you're going to fall into bad habits, have issues, and the such, and correcting them is what you have to do to improve. You're only as good as your competition. But I will say this, keep learning. Learning will help as much, but I'd recommend trying to have a way to communicate with who you battle, to try to learn from your mistakes and have them help you, even if you're getting frustrated with your losses. I've kinda been in the same place as you, but you gotta work through it, and battle tougher foes, and, most importantly, try to ask what you might be doing wrong. There's only so much you can see through your own eyes, so having someone else see it will truly make you a better player.

Except the only problem is, that Smash Ladder is no help. Trust me. The entire thing is just a Twitch-like community. And by Twitch-like, I mean plain stupid, and spamming memes.

 

[Gavos112]

Hello, I need some really big tippers right now, because I am sucking hard.

After a harsh realization on the ladder, I thought that an offensive approach to things with any character was bad because I was going to get punished, even when they were vulnerable. I tried going unpredictable, but it didn't work. No matter what, I was getting hit.

I was scolded for rolling as well, so I thought it was my defense that was suffering. I decided to shield and spotdodge only, rolling very sparingly, as well as spacing myself to try and punish. What ended up happening was that people grabbed me, people read me, and everything happened to me that could happen.

The icing on the cake was that roll spammers and such were getting the better of me everytime. I had enough, and I needed to talk to you all about what I should do next.

I have bad fundamentals...and I need to know what to do. I need to know what offensive and defensive tendencies to do, because I'm unfortunately a one-dimensional thinker thanks to my disabilities and slow-thinking, it is difficult to process things fast. Should I just hang up the towel because of my limitations of myself as well as the lack of free tutors?

I don't know what to tell you. I'd like to tell you to go on, but I'm in the same boat. In fact, as I type this post, I am trying to keep myself from crying because I feel like I can't play right, and I will never be able to learn anything in Smash, so I can get to the competitive level I want to be in. It's all up to you at this point. Keep going, let the game ruin you until somehow, you manage to get better, or quit, and end the nightmare.

I don't know anymore.

 

[Storm Erion]

I don't know what to tell you. I'd like to tell you to go on, but I'm in the same boat. In fact, as I type this post, I am trying to keep myself from crying because I feel like I can't play right, and I will never be able to learn anything in Smash, so I can get to the competitive level I want to be in. It's all up to you at this point. Keep going, let the game ruin you until somehow, you manage to get better, or quit, and end the nightmare.

I don't know anymore.

Nothing worth fighting for comes easy. Just take things one step at a time. Part of improving comes from believing in your skills as a player. If you go into a match assuming you're going to lose, you probably will. Nothing you've done up to now has been a waste of time, and I'm sure as you keep practicing, you'll come to realize that you aren't as bad as you think you are.

I'd give Smashladder another go, sure, it can be filled with bad people, but there are good people there too, who would be more than happy to tell you what you're doing wrong. I know that because I frequently ask for advice from people who beat me there.

Most of all, just stay positive. Sure, you're going to lose matches. Everyone does. It's about keeping your chin up. You'll get there. It sounds corny, but it's true that every journey was made one step at a time. You've got this.

 

[deepseadiva]

Does anyone have any advice about the ledge trumping mechanic? Its interesting.

 

[Pazx]

Does anyone have any advice about the ledge trumping mechanic? Its interesting.

Shouldn't really come into play against high level opponents unless one of you plays Pikachu, just remember to buffer ledgeroll if you see a trump coming. If you do get the trump successfully go for a ledgehopped bair or try to hit them when they re-grab the ledge with no invulnerability, but like I said, decreasingly common at higher levels of play.