How do you deal with the social aspects of tournaments and other smash related events?

[Honest]

This might just be a me thing, but I am always super terrified of others while at tournaments. My city hosts quite a few small scale tournaments for all smash games and everytime I go I end up being scared to talk to anyone as they all seem so intimidating and unforgiving.

Usually I only do Project M because I'm not good at all in Brawl or Melee, but this week I decided to give Smash 3DS/WiiU a shot. I mostly played Sheik and Dedede because they are the characters I am currently most comfortable with after maining them in previous games. But, I found it was much worse this time at the tournament as my opponents would keep trying to talk to me, which might sound normal but I am painfully shy and honestly don't like talking to people I don't know face to face.

I politely asked them to leave me be and for the most part they acknowledged I didn't want to talk. But, my last opponent (before I dropped into loser's bracket) was extremely insulted by the fact I refused to talk. He completely crushed me and told me I was rude and not fun to play against and began talking about me with his friends.

I don't mean to be rude when I don't respond or talk to my opponent, but they often think I am just cocky or don't care about them. I asked my friends who also attend the tournaments what I should do and they mostly just told me I was being dramatic. The only legitimate things I was told was that I should wear something to cover my face so I don't need to have a face to face conversation. Or I should just have large headphones on the entire time and completely ignore everyone.

What do you think would be the best solution to this issue?

 

[ELITEWarri0r115]

Bring your friends and have a good time, or if someone that seems nice comes and hangs out... go and hang out with them for a bit. I mean, am shy too and I do that at my school sometimes and I only make a few friends. Two other options is to talk to others (Might be difficult since u r shy too...) And just go with headphones on and listen to music. Hope this helps... Also, Remember that nothing goes what everyone wants most of the time. Besides, I never have been at a smash tournament. Never. So idk what it is like at one

 

[GSM_Dren]

Get friends to go out with you, as going in alone is pretty intimidating if you do not know anyone at the tournaments. People there play the same game you do, so you can talk about it if they try to chat you up. Mostly everyone should be friendly because of the common interest in smash, and its the responsibility of the TO to make sure everyone's being treated fairly.

Going to tournaments and ignoring everyone, I think would be the wrong way to handle the situation. Smash is a game that a lot of people enjoy playing and it helps to break down the walls between strangers. It is okay to let people know about your shy personality and they should respect that. It is hard stepping out of your comfort zone, but that's what everyone does when they try to make new friends.

 

[Buffoon]

It might be beneficial that you explain your situation to your opponents, it beats giving them the impression that you're ignoring them. At the minimum, I'd recommend saying "hi" and/or "good game" or something along those lines if you feel comfortable doing so.

 

[☆Jisatsu☆]

Eh, I wouldn't say I'm shy. As an introvert, I understand why you have difficulty talking to others, though. I just dislike small talk and since that's a primary open for a conversation, I am typically silent unless spoken to at tourneys. You aren't doing anything wrong by keeping to yourself. Some people are just jerks or derps when it comes to understanding that not everyone is comfortable with talking to complete strangers even with a common interest. Personally, I recommend getting a pair of sunglasses that are opaque. This will simulate hiding your face to your brain and allow you to look people in the eye more comfortably- which should help alleviate your stress in communicating with them. People tend to leave me alone more when I'm behind some dark shades. It helps give off that mysterious vibe that I recommend you embrace. You can't be an awkward turtle when you're part of the squirtle squad, bro