How do you think while you play?

[Flipstar]

When playing against someone who is offensive Im super tense. When playing against a defensiveminded or spammy person I'm usually relaxed.

 

[JigglyZelda003]

It depends who I'm playing with...like with one friend, I'll screw around. Another friend (in melee->) we became so decisive over each other that we spent like 2 minutes just doging, and never landing a hit.

So it depends on who, more so than my situation...

this happens to me too lol. also sometimes i zone out and go into a kinda auto mode where alot of what i do just flows together. although lately this doesn't happen as much and i miss it

 

[Blackbelt]

Survival is the primary thought when I play.

 

[JigglyZelda003]

ofcourse survival is alwyas important lol

 

[Corner-Trap]

Basically I talk to myself a lot while playing in a serious match. Say that I'm playing the IC's, I'll constantly remind myself that my main objective is to land a grab. Whenever the IC's become separated I keep telling myself to bring them back together. While CG'ing I'll actually call out the throws in my mind, it helps me with the timing. So yeah, I do a lot of talking to myself, not just with the IC's but with any character I play. One thing thats constantly in my thoughts is spacing. I'll keep reminding myself to get into the right distance before I attack. Literally telling yourself to do things can be more effectively than relying on instinct.

 

[Unusual_Rex]

It depends who I'm fighting, and who the person is. If there a really cocky braggy person, I'm tense, cause I wanna win and put them in their place, but it there a fun, fair playing person I'm calm.

I hate it when cocky people win, and rub it in your face. I just wanna smack them it the balls.

 

[Foxy_Marth]

I can hear my heart beating usually when its a tourney, or someone whose really good. Not tense though.

Nervous oddly. But I try and anticipate what the opponent is going to do next. Especially when there edgeguarding.

 

[Sean²]

I just focus and let it flow.

 

[danielrofl]

Its odd because I seem to play brawl in a very relaxed manner. I dont get up tight at all. Whereas whenever im playing a first person shooter like Halo3 or Call of Duty 4, i get a tense and i dont play as well. This causes stress for me, and i play worse
Brawl is a game where its really really easy to have fun, even in a competitive playing style. Whenever I play, I have a clear head even if im losing. Whereas other games id be screaming at the TV or some stupid thing

 

[wavelucas]

I like to get in-sync to my on-screen character. It is strange because when I watch a replay I know exactly what I will do.

 

[Acebrock]

That's how I am.

Ditto. Regardless of who I'm playing I end up utterly zoned out, soley focused on killing the other character as fast as possible, without getting myself killed in the process. Often I will comment on what's going on onscreen but that never really enters my concious mind. It's quite an experience, coming out of it, because it feels like I'm swimming to the surface of a deep pool

 

[Hughalicous]

My Brain goes more dead then usual, and I just talk about stuff. Sort of zone out, play the game, and jabber on about: Whats happening on screen, stuff about the characters and their own games, and if I'm with friends, just random sutff thats happening. Very relaxed playstyle, 0 tensness(is that a word)

 

[Tristan_win]

When I'm playing my best I am deeply thinking about every single way my opponent can approach and hurt me, while I keep an eye out for weakness in fighting style or holes in their offense/defense.

I do this by talking to myself in mid match (of course silently)

Usually I stop blinking at times as well.

 

[Xitan]

If it's intense, of course I'm pretty serious..

But if it seems easy, I possibly love to play around with my opponent. xD

 

[choknater]

Formulate a solid general strategy concerning the matchup and stage before the match begins.

Play intuitively and skillfully based on that strategy.

During the match, not much goes through my head except keeping composure and playing well.

Comebacks are another story. Hehehe...

 

[Obligatoryfinalboss]

Sometimes I get really tense....Once I just completely spaced, forgot I was playing Smash at all, when I came back to earth I had 2-stocked my friend.

 

[SinkingHigher]

If it's a match I want to win (probably because I lost miserably on the round before, be it because of online lag, or stupid moves), then I am totally focused on the game. I don't get angry or anything, I'm just totally focused.

I play my best when I''m like that. KOs at 0%! :D

After the match I totally realise that my conciousness just phased out for 2 minutes of my life, and wonder what it would have looked like if someone walked in. Would I be drooling, mumbling, giggling to myself, etc... I have no clue. It's like a 2-minute trip.

 

[Blad01]

Sometimes I get really tense....Once I just completely spaced, forgot I was playing Smash at all, when I came back to earth I had 2-stocked my friend.

I don't know if you're serious, but that happened to me XD My friend is not as good as me though... He's good, but now i'm great ^^

But in tournaments... I only did two so far. When i get tense (near the demi-finals or finals), i make some mistakes...

That's how i lost my final against KillOne. p_q

 

[bowz10190]

The matches don't even have to be THAT important, my hands leak like crazy, lol. That and I usually pee a lot when i'm nervous/anxious, so I use the bathroom a lot at tournaments! xD I enjoy it though.

 

[Ekaru]

It depends on whether the opponent is good, or sucks miserbly.

When they suck, I often zone out. Also, if it's my older brother, I also often zone out(because he owns me [Bro: why'd you mess up that recovery so horribly? Me: I did?]).

If they're good (aka, I need to use effort), I'm zoned out and concious at the same time, sometimes tense. I usually do better in a relaxed state though, which is quite often. But I just watch the screen and play... sometimes think, and change my playstyle a bit, then continue. Sometimes I giggle to myself like a little girl.

 

[3xSwords]

Usually I don't talk at all. Unless its teams than the occasional "help me" comes out. I find that I really don't get nervous in my head but my body does. Like at my first tournament I was totally calm but my hands were sweating like crazy. If I'm fighting someone really good I also start to sweat.

Also in high pressure situations I tend to choke more. Like mistime an air dodge, etc, b/c I'm not used to them. Also my playstyle seems really restricted like I'll only do grabs and jabs, or just shield and aerials.

 

[Terios the Hedgehog]

I use my mind. Dripping in Brain gravy and savory herbs and spices.

 

[inside]

I'm quite relaxed while playing brawl, I don't know why but the mood is just so different compared to when I'm in an intense match playing melee.

 

[Lawlb0t]

I try to stay relaxed though when facing MK with Ike thats really hard, so I am picking up Wario. Lol. W.e you do don't let your anger get to you, because you will blow the match. Don't let your get into chaos and not knowing what to do either, that state sucks, you just end up turtling and getting owned.

 

[RBNuke]

In friendlies I play about half cerebral as I try to analyze and remember everything.

In competitive matches I clear my mind completely and play out of habit and muscle memory.

 

[TwilightKirby]

Sometimes I have a problem with taking a match seriously when I have played friendlies with a person a lot before... like I essentially let them win without even thinking about it until after the match lol. Basically running at them with simple approaches and getting punished etc.

But normally I am very focused and I sort of feel subconscious thoughts about what to do and such while mostly focusing my conscious thought on learning my opponents playstyle. My subconscious tends to react accordingly with which move to use on my opponent based on what I think in my subconscious.
Pretty much I don't necessarily "think" about which attacks to use I just sort of get a feel for what works.

Of course getting too nervous sometimes causes me to maybe spam certain moves... the key for me and probably most people is to have just a little bit of pressure but not so much that I become predictable by acting on instinct or too relaxed that I am not focused or motivated enough.

 

[MikeHaggarTHAKJB]

If im playing people that I know are worse then I will usually get really anxious/tense/nervous because it feels as if I have to win the match, and also they'll rub it in my face if they do manage to win and scream like maniacs and get all cocky and *******-erish if they get one hit in.

The thing is, when I'm playing people that I know are better then me (but still feel that I can win, or atleast that I know how) I usually play a whole let better because I don't have this pressure of having to win. And also since I learn so much when I play with people better with me Im usually happy with my performance even if I lost.

This is certainly not the case when I play people worse then me: Then I just feel "Oh ****, I barely won to some guy who just used smash attacks, am I still at this level?"

My performance goes especially well if I know the person Im playing is relaxed himself and that he is comfortable playing with me, doesnt mind winning/losing to much and is able to laugh about both his own mistakes and SDs and mine.

 

[SothE700k]

It all depends on the opponent for me. If someone is very aggressive and keeps charging at me I can get very tense and don't think, just react which I end up doing things i've never thought I could both good and bad. I would start spiking, comboing, and even pulling character ATs I don't realize until after the match.

But if the opponent waits for me, I keep cool and think about what to do.
I say the opponent is pretty stupid if he lets me sit there and think about what he is going to do, doubt that idea, come up with a back up plan, THEN reject THAT idea, then come up with ANOTHER PLAN before I go in or let him come at me.

 

[Thand]

I'm pretty relaxed, but focused. I think about how I want to attack my opponent, what to do if something goes wrong, and what strategy to employ next after they catch on.

 

[fkacyan]

Thinking in Brawl is like thinking in juggling. It should all be response and reflex to you - When you start thinking you typically are worse off.

 

[Miller]

I try to stay relaxed though when facing MK with Ike thats really hard, so I am picking up Wario. Lol. W.e you do don't let your anger get to you, because you will blow the match. Don't let your get into chaos and not knowing what to do either, that state sucks, you just end up turtling and getting owned.

Dude I told you before, Pick up Snake to face MK, Wario isnt good against MK. Wario is the best Snake counter though

And regarding the original post:
I try and think of everything that would work and the best outcome at that moment in time. For example, If a MK is glide attacking me, I know my options, but Ill pick the one with the best chance for a reward. Not every character would have the same advantages with that option though. With D3, What i would do is Powershield it and do either a Dsmash, Upsmash, Grab, Dtilt, Utilt.

With IC I wouldnt Powershield unless I knew 100% it would work. I would most likely Blizzard, or Roll away, If I rolled away, I would attempt a grab or a hyphen smash

 

[Annhialator Zero]

Thinking in Brawl is like thinking in juggling. It should all be response and reflex to you - When you start thinking you typically are worse off.

This is how I play; I don't think about playing. The only thing I ever think about is calming myself. I always play better when I'm calm.

 

[S_B]

I use my mind. Dripping in Brain gravy and savory herbs and spices.

hehe, nice.

I find that I go into a zen-like state and I play my best then.

The truth is, any game can become a learned behavior which develops into a mental subroutine.

A subroutine is anything your brain does subconsciously with little conscious thought input. This is how you drive your car and talk at the same time or how professional athletes play certain games with many memorized motions (like tennis). It also applies to games like DDR. If you've ever played a nine foot song and been amazed that your combo is somehow still going when a huge stream of arrows comes through, that means your subconscious has taken over the role of commanding your feet where to go when the arrows cross the step threshold.

You can actually train your mind to do nearly anything along these lines.

There have actually been cases where tennis stars "overthink" the match and start losing as a result.

 

[LP4Life666]

I play like I would during a Fencing match. Things like "When is my opponent open? What is my opponent's weakness? Where is the nearest laser-pointer I can point in their eye to distract them just long enough for me to /F-smash them off the stage?" :D

 

[sar2698]

When I play against someone serious and challenging, my hands get really cold. Then at the end i'm like shaky or whatever. I'm not sure if that happens to anyone else. I can't really multi-task while playing, so playing and talking isn't my thing. I just usually look at the other opponents character and figure out the pros and cons. If the opponent is just sitting there, waiting for me to attack, I just usually play with their mind or trick them. You know, run at lightning speed in their direction and quickly step back.
It's Tricky to rock a rhyme, to rock a rhyme that's right on time.

;]

 

[BMX]

im just wondering how ppl think wen they play an intense match...are they relaxed? tense? or are they thinking of every move and try to anticipate?

it does depend on the player and using that tense the player has and uses it as an intensity can b a benefit.im alway tense!

 

[Smash Saej]

I dont get tense or any more relaxed thatn i already am, and when it comes to a close match, i switch from offense based play to reactive. I wait for my opponent to move, then screw them over when they miss.

 

[The Real Inferno]

At tournaments my hands twitch but I stay quiet and pretty relaxed. With friends, I only get intense if they are seriously trying to beat me since I'm the best out of my group. Most of the times I talk through the whole match and only half-care. Online, I just taunt constantly and do stupid crap and SDs whenever I can get away with it.

 

[Exousia]

For me, i play how the game flows. I try not to think a lot except when in dire need to or have a preset arrangement of moves needed to be executed.

But usually i am a campy lil ***** and then hunt the guy all over till he gets ***** hard

 

[GhettoSheep]

I go entirely into a tense smash trance. I'll be playing as if I were actually that character. I don't think about the buttons to press i just think about what I want to do and my hands do it while I just immerse myself completely in the game. I'll have no idea whats going on around me and all my eyes see is me and my opponent and all i hear is the smash sounds, or music if we're playing with music on. Then when the match is over I'm like,

whoa...