ChronoPenguin
Smash Champion
One and two pocket characters.
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Yes, you can actually, it's called polygamy or polyamory if marriage is not involved. And if you have multiple kids or spouses would you really go "yeah, but this kid is my main kid" or "this is my main spouse" if that isn't the mutual arrangement? This analogy is just bad. Let's just leave the idea of mains up to what the player is comfortable with.Maybe more like a spouse, you can only have one spouse, but you can cheat on your spouse, or divorce it for a new spouse, but you can't really have two at a time.
Yes, but that's not what 'main' stands for. It means specifically 'the one character I stick to'. You are talking about "characters I use", which is the context for which your points work. I am not saying players cannot use more than one character, I'm saying if you do stick to just one character then bam, you have a main.People can have more than one main character.
Well then I must be in an open marriage.Maybe more like a spouse, you can only have one spouse, but you can cheat on your spouse, or divorce it for a new spouse, but you can't really have two at a time.
The question moreso is if 'main' no longer means' the sole character someone uses', then what are we going to call the cases where someone only plays one character? Because those cases are a very big difference in any competitive game. If we are all feeling the need to say we have mains galore, then we do need a new word for the cases where a player is a sole user of a specific character.Well then I must be in an open marriage.
If someone solely focuses on one character the majority of the time, that character is their "waifu" or "husbando". :IThe question moreso is if 'main' no longer means' the sole character someone uses', then what are we going to call the cases where someone only plays one character? Because those cases are a very big difference in any competitive game. If we are all feeling the need to say we have mains galore, then we do need a new word for the cases where a player is a sole user of a specific character.
Haha it seems that's the case in some instancesIf someone solely focuses on one character the majority of the time, that character is their "waifu" or "husbando". :I
Fair enough. I think the issue is that, in this thread and others on this topic in the recent past, is that those who say they 'main 4 characters' or 'have four mains' are seen to be in a better position than those who actually have a main. It's seen as "you only play one character in the game, when there's 52 to choose from?" and "You only know how to play one character?"I think them saying they only main one character is indicative enough of the difference. People are already aware that maining multiple characters results in less perceived dedicated time because of time divided between the two, so there doesn't really need to be a special word. Yeah there's polygamous vs. monogamous but even if we didn't have those words to separate, we could still potentially draw conclusions from the sheer number.
If someone says they main 5 characters, we can perceive that there's a high possibility that they don't dedicate as much time and are not as masterful with each character individually without having to use different words or debate with them whether or not they truly main 5 characters.
In the end, competitive top players only ever have one or two mains to begin with, so we can draw conclusions on what more "mains" means from that. They won't be 100% right, but good enough.
Well to make a comparison:Haha it seems that's the case in some instances
But really - now, with the new apply-all definition of 'main' (because everyone wants to have mains all of a sudden), if you say you main one character, you're simply saying you play one character. When 'having a main' is supposed to mean much more than that.
There's a reason people get excited when a player announces they will be maining a certain character. It doesn't simply mean "Oh, he'll be using that character sometimes now.", it means they are dedicating themselves fully to that character and will make them become second nature in every way. And that means something more than most people here mean when they say they have 10 mains. You have 10 characters you use, and it's fine to be literal and honest with wording. Using 10 characters is cool, you don't have to have a main if you don't want to.
I am not and never said I was speaking about 'main' as a word in the english dictionary for general use in gaming or media. I'm talking about how it is used to specify that you only play one character/class in competitive gaming. It's one of the many words that has a specific use in this context. Since this is the competitive subforum, it's perfectly fine for me to be pointing this out. Otherwise I'd let the general use of the word continue.Well to make a comparison:
Sonic is the main character of Sonic Adventure, but that does not mean Tails, Knuckles, etc are unimportant, or that you won't spend quite a bit of time playing as those characters to beat the game.
Then you have games like the Mario & Luigi games, in which both Mario and Luigi are the main characters. They are both just as important to the game, as they work as a team.
I think the exact same logic can be applied to fighting game (or more specifically, Smash) players and their "mains" - their "mains" are simply the characters a person feels are most important to them within the context of this game.
Unlike the other games I listed prior, Smash doesn't have an actual, defined main character, even though some characters get top billing in promotional material. The other games I listed prior, have characters that are definitely more important than others. Tails and Knuckles carry big roles in Sonic Adventure. But Sonic has the largest role, and saves the day in the end. Even if you prefer Tails or Knuckles, as characters or just their gameplay, Sonic is still more important than them. You spend the most time with Sonic. Tails has 5 short stages and a few bosses to fight. Sonic has 10 longer stages and a number of bosses to fight. Sonic is by far the character you spend the most time with in the game, no matter what you think of him. He's the "main" character. He has the most gameplay time, the most story screen time, and is in general the big hero of the game, even though everyone else does do their part.
Smash doesn't force you to play any single character more than the other (at least not in the long run). It's entirely up to you who you spend your time with. Therefore, your "mains" are just the characters that you yourself endeavour to use most. Your reasoning for playing as these characters is irrelevant. You might play as Sonic because he's an energetic and endearing character to you, you might play as Rosalina because you related to the character a lot back in Super Mario Galaxy, you might play as ZSS most because you like staring at her butt, or you might like to play as Fox the most because he's a character you have practiced with in every Smash game and his easy to grasp yet incredibly versatile and difficult to master tool set fits you more than anyone else, even though you've never touched a Star Fox game.
People can play as many characters they like. Who is saying otherwise? If you think that's at all what I was saying, then I have to clarify- it was not. I wrote enough on this that it should be obvious what I'm talking about. If anything, I'm a broken record.So yeah, people can have as many mains as they want, and can have them for whatever reason. There really is no limit other than the ones people enforce on themselves. And in relation to that, I say know your limits, but do not limit yourself.
Who said it doesn't work though?I am not and never said I was speaking about 'main' as a word in the english dictionary for general use in gaming or media.
It's ok. Your main's a s### and lets thousands of people use him/her as well.Well then I must be in an open marriage.
True, but playing other characters when not competing is part of training yourself to master your main. You cannot master your main if you do not research, play, and understand other characters in the game. Having a main doesn't stop us from playing with other characters too for practice purposes or whatnot.The tradeoff is a lack of perspective. It's easier to read your opponent if you understand what it's like to play to their character. Thinking about what their decision-making process is is faster when you've gone through the same thing. Other characters also might give you other ideas of how to play your main. Even other games that favor different aspects of fighting games along with their metagame and culture will show you strategies and concepts that may be applicable to your game.
I knew it! All this time...It's ok. Your main's a s### and lets thousands of people use him/her as well.
Yeah, but the question is how much you need to understand each character. You definitely need to understand the opponent's move list and movement capabilities and how they play the matchup against you. But you don't need to know everything, and you don't need to play each character extensively to learn what you need to know. Should you know your main's frame data? Probably. Should you have every character's frame data memorized? In this game, that's probably not needed.True, but playing other characters when not competing is part of training yourself to master your main. You cannot master your main if you do not research, play, and understand other characters in the game. Having a main doesn't stop us from playing with other characters too for practice purposes or whatnot.
Having a "main" never meant one sole character. That's just what YOU classify it as.The question moreso is if 'main' no longer means' the sole character someone uses', then what are we going to call the cases where someone only plays one character? Because those cases are a very big difference in any competitive game. If we are all feeling the need to say we have mains galore, then we do need a new word for the cases where a player is a sole user of a specific character.
Thanks, this helps a lot! I think it'll just take some time to narrow down the list. The release of the Wii U version will definitely help me decide who I feel most comfortable with. Also, versatility and specialization were the words I was looking for.This essentially boils down to the question of versatility vs. specialisation.
Though I would generally advise this was asked in an existing topic, i'll give my thoughts.
All 5 of these characters are good enough to generally cover each other, I doubt you'll have an issue with match-ups if you can perform with them all well enough.
But that's the issue - how much time can you afford to invest into each and would it have just been better to focus on less characters? I will say that I believe 5 is somewhat pushing the boundaries of co-maining; but I suppose it's possible. Generally I feel 2 or 3 co-mains would be your best bet and leave the others as secondaries/pocket characters you can pull out in specific match-ups. Ultimately it's up to you though; whether you feel you can train with them all to a good level and whether you feel that's necessary, for instance.
Hope that helps!
That's a good point, that they all have pretty similar play styles. I still need more time to determine who I like the most. I may be able to narrow it down to at least 4. As for you I think your character pool has a lot of potential; I'm just not sure how they stand as of now. Ike is doing surprisingly good as of now, if you look Ryuga's play in Youmacon 2014.Well, those characters are all hyper offensive close range characters. So your abilities and skills will probably stack.
If you said: Captain Falcon, Duck Hunt Dog, Sheik, Jiggilypuff, Villager, and Marth- I would be a little worried. But- hey- if you get really good with the six above, you'd probably be unstoppable. Diversity in style is both a good and bad thing. It's good because of matchup/ strategy options and bad because it takes way more time to master characters with different strategies.
But- yeah- don't let anyone stop you from maining a character. If you have fun as whatever characters, that should be enough justification in playing as them.
For the record, I'm trying to main ROB, Ike, Marth, Jiggilypuff (and trying out new character like Shulk and Robin), which may or may not be a good idea, depending on how you look at it.
Marth and Lucina? Is there one you like better?Not sure whether or not it's good or bad. As Luco said, versatility vs. specialization.
For reference, I main RosaLuma, Marth, Lucina, Link, Zelda, Ganondorf, and Captain Falcon.
I though Sheik was gonna be the only one for me. But then I found out if you just start playing a character that you don't have to much interest in, you may change your mind about them. That was the case with Sonic, Diddy Kong, and Fox!As long as you're comfortable I don't think there can be "too many". You're lucky, I have the opposite problem. Lately I've been playing Villager at the expense of the rest of the cast. I'm bad at diversity
That will definitely help!Hey, just remember with the Wii U release (if you use a Gamecube controller) you may find other characters you haven't played before be easier to use / control and you may end up choosing a new main altogether. 5 mains can be a little much because the time spent learning them all could have been spent learning 1 sole character and working on matchups
Just how I think though, completely upto you
I started out with Marth, but realized I'm better with Lucina in the matchups that are hard to space correctly. I only ever need to use her rarely, but she's there if I need her.Marth and Lucina? Is there one you like better?