LiteralGrill
Smokin' Hot~
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Space Oddity
Trying to encompass the concept of spacing in one short reddit post is very difficult, if not downright impossible. Spacing has many facets and intricacies that even veterans of the fighting game scene would have trouble describing it in full. Instead, what I’m hoping to accomplish today is to briefly cover the very basics of what spacing is, how it’s affected by outside influences, how it sways the flow of games, and some of the more typical spacing situations you’ll find within these games.
Spacing, simply put, is the art of controlling the distance between you and your opponent, while taking into account factors such as danger zones, poking moves, movement abilities, and other nuances of the game. A player that is good at spacing can properly space to take advantage of opportunities presented, force his opponent into unfavorable scenarios, and dictate the pace of the match. As such, learning what spacing is, and how to space, is very important no matter what fighting game you choose to compete in.
♪RIDE INTO THE...♪
In MoM 6, I briefly covered Danger Zones, a concept found in Sethlon’s amazing Roy guide on Smashboards. While this guide is going to be more generalized to fighting games in general, I think Danger Zones are still worth reviewing, for the fact that they play such an integral part in spacing.
Referring back to what Sethlon said about his illustrations about Danger Zones, I think the three zones (red, black, and yellow) can be attributed to almost any game or any character. To review:
- A character’s “red zone” is where a character can safely or reliably land bread and butter moves, such as combo starters, defense breakers, or just quick attacks.
- A character’s “black zone” is where a character may not have optimal moves, but can safely influence an opponent in that area, whether it be with long ranged moves, projectiles, or movement abilities. A character is still safe in the black zone, but not optimally positioned to land combos or kill moves. Instead, the black zone is a buffer where you can fend off an opponent’s approach, or punish poor spacing.
- A character’s “yellow zone” is the farthest extent in which they have control over their opponent. While one can easily move to cover an infringement into his or her yellow zone, they do so with risk - moves that reach the yellow zone are slow, unsafe, hard to convert off of, or some combination of the three.
What’s also important to think about when thinking in terms of zones is that where you are on the stage or in relation to your opponent can change your zones. With that, let us jump into…
SETTING THE STAGE
Even where one stands can affect zones and related properties, such as the ability to punish an opponent, influence their movement and spacing, or being able to start your own combos.
In most traditional 2d fighters, the stage consists of a box, with walls on either side, and sometimes a ceiling. Certain characters are better center stage, where they have more room to space an opponent (commonly referred to as footsies), while other characters are better when they are near a corner, obviously preferring to have their opponent in the corner and pressured. One of the biggest examples is the character Dudley, from Street Fighter. To quote my friend Jay “Phatboi” Robinson, a Dudley player:
“What makes Dudley really good in the corner is the concept of Okizeme (or Oki for short). Okizeme is the art of performing attacks during the time they're getting up and allows you to use moves and recover sooner than normal (for example his overhead) not to mention that his style of play is to control the stage and limit the options your opponent has to use.”
So, as you can probably infer, Dudley’s style as a character means that his zones are very small away from the corner, where his attacks don’t have quite the speed or range to contest with other characters, but when he has his opponent in the corner, his quicker attacks and the concept of Oki make him a devastating force.
In Smash, stage position is even more important considering the nature of Smash being a “platform fighter.” Some characters may have a strong ledge game, while others may be better suited staying close to the center stages. Some characters may choose to be in the air, while others want to stay grounded. What’s important to always keep in mind is how where you are affects your ability and zones as a character and as a player. Even just taking a second to compose yourself and assert your dominance in a certain area of the stage can mean the difference between first or second, or getting to day 2 or drowning in pools.
Spacemen
The entire concept of zones is centered around one key idea - you want to be able to influence your opponent so that your zones beat any option they can select. What makes spacing so interesting however, is the fact that both players affect space and spacing. Therefore, spacing isn’t just about optimizing your character - it’s an art. Spacing is a fluid concept, a dance of sorts, where you’re constantly trying to search for a superior position and take advantage of it, while your opponent does the very same.
I could talk about how to outspace, outplay, or out-mindgame your opponent for years, but the fact of the matter is that no person plays a game, matchup, or even character the same way as anyone else. There’s no magic bullet or clickbait advice to offer - spacing is improved by constantly thinking about it and looking for ways to improve upon your own spacing abilities.
With all that being said, there is one more thing I want to discuss - some classic spacing scenarios you may find in a typical fighting game.
- Long Distance
- Mid Range
- Short Range
Warping In Space
As I previously mentioned, being staggered changes your zones drastically and quickly. This is because in many situations, your options are limited, either because you are mechanically unable to perform them (i.e., doing tilt attacks in the air, or doing forward smashes from shield) or because they are simply a very risky option (like trying for smash attacks at mid range). Spacing can change in other ways too.
Considering how your spacing and options change dynamically is a huge part of smash. Essentially every choice you make will affect spacing, and conversely every one of your opponent’s choices do too. Keeping track of movement and options on both your and your opponent’s end is critical. Jumping or shielding feel impulsive to me often, but through experience I’ve learned that those options will drastically reshape my red and black zones, so I must be aware of the consequences if I want to space effectively.
Dash dancing, wavedashing, and other movement tricks and mixups in PM are huge components of how threat zones form and change, so learning how to use these tools while understanding how your opponent might use them is important. Certain things like attacks or approaches can look deceptively safe for your opponent or surprisingly safe for yourself, meaning that you have to really understand threat zones to capitalize on advantages while staying wary of tricky threat zones you might not expect.
More importantly, zones transition very quickly in the heat of battle. Knowing how your safe long-range projectile-heavy zones transition into a much more pressured medium range zone where throwing projectiles means commitment and vulnerability can either make or break your match. Further, knowing how your yellow poke zones transition into black and red zones, where your opponent might stumble into your advantage, will lead to combos or heavy punishes, often even KOs. Like with many other things in life, it is change and interplay of these that produces interesting results, because Smash is ever-changing and adapting mid-match. See you later, Space Cowboy - MoM PlayOnSunday
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SmashCapps yet again found this Mind Over Meta to be superb and insightful. To keep up with him and his writing follow him on Twitter.
