Practice?!!

To quote one of the greatest known basketball players of my generation "We are talking about practice, not the game". What does "practice" really mean when it comes to fighting games. When something rooted deeply in the arcade culture was, in a sense, impossible to do because there was no such thing as a training room, why is practice such a practical way to play fighting games in this current generation of online lobbies and major tournament competitions.

While I've talked about mastering your character and glossed over the amount of dedication it takes to learn a fighting game, I've been thinking lately about the training room and my dependency on its use. Recently I competed in a weekly Vampire Savior tournament on GGPO in which I clumsily fuddled with my character losing the match and feeling a bit of embarrassment which may have had a little to do with the live stream that was unexpectedly viewing my match at the time.

Once I was completely knocked out of the tournament, another competitor invited me to play a few rounds looking to give me a few tips, though, I got the impression that he felt I was new to the whole fighting game thing and not the actual game itself. It had been a very long time since I played Vampire Savior and to be honest I really didn't get into it much mostly due to the fact there was only a computer to play with.

After that day, I had every intention of doing a little bit of grinding by learning about the game mechanics, special moves, and figuring out the combo system. Sad to say this was cut short once I realized there was no training room available. I mean..I don't know what I would do without my dummy. When you're trying to figure out how certain moves work in the game, having an opponent that doesn't hit back helps with meeting that agenda. Take the dummy out of the equation and its going to take a little more time to figure out what I can and can't do.

The training room has become a significant staple to any one wanting to improve and get better but not everyone stands by it. Dieminion, a well known Street Fighter IV player, as he so boastfully stated, does not use the training room. No doubt rooted in his love for arcades, he wants to stay true to that player mind set. I often wonder if that is the way to go as it takes more than just learning combos to get better but I've gotten so used to having the training room that changing now feels impossible.

The idea of practicing in a game seems a bit far fetched in a lot of ways because..its a game. Never, until fighting games, was there ever a need for a training room and its some what confusing when I honestly sit and think about it. Even in many cases where games have a competitive following there is no training room. You play the game, you learn the strategies, and you get better. Is a fighting game really that hard?! Does it require that much dedication that you need to have something in place to practice?! For myself, absolutely.

But what is that saying about me that I can lose interest in a fighting game due to the absence of a training room ; that I can't find enjoyment in learning everything on the fly despite the incredible amount of time it may take to figure it all out and start belting out those stylish combos that I love so.  Mind you I don't live by the training room often times just using it as a way to warm up and learn more about my character. The more I've discovered and furthered the growth of my character, the more I've come to the realization that the training room can some what be a game in itself with discovery being the fun part and creating big damage being the challenge.

In no way do I find juicebox's (pro fighting game player) "30 times" training method appealing. That may be necessary by competitive standards but I find it a bit overkill. We are talking about a game something that is supposed to be enjoyable and yet a significant amount of my gaming when it comes to fighting games stays in the practice room. I often times wonder if I could get better without a training room but at this point it feels like letting go of it is the same as wearing a blind fold...with my hands tied behind my back..so..yeah letting go isn't an easy thing.