In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, there are levels of competitive flow that dictate if a player “gets good”. For lower tier players, improving feels like an uphill climb. Some feel lost and due to the vast amount of information and resources that are available on the internet, it can be difficult to actually know how to improve on a concurrent rate.
There are many guides on how to improve, but none of them are able to cover all Smash players’ different playstyles. Some provide helpful information being able to guide players in an effective way. However, when saturated with information, confusion tends to strike. Some areas of the game lead towards a rapid improvement, but others are just a temporary placebo.
For the purpose of clarifying this point, two major areas will be analyzed. First, the technical side of the game and then an overall skill category.
Technique
Learning new ways to fight boosts players’ evident skill. It does this because of the layer summed into the mix.
Learning, honing, and mastering optimal movement in addition to learning the optimal applications of various game mechanics (a few examples for Ultimate would be perfect shielding stage spike techs) elevates a player’s overall capabilities.
Players can thrive in low to mid-level environments using technique alone, but to grow past this barrier, extensive training needs to be fulfilled. While learning techniques is clearly important, there comes a point where knowing various techniques is worthless if players aren’t accustomed to taking full advantages of these techniques. As with any fighting game, knowledge is only half the battle – the rest of the battle that leads to battle is experience, execution, and skill therein.
Overall Skill
To win against high-level opponents, players must gain vast experience in the game.It’s just like in a Role Playing Game. In order to level up, one must take everything into account. It doesn’t matter how many cards a player holds in their hand if their opponent is one step ahead.
This means that players must learn how to properly anticipate their opponent while avoiding becoming predictable themselves.
Mastering this area of the game takes years because a deep level of understanding needs to be met.
However, to increase improvement players, must become fully conscious of their actions. This means being in full control of the character in play. Perfect execution isn’t necessarily needed, but reaching a high level of consistency sets the player in the right course. Becoming conscious of self-made habits is also necessary. If these are not corrected, then the enemy is able to exploit them and gain the upper hand.
The other side of the coin is becoming conscious of the enemy’s actions and adapting to their playstyle in order to capitalize on the apparent shortcomings of the player.
These two sides of the same coin make or break how far a player can go in bracket.
Adding Technique to Overall Skill
As an example, James “VoiD” Makekau-Tyson is able to hit both the highest level of technical and overall skill. He uses very tedious techniques and pairs them up with his very high skill level to claim success over very talented players. In Genesis 6, VoiD was able to consistently perform Pichu’s lightning loops – a very tedious technique that is hard to perform even in training mode.
The lightning loops served to complement his overall skill giving him a consistent way to kill or wrack up a high amount of damage.
Building overall skill exponentially improves a players skill, but adding a technical spice gives a sharper edge to the player’s sword.
It is safe to say that a player must focus on first improving their Overall skill, but they can be done side to side. The most important variable is that the player is looking in the right direction.
Featured image provided by Nintendo Enthusiast
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