Getting Over Anxiety Playing Online
Getting over anxiety playing online is a common hurdle for many people. Not just in fighting games, but games in general. Fighting games have it even worse due to being a 1v1 genre. No other factors can take eyes off of you or your opponent. You start thinking oh no, what if I mess up a combo and my opponent gives me crap for flailing around mindlessly? Let me dispel that completely by saying nobody cares, because we are all here to learn. In fighting games with a decent population, you should be able to find players relatively near your skill level. Your opponent will be flailing and messing up just as much as you, and that’s okay. Think about anything you’ve learned how to do, you were bad in the beginning. Fighting games are a honed skill much like playing guitar, you can do it!
The Need To Know All
One common misconception is that you need to know everything before hopping online. Think of any other skill related activity you’ve ever done. Every champion or role in League of Legends before you hopped in a game? Lineups in Valorant before hopping in a game? How to do difficult songs on guitar? Of course not, you started with Smoke On The Water, just like everyone else. The same logic can be applied to fighting games. The faster that mentality is gone, the faster you’ll be improving.
The First Steps
While you don’t need to know everything before hopping online, I recommend doing a few things before hopping online. Every fighting game will have different mechanics, so it’s a good idea to play through the tutorial if available. Learn the buttons, how to move, and how to block. That’s all you need for now. Then, head over to the training room. This is every fighting game player’s best friend. Don’t worry about all the different functions for now, just pick your favorite character and color. Once inside the training room, open the command menu, and test out your character’s moves. Sometimes the character you were initially interested in might feel weird on the hands or have awkward moves. Press all of your buttons so you can make a mind to muscle connection to what they all look like.
This last step is optional, but recommended. Once you have decided on your character, find a combo video on YouTube. Try to do the most basic combo on the video, so you atleast have one consistent form of damage going. Just beware being able to land it in training mode and landing it on a real player are two different things entirely. Once all of this is done, hop online and fight it out! The best way to learn is to play, after all. I’m confident if you follow these steps, you will get over the anxiety of playing online.
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