|
I have a friend who my whole life was always amazing at video games. Every game we played he was always the best. Mario Kart, Golden Eye, Smash Bros, Halo... it didn't matter, it was always a battle for second place when he played.
Two days ago he got Starcraft 2... thanks to me. He saw me playing it and he seemed shocked that it even existed. He said Broodwar was his favorite game growing up. He played on my account against the computer for about 3 months now.
It is a bittersweet occasion for me. On the one hand I finally have someone to play with yet on the other hand it is against a seemingly impossible rival. The only game where I feel confident against him is NHL 12 and even there the split is 50/50.
We played four games yesterday. Two 3 player FFA's with his little sister and 2 1v1's. The 3pFFA's were boring. The first match I got ruined before my macro could get up, albeit I am a bit rusty. In the second match I was able to max out at the same time as my Protoss friend and we battled. My composition was Infestor, Ling, Corruptor, and Brood Lord... his was Blink Stalker mass Voidray/Carrier with a Mothership.... I got ROFL stomped.
The one v ones were closer yet so much more demoralizing. I knew his play so I decided to go for a super greedy style. I went 15 hatch 15 pool and had my 3rd hatch building before the 4 minute mark. I had 200 supply in Roaches before the 13 minute mark. I went in for an attack.
I got stomped again... he literally blind countered my roach rush. He played greedy too and went Immortals before Observers. The worst part is when I watched the replay I had almost beat him... and I had left half of my supply in roaches under my overlords.
In the last game we played I tried the same strategy again and I actually beat him. It was all the better too because we were having a discussion earlier and he said one thing he never encountered on the ladder was Nydus Worms. So I got a Nydus in his main and flooded him with roaches... he had gone Storm and Blink Stalker.
I decided to play a couple of ladder matches with the sole intention of getting better so I can beat my friend. After my placement match I was placed in 64 bronze... two or three matches later I was 69 bronze. My friend on the other hand started yesterday at 17 bronze and was ranked 1 bronze before our session yesterday. After our play session he got all the way up to 1 silver in less than an hour.
I'm not the absolute worst SC2 player. My highest finish was 48 Gold back in Season 2. I'd say I'm right in the middle as far as skill goes. I just wish I could beat him. It sucks that he gets to be good at everything he does.
tl;dr my friend is one of those people who is amazing at every game we play... two days ago he got Starcraft 2.
 
|
That's what you get for trying to assume people's style. Scouting is pretty damn essential no matter who you are playing, look at the last game of Flash vs. NaNiwa from MLG Dallas for proof (just one of many examples).
|
Well, I wouldn't exactly call bronze amazing.
That's what you get for trying to assume people's style. Scouting is pretty damn essential no matter who you are playing, look at the last game of Flash vs. NaNiwa from MLG Dallas for proof (just one of many examples).
They should work on their macro and overall mechanics first. It will give them the fastest results, just play a really safe build. When you got that down really well, you are probably around diamond level and can worry about the rest that there is to this game.
|
Use him being ahead of you as motivation to improve. You say you're in bronze so you have a lot to learn still. Just keep playing and play with the mindset of improving and you'll beat him with consistency eventually.
|
On November 14 2012 04:22 Recognizable wrote:Well, I wouldn't exactly call bronze amazing. Show nested quote +That's what you get for trying to assume people's style. Scouting is pretty damn essential no matter who you are playing, look at the last game of Flash vs. NaNiwa from MLG Dallas for proof (just one of many examples). They should work on their macro and overall mechanics first. It will give them the fastest results, just play a really safe build. When you got that down really well, you are probably around diamond level and can worry about the rest that there is to this game.
Good point actually. I kinda forgot that after not playing sc2 in so long and only watching it lol...
|
United Kingdom14464 Posts
I know you're pain, I've probably got it even worse.
I've been bad at every single game I've ever played, bar Super Smash Bros Brawl, F-Zero and Mario Kart.
My brother isn't godly at games, but he's far and away better than me, especially at strategy games. We've spent most of our childhood competing on video games, and he's stomped me in almost all of them.
He's never played F-Zero, but on my 2 other best games (SSBB and Mario Kart (lol)) he still goes at least 50/50 with me, and on something like Advanced Wars... I think in years of playing I don't think I've ever beaten him.
T_T
|
1. Keep practicing. Sounds like you need mechanics more than anything.
2. I had a friend like that. It didn't matter if it was SSB, Halo or table tennis. Then one day we fired up Jedi Academy, which in my mind has the best lightsaber combat of any game, and I owned his face. His mind was blown that I had finally beat him in something.
|
This is how I feel about my cousin. We used to play Heroes of Might and Magic, BroodWar... He would beat me everytime. When he picked SC2 up, about a month after I did, he placed in gold right out of the placement matches when I was in silver and coming from bronze. And he kept being one league above me afterwards.
Now however, I reached diamond as he did, and through hard work, I can now beat him 8 times out of 10. (I'm around top 20 diamond in EU whereas he is in low Diamond)
|
On November 14 2012 04:34 Jerubaal wrote:
1. Keep practicing. Sounds like you need mechanics more than anything.
2. I had a friend like that. It didn't matter if it was SSB, Halo or table tennis. Then one day we fired up Jedi Academy, which in my mind has the best lightsaber combat of any game, and I owned his face. His mind was blown that I had finally beat him in something.
DUDE I had a similar experience with the same guy.
They were playing Jedi Outcast for the gamecube and I was like, 'HOLY FUCK THIS EXISTS?' So I went to play with them and I was like... 'no no no no, light saber only, no force powers, bespin.'
I fucking destroyed them.
|
I think it's called the nada gene.
|
If it makes you guys feel better, the people who are beating you are in turn beaten by 10 year old Koreans
|
Don't call a guy a gaming god just because he can beat a select group of people, if he is placed bronze he is obviously among the worst players on the server and world (unless if its the korean server).
I've been on equal footing with my brother since we started gaming, from our days of age of empires, red alert, C&C, Quake 3 arena, we have always been on par. The challenge was enormous and we relished in winning. Until the day we decided to bundle our 'awesome power' in 2v2 online in games...
...Thats when we were pushed aside like weak fodder, ripe for the slaughter.
Online gaming opens your mind in many ways, but while it shows you that being the best is nearly impossible, finding someone you can beat is very easy 
If I were you I'd bundle my strength with my friend and go for 2v2's. They are fun, they are challenging and they can create a bond. Train against each other and train against other teams - it's much better than the solo experience. It also lacks the ladder anxiety problem, if you happen to have that.
|
Just practice the things that matter: Hit your injects on time, remember to make overlords in advance, before you decide on a tech path get an idea of what he's up to and if he can see you make that decision, if you're going to attack figure out what his army is made of and where it is and exploit its weaknesses.
Maxed on roaches while he's going heavy immo with workable forcefields? Go around his army to buy time for your hive. Better yet, go mass muta/ling and gouge the soft spots till he can't keep standing.
Look at your play, and figure out what you can change to do better next time.
|
I know the feeling somewhat. Often, in other games I'm actually the best player but this one guy, he's got a couple of games that he's just absurdly good at that I can't touch him in. Starcraft 2 is one of them. Others include drumming on Rock Band (We're both Expert, and I'm better at guitar, but he's wayyyyy more proficient at drums), and LoL.
|
I would put you in at least diamond since you said you were able to max on roaches before the 13 min mark (I have never been able to do that on ladder and I'm master). Your friend must be a true monster if he can get to that level in 2 days.
That's all I have to say I guess. 
Oh, you said you are bronze. That makes no sense to me.
|
Haha, since we're relating game dominating friends. I would always lose at super smash bros to my one friend, his pikachu was godly.. so I look on the internet, find bomb soldier's falco video, learn how to short hop fast fall l cancel, learn how to wave dash, learn how to pilla (down airair into upward shine reflector) and the goofball still finds a way to combo the crap out of me with pikachu. sad days ;(
Then we lived together for a while one year and we'd do coffee broodwar mornings some days and i'd watch his games intensely! as if it was me playing and i told him the builds. He learned quickly and i helped him a lot.
.....and now he can beat me at sc2 even though I'm the one who followed broodwar and i'm the one who goes to TL. oh well...! thats just the way it is..
|
|
|
On November 14 2012 05:03 Mattson wrote:Show nested quote +On November 14 2012 04:34 Jerubaal wrote:
1. Keep practicing. Sounds like you need mechanics more than anything.
2. I had a friend like that. It didn't matter if it was SSB, Halo or table tennis. Then one day we fired up Jedi Academy, which in my mind has the best lightsaber combat of any game, and I owned his face. His mind was blown that I had finally beat him in something. DUDE I had a similar experience with the same guy. They were playing Jedi Outcast for the gamecube and I was like, 'HOLY FUCK THIS EXISTS?' So I went to play with them and I was like... 'no no no no, light saber only, no force powers, bespin.' I fucking destroyed them.
oh my god dueling in jedi academy... so sick, and people were so nice back then too
|
Oh come on, your friend can't be good at every single game. For instance, I know some guys who are awesome at first person shooters but totally inept at real time strategy, or own at racing games but suck at sports games like fifa and madden. Not everyone can be good at every kind of game, you just have to find a game that you're better at than your friend then you can rub it in his face.
|
sounds like he can get in your head. A lot of head to head gaming is knowing what to expect from your opponent and if he can read you then he'll beat you even if he has inferior mechanics. Try watching his style and seeing if he's predictable in anyway, try to get ahead in the meta. Or go nuclear and look up guides on online.
|
also: the Jedi Knight games were sic
|
On November 14 2012 07:57 drift0ut wrote:
sounds like he can get in your head. A lot of head to head gaming is knowing what to expect from your opponent and if he can read you then he'll beat you even if he has inferior mechanics. Try watching his style and seeing if he's predictable in anyway, try to get ahead in the meta. Or go nuclear and look up guides on online.
DUDE!!! you just solved my fucking life!!! thank you <3
|
Try letting him teach you the game or give you advice on how to play. If he's a BW veteran he's probably entering SC2 with some basic concepts ingrained so it's not surprising that he might have a head start. And don't sweat people being better than you, that's just a fact of life.
In games I play like Brood War and Super Smash Bros. Melee I always enjoy the company of friends who are better than me. Not only do I love my friends as cool people, I love the fact that they're a first-hand resource whenever I want to learn something about the game.
|
Not quite sure what the problem is. I get it, it might be discouraging having a friend being that much better at video games, but thats just how things are. Some people just learn that stuff way faster. You should probably just try to accept that fact, there nothing strange or embarassing or anything in being worse than him. Dont let your skill in SC2 (or lack thereof) hurt your pride or anything, theres little pride in being awesome if he was born like that anyway.
|
Just put in the effort to improve your mechanics/build orders and you will beat him eventually. This is coming from someone who's been on both sides of your situation.
In BW my friend had played for awhile before me and stomped me for about half a year. I put in a lot of effort into learning build orders and strengthening my mechanics in order to keep up and eventually I got way better than him. On the flip side, I usually dominated my brother at Super Smash for like 8 years. When we both revisited the game I was still winning but eventually he took over and now beats me pretty often.
The lesson here is that the person who's behind in a competition/rivalry like this usually has the advantage because they're not as complacent as the guy who's in front. In addition, having a rivalry should just boost your improvement rate overall than if you just played alone, so it's not a bad thing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
EPT
