How to prepare for Smash Ultimate
Spencer (Canada) - July 27, 2018How To Prepare For Smash Ultimate
The Smash Ultimate countdown has begun and everyone cannot wait until December. The game looks fast paced slower than Melee but way faster than Smash 4. Although a new game is very exciting it can also be a little disheartening, sometimes people feel like all their practice in their Smash title of choice is just a waste of time. But if we can learn anything from competitive Smash Bros history it is one thing, and that is skills carry over. Think of some of the most recognizable names throughout Smash 4's life span, Zero (Melee,Brawl,PM), Larry Lurr (Melee,Brawl,PM), Anti (Melee, Brawl,PM,Street Fighter), Ally(Melee,Brawl,PM).etc this list could go on forever, all these players are Smash veterans, their neutral, punish, advantage state, disadvantage state all carried over even though the drastic difference between these titles. So practicing Smash 4, Melee etc. will have plenty of benifits up until December 6th. So here are 3 ways I believe are the most important to consider when preparing for Smash Ultimate.
1) Focus on what's important
The last thing you wanna do is use your time inefficiently. Alot of Melee players agree that if you are a new player or even a pretty good/smart player, practicing punish game is alot better to focus on if you want to improve the fastest. Although i believe this to be true I feel like when you are preparing for Smash Ultimate Neutral game is the most important as it is extremely relevant to every Smash or even Fighting Game title. Although punish game skills transfer over like being able to hold your advantage state after a punish it is often that a new Smash title has changed much of how punish game works. The best part about neutral game is it is'nt even game specific you can practice it in Brawl, Melee, Even Slap City.
2) Attend as many tournaments as possible
Now is the time to attend as many tournaments as possible, not for the money, not for your local Power Ranking, But to improve your "Tournament Mindset". Alot of people (Myself included) still have problems with nerves, getting over angry, etc. People always seem to forget that these flaws in the way you think are something you can and should actively work on, and a great way to work on these is to attend multiple tournaments and find ways to calm yourself down, stop from tilting,etc. What I have been doing recently which sounds so simple but everybody is guilty of doing it and that is giving up, as of late i have been refusing to give in and give up halfway through the set after an SD or when i have fallen behind and instead have an intense focus. You would be suprised how much people get scared when they Zero to Death you and you start making a comeback. I have learned and applied this late into Smash 4's life and will continue to apply into Smash Ultimate.
3) Practice how to learn
It might just be me but are'nt we all guilty of having no clue how to play one or two matchups regardless the fact we have been playing for almost 5 years. Regardless the fact that I am yet to find a competent Zelda in my region who is a tournament threat to me I regardless have practiced the Zelda matchup. The reason is not to prevent getting upset by some random Zelda player but instead to practice the steps in learning a matchup, don't you notice as time went on in your "Smash Career" learning new matchups got more and more easier. Thats because you have done it so many times before and the steps have gotten easier because you know the flow to learning. Other than matchup learning I encourage you to figure out how you improve the fastest, this could be drastically different for everybody. For example: Nairo is very open by mostly spending his time playing For Glory and playing wifi with other top player, while someone like Dabuz although spending some of his time playing online with strong players spends alot of his time studying Vods, frame data, etc. These are two drastically different approaches to practice but both get them amazing results both being top players throughout smash 4's life span. One thing I would also encourage everyone to do is play with alot more new characters that you have never really played and try to learn them to the point of good understanding. Practicing learning new characters will improve the speed at which you can learn and try out new characters in Smash Ultimate.
Smash Ultimate is bound to be a great Smash game. I'm sure if you apply these three concepts into practice before it's release in December you will set yourself up for success and go in with some great smash knowledge and skill. Remember the more you polish your fundamentals now the more prepared you will be.
This blog post was written by a SSB World community member. Share your Smash 4 knowledge by creating your own blog post now.
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