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[Psajdak]

While I played some of them, I was never dedicated player of fighters, simply because I didn't have anyone else who is also interested in them, so in those rare times that I did played them, it was always button mashing for most part.
Still, one day I decided in one game (I think it was Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection) to give a bit more time, and mess in Practice, trying to learn, and muscle memorize moves, and combos.

It was really fun, and addicting, and overall, I just thought how rewarding it is to watch your character move in ways that make more sense, and kind of seem like they are dancing.
It was simply that gamey game moment.

Nowadays, because of online option in many fighting games, you can almost always find someone willing to play against you, there are tournaments, and in general all of that is big motivation to devote yourself to master one, or more characters...

Which is what makes me wonder, if you payed for a game, isn't it kind of a waste to only focus on only one character, or few of them, while other go to waste?
Even one character takes some time to be learned, who knows how much for all of them.

Anyone here who is dedicated fighters player?
How often does one need to practice to become very good?

 

[Athena~]

Just choose the hottest one and focus on that. Learn the moves on one character first.

Usually took me a few hours to become good for one character and 100 hrs to become a master once I played against real people

 

[Golgo 13]

Depends on the game. For the more mechanically demanding ones (Street Fighter 4), you’re talking hundreds upon hundreds of hours for mere competence — most people won’t ever be able to master a character in the deeper fighting games, but with practice you can get good.

As far as the character question goes, it’s good to focus on a character you like but also try out the entire cast. You learn a lot about a character (and this their weaknesses) when you spend time playing them.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Really comes down if you want to play for fun, or win.

If you want have fun, play whatever characters you want. If you want to win, focus your attention on a character or two and keep using them.

For cheap wins, see if any characters have OP moves you can spam. I don't play fighters in a long time....... but when I played SFII in the 90s and everyone took Ryu/Ken, Chun Li or Guile, I took Blanka. Crazy fun character with some odd moves you can spam with literally 1 or 2 frame animations.

 

[Rhazer Fusion]

IMO, it's best to focus on 1 or even 2 characters to properly learn them and the gameplay fundamentals or mechanics. Once you learn them, you can experiment with other characters to at least get familiar with their playstyles. It also depends on the fighting game. Try the entire cast out and see who you gel with the best. Something like Tekken or Dead Or Alive I feel could take considerably longer for some players since there are literally thousands of moves in the game to learn and defend against while something like Injustice has fewer moves to deal with. Yet, a game like Guilty Gear which still has fewer moves then Tekken or DOA could take longer to learn because of the more unconventional and complicated mechanics and execution.

 

[TheDuskwalker]

Well it's better to just focus on 1 or a few of your favorites, especially in 3D fighters where you'll have a lot of memorization for large move pools for a single character, or more execution heavy fighters. This varies from fighter to fighter.

Technically to actually "master" them requires memorizing frame data for every character to know how to properly punish each move, and what move for your character to punish each move. Of course instead of doing that just playing against characters repeatedly you'll just naturally learn to counter moves over time and what's best to counter with, this is also why something like Tekken is quite hard to master since characters not only have larger move pools to learn, you have to learn how to counter large move pools for a lot of characters, then on top of that you have things like learn weak sides for sidestepping, so if a characters weak side is there right, and you go left, then you have a greater chance of being hit.

Of course is you want to learn a bunch of characters, or even the whole cast, it's still very possible, but people that do this, like Knee in Tekken, usually just stick to 1 fighting game and never play any others.

 

[Nymphae]

...if you payed for a game, isn't it kind of a waste to only focus on only one character, or few of them, while other go to waste?
Even one character takes some time to be learned, who knows how much for all of them.

That's literally what makes them so content rich. It's funny, I think people often view the genre as one that is more light on content than most others, but the exact opposite is true. It's not a waste of money that you spent years mastering a character and haven't touched the others, it's a testament to the level of depth and value you get with these games.

Character selection depends on your goals. If you are just goofing around with friends now and then, sure why not try all the characters, there should be no pressure to stick with one.

But I think it's pretty obvious that if you want to take a specific game seriously, you're going to want to limit the characters you train with. Depending on level of skill of course, but I think even pros generally like to only stick to a few characters perhaps even just 1, even though at that level they are so accustomed to fighting game systems and such that they can do very well with just about anyone.

 

[ethomaz]

Try to master one... have another or even a third to fun sometimes.

You will never really master a character... more you play more you will learn new tricks and strategies.

 

[Ten_Fold]

I play fighters at a decent level, got 97 at bbtag at evo an usually place at my locals, anyways. Find the character you like an play that character, nowadays it’s pretty easy to learn how to use a character since they have tons of guides. Last thing is if you are new or not very good you have to accept you will lose a lot for a good amount of time, the trick is to understand why.

 

[DForce]

It's always best to focus on 1 or 2 characters when learning a fighting game.

You don't need to learn how to play every single character in the game, but you do need to learn how to play against every single character in a game that you're trying to master. Learning frame-data makes things easier, but this generally a process that turns most people away from fighting games because it's really boring to do.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

You're "supposed" to have fun. Play it however you like.

If you want to get competent at the game and enjoy it to its fullest, then the answer is yes, you should only stuck to a small handful of characters, and that list should narrow down to just 1 or 2 as you get better. It will get to the point where you'll naturally want to only play 1 or 2 characters because you'll begin seeing the payoff.

I don't think it's important for a new player to jump right in, pick one, and stick with that forever. Such pressure! Such a big decision! And you haven't even figured out what you like about the game's nuances yet, so how can you decide? Over time, you'll narrow down your list to a few "mains", and then just 1 or 2.

You mentioned "wasting" all the other characters if you only focus on one. Quite the opposite: you'll gain an appreciation of the depth and nuance of the whole cast. Since your "overall" fighting game skill level will increase as your "character-specific" skills grow, it'll be much easier to hop on an unfamiliar character and mess around with them. It's actually more of a waste to hop between characters and never scratch beneath the surface. The only way you'll dig deeper is to focus all your learning on 1 or 2 characters and to try that knowledge against other human players.

Above all, just have fun. I'd highly recommend playing local with a friend.

Send me a PM if you ever wanna practice Guilty Gear Xrd on PS4.

 

[Sqorin Hammerfarf]

Since learning the characters is what I think makes fighting games fun, I'm always learning to play new characters. I've mained pretty much every Soul Calibur character at one point or another (I might have skipped Darth Vader). I'll never win any tournaments but I can hold my own generally, and winning tournaments isn't what I like about playing fighting games, so you know, I'm okay with that.

 

[Codes 208]

I play characters based on preference. In smash I play as yoshi, Samus, pikachu and Luigi most because they represent my favorite games. In a game like FighterZ my team usually consists of Cell, Goku Black and SSJB Vegeta because they’re some of my favorite characters.

Tier lists are bullshit.

Spoiler

theyre not. But that doesn’t automatically mean I’m better with someone like peach over, say, link. Simply because I don’t play as them.

 

[TacosNSalsa]

There tends to be 2 "paths" you can take .. You have the character specialist and side pocket players. Character specialist is what it sounds like , you pick character and stick with em through thick and thin , good match up or not. They tend to thrive on their bad match ups but there is only so much they can do . Using Street Fighter as an example , a top level Zangief player is going to have one hell of a time against a top level Dhalsim player. It's not that he can't win it's just to do so he has to play extremely well and hope the Sim player makes enough mistakes to capitalize on . Then you have the side pocket player . They will have a main and a side character that normally picks up the main's bad or difficult match ups . The draw back to this could be that you won't learn your main as well because you avoid your bad match ups . A good example of a specialist is Smug . No matter how bad the match up is for Balrog might be he won't change. A good example of a side pocket player is Snake Eyez . He will switch from Zangief to Akuma for his bad match ups .

As far as how much you need to practice , you have to remember this is a 2 player game ..It's going to depend on you you are playing . If you play against someone who doesn't play then yea, you don't have to practice much . If you play against someone who plays a lot and practices a lot and looks at the game with the mentality of getting better , you are going to have a tough time .

I really have a f*ck more to say as fighting games are one of my passions for almost 30 years till recently (fuck SFV) but I'm drunk so my thoughts are fully together

 

[Shifty]

I'd pick a main (S-tier is whoever you like the most) so you have a character to dump time into, then learn a bit about any others that you find tough to fight against. Helps give you a grasp of their strengths and weaknesses.
No harm in taking up a second or third go-to character if you like what they have going on, but that's all down to how much time you're willing or able to put in.

And as far as practicing, it helps to play regularly to prevent yourself from getting rusty over time. Get a few sessions in a week and you'll feel the improvement, though make sure not to fall too far into the lab hole- training mode is great for figuring out tech but you need to fight real people in order to learn when and how to use it, so try to keep a balance.

 

[The3DGameArtist]

When learning its just easier to focus on characters that are:

1. Easy to play
2. Someone you like & find fun to play

Don't care about tier lists, I tend to play Marvel vs Capcom-esque fighters, so DragonBall FighterZ is right up my alley and my main team consists almost of Low-Tiers. Krillin / T.Gohan / G.Black.

Then play through the arcade mode, then go to the internet to check out combos and how to play.
Do some practice in the training area and then try and do the same kind of things you've learned online to start learning about how to deal with the lag.

After that it's more of a "learn as you fight", you'll see other people do stuff , you'll pick up their tactics and you'll evolve generally by just spending time online fighter others. The biggest thing generally is to make sure that you know that losing is a learning experience as well, so try not to get too salty when you lose. If you start making your online fighting experience into a negative experience by being salty and hitting stuff everytime it doesn't go your way. It won't be easy to come back to , day after day.

Joining a fighting game community on discord helps too, getting a couple of friendly people to play with is usually a lot more rewarding and fun experience than randoms online.

 

[Melubas]

It depends on what you're after. If you're not going to be competitive feel free to dick around with as many characters as you want. As for what it takes to master a character, well, that also depends on how you define it. If you're playing on a casual level you can learn most of the frame data, setups and technicalities in a month or two. If you want to be competitive I'd say at least six months to learn a character properly. You need to know every matchup, character specific punishes and frame data for all the other characters, and you need to be able to adapt that on the fly in pressure situations. When I competed in SF4 I played for nine years and barring the four (five?) updates I'd say I was fluent in the character after about a year but I still kept learning things all the time. Mastering a character is like a job, you need to keep it up or you will lose it if you slack off. That said it is an immensely satisfying thing to just completely dismantle your opponent with superior knowledge and flashy, hard combos, or playing a perfect game of footsies and watching them getting frustrated since they can't wrap their head around what's happening. If you feel up for it I'd say pick one and set the goal really high. It's fun

 

[Psajdak]

I have not so much interest in winning itself, as just learning to control characters well - if that makes me better against other people, well, cool.

That being said, being someone who doesn't skip games in series, and don't care to catch up with latest stuff, my questions were a lot connected to beginnings of any fighting game in general - such as first Street Fighter game, or Tekken...

I am well aware that everyone is playing latest games, but to me that's just bothering, and kind of like reading a book starting from middle, since I'm also interested in stories of characters, even if they are cliche.
If there are no human opponents for the old games, that's okay, AI can be good enough for me, and once/if I reach the games in series that were released in current time, I can use my experience from early games, while also being very familiar with setting, and also having followed evolution of series.

Recently I even mentioned how I would like to get into Ninja Gaiden/Dead or Alive, and that includes beating original Ninja Gaiden games.

I guess, what I'm trying to say is, no matter how long ago game was released, I want to play it, and learn to play better with characters; evolution of graphics, or production in general never managed to make me less interested in older stuff.

I want series that I will choose to become familiar with me, learning characters, story, and all that to be part of my life.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

I have not so much interest in winning itself, as just learning to control characters well - if that makes me better against other people, well, cool.

That being said, being someone who doesn't skip games in series, and don't care to catch up with latest stuff, my questions were a lot connected to beginnings of any fighting game in general - such as first Street Fighter game, or Tekken...

I am well aware that everyone is playing latest games, but to me that's just bothering, and kind of like reading a book starting from middle, since I'm also interested in stories of characters, even if they are cliche.
If there are no human opponents for the old games, that's okay, AI can be good enough for me, and once/if I reach the games in series that were released in current time, I can use my experience from early games, while also being very familiar with setting, and also having followed evolution of series.

Recently I even mentioned how I would like to get into Ninja Gaiden/Dead or Alive, and that includes beating original Ninja Gaiden games.

I guess, what I'm trying to say is, no matter how long ago game was released, I want to play it, and learn to play better with characters; evolution of graphics, or production in general never managed to make me less interested in older stuff.

I want series that I will choose to become familiar with me, learning characters, story, and all that to be part of my life.

Find a local buddy (or multiple buddies) to play fighting games with. This is key, in my opinion.

You will almost entirely miss the community/fan aspect of the fighting genre if you're only playing online against strangers. Yeah, it's nice to build your skill, but that's about it.

 

[petran79]

I remember I used to chat and play with players like Dyne on GGPO or get tips by Kyle on mizuumi Vampire Savior forum. Inconceivable now that I think about it. Even if I barely reach 1% of their skills, their outlook and methods were truly inspirational. It is difficult indeed to be both a good player and have the charisma and patience to inspire other players. Diar I think helped me on Jojo too. Same with Breakers Revenge. On Supercade there was a guy from Sweden who was an expert and also very helpful at that game.
I played against a fellow countryman in Puyo Tetris too. He was way out of my league too and told me he did chat and played with one of the top Japanese Tetris players. Cant remember the name.

Use online not for competitive matches but tips and training mostly. Fightcade in-game keyboard chat is godsend for this.

 

[Whitesnake]

While I played some of them, I was never dedicated player of fighters, simply because I didn't have anyone else who is also interested in them, so in those rare times that I did played them, it was always button mashing for most part.
Still, one day I decided in one game (I think it was Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection) to give a bit more time, and mess in Practice, trying to learn, and muscle memorize moves, and combos.

It was really fun, and addicting, and overall, I just thought how rewarding it is to watch your character move in ways that make more sense, and kind of seem like they are dancing.
It was simply that gamey game moment.

Nowadays, because of online option in many fighting games, you can almost always find someone willing to play against you, there are tournaments, and in general all of that is big motivation to devote yourself to master one, or more characters...

Which is what makes me wonder, if you payed for a game, isn't it kind of a waste to only focus on only one character, or few of them, while other go to waste?
Even one character takes some time to be learned, who knows how much for all of them.

Anyone here who is dedicated fighters player?
How often does one need to practice to become very good?

You want to focus on one character to learn their all of their combos, frame data, tech, etc. (Your main/your toolset)
You’ll also want to learn how all the other characters’ strengths and weaknesses interact with yout character’s strengths and weaknesses. (Matchups)

This takes a while to do with one character.
It takes longer in games where you use 3 characters like KoF, where you have practice 3 mains.
It takes even longer in hyperfighters like MvC and DBFZ, where you have to not only find and practice 3 seperate mains, but also find their best assist and how each assist synergizes with the other mains’ movesets.

Of course, you don’t have to have one character you’re really good with. You could just be decent with many characters. But that comes at the cost of losing to a lot of people who do focus on their one and only character.

 

[Jigsaah]

Master one, but practice against the most popular characters on the next to hardest difficulty. I play Tekken 7 pretty often and find that my downfall is almost always more due to me not knowing my enemy rather than my own character.

 

[Ascend]

Short version;
It is extremely advisable to pick one character in the beginning and stick with it. It will let you learn the fundamentals of the game, rather than struggle with adapting to different characters. Only when you're reasonably good with your first character, is it advisable to switch. Understanding the mechanics will make mastering any other character a lot easier.