Friday, March 27, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
~sigh~
Well today i didnt really accomplish much i'm having trouble understadning what am to do with this proposal questionaire. I've been looking around the internet for possible venues of tournaments i can host. this is all becomoeing stress ful. so i have to buckle down and get this going. Well i did get a few matches recorded found out about cyber conections in Squierll Hill except that place is EXPENSIVE 5 bucks a hour thats alot of money just for me to be hosting a tournament. so ill call them see what they say while ill keep the oakland library as my top choice. seriously 5 bucks a hour...un acceptable. so I'll pull Mrs. Savido aside and ask her what she thinks i should do and ask how do i start this questionaire. I also Emailed a few more interviews to pro ed ma and Justin Wong. So this is my stand point of were i am.....~deep sigh~
Time ta get paid.
Well sadly i took a break from my grad project this weekend.
I think this was a gamble but we will see shall we. Well i took this break
due to me getting Resident Evil 5 and playing that non stop for about 48 hours.
yea i sold my weekend to this game. At any rate i'm going to be contacted a few places
for me to hold this tournament for street fighter. hoping i can get some positive responses.
I think this was a gamble but we will see shall we. Well i took this break
due to me getting Resident Evil 5 and playing that non stop for about 48 hours.
yea i sold my weekend to this game. At any rate i'm going to be contacted a few places
for me to hold this tournament for street fighter. hoping i can get some positive responses.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Gigaton Punch!
Well today i started a draft of a timeline. I think its ok ill ask Mrs. Savido to review and tell me what i should change. i contacted the Carnegie Library Main Branch for a possible Street Fighter 4 tournament that i can possibly video tape. I'm hoping they give me a green lightl. because then i can be the cause of the street fighter jump start here in Pittsburgh.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Interview With Ryan "Gootecks" Gutierrez
1.How big of a fan are you to the fighting game genre?
To be honest, I really only like Street Fighter. :) I don't really have time for other games because I only care about being really good at SF.
2. What to you is higher level of play?
High level play is when two players are learning, adapting and predicting the opponents' moves. They aren't just throwing out random moves and hoping that they will hit, there is actual thought involved.
3. About how many hours do you spend practicing or better your abilities?
From about August-December 2008, I was playing 5-6 hours a night, 5-6 days a week. It was pretty much all I did. It took a lot of time, effort and money, but it's definitely paying off now and I'm glad I did it that way.
4. When I say something like “I play to win” what comes to your mind?
To me, that's the right attitude a player needs to have in order to be competitive. Of course it's okay to lose, you can't win every time, but taking the time to learn from your mistakes and adjust your gameplay will lead to more wins and that's what counts.
5. What would you consider higher level of play? What do you think it takes to get there?
You have to be willing to make sacrifices in order to play as much as possible. Those sacrifices might include time spent with friends, family and girlfriends, job opportunities, parties, birthday celebrations, holidays, etc. But it all depends how bad you want it. I went to Arcade Infinity this year on Christmas at night and I wasn't the only one there either!
6. Do you think you can get to higher level of play without dedication?
No, you need to be consistent. Even if you only play for 15 minutes every day and practice only execution, that is still more dedication than probably 95% of the SF4 community in terms of dedication and consistency.
7. Does your location affect the wellness of your playing ability?
Absolutely. If you're living in an area with a high concentration of good players, everyone is forced to either step up their game or get continuously beat down until they step it up or call it quits. If you don't live in an area like that, it's harder to level up. Everyone's game improves in an area with a lot of good competition. That's exactly the reason SoCal SF4 is really good. We have more SF4 cabinets and players than anywhere else in the country. We're so fortunate to live here, it's ridiculous!
8. How exactly do you better yourself?
You better yourself by making a conscious effort to improve. This involves practicing, staying consistent, learning from your mistakes and really striving to be as good as you can be.
9. How much knowledge do you need to become a higher level?
It really comes down to experience. The more experience you have, the better.
10. What are the steps to becoming a high level player?
1. Prepare to sacrifice some combination of time and money
2. Make a conscious effort to improve by tracking your progress, setting goals and learning from your mistakes.
3. Play as much as possible against the best competition you can find.
11. How important is execution skills?They are very important, but I think that experience
counts for more because it's still possible to win without being able to do big fancy combos.
12. How active in the actual community are you?
I think I'm pretty active. I do the podcast, videos, fly to out of state tournaments, put out a SF4 strategy guide and an educational product called Street Fighter 4 Secrets. I'm also putting together an exhibition match event called Street Fighter Bar Fights in Pasadena, CA. And I still go to Arcade Infinity a couple times a week.
13. Is it possible to better yourself without people to face or tournaments to go to?
Yes, but only your execution, you really need players that are better than you in order to take it to the next level.
To be honest, I really only like Street Fighter. :) I don't really have time for other games because I only care about being really good at SF.
2. What to you is higher level of play?
High level play is when two players are learning, adapting and predicting the opponents' moves. They aren't just throwing out random moves and hoping that they will hit, there is actual thought involved.
3. About how many hours do you spend practicing or better your abilities?
From about August-December 2008, I was playing 5-6 hours a night, 5-6 days a week. It was pretty much all I did. It took a lot of time, effort and money, but it's definitely paying off now and I'm glad I did it that way.
4. When I say something like “I play to win” what comes to your mind?
To me, that's the right attitude a player needs to have in order to be competitive. Of course it's okay to lose, you can't win every time, but taking the time to learn from your mistakes and adjust your gameplay will lead to more wins and that's what counts.
5. What would you consider higher level of play? What do you think it takes to get there?
You have to be willing to make sacrifices in order to play as much as possible. Those sacrifices might include time spent with friends, family and girlfriends, job opportunities, parties, birthday celebrations, holidays, etc. But it all depends how bad you want it. I went to Arcade Infinity this year on Christmas at night and I wasn't the only one there either!
6. Do you think you can get to higher level of play without dedication?
No, you need to be consistent. Even if you only play for 15 minutes every day and practice only execution, that is still more dedication than probably 95% of the SF4 community in terms of dedication and consistency.
7. Does your location affect the wellness of your playing ability?
Absolutely. If you're living in an area with a high concentration of good players, everyone is forced to either step up their game or get continuously beat down until they step it up or call it quits. If you don't live in an area like that, it's harder to level up. Everyone's game improves in an area with a lot of good competition. That's exactly the reason SoCal SF4 is really good. We have more SF4 cabinets and players than anywhere else in the country. We're so fortunate to live here, it's ridiculous!
8. How exactly do you better yourself?
You better yourself by making a conscious effort to improve. This involves practicing, staying consistent, learning from your mistakes and really striving to be as good as you can be.
9. How much knowledge do you need to become a higher level?
It really comes down to experience. The more experience you have, the better.
10. What are the steps to becoming a high level player?
1. Prepare to sacrifice some combination of time and money
2. Make a conscious effort to improve by tracking your progress, setting goals and learning from your mistakes.
3. Play as much as possible against the best competition you can find.
11. How important is execution skills?They are very important, but I think that experience
counts for more because it's still possible to win without being able to do big fancy combos.
12. How active in the actual community are you?
I think I'm pretty active. I do the podcast, videos, fly to out of state tournaments, put out a SF4 strategy guide and an educational product called Street Fighter 4 Secrets. I'm also putting together an exhibition match event called Street Fighter Bar Fights in Pasadena, CA. And I still go to Arcade Infinity a couple times a week.
13. Is it possible to better yourself without people to face or tournaments to go to?
Yes, but only your execution, you really need players that are better than you in order to take it to the next level.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Did you Know???
Video Game competitions Started in 1983.
The First video game official tournament was called Video Game Masters which started in 1987 and was hosted by the Guinness book of world records.
Blockbuster and Game pro magazine held a nation tournament in 1990
Nintendo held a world wide tourney in 1990 called Nintendo world Championship.
Fighting Games have one official tournament called Evolution Tournament Series.
There are currently 15 Professional Gaming industries.
Major League Gaming started in 2002 here in America.
The Electronic Sports Olympics started in 2005.
The First video game official tournament was called Video Game Masters which started in 1987 and was hosted by the Guinness book of world records.
Blockbuster and Game pro magazine held a nation tournament in 1990
Nintendo held a world wide tourney in 1990 called Nintendo world Championship.
Fighting Games have one official tournament called Evolution Tournament Series.
There are currently 15 Professional Gaming industries.
Major League Gaming started in 2002 here in America.
The Electronic Sports Olympics started in 2005.
Monday, February 23, 2009
THE CHAMP!!!
So Saturday February 21, 2009 as of 3:30 i was champion status. I won the qualifying round of the National Street Fighter 4 Tournament. I got some contact info from a few people for interviews. Got footage of play styles. and i got some street cred.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Preparation is key...
Today i have contacted a High Calibur player named Ryan but is known as "Gootecks".
Tomorow is the Qualifying rounds of the national street fighter 4 tournament.
i am pretty nervous but ill buckle down and crounch time will now begin.
Tomorow is the Qualifying rounds of the national street fighter 4 tournament.
i am pretty nervous but ill buckle down and crounch time will now begin.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
I'm Indestructable
Well today is the day we have been waiting for.
Street Fighter 4 hits the streets, and i can now train
for those preliminaries for the national street fighter 4
tournament. wish me luck im sigining off untill next time.
Street Fighter 4 hits the streets, and i can now train
for those preliminaries for the national street fighter 4
tournament. wish me luck im sigining off untill next time.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Interview With David Sirlin himself
1. How much dedication does it take to get into the pro circuit?
There is no formal pro circuit for fighting games. You just go to tournaments if you want to go, so you have to have the dedication to actually show up. Actually winning at these tournaments is another matter though.
2. Can just anyone become a Pro?
No one really knows how much nature vs. nurture is involved, but probably anyone can become a pro. It's mostly about setting up an environment where you can improve, meaning you have access to good competition and time to play. You also should have genuine interest in the game, otherwise you won't learn enough and won't stick to it. Finally, everyone has different strengths, so you need to play to your strengths. Some people have high dexterity for performing combos, others are good at precise distancing, others are good at reading the opponent's mind. There are many different possible skills, so in time you learn which you're best at and try to enhance those.
3. What are ways to get better?
Already answered above. Find good competition, practice, and find your strengths.
4. Is it possible to teach someone what it takes?
A good teacher would probably speed up the process a lot. An expert could tell you the basic combos you need to know with a character (if any!), the basic attack patterns, and a he would know which specific moves are important to use in certain matches. Those things alone could save you a lot of time compared with figuring it all out yourself. He could also watch your gameplay and tell you what you're not doing or what you should have done here and there.
5. How often should people practice?
I have only ever practiced when I wanted to. Practicing more than that seems bad to me, because why are you even doing it? I practiced less than ever for the last two years of Evolution, almost zero, and I did better than I had in a very long time: 5th two years in a row at ST. Earlier in my life, I played A LOT, almost every day. Most of it was in SF Alpha 2, but a bit was in ST. That time gave me the background knowledge needed to succeed in fighting games in general. So now, for a game as well-understood as ST, it's just as important to get into the right mindset and physical state before a tournament as it is to actually practice.More practice is better though, as demonstrated by Tokido. He lost a match of Blanka vs. his Vega, then he practice that specific match a lot so he'd know everything about it and not lose it. I didn't know this when I chose Blanka against his Vega last year. He won by a wide margin, and played extremely well. Practice helps!
6. What are the best ways to learn an opponet?
I don't know of any conscious ways to read opponents. Also, gameplay decisions often happen faster than 0.4 seconds, which is about the lenght of time it takes for conscious awareness to coalesce. It seems that an unconscious process is going on when you see these sudden psychic dragon punches that are just at the right time. I don't really know how to develop that skill, other than playing a lot and making an effort to guess, then see how often your guesses are right.
7. What is the best way to practice?
If you are bad at the game, it probably helps to play some opponents near your level for a little bit to gain basic familiarity with the game and the moves, and try to put together some attack patterns. Once you have basic familiarity though, you really have to find players better than you and play them. Otherwise, you just learn bad habbits, thinking you can get away with things that a pro would never let you get away with. Play as many different good opponents as you can. Also, it doesn't matter if they are your friends or if you personally hate them. If they are good, play them anyway
There is no formal pro circuit for fighting games. You just go to tournaments if you want to go, so you have to have the dedication to actually show up. Actually winning at these tournaments is another matter though.
2. Can just anyone become a Pro?
No one really knows how much nature vs. nurture is involved, but probably anyone can become a pro. It's mostly about setting up an environment where you can improve, meaning you have access to good competition and time to play. You also should have genuine interest in the game, otherwise you won't learn enough and won't stick to it. Finally, everyone has different strengths, so you need to play to your strengths. Some people have high dexterity for performing combos, others are good at precise distancing, others are good at reading the opponent's mind. There are many different possible skills, so in time you learn which you're best at and try to enhance those.
3. What are ways to get better?
Already answered above. Find good competition, practice, and find your strengths.
4. Is it possible to teach someone what it takes?
A good teacher would probably speed up the process a lot. An expert could tell you the basic combos you need to know with a character (if any!), the basic attack patterns, and a he would know which specific moves are important to use in certain matches. Those things alone could save you a lot of time compared with figuring it all out yourself. He could also watch your gameplay and tell you what you're not doing or what you should have done here and there.
5. How often should people practice?
I have only ever practiced when I wanted to. Practicing more than that seems bad to me, because why are you even doing it? I practiced less than ever for the last two years of Evolution, almost zero, and I did better than I had in a very long time: 5th two years in a row at ST. Earlier in my life, I played A LOT, almost every day. Most of it was in SF Alpha 2, but a bit was in ST. That time gave me the background knowledge needed to succeed in fighting games in general. So now, for a game as well-understood as ST, it's just as important to get into the right mindset and physical state before a tournament as it is to actually practice.More practice is better though, as demonstrated by Tokido. He lost a match of Blanka vs. his Vega, then he practice that specific match a lot so he'd know everything about it and not lose it. I didn't know this when I chose Blanka against his Vega last year. He won by a wide margin, and played extremely well. Practice helps!
6. What are the best ways to learn an opponet?
I don't know of any conscious ways to read opponents. Also, gameplay decisions often happen faster than 0.4 seconds, which is about the lenght of time it takes for conscious awareness to coalesce. It seems that an unconscious process is going on when you see these sudden psychic dragon punches that are just at the right time. I don't really know how to develop that skill, other than playing a lot and making an effort to guess, then see how often your guesses are right.
7. What is the best way to practice?
If you are bad at the game, it probably helps to play some opponents near your level for a little bit to gain basic familiarity with the game and the moves, and try to put together some attack patterns. Once you have basic familiarity though, you really have to find players better than you and play them. Otherwise, you just learn bad habbits, thinking you can get away with things that a pro would never let you get away with. Play as many different good opponents as you can. Also, it doesn't matter if they are your friends or if you personally hate them. If they are good, play them anyway
Thursday, February 5, 2009
12 More days lets call it Crunch Time
Yea i made this picture last night to help pass some time for this long wait. I have a match today i lost my match yesterday 2-0 so far this season im 0-1 today i hope to turn that around today at 6:30PM. The Street Fighter 4 season starts day of the release and im pretty skeptical about my first match in that. i make plans to purchase a capture card so i can record my matches on my T.V. and post them up on youtube so i can become more recognized then just the one game of street fighter 3 that i record on my desktop recorded on my T.V.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
13 the luck/unlucky number of the day
Thats right only 13 more days. Whose a happy camper I am. Actually i have been doing nothing but training training training. i got a few tips from a main stream player the other day. Yea im also kinda bummed that i get 4 days to practice street fighter 4
Monday, February 2, 2009
TOURNEY TOURNEY TOURNEY
Thats right you heard me. NATIONAL street fighter 4 tournament Qualifying rounds are February 21st at participating gamestops luckily the local gamestops are Edgewood and Forbes which are both 5 minutes from my house. So feb 17th im going to be training training training training for that tourney learning skills and the new FOCUS attack. Signing off wish me luck
Stay Gold......Bang
Stay Gold......Bang
Friday, January 30, 2009
LP LP ----> LK HP = Shun Goku Satsu ^_^
DID YOU KNOW.
- Fighting Games been around for 20 yrs
- Street Fighter was the first ever fighting game
- Fighting Games have one of the largest fan base to date
- Tournaments are a hugely attended events for people around the world
Friday, January 23, 2009
Bread and Butter
So today as my amazing blog was shown to the entire class. i Set up a Gamebattles account and joined the pro circuit in street fighter 2 HD REMIX. well ill have to wait till later tonight to see if they sennd me a match request via my AIM account. Wish me luck im offcially in a pro circuit.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
This Battle is about to explode...FIGHT!
Today i added a few key terms to my blog. for you to look at. I practiced a little bit last night i played a pro online in street fighter that goes by the name of nicaKO. whom is my favorite in the pro circuit. He gave me a few tips and lead me to his intruction video on youtube. I'll post that video on my blog whenever i go home. I also uploaded a new match. its me versus my cusin in a 3 set Casual match in street fighter 3rd strike. Today i plan on going online again and playing a few people in some casuals and possibly set a tourney up for this weekend. If i win ill be recording everysecond of it.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Oreno Kachi DA!!!! (Victory is mine)
Oh yes its official there is a Tounament here in PIttsburgh April 3 im pretty pleased about this you have no idea trust me. so this will be the first step into my grad project i'm hearing there will be a couple professinals in this tourney coming from areas such as New York, and San Fransico. I'm going to start my pratice back up this weekend so i can be fully prepared for this tournament. My Schedule will be 2 Hours of Street Fighter 3, 3 Hours of Capcom vs Snk 2 and a few casuals in Guilty Gear so i can be up to par. Also i have completely Paid off my copy street fighter 4 so as of February 17th i will be takeing this day of school off additional to the already long weekend. yea i know it sounds pretty bad, but this is for my interest and the sake of my grad project as well.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
The Unwritten Code of Honor
Yesterday after school i sent David Sirlin a email asking if an interview was possible. luckily he said yes. i told him that i will be making a well thought out list of questions and send them to him. He agreed with my decision. that's where I'm standing now as of today.
Monday, January 12, 2009
The answer lies in the heart of battle
So today i got a positive "OK" on my decsison of how to become a pro gamer in the field of fighting games. i have actually sent a PRO player David Sirlin a proposal to interview him on such a topic.
Friday, January 9, 2009
You never truly know a man...until you fight him -Seraph Matrix: Reloaded
After today i have read 13 pages of "Playing to Win". I will be proposeing a topic to Mrs. Savido monday to see her thoughts on it, and to get advice on how to tweak it to make it better. Here in the last 5 minutes of class I'm now deeply considering doing a topic of what it takes to become the best. I will probally be doing some execution training tonight and all weekend. To prepare for a possible Tournament in April.
Grad Projects of the US
These Grad projects that i have just read about in the 3 articles posted. All seem to have the same basis.
- Minimum amount of time required to work
- Ability to find a mentor
- Picking a Topic of your full interest
- Have Fun Reaserching
hmmm....I Wonder
Well over the past week i have been jumping around a few topics. mainly all some how dealing with martial arts, and my hobby of striveing to become a pro player in the video game Street Fighter. There are actually a few books I've been looking at such as "Playin to Win" by David Sirlin. Whom is a current U.S Champion in the game of Street Fighter. In the book Sirlin actually touches upon what it takes to be a pro. he states very interesting facts and truth about the gameing universe. this book will most likely be one of my main sources.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
PItfalls of Blogging....?
The main pitfalls of frequent blogging. Will have to be problems such as possible addiction, lost touch of reality, and the actual neglect of a "real" personal life.
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