Street Fighter V isn’t the most difficult game in the world, contrary to what some people would tell you. All it requires is knowing the right things to do and focusing on those to ensure you get the best out of your experience. You should understand that you will not ‘git gud’ in a day, and learning a fighting game (except maybe Naruto Ninja Storm) takes a lot of patience.
So with all that said, how do you get started in Street Fighter V? There are numerous guides that take you through what the game entails and some of the things you’ll have to contend with as a beginner. I have personally found this one pretty helpful as it goes over everything a beginner could need. But I’m going to assume you know all that and have a basic understanding of fighting games.
So, if you’ve dealt with all the little things to figure out, I’ll be highlighting three dos and three don’ts that you should be aware of starting out. If you follow these guides, you will do a lot better in Street Fighter V and will be dealing damage to your peers in no time.
#1 Do: Watch highlights and replays
Losing sucks! So naturally, you wouldn’t want to be reminded of your failures by watching a replay of what you did wrong. However, it is impossible to get any better without going back over what went wrong in the first place. Neglecting this key point will only see you make the same mistakes again and again, and no one wants that.
Watching the replays of your losses points out the places you could get better, and with that data, you can return to the lab and get even better.
#1 Don’t: Jump too often
Universally, jump-in attacks deal the most amount of damage when you can get a combo off them. I know it, you know it, your opponent knows it, and that latter point is why you should avoid it as much as possible. One of the first defensive options a player learns is to anti-air, and if you are conditioned to only start combos from a jump, you’ll fail a lot more than you succeed. The temptation to jump in and deal a significant amount of damage is strong, but you’ll need to suppress that and learn to focus on the ground game.
To help with this, try setting the training dummy to block and see how you do against an opponent with great defense. Also, you could try playing with a self-imposed handicap (not jumping) against opponents to condition yourself to avoid jumping. If you have this mastered, it’ll serve you in the future so that when you decide to take to the skies, it would be at a precise moment that will reap much greater rewards.
#2 Do: Pick a character that works for you
Picking a character is one of the most important things to do when you start out in a fighting game. You can check out this article talking about the things to consider when picking a main, but in simple terms, it is best to consider:
- Design
- Playstyle
- Personal preference
Understandably, you might want to play as the strongest character in the game’s tier list, but this doesn’t always result in wins, especially if you are not compatible with the character. By all means, check out the game’s tier list to see where your preferred character falls. For instance, DashFight's SFV tier list is pretty handy as it also highlights the strengths of the character, and there are even guides and so on focusing on how to use the character.
However, at the end of the day, always go for a character that you are most comfortable with. Even if they are a low-tier, constant practice can give you a competitive advantage against a higher-tier character in the hands of someone who hasn’t put in the same amount of work that you have.
#2 Don’t: Pressing wake-up buttons
If you watch a lot of professional Street Fighter V, you’ll see people getting caught by wake-up DPs or moves. Suddenly, a promising attack is turned on its head, and the cornered player is on the offensive. It looks good to watch, but beware; it has a pretty low success rate.
More often than not, your opponent expects you to press buttons on wake up and will watch with a smug look on their face while you whiff and they proceed to punish you severely for your impatience. Similar to jumping, wake-up moves should be done sparingly to make sure they count. Yes, the pressure might be suffocating, but it is necessary for you to wait for your moment before trying anything that you might regret.
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#3 Do: Learn the fundamentals first
When people think of fighting games, they usually think of beautiful combos and elegant strings. But more often than not, it’s the fundamentals that get you the win. Of what use is a combo if you can’t find the suitable openings to use it? Better still, get a handle on some of the fundamentals: footsies, confirms, anti-airs, and defense.
Learning how to walk your opponent into the corner is a lot more valuable than learning how to execute a 21-hit combo. There are several games in which winning will be due to small hits that accumulate over the course of the round and bring you victory. So, don’t get hung up over combos; those can come later; learn the basics first and foremost.
#3 Don’t worry about league points
It’s easy to get frustrated when your precious league points are getting lost while you play. But you can’t get hung up on this as this doesn’t lead to improvement. Conversely, it tempts you to move in directions you shouldn’t (like trying out a new character in hopes of winning rather than improving on the character with whom you’re making progress). Instead, consider playing casual matches, or even when you get into ranked, don’t sweat it too much, instead focus on improving your gameplay; the higher ranks will come as you get better.
These are certainly not all the tips that will make you a pro player in Street Fighter V, but they will indeed help you out a whole lot. So, shake off the gloom, plug in your controller, and strive to improve in Street Fighter V.
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