what am i missing?

[X'tyfe]

heyas

iv come to ask my fellow players for assistence. i have a problem, i feel that havent gotten anywhere
in the the last 6-7 years of playing quake2, esspecially in the last year and a half
that i have not gotten better, while alot of people have shot right past me

how? how does it happen that some people can do that and not me, what im i missing?

im always trying my best to get better, and maybe i have in the last few months
but i dont think its been enough to keep up with everyone else. im still stuck sitting here at the same spot

id like to ask some of the players around for some help, i guess find what im doing wrong, or not doing
so i can improve on that. but playing 1v1 and dieing 100% of the time is not going to help me

i do understand that tdm and 1v1 would help alot, but after playing a few matches
i dont see how it would, there is such a huge gap between me and alot of the 1v1 crowed
where is the middle? i just find it boring and discouraging, and not very helpful to me at all

perhapes there is another way?

[Punk_FAS]

Just a few tips.  Watch a lot of demos when you have the chance.  Learn jumps/movement on maps you will play, the trick jumps etc.  Practice those jumps you learned till you're fairly proficient with them.  Also, the mouse you use, the mouse pad you use, and the keyboard setup you use I think has a LOT to do with it.  As well as your framerate, there's a program that increases the Hz or sensitivity I believe? of your USB ports to make mouse movements more smooth?  Called USB rate, it's linked I believe in the sticky post about Q2 settings.

I used to play a LOT on DS DM8 Warehouse and Mage DM8 Warehouse.  That was where the best FFA players went.  I got to the point I could hang with most anybody that played FFA on a regular basis.  Then not too long ago, maybe 2-3 months, I started playing more on the TDM servers.  Since then I've gotten a lot better there and have beaten a number of pretty good players 1v1, and have done quite well in teams at times too, and probably consider myself an above average TDM player.

The biggest factor is who your opponents are, but like you've seen, you don't wanna leapfrog too far ahead, or I think that doesn't really help much, and you'll more than likely get frustrated, which also serves to impede your progression.  If I were you, I'd scan the FFA servers, and play when you see good players on.  Ax2Grind, Elysium, myself, Majikslug>FAS> (if you can find him on), Swan (probably an alias), one of the {CM} guys has been playing well lately, The Crazed (when he plays), etc.  There's a bunch more, those are just the first I think of at this very moment.

When you're outclassed/outskilled you force your mind to come up with new tactics/tricks to counter your opponent.  It's these scenarios when you pick up new stuff, learn new tricks, tactics, etc.

[randypants]

Learn all of the sounds/angles for shots/prediction angles/and work on what weapons to use in what situation/TIME ITEMS (THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN DO AND IS BASICALLY WHAT SEPERATES SOMEONE FROM ABOVE AVERAGE TO TOP TIER)

[jägermonsta]

Play subconsciously. At least this works for me... When I play quake2 not even thinking about what I'm doing that's when I play my best. Don't threat over missing shots or jumps or dying, that will make you play even worse. Play KNOWING anything is possible. It's not impossible to land that rail... It's not impossible to make that jump... It's not impossible to win. Kind of like a matrix thing (who knows)? It's weird... For instance when I play while I'm on the phone, I tend to play very well. Even though a lot of people will whine and say "ok I'm off the phone now" expecting that they will play better... (It's a mind game! Hey, whatever works...)

[Whirlingdervish]

Is anyone willing to point the way to some tutorials, or such,
that describe the most advantageous situations/distances for using a given weapon?

A lot of it is common sense, I know, and some of it must be individual player preference,
but I still have no idea when (if ever) to yank out the hyperblaster, and burn
off a stream of shots.

[cyberneticimplant]

When I play I pretend I'm hunting my opponents.

If you play Q2 you probably already know the advantages and disadvantages of each weapon.

[Remedy]

xtyfe when I see you playing its like in mutant and you're just bfg'ing some newbs on a marics map, no offense dude but if you spend your time doing that you aren't going to be any better at anything q2 wise, and even beyond that playing free for all in general only picks up your skill level by a fraction per year of playing, (there are some exceptions to this rule like elysium and defiant) but youve got to understand that those guys were going to succeed anyways because they were just born with above average eye-hand coordination (aka the "DaHanG" gene)

take a person like Leizu for instance, he/she has been playing free for all since at least 1998 (thats as far back as I can remember that name being used) and while he/she is fairly good at ffa, you can take a look at leizu in the first tourney and he/she didn't do any better than anybody from clan kil, which after playing for 7 years you would think you would bring a little something to the table, but thats not the case simply because the level of skill of the players that he/she plays has never been very strong.

as for you getting beat 30-0 in 10 min edge pickups, play 20 games, then watch some demos of some good players playing 1v1 and by next week you will only be losing 15-0, half the battle there is not just running out into the arena or up the lift without weapons/armor like a rookie. A good rule is to never attack the mega room vs a stacked opponent without full armor and a rocket launcher, but if youre trying to break into tdm learning the edge isnt going to do you much good come time for a tdm league.

if you want my advice bro find someone thats around your skill level to duel with everyday (like a partner) and after you feel youve gotten a little better try your hand at playing some good players 1v1, i think youll find after a month of that you will be getting better without you even knowing it, and like dael says, the only true way to get better is to practice, practice, practice

btw swan is laurelin (busted canuck! xD)

[X'tyfe]

thanks for the advice guys it really helps

i think my biggest problem with 1v1 is that is requires such different strategy then ffa
and im doing what i would do in a ffa situation and it just doesnt work
(IE, rush in, get a gun and blast through)

though i am trying hard not to in a 1v1 tdm situation, im doing new things
like making as less sound as possible/control and that

i understand that i shouldnt attack a loaded player, (i always go for armor and a better gun first, but of course they are waiting for me to do that)
i didnt just doesnt "click" for me
i cant control a map for the life of me, its just not something iv really had to do in ffa
and i always get pwned cus someone else has the map 100% of the time

iv always avoided playing better players then myself, because its so one sided
i have no chance to even move with these people. but if thats the key, then i will use it
there really isnt any people playing 1v1 and tdm around my skill, or else i wouldnt be asking for advice here

i cant jump either, iv always wondered how people jump box to box from yellow armor to mega in q2dm1
i just cant do it however much iv tried. and i think this is another one of my bigger problems

im pretty good with weapon sounds and item sounds, i can roughly figure out when and item will be back
and i can usaully figure out where someone is in a map. im just figureing out now to use diff weapons in diff situtations
though i tend to forget all about it in the heat of the action

iv started looking at demos, but i find it hard to really pick up on anything the players are doing
maybe you guys could suggest demos of specific players?

Learn all of the sounds/angles for shots/prediction angles/and work on what weapons to use in what situation

im a bit confused by this, are you talking about predicting where player are going to be? this i know has helped me improve alot
but i still have problems where i aim to far, and keep missing players from that

[reaper]

your gonna need to understand what Randy is talking about to : )

[[BTF]adam]

(aka the "DaHanG" gene)

lol!

[[BTF]adam]

maybe reflex and you could play some, might be interesting.

[10zx]

try reading this..

http://q2scene.net/scene/index.php?op=art&id=47

[randypants]

X'tyfe link=topic=3935.msg45436#msg45436 date=1153246287

Learn all of the sounds/angles for shots/prediction angles/and work on what weapons to use in what situation

im a bit confused by this, are you talking about predicting where player are going to be? this i know has helped me improve alot
but i still have problems where i aim to far, and keep missing players from that

Okay what I'm trying to say is things like this: You hear someone pickup chaingun and you are at ssg there is two angles that could be potentially exploited to kill/damage him without even making visual confirmation of his location. #1: Rockets from ssg health to the very corner of the lift are above hyper blaster attacking the ramp/hallway above chaingun. #2 angle from ssg to mega health boxes in case he is getting chain and then going for armor/mega. You hear someone get lower rl and you are at mega. If he goes up the lift then you can position yourself on the chain stairs and wait until you hear the armor pickup and fire a rocket at the ramp/hallway above chaingun.

By the weapon usage in key situations basically I mean if someone is very far away then it would make more sense you use somthing that moves fast and does not spead very much (if at all) such as a regular shotgun if he is low or a railgun (if your lucky enough to have one). Rockets/hyper/ssg is not very effective for long range battles because of the speed or ammount of damage that you can deliver. If someone is low on health then never try to finish them off with a rail unless it is the only weapon you have. Often times if someone is low and all i have is a railgun i will opt to pull out blaster and finish them off (if my rail isnt really really on at the time). Hyperblaster is very effect for spamming close corridors or if you are in the water (hyper does about 9 dmg per hit) and when in water people arent moving fast enough to escape it usually. When in the water be aware that people move much faster down than they do side to side or up so focus on the lower parts of their person (legs) more than the upper parts.

Weapons spawn every 30 seconds so it is very easy to keep items timed with only the game clock. Armor is 20 seconds. Mega is 20 seconds from the time that the person who has it goes under 100 health. Quad is every 60 seconds and so is power shield. Invuln (for dm3) is every 5 minutes. Being concious of when items will spawn will allow for more map control and the ability to kill and enemy that is waiting for an item that you know will not be spawning for X amount of time.

Hope this helps.

[[BTF] Reflex]

maybe reflex and you could play some, might be interesting.

Was thinking this as I read down...    I'm a perfect candidate for you to practice with,

I know just enough to be dangerous at times,  but still have noob tendencies.
you arent on in the late hours (11pm - 9am eastern) are you?????

[X'tyfe]

not really, but i can be

that would be great if we could have a few matches