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General discussionHelp! I'm a slow player! How can I improve?(53 posts)(53 posts)
(53 posts)
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This is my favourite topic
Posted February 17, 2021
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Dogmaus: I trained with Cheat Engine, bringing the speed up as I got better, until I could beat Super Hexagon at full speed.
It would be nice if games would include an option to play at a slower speed for this purpose, without having to use an external cheat program.

There are some games that actually do this; VVVVVV and Celeste come to mind. (I believe VVVVVV doesn't let you do Time Trial with this, unfortunately, which limits its usefulness (Time Trial is the easiest way to load a specific level without playing through the game), but Celeste has no limits on its use, and even allows changing the speed without exiting gameplay.)

Another relevant accessibility comment: Turn-based games should never include mandatory action minigames, as they can create an accessibility barrier to some players.

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kohlrak: EDIT: if you want a good way of seeing someone's reaction speed, use youtube-dl on a streamer. Especially catch people playing fishing minigames on things like stardew valley: If you use ffmpeg and output the individual frames, you can count the frames of delay between the notification and their reaction. I've found people get really uncomfortable when you do that with them. XD
You could also look at speedruns, especially marathon speedruns (like the GDQs) and other explanation videos. Sometimes the runners or commentators will even say how many frames the player has to perform certain actions.

(Interestingly enough, one of the most technical things one can attempt, Super Mario World arbitrary code execution, doesn't actually require quick reactions; what it requires, instead, is extremely precise positioning.)

Edit: Also, looking at Tool Assisted Speedruns (TAS) and their commentary can provide some explanations as well. As a side note, if you want to get into speedrunning, but don't have the reflexes, and don't want to choose a game whose speedrun doesn't require them, you could try making TASes. With a TAS, your reaction time doesn't matter because you might very well be playing the game (or at least critical parts of it) one frame at a time. (Do note, however, that making an optimized TAS is a lot of work; if you're doing one frame at a time, it will take a long time to complete the TAS.)
Post edited February 17, 2021 by dtgreene
Posted February 17, 2021
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kohlrak: EDIT: if you want a good way of seeing someone's reaction speed, use youtube-dl on a streamer. Especially catch people playing fishing minigames on things like stardew valley: If you use ffmpeg and output the individual frames, you can count the frames of delay between the notification and their reaction. I've found people get really uncomfortable when you do that with them. XD
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dtgreene: You could also look at speedruns, especially marathon speedruns (like the GDQs) and other explanation videos. Sometimes the runners or commentators will even say how many frames the player has to perform certain actions.

(Interestingly enough, one of the most technical things one can attempt, Super Mario World arbitrary code execution, doesn't actually require quick reactions; what it requires, instead, is extremely precise positioning.)

Edit: Also, looking at Tool Assisted Speedruns (TAS) and their commentary can provide some explanations as well. As a side note, if you want to get into speedrunning, but don't have the reflexes, and don't want to choose a game whose speedrun doesn't require them, you could try making TASes. With a TAS, your reaction time doesn't matter because you might very well be playing the game (or at least critical parts of it) one frame at a time. (Do note, however, that making an optimized TAS is a lot of work; if you're doing one frame at a time, it will take a long time to complete the TAS.)
The issue with speedruns is that, well, odds are you're not actually reacting to anything if you're at the upper levels. Watch someone who has played starfox 64 for example: If you played it in the 90s, even today you could probably tell someone what every enemy position is, as well as quote every line of the game in conjunction with their timing in the music without even looking at the damn screen. If you want to know reaction time, you need things that are untimeable. Fighting games and such are good tests, but there's precious little that are as easy to analyze objectively outside of fishing minigames, because that's where you see the thing they're reacting to make a sudden appearance followed by their sudden button pressing. Knowing where and went to a certain action in a platformer or something is not a reaction, but anticipation and timing. Sure, for some people it can be reaction, but in reality how often is it really?
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SpaceMadness: While I'm not a good player by means, I'm better at fighting games now than when I was in my teens. It mostly boiled down to learning to play smarter, and practicing against situations that gave me trouble. Having access to the internet later on helped as well, since the fighting game community has provided a wealth of information to help players improve.
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rtcvb32: I think reaction times is the big thing in fighting games. Though learning to do moves both on the left and right, and knowing some of the moves. But I'm probably half of what i used to be... 20 years ago, where Street Fighter 2 and MK2 were basically the standard.

I do remember having a guide of moves (early internet) where i did manage to do every fatality on every character at least once. That was interesting. I only remember one or two easy ones now.
Alot of fighting games turn out to actually be fairly slow, these days to make up for lag. Most moves are set up to be impossible to react to (10 frame jabs) vs very reactable (21 frame charge attacks). There ends up being very little you have ot react to. I fell for this trap, too, which is where i made my mistake in playing them. I got much, much better at games like Tekken when i started to realize this.
Post edited February 17, 2021 by kohlrak
Posted February 17, 2021
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Randalator: Why do you care if someone's faster? This isn't a competion. Play at whatever pace let's you enjoy your games to the fullest.
This.

Also, since when is Minecraft an action game? I only played it in creation mode. Survival got just boring.
Posted February 17, 2021
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KasperHviid: So I wonder, is there anything that can be done to get a faster brain?
Your brain does slow down a bit with age, but it also builds new pathways. Aside from games which are specifically designed to only test your reaction speed, there's usually some tactical component involved as well.

Let's not forget that Obi-Wan was probably in his 40s when he had the high ground :P.
Post edited February 17, 2021 by WinterSnowfall
Posted February 17, 2021
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Randalator: Why do you care if someone's faster? This isn't a competion. Play at whatever pace let's you enjoy your games to the fullest.
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viperfdl: This.

Also, since when is Minecraft an action game? I only played it in creation mode. Survival got just boring.
PVP and also dealing with the surprise creeper drop i'd imagine. Nothing else really needs it. I foresee some pretty complex parkour maps in the future, though, now that we have wireless redstone.
Posted February 17, 2021
you became a Buddhist ,then die and respawn as a better gamer :P
or
just use cheats like most of the kids anyway
Post edited February 17, 2021 by Orkhepaj
Posted February 17, 2021
Not a recommendation... just a story...

A couple of years ago I temporarily lost the use of an arm through a "freak" shoulder condition. I could manipulate my fingers and hand -- slightly -- but no larger movement of my arm or shoulder without severe, debilitating pain. Quickly it became apparent that I couldn't use a controller or even manipulate a mouse for fast-pace games. So, I was forced into something I had never particularly enjoyed...

... turn-based "action" and strategy games.

Born out of necessity, I now find -- having since regained complete use of my arm and shoulder -- that I have a hard time returning to fast-paced games. There are a few I still quite enjoy, but I now look to turn-based games first... and I have almost no interest in MP twitch-fests anymore.

Not saying you should give up on anything you enjoy, but sometimes necessity can open a person up to new interests.

Take that for what it's worth
Posted February 17, 2021
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kai2: Not a recommendation... just a story...

A couple of years ago I temporarily lost the use of an arm through a "freak" shoulder condition. I could manipulate my fingers and hand -- slightly -- but no larger movement of my arm or shoulder without severe, debilitating pain. Quickly it became apparent that I couldn't use a controller or even manipulate a mouse for fast-pace games. So, I was forced into something I had never particularly enjoyed...

... turn-based "action" and strategy games.

Born out of necessity, I now find -- having since regained complete use of my arm and shoulder -- that I have a hard time returning to fast-paced games. There are a few I still quite enjoy, but I now look to turn-based games first... and I have almost no interest in MP twitch-fests anymore.

Not saying you should give up on anything you enjoy, but sometimes necessity can open a person up to new interests.

Take that for what it's worth
There's other options for one-handed gamers:
* One-handed controllers exist. Get one of those, learn how to use it, and play games with your good hand.
* Some controllers support remapping in hardware, and some games also support control remapping. There's also the Xbox Adaptive Controller, which could be adapted to your needs.
* Don't forget that you have other appendages.
* Some games, like VVVVVV, can be comfortaby played with one hand, even if they're fast paced. (You only need 3 keys on a regular basis to play this game; anything else is only used in situations when there isn't any action going on, or to pause the game.)
Posted February 17, 2021
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KasperHviid: I'm in my forties, so I guess I lost a great deal of my reaction speed due to age. Seeing some kid playing minecraft really frustrated me, because compared to that, my own play was about half speed.

So I wonder, is there anything that can be done to get a faster brain?
In my experience, practice makes perfect. Even if you're not the quickest guy to pickup something, there is something to be said about having the willpower to stick with it and master it, possibly surpassing those who are quicker, but gave up or just plateaued (a lot of people get stuck in a pattern and stop evolving past a certain point).

However, gaming is not something to get proud about. That isn't the point of it, because its subjective (or I should say, more subjective than a lot of other things). Objectively, it isn't much of an accomplishment. Its something meant to enrich your life, awe you, challenge you in new ways (if you are struggling, its good, it means you are getting a lot of mental benefit out of your gaming) and possibly share with loved ones to get some quality time together.

If you'll invest a lot to get really good at something (beyond what gives your pleasure which is what gaming is about), I'd say pick something that will be of more use to others.
Post edited February 17, 2021 by Magnitus
Posted February 17, 2021
You can draw Kasper so don't change a thing:)
Posted February 17, 2021
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KasperHviid: I'm in my forties, so I guess I lost a great deal of my reaction speed due to age. Seeing some kid playing minecraft really frustrated me, because compared to that, my own play was about half speed.

So I wonder, is there anything that can be done to get a faster brain?
i'm... older than you, and I have just resigned to the fact that I have changed in last years. I hardly play twitch games anymore, and I never really played MP games. Though, I do enjoy a Mincraft session now and then, or a WoW spin. I just play the games how I want to play them, and if they don't allow it, I have othert games to play. And I notice I play more games on easy setting now, I play more for the enjoyment of the game, rather then challange and frustraions.

Any keep playing, it keeps the brqain active.
Post edited February 17, 2021 by amok
Posted February 17, 2021
you need better gaming chair + take gamer fluid , oh and an rgb mouse is a must have these days
Posted February 17, 2021
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Orkhepaj: you need better gaming chair + take gamer fluid , oh and an rgb mouse is a must have these days
Gaming chairs are actually pretty good. They have good back support, and are less expensive than decent office chairs. Before this one I had a little swivel chair, and my back got really sore after long sessions.
Posted February 17, 2021
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Orkhepaj: you need better gaming chair + take gamer fluid , oh and an rgb mouse is a must have these days
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J Lo: Gaming chairs are actually pretty good. They have good back support, and are less expensive than decent office chairs. Before this one I had a little swivel chair, and my back got really sore after long sessions.
hmm , i have one , not much fan of it , imho office chairs are better ,but yeah some of those are way too expensive
wonder why when these can be easily mass-produced
Posted February 18, 2021
I'm brain damaged so my reaction time is a toilet bowl, I'm also partially senile thanks to said damage!

My trick is taking paracetamol and pepsi Caffeine and painkillers gets you high

That or fentanyl and caffeine should do the trick, I don't recommend doing them a LOT though.

Someone tried selling me a funny looking blue tablet with a love heart printed on it told me that would definitely get rid of my pain!
Post edited February 18, 2021 by fr33kSh0w2012
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This is my favourite topic
Community
General discussionHelp! I'm a slow player! How can I improve?(53 posts)(53 posts)
(53 posts)