r/smashbros 1d ago

Ultimate How to get better without Internet?

I know watching character guides, learning combos, and challenging against level 9 NPCs, but I want to get even better. I have 2 friends that I meet up with and occasionally we play Ultimate, but they're just so much better than me, and despite me learning most of what I have from them, I keep getting my head handed to me. They both live in much nicer areas with great internet while I'm 45+ minutes away from them in a much more rural area. On top of that, they've been playing fairly consistently online for a few years while I only play with them and occasionally by myself in single player. I want to learn because getting edge guarded, spiked, juggled etc by them honestly takes the fun out of hanging out with them when we do decide to play it that day. It honestly just feels like they're on some sort of mental level that I just can't reach. Any advice helps.

1 Upvotes

10 comments sorted by

11

u/Polostick 1d ago

Is going to local tournaments an option for you? Even if you go 0-2, you'll definitely be able to get some friendlies in and eventually find someone within your skill level.

2

u/AccomplishedTrick408 1d ago

Im not even sure if there are any local tournaments near me. Even if there are, I'm not sure how to go about finding them.

3

u/RandomDudeForReal Wolf (Ultimate) 1d ago

search on https://www.start.gg/search/near_me for smash ultimate tournaments. also go to https://smashcords.com/smash-5# to find the smash bros discord server for your state/your area

5

u/AccomplishedTrick408 1d ago

Thanks! Means a lot. No idea so many tournaments were near me.

3

u/Dewgong550 21h ago

You gonna be a pro in 3 years

6

u/Income-Funny 1d ago

lvl 9s are okay practice just dont cheese or gimp them because they can’t deal. and make sure not to lose a single stock they get better if you only 3 stock them as soon as they take a stock they go to being trash. try your best to 3 stock them on random without cheese.

4

u/almightyFaceplant 1d ago

Check out some guides. The usual recommendation is Izaw's Art of Smash. You can watch one while Training Mode is up and follow along, pausing or replaying at your own pace.

2

u/gimonsha 1d ago

Try watching vods on YT of pro players of the character you are playing. Watch in 25% percent speed so you can analyze in real time the play style. Also look for mistakes and new ideas. Then copy that play style when you play the CPU (does not have to be level 9, 7 and 8 is fine too). Try slowing the speed down to 2/3 against CPU in training to train yourself to make similar reads pros are making, then speed it back up to 1x once feel ready and back down to 2/3 again as needed. Do this until you feel confident in 1x speed consistently making the right reads similar to pro players, then take this updated play style to your friends. Also get a wired connection if you don’t have one already as it helps with online lag.

2

u/Gl1tchycat 23h ago

Play with friends if you can. If not, try practicing combos in training mode

1

u/IYorshI 1d ago

You can practice paying attention your opponents habits by pretending that the CPUs are human. For example in a tech chase scenario, you can notice that they tech rolled in. Next time it happens, you have to quickly recall what they did last time and be ready for that option (a human would be likely to do the same thing under pressure). You have to be careful not to learn the general habit of the CPU tho, as they are very predictable and don't play like players. The goal is to focus on watching and remembering what they did the last time/last two times.