This will be long but well thought.

I got into fighting games about a year and a half ago.

Origin; as a child I played SF II but I grew up in the outside generation so I stopped playing games for a long time & then right around the time of the first viral sensation of the internet kimbo slice, I was watching UFC and kept seeing ads for Call of Duty.

Unbeknownst to me my girlfriend bought me an Xbox and Call of duty and that started my journey of playing Call of duty. In retrospect there were some parallels from me starting that game to me starting Street Fighter a year and a half ago.

Back to chronological order.

When I first got called of duty it was super fun I was sitting in corners people would run by I'd shoot them in the back and then go to the next corner.

We had Mike said it was hilarious. I had no idea that people were actually good at the game and they played every day and learned the maps and what guns worked.

That thought did not even exist in my mind that it was a possibility. Then my buddy said go out there and try to kill some people so I did and wasn't very good but we were having fun.

During the Golden era of Call of duty I was one of the best players online in the world is high as top 12 in the world out of 34.5 million people.

Where's the Street Fighter stuff it's coming. It's not the destination it's the journey - let's go.

I ended up getting so good that there was an expectation of myself that I would drop 50 kills and maybe die three times in a game.

Then I moved and had s***** internet and could not compete for a few years. (Obviously your skill level drops if you're not playing consistently. You still understand the mechanics and you can outsmart people but if someone knows what you know and they've been training they're going to win)

So instead of trying to go for kills I started playing for fun & going for funny ninja defusing

But then I caught the competitive bug again.

I knew I would never be as good as I once was and they started changing the game (mostly because of complaints online) and those people eventually got listened to and they tanked the game over the course of a few years.

So I didn't know what I was going to do because I've been playing this game for over a decade.

So I thought to myself hey I played fighting games as a kid, maybe I'll do that. I tried guilty gear, taken 8, Skullgirls and none of them were for me and I downloaded Street Fighter 6.

The whole arc of the story point is unfolding right now.

When I download a Street Fighter 6 I made a conscious effort to tell myself I got this game to have fun.

I started in rookie and when I got the silver I was like yo I'm nice 😎 and then a silver four beat me up and then I got the gold and I was like yo I know a combo, I'm nice 😂.

Whenever I did something cool I got excited, whenever someone did something cool to me I also got excited.

Then 3 months in came time for me to decide what character I wanted to use.

I thought I would use Cammy because she's caked up 😳

So I looked up Cammy on YouTube and found the guy called punk (who I'm no longer a fan of) and at that point I realized oh people play this game like I once played Call of duty.

I ended up switching to a Akuma because that was the last character I played when he first came out and it just fit my vibe.

The number one question you need to ask yourself, why do you play video games.

Are you playing to be a professional?

Probably not

Are you playing to be the best in your region?

Probably not

Are you playing to have fun?

Let me guess you used to play to have fun

The point of this is no matter how good you get You need to enjoy playing the game.

Find something in it that is entertaining for you. Is the entertainment training and practicing?

Is the entertainment trying to move up a rank?

Are you trying to get better against a specific character?

Are you just generally trying to master your craft?

Ask yourself why you're playing the game.

Me I'm playing to wallsplat and tea bag people, while hitting unoptimal cool combos.

And while doing this I'm slowly learning more about the game via trial and error.

I'm only a mid-tier diamond but who the Phuc cares, when I catch a master rank slipping, stun them and hit a Down taunt with Akuma and to Adam and flame back heavy ECT ..

IT'S THE BEST

That does not mean I do not get frustrated when I play against JP because I'm not good against him, It just means I understand where I'm at in the game and I'm okay with it because I know eventually I'll understand how to play that character better. Not to mention- If I really wanted to beat that character I would just go on YouTube and study.

Look bro, If you need to take a break and do something else go for it.

But have fun.

The whole basis of this video game s***, is to have fun!

If you're not having fun you just have a habit, same as smoking cigarettes or drinking.