[October 2011] Player Archetypes

[TempesT]

In an attempt to create more substance for the fighting game board, to create a relate-able information source for the board and to incite discussion between members on popular fighting game topics, I present:

The second in a series of experimental monthly articles for the Mugen Fighters Guild.


1. Introduction

When the word archetype is used in congruence with fighting games, most people think of character archetypes. The regular karate guy, the girl, the muscly wrestler, the stereotype, the crazy fucker, etc etc. But what this article will cover is PLAYER archetypes. Are you a Aquarius or Gemini? Everyone fits into a small niche of player. As much as we'd all like to think of it, no one really has a unique way of thinking when it comes to fighting games, but that's not a bad thing, the best thing about the fighting game community is the, well, community. Finding like-minded people and having fun playing your favorite game genre.



2. "The tournament player"

The tournament player is the most serious of player, there are several different sub-classes of this archetype, but for the sake of conciseness, I won't go into them. The tournament player is the play to win type of player, most of the time they won't be seen at home online because most of their experience with fighting games either came from offline tournaments or from actual arcade scenes. The tournament player's main goal is to win for something, be it money or anything of value. The tournament play also, more often than not, plays to their top or close to their top performance regardless of setting, a trait that most other archetypes lack.



3. "The casual player"

The casual player indulges in multiple types of games, the casual player also enjoys playing fighting games. Most of the time, this player will be seen playing a plethora of fighting games that "look" interesting to him, because he isn't looking for depth or commitment to one game in particular.

The casual players main source of gameplay comes from single player and some online. Very seldom will a casual player enter a tournament (offline or online), because the player enjoys the game for the first layer; the sounds, the characters, the effects, the special moves, the super moves, the hyper moves, etc. The casual player bought SF4 when it first came out and dropped it a few months later because it wasn't fun anymore.



4. "The online warrior"

The online warrior is a current generation archetype, because there existed a time when fighting games could not be played online (outside of emulators and proprietary network programs).

The online warrior is almost exactly what it sounds like, a player whose main source of gameplay comes from online play, this is similar to the casual player, except the online warrior mostly has a drive to do well. Some online warriors are inadvertently put into this category, be it from lack of local scene, lack of monetary funds to travel to tournaments, and are the butt of some jokes in the fighting game community.

In a rare occasion, online warriors do make the transition to other categories because of their drive to do well (and their resources) and become respected members of the community and go on to do great things (Wolfkrone, PJS Latif, Poongko to name a few). The online warrior may also make the conscious decision to only play online because, while they do want to perform well, they don't wish to invest more than necessary time to their hobby.



5. "The Theory Fighter" or "The Super Theory Fighter"

The (super)theory fighter has mostly one major talent when it comes to fighting games, it's the ability to accurately transcribe certain character's strengths and weaknesses, the vanilla theory fighter is exceptionally good at examining match footage, frame data and/or character moves and producing an accurate analysis of the character, however the vanilla theory fighter is not as exceptional at placing these examinations into practice. More often than not, it's just a simple lack of execution, reaction speed or otherwise that prevents the vanilla theory fighter from applying the knowledge they produce. This player still makes attempts to apply his knowledge to the game, but physical limitations disallow it.

The Super Theory Fighter is very similar to the vanilla theory fighter in that, he is also very well-versed at gathering data on characters, games and situations in general, however, the one thing that separates the Super Theory Fighter from the vanilla Theory Fighter, is that the Super Theory Fighter has the skills to apply the produced knowledge to the game. More often, the Super Theory Fighter's knowledge base is more valued than the vanilla Theory Fighter's because of that fact.


6. "The World Warrior"

What I predict is the most common archetype, most players who fit in this category take fighting games semi-seriously and try to dip their hands into most fighting games to explore different systems and characters. These players put a decent amount of time into their craft and it usually shows. This player will play fighting games at most given opportunities, in an attempt to test their skills, get better or simply because they enjoy the game. As far as skill goes; some players are Ryu, some players are Dan.


7. Addendum

The archetypes mentioned are a basic set of archetypes applied to player's mindsets. Some people may not fit into a single category, and some may be a unique mix of these sets.



8. Conclusion

There are many different types of players, some may not even fit into any of the characters mentioned here. What do you think best describes you? Do you think there exists another archetype common enough to be added to the list? If you are a World Warrior or casual player, do you want to strive to be something else? Do you have an archetype in mind that I may have missed?  Post your thoughts, questions and comments below.

If you have an idea for an article, hit me up in a PM, as stated before discussion pieces may come more than once a month.

Archive
[September 2011] Playing to win vs. Playing to have fun

[GOH]

Excuse me miss, I have a question. How did you come up with or where did you find the nomenclature for the player archetypes?

Thank you.

[walt]

They're all pretty obvious, except the World Warrior.

[GOH]

Super Theory Fighter.

[TempesT]

Some were referenced from community members, some are personal tags. I didn't make any outrageously offensive did I?

edit: I just tacked on "Super" to "Theory Fighter" to allude to that player being able to apply knowledge to practice.

[GOH]

No you did not. :3

I just thought some were amusing.

Anyway, I guess I'm a casual player myself, specially lately since I don't have much available time to go in-depth about specific games, wether it's fighting games or not.

[Loona]

Not removing the sticky from the previous topic?...

The casual players main source of gameplay comes from online.

There is such a thing as an enjoyable single player mode in a lot of games. You know, half of KoF XII's failure.

[TempesT]

Sorry, was cleaning the bathroom at the posting time of this, thread "archived". Might ask for a sub-board if this lasts a long time though.

Also, you are right, the definition of online warrior seeped into the casual player description because of edits I made throughout the conception. Will edit.

[kakkoii superhero]

Where to put these players on your category?:
-somebody who plays because s/he is a fanatic fan of certain character only.

-somebody who is naturally talented or has more than enough basic experience in timing and using basic hth or typical special moves, and play decently although not exceptionally against other human players without bothering about  specific system, or gameplay of that particular game.

-somebody who appear busy but actually hardly ever initiate any serious attack and mostly rely on counter attacking.

-a bit related to the previous, somebody who heavily rely on throw moves, in counter attack, or by mind game to downed opponent.   

[SNT]

Vanilla Theory Fighter.  I got two left hands, and I'm a pad player.

[Peter H.]

I am described best by a myriad of those categories.  I play to win, which is fun to me.  I normally adjust my "difficulty level" to allow newcomers to enjoy the most out of the game before I kill them off, however, anyone who'd let me know in advance that they play to have fun and not just to win, thinking they're going to impose their values on mine will get wrecked, regardless of skill level.  I enter tournaments whenever they're available to me to come to while I'm off, but haven't for a long time because of a busy life - therefore I'm not well known on the fighting scene anymore.  I bought SSF4 and gave up on it the moment I noticed I had very little time, very little patience for stupid shit, and very little patience for snooty players who drop matches based on BP.  I don't get online often because I work (I'm not some stay at home we are dumb fucks spamming this site for ten years being supported by my parents under the guise of a "professional player") therefore my BP will remain low, and I don't give a shit.  I analyze matches when I watch them to see how something wound up hitting when it shouldn't have, but I don't study frame data - and to those who do, and spout it like the bible, a question - how many frames does it take for you to shut the fuck up?  I play on pad, hate sticks, and still play at stick player level - this is due to the convenience of being able to play any freaking game I want no matter what it is without having to buy a peripheral that will only work well with one type of game, that needs constant maintenance, and continuously costs my wallet.  I'm a fanatic of the characters I play.  Guy, Sol, Axl, Ky, Testament, Shen Woo, Kyo, Athena/Goddess Athena, Rugal, Rock, Kaede, Momoko, Terry, Felicia, Elena, Jedah, Jon Talbain, Johnny Cage, Rastafarian Cyrax, Raphael, Seong Mina, Yuki (NGBC), Talim, Kain R. Heinlein, Galford, etc - I choose the character based on looks/attitude/etc, not their playstyle.  I couldn't give a rat's ass if they were shoto or not. 

[Bastard Mami]

When I write something about myself that is over 365 words someone please hit me; twice if it's a single paragraph.

[GOH]

Yeah, I think they should find a way to remove frame data analysis, and while they're at it, remove footsies too.

[Peter H.]

When I write something about myself that is over 365 words someone please hit me; twice if it's a single paragraph.

I felt compelled :3

Yeah, I think they should find a way to remove frame data analysis, and while they're at it, remove footsies too.

While they're at it, they should hire Mercs to remove GOH from planet earth.

[Mechy]

Why mercs?

[TempesT]

There is no such thing as "stick player level", playing on whatever device you do is purely preferential.

[walt]

Actually I beg to differ. I may not be the best SF4 player in the world (hell, I might not even be the best in my neighborhood) but button positioning in an Xbox Pad makes everything difficult, from Hopping, to x3 for Ultra, and even FADC resets, which I'm 100% certain I'd be able to pull off in a stick.

[TempesT]

Ask Fanatiq and Wolfkrone about the difference between pad and stick players. I'll save you the trouble, there is none. If you practice mostly on a pad, you're going to be good on a pad, if you practice on a stick, you're going to be good on a stick.

Some things are easier on a stick (jab>hands on honda, mk>hands on Gen, design difference between the 2 devices), but those things are still possible on a pad. If it's physical limitations that prevent you from doing stuff on a pad, then you are someone who prefers/would prefer a stick, but an arcade stick doesn't magically give you skills in fighters or innate advantages over pad players.

[walt]

No, it's not magic. It just gives you the comfort of having all the possible commands in the same surface right at your fingertips.

Of course I could easily set the controls to whatever I want in the pad, but I'd be at a disadvantage, since I wouldn't be able to play universally anywhere without taking my challengers time to set up my pad the way I want it. Really, 3P in a 360 pad is bollocks.

Also, I can ask scientist A and scientist B what's the difference between them and my uncle Lester why they're so good for whatever, and of course they'll say the difference is none since they're all biologically humans. Also, I could ask you and a gymnast why she can do a standing double flip and you can't and the answer would be the same.

Bottom line is, 360 pads weren't ergonomically made for this kind of games. Sticks were. There is an advantage and comfort, and that's why tournaments are sponsored by Sticks controller manufacturers, because they work, that's what they're for ... the same as steering wheel controllers are made and calibrated for best response on Racing games. You can't deny that just because you roll with a couple of FG prodigies.

[TempesT]

Button configuration before matches is not uncommon. The point I'm trying to make is; practice always means more than whatever device you choose to use, the design of a stick still holds no substantial advantage over the design of a pad because of this. I own both, yet I use pad more often because that is what I am used to.

Fanatiq uses a 360 pad for Marvel 3, btw and Wolfkrone uses a pad for his Viper in SSF4.