Esports has gone in recent years from just a geek pastime into a legitimate endeavor. Because of all the opportunities opening up for them, both new and experienced gamers are now more encouraged to improve their skills. Here is a collection of tips to help you step up your game if you want to be like them.
Esports tip no. 1: Study your game
While some might think of video games as a mindless hobby, there is actually a lot of thinking involved in them. Research has shown that playing video games can help hone your critical thinking skills. Many of the latest games also often require you to think of different strategies to beat them.
To improve yourself in this department, you should study the game you are playing. Walkthroughs are great resource materials you can read for a certain game. They will be able to tell you about the different things you might have missed the first time you played a certain game.
If you are playing RPGs or MOBA games like League of Legends or DOTA, you might want to check out different strategy guides. These will show you different character and equipment builds you can use. Test each of them out and see if they work for you. You can then create your custom build for the character you use based on these.
Learning from other players
Another great way to be more knowledgeable about the games you play is by directly interacting with other players. Join online groups and forums where you can discuss game strategies and tips with other players. Be generous and share your own tips and strategies with others to keep the ball rolling.
Regularly playing with others also help you put all the things that you learn into practice. Organize weekly gaming sessions where you can discuss these strategies in person. Encourage them to critique your play style and point out areas for improvement.
Esports tip no. 2: Practice
Playing the game over and over is a great way to master it but you need to go beyond that. Create personal challenges you need to accomplish every time you play. For instance, you can set a time limit for completing a certain game stage. You can also play at a higher difficulty setting to see how well you fare.
If you are looking to penetrate the professional scene, then your training regimen should be more intense. You will have to come up with a practice schedule separate from your casual gaming sessions. Many professional players would even spend days continuously playing a game to master it. Note that such efforts will require a significant amount of adjustment on your part, so be prepared.
Improving your playstyle
An important part of your practice sessions is understanding what you are doing right and wrong. Nowadays, it is easy to record a whole gaming session for later viewing. Nitpick every tactic you employ and study why these might or might not work. You can also compare several replays together to see which ones work better for you.
Esports tip no. 3: Exercise
While you might not think about it, proper exercise also helps in improving your video game skills. Specifically, your goal is to strengthen your hand and finger muscles to make them more responsive. These exercises will also help you lessen the strain your hands feel from prolonged gaming.
Tennis ball squeeze
To do this exercise, you squeeze a tennis ball on your hande as hard as you can for 5 seconds and repeat this 10 times for each hand. Do this three times a day. As you build your hand strength, you can increase the repetitions.
Finger abduction
Place your hand with the palm up. Squeeze all your fingers together including your thumb as hard as you can. Hold the position for five seconds and repeat ten times for each hand. You can do this in conjunction with the above exercise several times a day.
Thumb opposition
Begin by holding your thumb and index finger together. Squeeze as hard as you can and hold the position for five seconds. Repeat the process with your thumb and middle finger and so on. Repeat the exercise three times for each hand.
Esports tip no. 4: Be healthy
Like physical sports, you need to be healthy to perform well in any video game. Eating right is essential here so make sure to get a balanced diet. Stay away from too much sugar, caffeine or alcohol, as these will make your responses more jittery, throwing off your game.
It is also essential that you take regular breaks to refresh your body. Listen to your body’s signals to know when it is time to eat, take a bladder break, or sleep. You would also want to have time off from gaming every now and then to lessen any feeling of burnout.
Improve your video game skills and be a top player
Whether you are planning to enter the world of esports or simply want to do better during casual games, the above tips will help you a lot. Follow them and you will be on the top of your game as time goes by.