We all love to win. It’s in our nature as humans, ingrained as deeply as our needs to breathe and to eat. This passion for victory has driven our civilization to greater and greater achievements as those most hungry for glory have climbed higher, traveled further, and fought harder to beat their competition.
You don’t need to be a famous explorer or Olympian to want to win, though. We all find ways to channel this energy, one way or another. For many, this channel is gaming. Particularly in more recent years, as access to video games has become easier and cheaper, there has been an ever-growing number of people picking up a controller or opening an app to compete.
But just as the internet has made it easier for people to get access to games, it has also created an arms race of gaming talent as players from around the world have found themselves matched with incredibly skilled opponents, forcing them to raise their own game to stand a chance of winning.
For new players, this can make learning the ropes a daunting and challenging experience. Of course, many games deploy a handicap system to rank players and match similarly skilled ones with each other. However, it is also a good idea to level up your gaming skills so you can give your opponents a run for their money. Not sure how to do that? Here’s where to begin.
Learn the Rules, Principles, and Strategies
No matter what you’re playing, your game(s) of choice will have a set of rules you need to follow, some basic principles of how the game works, and strategies that can help you improve your gameplay.
Of course, no strategy can guarantee you a win, no matter what you’re playing, but they are a good way to add structure to your games, get the best odds of winning, and understand how your opponents will play. You can try to do this as you play, but reading up on these key basics ahead of time and even practicing a little on your own first can help you improve your skills and boost your confidence going into a big game.
This is true for all games, and poker is a great example. There are several popular variants, but if you switch from a five-card draw to Omaha, you’ll be faced with some new rules to learn, and your strategies won’t be transferable. Therefore, it’s a good idea to read a guide on the basics, including key rules like the community cards and combo draws.
You’ll find similar guides for all types of games, including puzzle titles like sudoku and AAA blockbusters like Call of Duty, so you’ll never be short of resources to help you brush up on your gameplay.
Watch the Pros
Once you’ve learnt the basics and familiarised yourself with some of the key strategies for your chosen game, it can be a good idea to see these newly learnt techniques in action by talented players who know how to use them. This has never been easier, thanks to services like Twitch and YouTube, which allow gamers to record and broadcast their playing sessions with ease to crowds that can swell into the millions.
As you watch, pay attention to the techniques they deploy, when they deploy them, and how. This will allow you to learn from some of the best players in the world and give you an opportunity to try them out for yourself.
Practice
Practice is a key part of improving your gaming skills. There is no set amount of practice any player needs; this will depend on your natural talents, the games you want to play, and how competitive these titles can become.
Thankfully, practicing as an amateur player who only games for fun will give you additional opportunities to enjoy your favorite titles. You should try to be structured, though. Test out your newly learned techniques for yourself and refine them so you can level up your skills.
