Okay... who wants to take the time to REALLY help me?
Long, long story short... I've been playing video games for about 20 years. My favorite hobby. Thousands upon thousands of hours spent playing. I love me some epic SP games like OoT, BOTW, Bloodborne, Final Fantasy, etc. And from time to time, a multiplayer game will just sink its claws into me ... literally weeks worths of hours in games like Halo 2 or PSO or Overwatch.
But fighting games? I've completely - COMPLETELY - ignored them. Other than Smash Bros, I've put a collective, I dunno, dozen hours into a few rounds of SF, or DoA, or Soul Calibur.
I've maybe played Street fighter an hour or two.
But I'm so sick and tired of every online game as of late being just as much luck as it is skill. I won't get into it here, but I kind of lost it the other day playing PUBG with my best friend - I'm just totally dependent on a good drop and good loot rather than the skill set of me and my enemy. He tells me I need to play fighting games with him, but I just have zero interest.
He'll kick my ass and they've never called to me. BUT, you know what, I *do* like the idea - fair rules and balance. One competitor. Supposedly skills and hand-eye come out ahead.
So I grabbed this for my Switch today. I know there are supposedly better versions. I know it's expensive. But I'm looking to play more on the system, anyway.
****
SO! How do I actually play this? Normal is kicking my ass - and every.single.online guide is for someone whom already has a grasp on the game. I don't.
How do I "git gud?"
How do I block? How do I defense? I see the button mapping ... but how do combos work? How do I do the fancy moves I see online? What makes II different than other titles? Why is II also polular? Context for anything and everything... I don't have it.
At 28, I have no false assumption I'll ever be "pro," or even "good," - but I'd like to someday bring a challenge when my buddy wants to play. Is that even possible? Or is this one of those genres that I'm never gonna grasp coming in so late?
If anyone can really break down how I should learn, and what to expect, I would really, really appreciate it.