98 replies to this topic

[Xacius]

Hey everyone,

I'd like to start getting constructive commentary out to the public, but I won't be streaming Hawken over the next couple of weeks. It's also easier for me to review someone else's gameplay.  If you're interested in improving and have recording capabilities, post a couple videos of some gameplay sessions and I'll do my best to respond!  Please PM me if you're not interested in posting a public video or just want a private review.  

I'm interested in helping players get better. Following the recent announcement of incoming competitive support, I'd like to expedite the process and provide constructive discussion with gameplay commentary.  Post a video or clip of your gameplay (preferably longer than 2 minutes) and I'll reply.  Posting multiple clips is fine, but please try to diversify your mech selection.  Also, there is no need to quote this post.  I'll know what to do when you post your video.  

Here's the process: After you post a video (please use the forum's embed feature with the ["media"] tag minus the quotation marks), I'll watch it and create specific timestamps on the thread with commentary for each timestamp.  Simple and effective.  Just be sure to embed the video in your post!  

Cheers!


Update:  I highly encourage everyone, especially up-and-coming players, to watch gameplay segments from other players and read the commentary that I've provided.

Edited by Xacius, January 18 2014 - 04:38 PM.

[driedjello]

Coming up!  As a mid tier player, I would love to hear a high level player critique of my play.  I grabbed the latest thing in my fraps folder and only a small chunk to not bore you to death.  I did well only because I was on a stronger team and the opponents lacked situational awareness methinks.  Well I hate watching my videos because I can spot a million things I am unhappy with.  It's kinda like having sex on camera: it looks nothing like an adult video as I would have imagined, more like barnyard animals.  LOL

Edited by driedjello, January 17 2014 - 12:37 AM.

[Interrobang87]

I am not Xacius but i would like to be constructive in a couple ways.

First, don't use a siege game, especially a one sided one, for your example of how you typically play. It makes it almost impossible to critique what you do and how you play. Use a TDM or death match game instead so we (Xacius) can see what you do in CQC and how you play with a team.

Second.. Sorry, i got nothing. First half of the vid was running EU and the second was hitting people with... zzzz... Hell.. Zzzz... Fires.

[Xacius]

driedjello's Bruiser

Spoiler

driedjello, on January 17 2014 - 12:19 AM, said:

Well I hate watching my videos because I can spot a million things I am unhappy with.  

Spoiler

Being able to spot what you're doing wrong is the first step to getting better.

Critique

Spoiler

0:40-0:45 — Good.  You spot the enemy and surprise them with a hellfire volley, immediately giving you the upper hand in the engagement.   Notice how you fire your secondary and walk out of their view before they can retaliate.  You did exactly what you should have.  

0:46-0:49 — After you gain the vertical advantage to acquire your hellfire lock, you land abruptly and temporarily remain stationary.  Two things:  1) Always keep moving. Stationary targets are the easiest to hit.  2) Right before you land, hit the spacebar to soft-land.  This bypasses the hard-landing lag and allows you to keep moving immediately after landing.

1:05 — Here you do a full turn where Shift+S would have been more feasible.  Start using Shift+S to turn around, it’s really convenient.  

1:57-2:08 — In this section it looks like you’re attempting to acquire a lock underneath the AA.  With hellfires you need to be able to lock onto targets in open areas, avoiding any cover that could cause your missiles to miss. You ascend around 2:10 and start doing exactly that.  

2:10-2:30 — Your movements are minimalistic.  Try to move around more and always be prepared for the enemy to retaliate.  Transition between Attack à Cover à Attack to maximize the damage you deal to enemies while preventing them from scoring hits on you.  

3:20 — more stationary firing.  Try to keep moving, even while attacking.  Get used to aiming on the move.  If you’re having trouble aiming while moving, try lowering your sensitivity settings.  Remember, Hawken’s turn-speed cap makes very high sensitivity more detrimental than helpful.  

My mouse sensitivity settings are 7 in game, with 1600 DPI on my Razer Deathadder mouse.  

3:58 — You immediately tense up when the enemy Predator comes into view, which shakes your mouse and throws off your accuracy.  Try to keep a relaxed grip and make calm, calculated movements with your mouse.  

All in all, you seem to have a decent understanding about when to approach/back off.  Your accuracy could use some improvement, and you should practice on moving more during combat.  Remaining stationary makes you an easy target.  Feel free to post more!

Edited by Xacius, January 17 2014 - 02:08 AM.

[Interrobang87]

Alright, Xacius color me impressed, that was a well thought out response to his post. You gleaned way more than i expected from that video. +1

[newkah]

I use these videos to promote our gameplay in Asia but I don't mind getting some feedback for improvements.







Thanks for your time!

Edited by newkah, January 17 2014 - 01:39 AM.

[JeffMagnum]

Interrobang87, on January 17 2014 - 01:10 AM, said:

First, don't use a siege game, especially a one sided one, for your example of how you typically play.

I definitely agree with that. When the enemies aren't very good at the game, you're not truly demonstrating your abilities and aren't put in high-pressure situations that can cause you to choke and make lots of careless mistakes. If you show us some higher-level TDM/DM footage in which you're actually challenged and die multiple times, then I'm sure Xacius and others will be able to give you better criticism.

[Lucier]

In addition to whatever commentary you have, can you tell me if there is any observable difference in quality between these two videos and if the quality is good/bad_

[Xacius]

newkah's Brawler

Spoiler

newkah, on January 17 2014 - 01:34 AM, said:

I use these videos to promote our gameplay in Asia but I don't mind getting some feedback for improvements.

Spoiler

Thanks for your time!

Sure thing; it's my pleasure.

Critique

Spoiler

1:18 — Your target had jumped and was in the process of landing, leaving them vulnerable, but you missed your TOW!  

Remember, just because your weapons are off of cooldown doesn't mean you need to fire them right away.  Be more patient and ensure that you're going to land the hit before you fire.  It could very well mean the difference between living and securing a kill.  

7:55 — Here you boost in between Flak shots to close the distance and approach as you're damaging.  
Great tactic.  

Based on your Brawler performance, there isn't much advice I can offer you.  You have great heat management, accuracy, and movement.  Your combat awareness, radar usage, and management of tense circumstances is excellent.  I'll review some of your other videos to see if I can find anything more to say.  For the mean-time, try to be a little bit more patient with your Flak shots.  Brawler generates a lot of Heat, so you can't afford to miss in long engagements.  Also, it seems that your opponents were relatively low-skilled and/or unorganized.  It looked like a stomp.  

I'll check your other videos tomorrow to see more of your gameplay.  

Lucier's Assault (entire first video complete)

Spoiler

Lucier, on January 17 2014 - 01:36 AM, said:

Spoiler

This one was a little easier to comment on because the other team was dominating, putting you in tense circumstances that required more attention. It also helps that I was in the match, and remember particular instances of that specific game.  
UPTOWN SEGMENT

Spoiler

Uptown is naturally a stalemate map, so I'll mostly be commenting on segments where combat is flowing.  
1:30 - As you go up the lift, you ignore the target behind you for the one in front.  Having played with you a lot in the previous couple of months, I've seen you do this on numerous occasions.  
Generally you're going to want to turn and face the most relevant threat.  Here, you fire at an enemy who is boosting away, potentially drawing their attention while ignoring the target behind you that is already shooting at you.  
Luckily, the target backs off and heads straight for the combat.  Around 1:39, you should probably have repaired instead of heading into the engagement with 3/5 health.  

1:42 to 1:44 - Notice how I slowly start to back off to the right as the enemy team overwhelms us.  Your positioning here is questionable, especially considering the fact that you're utilizing a close-range weapon.  

1:44 - You've attracted the attention of one pissed off Lion, and he doesn't appear to like you very much.  You did, however, wrack up considerable damage as he approached, but by the time you backed off down below, his team had already swarmed the area and destroyed the rest of ours.

2:40 - now that's what I call poaching.  Try to be more patient with your TOWs, especially against evasive targets.  

2:57 - Here you stand still for about 2-3 seconds after you've acquired the falling Brawler.  That's where you get EMP'd and are forced to back off temporarily, allowing the Brawler to damage your teammates.

4:14 - Nice back-dodge.  Backing off to your allies was definitely the right move in that situation.

6:00 - Try to manage the distance of those TOWs a little better.  That Scout target was in a terrible position.

So far: your accuracy is great, but your positioning needs a little bit of work.  You also need to be able to discern which threat is more relevant to your survival.  You often get tunnel vision and go straight for a single target while avoiding deadlier opposition.

ORIGIN SEGMENT

Spoiler

10:54 - As you're zoning on the raider, your movement takes a hit.  You're still walking, but you're getting pegged with their secondary.  Mix up movements and put more emphasis on dodging.  

11:06 to 11:10 - poor positioning.  When in doubt, back up to the nearest point of safety.

11:16 - your positioning got you killed.  

11:44 - good push.

11:54 to 11:59 - you're moving your mouse around a lot, missing shots.  Not sure if you were trying to anticipate the Scout's movements, but it looked a little strange.  Try not to tense up.  If you keep your hand relaxed, your aim will be more consistent.  

12:03 - you focused so much on tracking the Scout that you overheated.  
common mistake, happens to me sometimes too.  Manage one thing at a time!

12:40 to 14:00 good positioning overall

13:39 - softland using hover right before you land.  You should never be taking damage from a fall unless you're out of fuel.  

14:30 - here's where things get hectic and you make a lot of mistakes.  

14:33 - the spinup time for the Vulcan is low enough for you to be able to stop firing while targets are temporarily out of view.  Stopping also resets spread and increases the viable range of the weapon.  

14:38 - Look very closely and observe how your mouse aim is practically shaking.  To me, this indicates that you're tensing up.  Try to stay relaxed, especially in difficult engagements.  

14:41 - here, you fire your TOW rocket as soon as it comes off of cooldown, hitting the ally in front of you and missing out on potential damage.  Sometimes you need to be patient and wait for the right time to fire.  Don't just fire simply because your weapon is available, because you might miss.  

14:45 - note the minimap around 14:30.  You can clearly see where all of your allies are, yet you've chosen to position yourself away from them.  Had you backed off towards your allies, you may have survived.  
I believe this is an issue of tunnel vision.  You zoned in on that Scout and didn't even try to leave until he was dead.  Sometimes you have to break off, even if the target isn't dead.  Luckily, your ally secured the kill shortly after your death.

15:08 - That was a questionable jumppad decision, seeing as the majority of your allies were halfway across the map.  

16:00 - Instead of dealing with the Scout threat to your right, you chase the Raider that you had originally targeted.  The Scout follows you and continues to attack as you tunnel in on the Raider.  Had you stayed up top and dealt with the Scout first, you may have been able to go positive in that engagement.  

16:41 - nice block.

16:52 - Great positioning.  After you and an ally scare away the A-class up top, you follow up and assist an ally down below by raining fire on chasing opponents.  Watch closely: you actually isolated the C-class from the engagement by diverting his attention to your fire and forcing him to back off.  Not only does this lead to a kill at 17:10, but it also helps your ally survive.  

17:10 - Right before the C-class dies, your mini-map clearly indicates that 3 red dots are approaching your position.  You should have prepared to engage them by staying behind cover and waiting for their approach.  Instead, you stay out in the open.  

17:15 - More tunneling on the Scout, causing you to ignore the targets to your left until it's too late.  You should have backed off behind cover before receiving fire from the enemies approaching from the left.  

17:54 - Great radar awareness.  Killing the isolated enemy is always easier than taking on the entire pack.  

18:45 - Even before you hit the ground, you can clearly see that you are surrounded by 4 enemies.  I would have gone straight back up the lift in that situation.  

18:52 - you try to head back to the lift, but by that time it's already too late.

All in all, decent accuracy and great damage, but your situational awareness and positioning is spotty.  Oftentimes you stand out in the open in situations where you should have ducked behind cover for safety.  Try not to tunnel as much, and work on your accuracy in tense situations.  

Edited by Xacius, January 17 2014 - 07:00 PM.

[DerMax]

Hm. I'll try and record my 15-fps play today

[Kenpos]

Hi Xacius, thanks for your time.

[EliteShooter]

wow ! good initiative !!!

[nepacaka]

what program is best to record video_ I have a cheap/weak PC.
in any case, I've never used the program for video-capture. Advise a simple program that can be used are not very smart man (me).

[Kenpos]

nepacaka, on January 17 2014 - 04:54 AM, said:

what program is best to record video_ I have a cheap/weak PC.
in any case, I've never used the program for video-capture. Advise a simple program that can be used are not very smart man (me).

I use Bandicam, and I like it far more than FRAPS.

[shosca]

nepacaka, on January 17 2014 - 04:54 AM, said:

what program is best to record video_ I have a cheap/weak PC.
in any case, I've never used the program for video-capture. Advise a simple program that can be used are not very smart man (me).

You can use obs. It's free. http://obsproject.com/

Edited by shosca, January 17 2014 - 05:06 AM.

[nepacaka]

thx guys i try it, maybe my PC will not explode from overload XD

Edited by nepacaka, January 17 2014 - 07:09 AM.

[RozerMahbub_]

i dont have anything to post....

[ShadowGTR]

Xacius, on January 17 2014 - 01:12 AM, said:

[font=Arial, sans-serif]If you’re having trouble aiming while moving, try lowering your sensitivity settings.  Remember, Hawken’s turn-speed cap makes very high sensitivity more detrimental than helpful.  [/font]

[font=Arial, sans-serif]My mouse sensitivity settings are 7 in game, with 1600 DPI on my Razer Deathadder mouse.  [/font]

May I ask what your OS pointer speed is set at (the Windows one)_ I normally have it set to the middle of the slider area (about 5 ticks in from the left), have my DPI set to around 1300 and in-game sensitivity set to about 15. All mouse smoothing and acceleration are all turned off. With this setup, it seemed like it wasn't fast enough (better for sniping maybe, but not CQC which I generally do). I decided last night to drop the OS pointer speed to 3 ticks from the left, raised the DPI to 3800 and dropped in-game sensitivity to 10. Much faster, but also feels a bit too "twitchy", makes getting precise distance shots more difficult. I'll need to adjust it some more, see if I can find a sweet spot. Of course, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Edited by ShadowGTR, January 17 2014 - 08:58 AM.

[peacecraftSLD]

I would definitely would like some advice to get better. I'll need to make a more current video of me playing as the videos I have are from awhile ago. Lately I have felt that my performance has been terrible and any advice on how to improve would be very helpful.

[shosca]

ShadowGTR, on January 17 2014 - 08:53 AM, said:

Xacius, on January 17 2014 - 01:12 AM, said:

[font=Arial, sans-serif]If you’re having trouble aiming while moving, try lowering your sensitivity settings.  Remember, Hawken’s turn-speed cap makes very high sensitivity more detrimental than helpful.  [/font]

[font=Arial, sans-serif]My mouse sensitivity settings are 7 in game, with 1600 DPI on my Razer Deathadder mouse.  [/font]

May I ask what your OS pointer speed is set at (the Windows one)_ I normally have it set to the middle of the slider area (about 5 ticks in from the left), have my DPI set to around 1300 and in-game sensitivity set to about 15. All mouse smoothing and acceleration are all turned off. With this setup, it seemed like it wasn't fast enough (better for sniping maybe, but not CQC which I generally do). I decided last night to drop the OS pointer speed to 3 ticks from the left, raised the DPI to 3800 and dropped in-game sensitivity to 10. Much faster, but also feels a bit too "twitchy", makes getting precise distance shots more difficult. I'll need to adjust it some more, see if I can find a sweet spot. Of course, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

http://donewmouseacc...ration-fix.html