Upper Saint Clair, PA
Quoted from CrazyLevi:The other thing I'd say is pay attention. I learned more in losing one match to Ray Day at pinburgh than I did in the previous two days of beating people. I learned that I needed to shed on my drop catch - a month later this paid off huge in Buffalo. If you are playing in a match against a good player, even at a bar, don't F around with your phone the whole time. Don't double dip and go play another game because the guy you are playing with is having a good ball. Watch these guys play and see what you can pick up. A lot of people I know think that if they just play a shitload of pinball, they'll get better, and that's not so. Yeah it helps you make a big jump from scrub to competitive all-around player, but it's not gonna take you next level. You need to work on your skills and identify what is working and what isn't, and think about how you can get better. I have a lot of friends who are good players but haven't improved in 2 years. That shouldn't happen. Unless you are Cayle and Elwin.
Came to post exactly this. Yes, skills are important and there's a ton of great advice here. But I've watched some online videos, and I've done the 'I'm gonna play this till i figure it out approach' and neither have gotten me a fraction of what watching other players has. Also - I'd also add that it doesn't have to be a good player to get something out of. Especially in an unfamiliar location/tournament situation - watching any player can clue you in the machine tilt, specific shot angles, weak flippers, malfunctioning switches, etc that you might have to adjust for. I know this saved me a bunch at Pinburgh (and I'm from PGH, so I play these machines pretty often... still a different set up at the convention center). Plus, you just might have someone totally flailing around that makes some crazy backhand shot and you think "I never even thought to try it like that".
Quoted from TheLaw:Haha my favorite is "cool I own this machine this will be easy." Ends up burying you.
If you're in the position to - modeling your collection around your issues can help. My biggest issue is consistency, so I've tried to begin building my collection to cover different system generations (Gottlieb sys1, williams 3-7, williams 11, Bally 78-84, etc) to get exposure across generations of games. Also some other little issues I have (aiming/narrow ramps, shots through pops, improving outlane control, etc) influence my decisions on games to buy. When I first started, I used to flat out hate Paragon with a passion (beast lair + newb scissoring). I found one in a garage, bought it, restored it, and now it's one of my favorites and an owned game I consistently play well on.
