Support NeoGAF

[DrFigs]

I think the time to kill in cod is a really big limiting factor if you don't have twitch reflexes. I think games like Apex or Overwatch are just more friendly for beginners. Especially overwatch, since there are actual support roles which don't rely on getting the most kills or whatever.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

...will try to watch for it and tag you if I can remember that is

 

[Beer Baelly]

Bad Company 2 and the first Black Ops were the last mp games I actively played lol.

 

[Sub_Level]

People have been playing cod for over 10 years and gotten REALLY good at it. The skill cieling is still low compared to more tactical stuff but hilariously the barrier to entry has risen, meaning you have a situation which is neither beginner friendly nor super-pro friendly.

 

[HeisenbergFX4]

Why I enjoy getting behind enemy lines and taking out their spawn points and how clueless people are in this game since its not always easy to tell friend from foe

 

[Rubicaant]

My advice, if you actually want to get better, is to pick a game, and stick with it. Dont stop playing it, at least 15 minutes a day, preferably more. Its like learning a new instrument, play it every day and practice. If you're changing games often and taking long breaks you will never improve.

 

[Danknugz]

fuck that noise, major buzzkill for me. last time i tried in CoD was getting nukes in MW2 on 360. Had to pretend like you were really there and fighting to save your own life, seemed to work well, just play as ruthlessly cheap as possible and feel no remorse or guilt for playing like that.

 

[RickMasters]

In all seriousness…… you need to take what I call the MJ approach….. see… when MJ was getting a bit older and slowing down the pace of his game he focused more on a deliberate play style that allowed to free up space to take a shot.




Now let’s apply this to FPS. Play with a team you can rely on that watch each others blind spots. If you are playing alone in MP use your non communicative team as bait for the enemy. Clean em up with them mid range shots. Don’t run unless to close distance and even then never run when close to a corner…. ADS…. When going around corners…. ADS…. Keep everything important in your line of site…..

Some more specific tactics of mine as 38 year old player :

If playing COD…. Never be the first at the choke point…. Never be the last either…. If your team moves to far ahead… they other team spawns behind you…. So the guys behind can now do you the honour of being your bullet shield while the enemy gives up their location on your map…..be more thoughtful about your position on the map too.



Halo…. Trust in the BR/DMR. Don’t be afraid. To use vertically to your advantage. Use the power weapons as bait. Grab the power weapons after you kill them all…. From a good distance with some descent cover to move around and play with.


Battlefield…. Kill all engineers. Kill all tanks. Shoot down all choppers. It’s better to affect the tide of the battle in this game than it is to be Rambo. Nuff said…. And respect that bullet drop. Aim cautiously



Star Wars Battlefront: just have fun. Enjoy the spectacle! Its just like being in a battle in one of then movies. All I can say is just have fun with this one. Don’t even care about winning too much but play the objective all the same. That’s where all the action is going on for real in this game. It’s way more fun that way.

 

[ChoosableOne]

No hope, sadly. Just turn off voice chat, like I do, and you'll be fine.

 

[RickMasters]

fuck that noise, major buzzkill for me. last time i tried in CoD was getting nukes in MW2 on 360. Had to pretend like you were really there and fighting to save your own life, seemed to work well, just play as ruthlessly cheap as possible and feel no remorse or guilt for playing like that.

Exactly. No rules on the battlefield anyway. And if you treat each life like it’s your last you live longer. Can be a bit boring in large map games but you do find your own flow in them sandboxes. You find your own paths that get you killed the least and you play to those. Some games Have parts of maps I never go because they don’t suit my play style and that’s cool. Just goes to show that you can really think your way to a good end of match stats check.

 

[Thanati]

Do what I did, find a group that’s of a similar age and arrange with them. I’m having fun again!

 

[Naked Lunch]

You just need more practice. Really learn the gameplay and player styles.
You can't just hop on to a (good) mp game with skill gaps and expect to dominate - it takes some work.
You will improve if you pick away at it.

Im an old geezer and I still wreck fools. The trick is - I never left the scene.

 

[AmuroChan]

Father time is undefeated. After I hit 35, I've just learned to accept that my reaction time is no longer what it used to be. I still play PvE from time to time, but I'm pretty much retired from PvP.

 

[wvnative]

I have a degenerative muscle disease that makes it impossible for me to be competitive in straight up pvp shooters like call of duty/titanfall etc...but I like to play with my buddies who are super understanding of my limits and we have some cool solutions.

We play a lot of battlefield, and R6 siege. On battlefield, I can do different things that do not involve direct firefights, such as repairing vehicles, standing outside the main battle area and trying to snipe choppers and planes, etc. I ain't gonna get to the top of the scoreboard or anything, but it absolutely helps my team out.

On R6 siege, I try to play a lot of trap based operators like kapkan and frost etc... with strategic placement I can kill dudes without touching my controller, even if they don't die, this seriously reduces enemy health if they hit a trap which in itself greatly helps out the team. On attacker side I play montagne who is a shield operator and intended to act as a tank to draw enemies, while my team behind me tries to pick em off from the sides. I'll also play fuse which can shoot grenades through walls, will rarely kill the enemy but makes em scramble and panic allowing a competent team to shoot them in the back like the dogs that the- err never mind.

For Titanfall and CoD, we don't play those often, they are more difficult for me, but when we do to switch it up, we just play the co-op modes, still difficult but not as so.


You just have to get creative and find games/playstyles/modes that don't require twitch reflexes.

 

[jorgejjvr]

It might be SBMM

 

[LavitzSlambert]

Honestly you just probably don’t have the time to commit for competitive play. Gaming is bigger than ever, and there are a ton of people that play just a single game or series. It seems weirdly obsessive but there’s enough of them to make it difficult playing a PVP game. If you play a variety of games, work a job, have a family, you just aren’t going to have the capacity to compete.


With that said, there are plenty of PVE games out there you can play with friends. And they don’t all have to be new. Borderlands 2 is the GOAT coop FPS. If you are interested in other genres, Monster Hunter is excellent. Probably the most seamless drop in/drop out multiplayer I’ve ever played outside of an MMO.

 

[nemiroff]

Don't play against software cheaters and cronus cheaters..

Father time is undefeated. After I hit 35, I've just learned to accept that my reaction time is no longer what it used to be. I still play PvE from time to time, but I'm pretty much retired from PvP.

You are kinda right, but I don't think it's not about the raw reaction time per se. As an older gamer I've been measuring my reaction time about every year for decades, and it's @ about 280ms; the same as it always been, like when I was playing Halo 1/2/3 MP back in the days (and I'm actually potently competitive in CoD..). I think it's more about not having the necessary time to stay competitive as a family man with limited time and focus.

And of course; If you play MP games prone to software and hardware cheats (Cronuses) things will feel even more frustrating.

Edit: I completely forgot about SBMM... Yeah..

 

[VideoGameEnjoyer]

It might be SBMM

Yea, solo queue feels pretty ‘normal’

 

[A.Romero]

I've never been great at MP shooters, they just weren't a big part of my rotation growing up. I'm 40 now and I play Battlefield regularly and do end up first place some times. I also play fighting games and still hold my own. While is true reflexes are not the same as before, I don't think the impact is so much that it takes enjoyment out of games. What is true is that I cannot play the same amount of time I would 20 years ago so I can't develop the same amount of expertise.

It doesn't matter to me, though. MP games have become more of a social activity than a competition. As other posters have said, I'd recommend games that don't depend so much on twitching, tactital shooters are great for that because positioning, teamwork and tactics in general are what get you through the game.

Also games like Counter Strike, in my opinion, are not so much about twitching but mostly muscle memory. If you watch high level CS matches and really pay attention you will notice that people tend to aim to the same spots all the time. It just takes quite a lot of practice.

BTW, my younger brother is 38 and he is pretty good at those games, including Overwatch. Same with a 35 year old friend that just happens to play a lot.

 

[BouncyFrag]

I still play the Mass Effect 3 pve multiplayer whenever I’m signed up with gold. It’s still fun and has players even tho it’s from the 360/ps3 era.

Other than that, I’m rubbish at most things multiplayer.

 

[bitbydeath]

Everyone continually dies in COD, it’s why it’s so boring. Try Fortnite, it’s more about skill in an open world compared to a small box where everyone piles on one another over and over again.

 

[stickkidsam]

Appreciate the suggestions and other peoples experiences. And Gold too, how about that. Guess I'm just an old man now.

Assuming my friends won't be playing something other than CoD, is there any "This one simple trick!" type strategies that are easy to employ? I would settle for a 0.75k/d at this point. 'Camping' doesn't work, I always do it wrong. Guess I can check youtube videos or something.

I guess just practice some more, and try to enjoy the comradery. Just accept that I'll be getting destroyed during. Thanks all.

Different guns will offer different strategies, but ultimately a good support player on the team is amazing. With your team at the front, it gives you more time to respond and offers a better view of the battlefield. You can have an LMG that you are unloading while mounted or hell, pick them off with a sniper or marksman rifle. Just try not to be too far back unless you just want to camp. Whatever weapon you use though, utilize the mini map. In quiet moments I find it helps to peek at what direction my teammates are looking to get a sense of where the enemy will come from. This of course assume you are playing normal multiplayer and not Warzone.

Use special equipment like the tactical camera too. It’s great for helping your teammates spot incoming threats. If a player can’t be spotted you can still mark where they are on the map. Tear gas grenades and Molotovs are great for controlling enemy movement and supporting your team.

As for perks, I highly recommend Resupply and High Alert. Great to have eyes in the back of your head and you’ll love the limitless grenades.

 

[wvnative]

Don't play against software cheaters and cronus cheaters..

You are kinda right, but I don't think it's not about the raw reaction time per se. As an older gamer I've been measuring my reaction time about every year for decades, and it's @ about 280ms; the same as it always been, like when I was playing Halo 1/2/3 MP back in the days (and I'm actually potently competitive in CoD..). I think it's more about not having the necessary time to stay competitive as a family man with limited time and focus.

And of course; If you play MP games prone to software and hardware cheats (Cronuses) things will feel even more frustrating.

Edit: I completely forgot about SBMM... Yeah..

This absolutely shatters my heart. As a disabled gamer I RELY on the cronus or I wouldn't be able to play video games. It can do so much more than the options provided on console/in-game. Allows me to use my dualshock 4 on all consoles, including old ones like PS2/gamecube, remap the stick clicks to the touchpad, hold certain buttons for me, like the throttle in vehicle based games, hot swap controls etc...

But 99% of people use it for no recoil, kb/m, you name it, and it gets a horrible name whenever brought up. This is why Sony became so hostile to other devices on PS5, they were trying to curb that shit. This also made the PS5 unusable for me for 2 and a half years. It fucking sucks.

People cheat, and people like me get punished. It's awful. I wish someone would make an identical device with all the same features but without anyway to use cheatpacks, and market it SOLELY as an accessibility device. Then Sony/MS/Nintendo could perhaps support it officially, and take down cronus/titan with legal action.

 

[nemiroff]

This absolutely shatters my heart. As a disabled gamer I RELY on the cronus or I wouldn't be able to play video games. It can do so much more than the options provided on console/in-game. Allows me to use my dualshock 4 on all consoles, including old ones like PS2/gamecube, remap the stick clicks to the touchpad, hold certain buttons for me, like the throttle in vehicle based games, hot swap controls etc...

But 99% of people use it for no recoil, kb/m, you name it, and it gets a horrible name whenever brought up. This is why Sony became so hostile to other devices on PS5, they were trying to curb that shit. This also made the PS5 unusable for me for 2 and a half years. It fucking sucks.

People cheat, and people like me get punished. It's awful. I wish someone would make an identical device with all the same features but without anyway to use cheatpacks, and market it SOLELY as an accessibility device. Then Sony/MS/Nintendo could perhaps support it officially, and take down cronus/titan with legal action.

I hope you don't think that I'm opposed to you using what's necessary to make up for your situation here, because that was not in my purview at all.

But yeah, I can see the dilemma in it for you. Possibly being blocked from or banned for fair use of a device wouldn't be a good situation.

 

[Rhazkul]

As you are getting older and hopefully more mature you will realize that your performance, however bad it might be, shouldn't stop you from enjoying games. There are more important aspects in life than a gaming skill and worriying about such trivial things is useless.
Anyway, if it triggers you, find other games, try different genres, and maybe go back to singleplayer games.

 

[BlackTron]

Your experience playing a FPS game sounds like me playing one with a modern controller. Give me the same game with a mouse/kb and it's perfectly fine. Have you considered changing input method. Admittedly better for an online multiplayer type setup than local gaming. I don't think FPS will ever be as good as when I had a LAN in the basement for Halflife and Halo 1 (and Starcraft). Everyone was on the same playing field, and it wasn't a bullshit field, and zero lag.

 

[wvnative]

I hope you don't think that I'm opposed to you using what's necessary to make up for your situation here, because that was not in my purview at all.

But yeah, I can see the dilemma in it for you. Possibly being blocked from or banned for fair use of a device wouldn't be a good situation.

Naw man it's good. I was just using it as an opportunity to rant about the general situation. And i get just as mad as others when i clearly get clipped by a Cronus cheater on R6 siege.

Good news is there's no way to get banned by just using it. Only if they detect really fast movement. It's just a fear of console makers trying to ban it. So far it's just Sony that's a problem.

 

[SimTourist]

Yeah man CoD is a young man's game, you might wanna try something slower paced and more tactical where you can outsmart your enemies rather than rely on your reflexes.

 

[Darko]

I only play coop games lol.. I’m too scared to multiplay

 

[Justin9mm]

40 here, love COD, not as good as I used to be, I don't completely suck but I'm far from good. I don't care anymore, I don't have time to put in the hours because I want to enjoy other games and other things in life.

COD and racing games are treated the same, I jump on for a match/race or two when I feel like it and I'm out. I don't play with friends anymore because of my skill level and makes me anxious when you suck playing against ppl you know and it makes me more nervous. Now I just have fun, good or bad against random ppl online.

 

[March Climber]

Best advice: Stick to PvE co-op…or PvP multiplayer games that require chess-like strategy(taking turns and getting long moments to think about your next move).

Twitch shooters, fighters, and racing games only get worse for you the more you age.

 

[LaughingStock]

If you're young you can still improve. If you're old like me, I'm 44, you're done.
Ever since I stopped playing MP my life got better.

 

[Fabieter]

Play Fortnite.

You will find a ton of casuals there that you can obliterate and feel good about it.

Good idea but go for the zero building mode.

 

[coffinbirth]

Basically what the title says. Growing up I was all about multiplayer games. MW2 in high school with the boys every night is one of my great gaming memories. I was never the best, or even top 3. But I could hold my own, occasionally I could top a match leaderboard, killstreaks were not a rare occurrence, etc.

Then the PS4 and XBone were announced, and I went the PS4 route. Since graduating high school it's been 90% single player games, I got super into Overwatch for a bit in college, but that's it. Me and the boys are all grown up now, and getting to play anything online is just fun to hang and chat. I've bought like 3 of the last 5 CoD's, enjoy them for a second. And then inevitably drop off because I am just getting my ass absolutely pounded mercilessly, constantly.

My friends are definitely better than me, so SBMM definitely doesn't help matters. But it's also very easy to tell that I just plain suck at the game. We got on the new CoD beta yesterday, and I thought the old maps I know so well would really help me. But instead my last excuse went out the window, not knowing the map layouts of the other recent CoD's was definitely not my issue, I am just terrible. Something with more strategy and less twitch based like Overwatch I think I could still play well but CoD is like my nightmare multiplayer experience for my what I'm good at in games.

It's all about positioning and 1v1 gunfights, hard to decide which I am worse at. I feel I am constantly fighting against controls in gunfights, even if the controls are perfectly fine. I just have a tendency to freak out when I need to do the exact opposite. So many embarrassing moments where I have no idea how I just lost a fight. But I really think my positioning and timing might be even worse. Clearly I just have no sense whatsoever of the rhythms (spawns, positions, etc.) of the game. The amount of times I'm staring down an alley for 30 seconds or more, only to be jumped the second I decide to move would be pure comedy if it wasn't so damn annoying. I am always just looking the wrong way, or a second early or late. I have no sense of awareness of anything outside my immediate point of view.

This novel could go on and on. TLDR: I STINK

But I like hanging out with my friends, I can still tell the game is pretty good too. Guns feel nice, I still do enjoy the familiar maps even if they don't help me at all. Can I do anything with my very little amount of skill to at least play with my friends without being a complete embarrassment? TIA

You just gotta practice, my guy. Whatever hours you put in back on 360 you gotta double/triple now to keep up. Move slow and ramp your way up. If you can't jump out into the mosh pit and hang...don't, until you can. Stay on the meta weapons, pay close attention to playstyles with weapons you are good with. Grind gunfights with dogshit base weapons until you can work 2 or 3 ops on the regular. If you suck at pushing and getting your 1v1s....try distance fights(camp lanes and crosses)...maybe try sniping. Maybe move away from MP and play Warzone? Resurgence trios with friends on the regular will make you better....and it's a little more sanely paced.
What is sucking, btw? What's your K/D?

 

[anthraticus]

You must be young enough to still even care.

 

[Black_Stride]

Go play Battlefield, which ever one has the most players in your region.
PTFO and top the leaderboards constantly

Ironically MWIII might be up your ally because the TTK is quite high and youll have time to outskill your opponents, and every fight isnt simply based on positioning and who sees who first.

 

[wolffy66]

Honest advice. Slow down, play the same areas of maps until ur more comfortable there. Sound whore. Go for +k/d instead of top of leader board. Stick with the weapon and equipment that u do best with. Bait people, and reposition. Depend on ur wit more than ur reflexes.

 

[Knot3D]

World of Tanks.
I have never been a multiplayer gamer, this is the ONLY multiplayer game for me.
Especially because I don't want to get on a headset/mic with people.

World of Tanks is 15 v 15 "teams" in 15 minutes (max) battles in which
you basically contribute to the "team" as an individual.
Sure, there are some rudementary coms, but the game doesn't require
headset/mic communication with teammates.

And since it's tanks. it's also a bit slower paced than most FPS games.
Especially with the 'sniper class' named Tank Destroyers, you can play
the glass cannon type of gameplay, that doesn't require the ultime twitch
control reaction time.

 

[Auto_aim1]

People suck because it is much easier to run around like a headless chicken than be patient and concentrate. People keep forgetting this. Hunker down and let them come to you. Once you are in a 'zone' you can play freely.

 

[NEbeast]

COD is a twitch shooter with an insanely fast TTK. If you aren't consistently playing it you are going to struggle, especially if you're playing in higher sbmm lobbies because of your friends. COD is shite now anyway, has been for years.

 

[yansolo]

maybe younger people invest more time in games these days? i dunno but theyre way better than me now, im 35 and the last multiplayer game i played obsessively with friends was bf 4, i wasnt the best or anything but i was able to snipe players flying helicopters and stuff for a laugh.

i recently tried the latest bf through games pass out of curiosity and was getting smashed left and right, same with pubg a year ago and warzone. I much prefer just playing single player games or co-op games with friends now, ill always love video games but i generally dont play anywhere near as much as i used to.

 

[Bojanglez]

Just Fortnite just a load of official bots these days, with a few sweats at the very end?

I find that Fortnite is pretty well balanced, it seems to matchmake quite well according to who is in your party. Only very occasionally do I come up against someone who I think that I could never compete with them, and I'm not top level player.

I would say to OP it would be a good choice, but probably play Zero Build as there are kids that are just too good at building that the barrier to playing against them is so high. The other good thing about Fortnite is you can just go into a Battle Royale and mess around a bit with your mates, it probably doesn;t have the intensity of more hardcore MP games, but that's why I still play it and have dropped off any others.

 

[Tams]

I find that Fortnite is pretty well balanced, it seems to matchmake quite well according to who is in your party. Only very occasionally do I come up against someone who I think that I could never compete with them, and I'm not top level player.

I would say to OP it would be a good choice, but probably play Zero Build as there are kids that are just too good at building that the barrier to playing against them is so high. The other good thing about Fortnite is you can just go into a Battle Royale and mess around a bit with your mates, it probably doesn;t have the intensity of more hardcore MP games, but that's why I still play it and have dropped off any others.

The last time I played, there were just too many official bots. I wanted to play against players the whole game, not bots. In fact, that's what made me stop playing.

I was playing in Japan, so maybe it was a regional issue?

 

[SteadyEvo]

Father Time gets us all. In high school I was ranked in the top 20 on madden 05? Why? Because I had unlimited time to practice.Same with halo 1&2. Nowadays I get my ass handed to be. All that free time no longer exist and my skills diminished. What do I do? Lay off multiplayer games and if I do play just have fun. Learn the game but understand I’m not the same player.

 

[Tal Shiar Agent]

It definitely becomes more difficult to keep up as you get older when games heavily prioritize reflexes over tactics, which MWIII seems to be doing. MWII leaned more towards tactics and the moronic youtuber/streamer/reddit base hated it, so they've swung too hard and overcorrected with MWIII.

Its too bad Battlefield 2042 is garbage, Battlefield usually prioritizes tactics over reflexes.

 

[FunkMiller]

Nah. You're fucked.

Your reflexes and your brain both get slower as you get older.

Embrace the entropy. Find solace in slow paced single player games.

 

[CeeJay]

It sucks when your mates want to play games your bad at.

My friends... Come on play cod with us
Me... I'm not very good at those kind of games.
My friends... Oh come on it will be a laugh
Me... OK but don't take the piss

Later on
My friends... Haha you suck

Me... OK, how about we play Forza next?
My friends... Nah I suck, I'm not playing that, Let's play Battlefield

 

[anthraticus]

It sucks when your mates want to play games your bad at.

My friends... Come on play cod with us
Me... I'm not very good at those kind of games.
My friends... Oh come on it will be a laugh
Me... OK but don't take the piss

Later on
My friends... Haha you suck

Me... OK, how about we play Forza next?
My friends... Nah I suck, I'm not playing that, Let's play Battlefield

That's why I left my friends in the dust (concerning video games) and we don't even discuss these things any more....lol

 

[Bojanglez]

The last time I played, there were just too many official bots. I wanted to play against players the whole game, not bots. In fact, that's what made me stop playing.

I was playing in Japan, so maybe it was a regional issue?

Not sure, I've only ever noticed that once or twice. I think it may do that in the early days someone starts, so they don't get obliterated when they start maybe.

 

[Games of Today]

Basically what the title says. Growing up I was all about multiplayer games. MW2 in high school with the boys every night is one of my great gaming memories. I was never the best, or even top 3. But I could hold my own, occasionally I could top a match leaderboard, killstreaks were not a rare occurrence, etc.

Then the PS4 and XBone were announced, and I went the PS4 route. Since graduating high school it's been 90% single player games, I got super into Overwatch for a bit in college, but that's it. Me and the boys are all grown up now, and getting to play anything online is just fun to hang and chat. I've bought like 3 of the last 5 CoD's, enjoy them for a second. And then inevitably drop off because I am just getting my ass absolutely pounded mercilessly, constantly.

My friends are definitely better than me, so SBMM definitely doesn't help matters. But it's also very easy to tell that I just plain suck at the game. We got on the new CoD beta yesterday, and I thought the old maps I know so well would really help me. But instead my last excuse went out the window, not knowing the map layouts of the other recent CoD's was definitely not my issue, I am just terrible. Something with more strategy and less twitch based like Overwatch I think I could still play well but CoD is like my nightmare multiplayer experience for my what I'm good at in games.

It's all about positioning and 1v1 gunfights, hard to decide which I am worse at. I feel I am constantly fighting against controls in gunfights, even if the controls are perfectly fine. I just have a tendency to freak out when I need to do the exact opposite. So many embarrassing moments where I have no idea how I just lost a fight. But I really think my positioning and timing might be even worse. Clearly I just have no sense whatsoever of the rhythms (spawns, positions, etc.) of the game. The amount of times I'm staring down an alley for 30 seconds or more, only to be jumped the second I decide to move would be pure comedy if it wasn't so damn annoying. I am always just looking the wrong way, or a second early or late. I have no sense of awareness of anything outside my immediate point of view.

This novel could go on and on. TLDR: I STINK

But I like hanging out with my friends, I can still tell the game is pretty good too. Guns feel nice, I still do enjoy the familiar maps even if they don't help me at all. Can I do anything with my very little amount of skill to at least play with my friends without being a complete embarrassment? TIA

Don't play CoD. Play literally any other game with servers and public match making. BFV needs more players. It's very hard but there's no SBMM.