Was talking to a few people last night on Skype and it seems like a few top 4k players are getting kinda bored with 4k. There's a huge gap between top players and some of the better-than-average players. My suggestion?
PLAY SOLO.
Why play solo? Well, here are two very solid reasons (imo, of course):
Solo presents a steeper difficulty curve, especially for 4k players, and there are a significant amount of extra patterns to be found.
Think of the pattern variation in a standard 4key file, whether you are playing on FFR or SM. Add two more columns, and you have a crazy amount of patterns.
Single note - {4, 6}
Doubles - {6, 15}
Triples - {4, 21}
Quads - {1, 15}
There are 21 different ways to see a standard "hand", and 15 different ways to see a "quad."
The main reason, though (imo again), is that solo is more fun. Plain and simple.
For those that have never played solo, setting it up is very simple. Go into your settings and change your key setup, or add a second key setup, to something like "qweiop."
q - left
w - upleft
e - down
i - up
o - upright
p - right
I personally have two key setups:
SD45 for singles (numpad)
QWE789 for solo (numpad).
Getting to solo differs from SM 3.9 to SM5. On SM3.9, you have to move your cursor from Singles to Solo when selecting a game style (iirc it will be between Singles and Doubles).
For SM5, you will simply be able to switch between solo and singles charts while selecting songs.
"But choof, I don't have any easy files!"
Oddly enough, according to Gundam-Dude's List of Major Simfile Packs, there are more beginner-friendly packs made specifically for solo than there are for singles (not counting pad packs).
Xiao's Beginner Pack 1
Xiao's Beginner Pack 2
Xiao's Beginner Pack 3
Patashu's Beginner Pack
Solo Monogatari I
Solo Monogatari II
Solo Rulz 2
Solo Japan Pack
Solo Japan Pack 2
BCMP 6 (note that this pack contains conversions from IIDX charts, so you will find different pattern usage here than you will in the other beginner packs linked here)
This spoiler contains a list of all the current solo packs/compilations (shoutouts to GD for making this list)
And to make this a little bit more interesting, from 6/20 to 6/23, I will be giving credits to people who post scores!
In order to receive credits, you need to do three things.
1 - You can't be a seasoned solo player. I've been playing long enough to know who plays solo and who plays it well. Don't try to trick the new players out of credits! I only have a finite amount :'(
2 - Your scores must be from one of the packs I linked in this thread. The reason for this is because, well... Mashing on stepmania isn't as effective as it is on FFR, but it still works. Mashing to pass a song isn't completely frowned upon, but I highly suggest you actually play easy files until you get the hang of solo.
3 - All scores must be posted in this thread. That's why it's in the brag board, although the point of this thread isn't to brag. Unless we get some little rivalries going!
For each score posted before Monday (July 23nd), you will get 250 credits up to a maximum of 5,000. Notable scores will get a bit extra, and it won't go towards your credit cap. I only have about 30k credits, so I have to keep prizes low. Donations would be accepted, and anything I don't use will be sent back to the donator!
If you enjoy solo, try making files for it! New solo files are always welcome. Helpful info on making solo files can be found in this thread (stargroup #1 bufang).
Lastly, do not feel bad if your scores don't look the best!
I know this sounds cliche, but we were all beginners at some point. Especially when it comes to solo.
K GO
PLAY SOLO.
Why play solo? Well, here are two very solid reasons (imo, of course):
Solo presents a steeper difficulty curve, especially for 4k players, and there are a significant amount of extra patterns to be found.
Think of the pattern variation in a standard 4key file, whether you are playing on FFR or SM. Add two more columns, and you have a crazy amount of patterns.
Single note - {4, 6}
Doubles - {6, 15}
Triples - {4, 21}
Quads - {1, 15}
There are 21 different ways to see a standard "hand", and 15 different ways to see a "quad."
The main reason, though (imo again), is that solo is more fun. Plain and simple.
For those that have never played solo, setting it up is very simple. Go into your settings and change your key setup, or add a second key setup, to something like "qweiop."
q - left
w - upleft
e - down
i - up
o - upright
p - right
I personally have two key setups:
SD45 for singles (numpad)
QWE789 for solo (numpad).
Getting to solo differs from SM 3.9 to SM5. On SM3.9, you have to move your cursor from Singles to Solo when selecting a game style (iirc it will be between Singles and Doubles).
For SM5, you will simply be able to switch between solo and singles charts while selecting songs.
"But choof, I don't have any easy files!"
Oddly enough, according to Gundam-Dude's List of Major Simfile Packs, there are more beginner-friendly packs made specifically for solo than there are for singles (not counting pad packs).
Xiao's Beginner Pack 1
Xiao's Beginner Pack 2
Xiao's Beginner Pack 3
Patashu's Beginner Pack
Solo Monogatari I
Solo Monogatari II
Solo Rulz 2
Solo Japan Pack
Solo Japan Pack 2
BCMP 6 (note that this pack contains conversions from IIDX charts, so you will find different pattern usage here than you will in the other beginner packs linked here)
This spoiler contains a list of all the current solo packs/compilations (shoutouts to GD for making this list)
And to make this a little bit more interesting, from 6/20 to 6/23, I will be giving credits to people who post scores!
In order to receive credits, you need to do three things.
1 - You can't be a seasoned solo player. I've been playing long enough to know who plays solo and who plays it well. Don't try to trick the new players out of credits! I only have a finite amount :'(
2 - Your scores must be from one of the packs I linked in this thread. The reason for this is because, well... Mashing on stepmania isn't as effective as it is on FFR, but it still works. Mashing to pass a song isn't completely frowned upon, but I highly suggest you actually play easy files until you get the hang of solo.
3 - All scores must be posted in this thread. That's why it's in the brag board, although the point of this thread isn't to brag. Unless we get some little rivalries going!
For each score posted before Monday (July 23nd), you will get 250 credits up to a maximum of 5,000. Notable scores will get a bit extra, and it won't go towards your credit cap. I only have about 30k credits, so I have to keep prizes low. Donations would be accepted, and anything I don't use will be sent back to the donator!
If you enjoy solo, try making files for it! New solo files are always welcome. Helpful info on making solo files can be found in this thread (stargroup #1 bufang).
Lastly, do not feel bad if your scores don't look the best!
I know this sounds cliche, but we were all beginners at some point. Especially when it comes to solo.
K GO
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