There are character loyalists who just play the game and find a way to get their character work no matter how bad the character is. (videogamesyo is a good example)
Then there are character "loyalists" who never stop complaining about their character, make 15 buff threads a week, and always blame their losses on their character and think picking a s-tier character will make them get top 8 in majors.
That is definitely true. I think most of those loyalists problems would be fixed if they used a character that helped them close their weaknesses as a player. But yes many people blame loses on their character, MU's and other factors when its mostly them.
My first part of the OP is me stating how much respect I have for players like VideoGamezYo making it work.
Character loyalty is great because you get to really develop your skill quickly and don't have to relearn how to play neutral with a new character all over again when you could be working on flawless blocking and things like that.
Picking up characters in this game is mad easy tho, and because most characters aren't super deep it's easy to do well with a new one, but I still think people should stick to mains for competitive purposes.
It's like in martial arts, you always use your dominant leg for kicks and you become great at it, you master it with that side even, but you still have to practice with your other leg even if you prioritize the dominant one. That's how I see it, I still focus on Cassie/Kano, but I mess around with other characters to practice different playstyles.
I completely agree its important to master your mains. I don't feel using only one is necessary and that's reflected by top players who use 3-6 mains and are very effective.
No doubt mastering one character has its benefits over using everyone but I'm seeing a ton of players just on here who are using a character who they feel lacks in many areas and constantly complain about said character, because of this they hate other characters they struggle with.
I also don't think Top Tiers are the only choices in competitive play. Like Circus said in a recent thread: "It's OK for your character to be mid tier" if you pick a viable mid tier and that character helps you fix your issues as a player and strengthens your gameplay you can be effective with them vs Top Tiers like VideoGamezYo's Shao Kahn, Biohazards Kano(Prepatch), Sonics D'Vorah, waz's Jade, Semijj's Kitana(Prepatch).
You can put in the time with even top tiers and get nowhere if that characters tools doesn't fit you as a player.
For me I have to play a character that has
- the tools I need and
- One I have a passion for
Otherwise I wouldn't grind every matchup and find ways to win tough MU's or discover more tech.
I'm seeing people say:
"my character is bottom tier"
"My character does what everyone else does but shitter"
"My character has nothing to win vs X character, I labbed it"
But with that mindset you already gave up and think you discovered all that there is to find. In every MK we discover ground breaking tech years after the character is used and determined in the tiers.
I honestly don't blame these people for feeling that way because having a character you live but feel they are shit sucks. I understand loyalty but I say give others a try and have an open mind. You might just have a new main and a new perspective on the game, meta and characters.
I'm not a character loyalist, but sometimes I feel a special "click" with some character and i don't want to play anyone else. It's not like "damn, I love this character, must play her whatever it takes", I just don't really wanna play if it's not with my character. For example, in MKX I had fun playing around with most of the cast. In MK11 i tried Frost, Skarlet and later Cetrion. After playing Cetrion, I just stuck with her, because she's the perfect combination of I like the character, i like how she plays, her voice, animations, playstyle; and most importantly, because I LIKE playing her. I never felt as playing a character i don't like just cause she's better or gives me better chances at winning, I like to play characters that feels right. This time around, I'm lucky enough that my choice is also top tier, so i'm probably stuck with her for all the games lifespan.
Look at my post to Vslayer above^^
I get it though I'm like that too. I get a bond with my character and only have motivation for labbing my main. If I don't have the motivation I don't find everything I need.
I do get motivated by losing to a specific character which helps me grind the MU and find things to give me better odds in the MU.
