The first FPS game I ever played was Counter-Strike 1.6. I first played it when I was around 8 years old on the family computer. I was terrible. I couldn’t land shots. I didn’t understand the game. I hated being bad at it. I started hating FPS games.
I started playing maplestory. I didn’t like the idea of starting from scratch every round. I didn’t have the understanding that skills/mechanics I acquire IRL will transfer to gameplay eventually. I focused on what was on the screen not what I was.
Some years later, my school friends wanted to play Counter-Strike Source. I tried it with them. I was terrible. The lowest on the scoreboards consistently. I was lucky to have 1 or 2 kills at the end of the play session. I never wanted to play FPS games again.
More years later, I played COD:MW2 on ps3. I was surprised and realized that the FPS genre wasn’t all that bad. I wasn’t amazing at the game but being consistently above the middle of the scoreboard felt good and validating. I’m not terrible at FPS games after all.
I stayed away from most FPS games on PC. The ones I did decide to try I played an hour at most then abandoned it. Instead, I enjoyed games like League of Legends/DotA for the majority of my highschool/university years. The strategic nature. The start from 0 and build yourself each round idea and IRL skills/mechanics/knowledge started to sink in. I started enjoying that aspect of games.
Overwatch comes out.
This game called to me. It was the first game that hooked me before I even played it. The story, characters, and philosphy were the perfect combination. I had no console for the game but I had my PC. I knew this was the game I wanted to git gud at. I focused all my time into it.
The first season I was trash. Placed lower than everyone else on my friends list. Back then was rank 48 (probably silver in current ranks). It didn’t stop me though. I kept playing. I was humble. I was self-critical. I was introspective. I kept improving. I learned the game. I learned how to get better. I hit masters. Not the best mark but from being terrible to pretty dang good at something feels great.
This blog is dedicated to the people who want to get better but haven’t found for themselves what it takes and why they’re stopping themselves from getting what they want to achieve. Also, it’s a type of journal for me and my FPS journey.