Concentration / Attention Span

[Anesthetize]

While jogging this afternoon, I randomly started thinking about my attention span and ability to really concentrate while playing shmups. Keep in mind I'm still quite new to the genre (3 solid months now).

I guess what got me thinking of this was that the other night while I was playing Mushi Futari, my wife came home during the middle of a 1cc attempt (BL Orig.). I had 1-lifed the first three stages up the the stage 3 boss, on which I died a stupid death during a pattern I never die on. Being a good husband and all, I paused the game after the stage 3 boss so I could talk to my wife for a while. After about a 20 min. break I unpaused the game and proceeded to 1cc the game like it was nothing at all (I know, I know, to most people it IS nothing at all...).

Now obviously Mushi Futari is not a long shmup by any stretch of the imagination, but I think taking a break in the middle of the run helped me out. It might actually have nothing to do with attention span or concentration--it could have just given my nerves time to calm down after dying a stupid death during an up-to-that-point best run through of the game. In fact, I think more important than how long I can truly pay attention is my overall state of mind during a gaming session. Some days I can turn a game on and everything seems to click. Alternatively, sometimes I'll power up and can't seem to do anything at all without dying. In those cases I turn it off and come back later.

I'd like to hear some opinions on this matter. Does taking a short break help you concentrate? Does taking a break get you out of rhythm? Is it considered cheating to pause a game and come back later? Obviously pausing isn't even an option in many cases. I think this is a much more relevant topic in regards to longer games like Gradius V, where being able to concentrate throughout the game is a large part of the difficulty.

Sorry for such a long post!

[dannnnn]

One thing I find is that I always have better concentration for about the first 30-60 mins, sitting there for a few hours usually has me getting progressively worse until I'm just going through the motions on auto-pilot.

I think a break definitely helps and no, I wouldn't consider pausing cheating, lol.

[EPS21]

Pausing mid game and taking a break would kinda ruin it for me, Although when I do die it does mess up the rhythm of things (I'll even bomb very soon after dieing, in order to better recover from the 'shock' sometimes lol). I might give it a try, but remember OP, if you have any interest playing shmups at an arcade, can't pause em there, so I wouldn't try to make it a habit if so

[Square King]

I'd agree that a break probably helps more than it hurts, although I don't consider it lol leet shmuppery. After about stage 3 in Mushihimesama my eyes are dead/contacts are dried out.

I'm not even close to 1CCing Mushi, so grats to you.

[Kollision]

I'll even bomb very soon after dieing, in order to better recover from the 'shock' sometimes lol

And I thought I was the only one who sometimes did that!

[alastair jack]

The best tactic is to pause as often as you can, all the pros do it.

[balp]

I need to warm-up to do anything decent in a game. Taking a break mid-game usually results in me losing all my lives immediately after resuming.

[JOW]

Pausing mid game and taking a break would kinda ruin it for me

...this. The first thing that struck me when I started playing PCBs at home a few years ago was the fact that I couldn't pause them. To my surprise it made a real difference to my mindset, in that my concentration improved as I started completely ignored all distractions around me (noise from around the house etc., the general buzz of wife and kids) as the option to respond to any distraction was almost completely removed.

The task in hand is all that matters (until you are forcibly distracted of course )

I could see benefits from pausing though in the exact situation the OP describes - i.e. to cool down after getting furious at a silly mistake. Ultimately I think it would be considered cheating if you are playing at a high level - I don't think many casual players would have an issue with it though.

I'll even bomb very soon after dieing, in order to better recover from the 'shock' sometimes lol

And I thought I was the only one who sometimes did that!

HA - me too.

[emphatic]

If you play mostly CAVE games, take micro-breaks after each stage as the bonus counts (don't push fire to skip it) and have a snack or a refreshing beverage ready. Concentration takes lots of your energy, so filling up on that is the best way to stay alert. Also if you're easily distracted (like I know I am), a constant distraction, like putting on a CD at moderate volume in the background is better than going WTF WAS THAT when a car door slams shut outside in the street. I bet that muffled sounds similar to those of a predator sneaking up on you would cause your body's fight/flight functions to take over and that would be a very bad distraction.

[xris]

I'm with the reajustment bomb after death to get everything flowing smooth. And, damn to any distractions that f'up a run, cellphone, what's that outside?, no, I don't want to join party chat...

[TrevHead (TVR)]

yea distractions are a real bummer and it usually happens when im doing really well aswell. maybe if i taught myself to drop a bomb or 2 it might aleast save the run from been ruined.

[Anesthetize]

Nice to hear people's thoughts on this.

I originally would have thought that taking a short break would be more a risk of me losing my rhythm or getting out of the 'zone.' Pausing between stages is definitely not something I'm going to make a habit of, but I can sure see where it could potentially help. I also agree with the idea of having a drink or snack handy for stage breaks. In fact, my 'refreshing beverage' during the above mentioned Mushi Futari run was a glass of scotch (Glenfiddich '91 Vintage Reserve for those who care) and that may have done even more than the break to keep me calm

Slightly off topic, but perhaps relevent enough, how worked up do you guys get when you're getting close to achieving a huge goal but still have plenty of time to mess it all up? i.e. when I'm close to 1ccing a game I haven't yet, my heartrate goes waaay up and I'm more likely to make stupid mistakes. Does stuff like this happen to you more veteran players out there?

[emphatic]

As your energy is used up, your performance will suffer surely. That's the gist of my other post, really. Have some sweets or lemonade, but alcohol can be tricky. A beer could take the edge off, but it will make you tired as well.

how worked up do you guys get when you're getting close to achieving a huge goal but still have plenty of time to mess it all up? i.e. when I'm close to 1ccing a game I haven't yet, my heartrate goes waaay up and I'm more likely to make stupid mistakes. Does stuff like this happen to you more veteran players out there?

The first time I 1CC:d ESPGALUDA, my heart rate was freakish for a couple of minutes after the score was entered, and I felt my system was flush with adrenaline. An awesome feeling that I haven't topped since. Well, the freak 1CC of Futari BL Maniac was in the ball park, but that was more of a shock than that feeling of reaching a finish line.

[Matsunaga]

Any distraction ruins it for me. If I have to pause, I'm done. If someone starts talking to me, I'm done. When I 1cc Dodonpachi, I was alone, no outside noise, nothing but me and the game.

[Kollision]

I don't like interruptions or distractions either, but I had instances where I would perform greatly with other people around and talking all the time. I think it all comes down to how relaxed you are.

[cul]

Problem solved.

[monouchi]

I get better the longer time I sit and my concentration gets deeper the further in the game I am.
My problem is that I am so concentrated dodging bullets so when I suddenly dodge wrong and hit a bullet and die, then my whole body twitch in surprise cos I get so shocked that I died...

[Otai]

I don't have problems with that because the games are the distraction itself. I have no problems playing shmups for hours regardless of type.

[EPS21]

I don't like interruptions or distractions either, but I had instances where I would perform greatly with other people around and talking all the time. I think it all comes down to how relaxed you are.

Consider yourself pretty good at shmups. Social facilitation at work right there.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_facilitation

[Jockel]

Ritalin.jpg
Problem solved.

No.
I even have ADD and refuse to use this shit.

[TonK]

I take the micro breaks between stages.

Also, if I'm trying really hard to do something, i find that I start to play worse as time ticks away...

Once I see my first stage score drop lower and lower - its really time to quit and take a long break.

My problem is that I always tell myself "Just one more credit, no matter what happens"

Then I die on the first stage because I broke my concentration - so I play another credit - I'll be having my best run ever, then 3 STUPID deaths.

A few people got to witness first hand how I get in the zone to play these games.

They kept asking me how i could play it over and over again.

I love playing and I love producing the largest score I can, so I practice for hours.

A few closing notes...

I RUINED my relationship with Futari trying for a 1CC on Original (which I got), but ended up breaking one of my stools and punching a door. (I have medication for that)

But it will be a long ass time before I even look at Futari again.

Ketsui can ruin your day, or next day or week.

[Aquas]

Pausing has been a great help for me when the adrenaline gets high. On the other hand, feeling and embracing that adrenaline during gameplay can be its own joy. Most recently, reaching the last boss in Salamander 2 really brought my blood to a boil. Usually I like to play with some tea or coffee to sip on between stages to keep me alert.

I take tiny breaks constantly (check the computer) if I'm practicing trouble spots of a game so that I don't get burned out on the same part.

[05pro]

2 days ago I was playing a bit of Futari and decided to give Ultra a blast. I've never really played Ultra as all my time was spent on Maniac and when Black Label came out I stuck to God Mode only.

I figured I'd 1cc the 1st stage and get the acheivement for that. 30mins later, no achievement and me feeling a bit pissed off (how hard can 1ccing a single stage be lol). I had a decent route through the stage and was quite happy to bomb when required but I'd always make a silly mistake somewhere and restart (yeah, I now know you can't get the achievemnt with restarts). Playing without restarts got old fast as you have to keep going through the menus, select Ultra, choose yes, select character, select character type etc Yawn, game off and off to bed for me.

Stuck Futari on after work yesterday and proceeded to do the Ultra stage on my 1st try with bombs and lives to spare. No warm up, nothing. So yeah, I guess taking a bit of a break can be beneficial.

[shake_zula]

Any distraction ruins it for me. If I have to pause, I'm done. If someone starts talking to me, I'm done. When I 1cc Dodonpachi, I was alone, no outside noise, nothing but me and the game.

Me too, just someone walking into my field of view screws me up. The amount of times one of my cats has distracted me... and pausing is useless to me, I unpause and invariably die within seconds. HOWEVER I do need to take breaks between runs to maintain performance, tbh I usually just keep playing for hours straight but if I'm really challenged I take frequent breaks, maybe five minutes every half hour

Slightly off topic, but perhaps relevent enough, how worked up do you guys get when you're getting close to achieving a huge goal but still have plenty of time to mess it all up? i.e. when I'm close to 1ccing a game I haven't yet, my heartrate goes waaay up and I'm more likely to make stupid mistakes. Does stuff like this happen to you more veteran players out there?

I'm a noob too but this happens to me pretty severely, my hands are soaking wet when I'm closing in on a 1cc

[Anesthetize]

I'm a noob too but this happens to me pretty severely, my hands are soaking wet when I'm closing in on a 1cc

Heh, good to hear I'm not the only one. I'm hoping it won't be quite so bad once I have a few more 1CCs under my belt.

[shake_zula]

I'm a noob too but this happens to me pretty severely, my hands are soaking wet when I'm closing in on a 1cc

Heh, good to hear I'm not the only one. I'm hoping it won't be quite so bad once I have a few more 1CCs under my belt.

Yeah, I used to play a bit of competitive UT2004 and my hands used to shake so badly in pressure situations, but that stopped with experience so I figure this'll be the same!

[Voxbox]

Score calculation screens between levels are welcome, just to take a deep breath and bring forth some mental readiness. If I got up and took a sandwich or something I would get too out of the zone.

Slightly off topic, but perhaps relevent enough, how worked up do you guys get when you're getting close to achieving a huge goal but still have plenty of time to mess it all up? i.e. when I'm close to 1ccing a game I haven't yet, my heartrate goes waaay up and I'm more likely to make stupid mistakes. Does stuff like this happen to you more veteran players out there?

I get crazy pumped with adrenalin, begin shaking and eventually start holding my breath. It's the greatest feeling in the world, at least when I actually manage to beat/surpass the goal

[ZOM]

The best tactic is to pause as often as you can, all the pros do it.

They play in slow-motion?

Getting a bit more serious again, I can't seem to "re-concentrate" again after pausing mid-game and I'll end up
losing lives from really silly deaths. As for taking breaks after a playthrough, that can work wonders but if I played
too long I just played too long; no short breaks will help.
I get this very often with games that need fair amount of concentration, after approx. 2 hours I just feel tired and get bad at the game.

So, usually it's like this:
first run of the day - strangely enough, good play, just messing up on small things I need to remember again.
second run - crap; get too excited for the good first run, which in turn kills my second one.
after a good 30+ minutes - that's the peak, remembering everything I memorized the previous day(or previous time that I had a good play), and also warmed-up enough
after 60+ minutes - get tired and do shit.

[jonny5]

I take the micro breaks between stages.

Also, if I'm trying really hard to do something, i find that I start to play worse as time ticks away...

Once I see my first stage score drop lower and lower - its really time to quit and take a long break.

My problem is that I always tell myself "Just one more credit, no matter what happens"

Then I die on the first stage because I broke my concentration - so I play another credit - I'll be having my best run ever, then 3 STUPID deaths.

A few people got to witness first hand how I get in the zone to play these games.

They kept asking me how i could play it over and over again.

I love playing and I love producing the largest score I can, so I practice for hours.

A few closing notes...

I RUINED my relationship with Futari trying for a 1CC on Original (which I got), but ended up breaking one of my stools and punching a door. (I have medication for that)

But it will be a long ass time before I even look at Futari again.

Ketsui can ruin your day, or next day or week.

^^this pretty much word for word....except it was maniac, not original....and it wasnt a stool, it was a folding chair

its scary how much we have in common TonK....

we gotta hang out one day....

[dan76]

I don't like pausing mid game - mainly because I'm generally playing arcade ports and as said earlier, you can't pause an arcade machine. There is an element of... well, it's just not proper is it. If you have to pause all the time what happens when you're confronted by the PCB. Playing in an arcade is usually full of noise, sometimes people even knocking into you, chatting and the like. I don't want to get into the habit of the enviroment having to be "just so" in order to play well.

For me it also depends on the game - Ketsui I've found I always have my best run either the first or second try. With Deathsmiles it will always take a few credits to get warmed up. I think this has to do with playing for survival, which is more twitch gaming and score which I guess is more to do with memorizing. One thing is for sure - if I start expecting to do well I'll always screw up, get ratty and turn it off. If I'm just playing for "fun" then I usually do better, around the half way mark I'll realise that I might beat a score or be doing better than usual and the key then is to stay in the same frame of mind, kind of forget that I'm doing well... if that makes sense.

On a side note, the only times I 1cc'd the PS2 ports of DOJ and Galuda was in the same day, after having a really bad cold. I was all fuzzy, but it was like a part of my brain was distracted and I was able to just drift through the bullets. I've not got close to DOJ since, Galuda I can usually make it to the last boss... but it was a weird day.