For most of my life, I’ve been a devout gamer. Games are one of my favorite ways to engage with a story, spend time with friends, just kill some time, or do all at the same time. My recent interest in Destiny 2, an online first person shooter with both player vs. player (PvP) and player vs. environment (PvE) elements, I wanted to learn as much as I could to get better. This led me to a training routine focused on FPS play.
Why Train Games
While I’ve played games of many genres, I’ve had a deep fascination with Destiny 2 lately. The game has found its way consistently into my mind, pulling my attention with plans for my play sessions to maximize my progress. It’s style, story, presentation, and mechanics all work well together to make a great experience. My admiration for the game and cooperative play with friends have encouraged me to get better.
There’s a phrase in gaming communities often spoken when someone is seeking to improve, “get good.” While sometimes there is a clear path, often it’s up to the individual to figure that out. I always think of the game that popularized the saying and was my first major experience with it, Dark Souls. Many who love the game often experienced their first moments in the series as gruesome challenges that seemed insurmountable. After getting a better understanding of the game, a specific encounter, and maybe some ingame improvements, the feeling of finally conquering a boss or zone that led to many deaths is pure satisfaction.
For much of my gaming career, I’ve steered away from first person shooters, not feeling like I’m very good at them. Even with years of practice in many different games, I can get by and have a good time but never feel capable of high level play. Doing some research on improving led me to resources that should help with just that. As a fan of self improvement, I’m excited to try and get good.
In the end, I’m looking for an opportunity to improve while having some fun.
The Routine
While looking into getting better at Destiny specifically, I came across a YouTube channel that dives into a lot of aspects of the game, as well as some more broad topics in gaming. A video simply titled Does AIM TRAINING actually work? caught my attention. The arguments convinced me to give it a try.
The video cites a training guide written by an author known as “AIMER7.” In the guide, a game called Kovaak’s Aim Trainer is used as the primary training tool. The game is interesting, as it’s primarily a mishmash of custom made minigames to practice different types of mouse movements and aiming. Some scenarios focus on snapping between a series of targets, while others are about following along a moving target.
The guide offers different routines for different skill levels and different specializations. In my case, I’m following the complete beginners’ complete guide which consists of six different scenarios to practice different aiming skills. I’ll share more specifics of each as the trial continues.
Training Goals
Getting started, I wanted to get a benchmark of where I was beginning. The guide recommends playing the scenario “Cata IC Long Strafes” in which a giant pill shaped target dashes around a small room while the player shoots it until it’s health points are drained to zero. Afterward, a new pill appears. The player has a limited time to kill as many targets as possible. In my first few attempts, I averaged around 20% accuracy and killed five pills in a minute.
While the guide suggests daily practice, I don’t feel I can really dedicate that much time to the hobby. Even still, I hope after four weeks of practice to improve my accuracy from 20% to 30% with a pill kill count of seven.
I also see this training as an opportunity for mindfulness practice. During the training sessions I’ve done so far, I paid attention to all the things I could. What ways was I getting in my own way? What adjustments could I try? How did each adjustment affect performance? Why did I keep falling into certain habits? Asking questions during practice was a way to deepen my understanding of my shortcomings and where I needed to focus. I hope practicing in this manner will allow me to apply similar strategies in any other area I want to develop.
Trying Out Before Buying In 