Help me I am new

Hi everyone. I used to be huge into 2d fighters. Sf2 and stuff. Then I kind of got away from it, cause it was just a bunch of button smashing.. Then I went to vf's casualy, and doa and tekken. I got VF4 on my ps2. I LOVE IT so far. WOW. This game is like crack. I suck dirt though. I am very new to this. I have been doing training mode over and over with pai. I really like pai. She is fast and I love her moves. What kind of tips can you give me on using her. I am getting my can kicked with her, but I am liking it. Thanks for your help.

 

As a fellow newbie to VF and to 3d fighters in general, I think one of the most important things to focus on is not your character, per se, but rather just on what's going on in the fight.

Never having played a 3d fighter, and using Shun, I was able to quickly make my way through the kyu ranks up to 1st Dan, but I hit a wall there. The openings seemed to be much briefer, and the punishments for mistakes much greater. The key for me getting up to 5th dan was learning to balance my play.

I was so intent on learning moves and combos that I would forget to guard and evade, much less throw-escape and counter attack.
I'd suggest you read the Pai posts on this board for good combos in a couple situations, then focus on defending and reacting to your opponents' attacks until those situations present themselves.

Against fast and aggressive opponents like Lau, Akira, and Kage, taking the time to really learn how to guard the CPUs favorite combos has meant the difference between constant losing and making some progress.

When you've adjusted to the pace of things and started to get a feel for your character, then you can worry more about flow charts and maximizing floats and frame advantages and the like.