Adding footwork to the skills and tactics

[Xartanz]

I understand this may seem like a big undertaking, but hear me out first. Footwork and positioning are some of the most directly-related- and important aspects of striking, and it's very often something which gets overlooked. What separates a knockout blow from a glancing shot (and being on the receiving end of said strikes) is very often simply a matter of foot positioning. An immediate example of this principle was the Alexander Shlemenko-Brett Cooper II fight; because of Shlemenko's poor foot positioning, he ended up getting dropped by Cooper twice in the first two rounds, and what separated the left hand that Shlemenko had landed a bunch of times throughout the fight from the left that knocked Brett Cooper down in the fourth round was, again, a matter of foot positioning. Proper footwork has much more to it than just simply circling, as well. It's what separates the beautiful lateral movement of Frankie Edgar from, say, the lateral movement of Rony Jason in his fight with Jeremy Stephens (I.E., circling to his left the entire fight with his back to the cage and walking right into a knockout-blow head-kick). It's what separates the in-out movement of Eddie Alvarez and Miguel Torres (in Torres' prime) from, oh, I don't know... anybody who's ever been knocked out from walking into a punch in an attempt to land a jab (I can't think of any specific examples, but that's happened a bunch of times, as we all know).

There's also a lot more to footwork than simply moving around a lot, as well. Even fighters at a high level who seem to be fairly stationary (I.E., "flatfooted") very often have an overlooked level of footwork. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson is a premier example of this; while most people considered him to be a very flatfooted fighter, he actually possessed a very underrated pedigree of footwork. His style at his best was built around covering up and then exploding on his opponents, which required him to have a masterful-understanding of every subtle naunce required to maneuver in the pocket the way he did; to be able to cover up in the pocket and then, immediately afterwards, get his feet into a position which would allow for the maximum amount of power to be put into his strikes which would, inevitably, knock out his opponents. That's, in its own way, a level of footwork which can be argued to rival even the most predominant footwork-based fighters like Frankie Edgar and Dominick Cruz.

Here's maybe the most important thing about this: proper footwork and positioning isn't a talent that's difficult to harness if you're not born with it (though for some people it can be, but they're a very small minority as far as fighters with great footwork go), it's a skill. It's as much of a skill as keeping your hands up mid-combination, and it's as important a skill as that. Proper understanding of footwork and positioning keeps fighters from tripping over themselves; it keeps them safe in times of trouble; it allows them to attack their opponents with more effectiveness and allows them to avoid their opponent's attacks with, again, more effectiveness; it does all this and more. It's a very important skill to have, and, if it were implemented in the game, it would improve the realism of it immensely. Now, here's one of the biggest questions: how would you work it into the game? Well, I figured out some of that.

First off, footwork would be specific skill like striking defense, and speed would be the primary physical attribute it would be associated with (agility and balance would be the secondary ones). As to how it would be applied, I figured two ticker boxes would be easy and effective. You'd have one ticker box to decide whether the fighter utilizes a lot of movement or whether they stay stationary (both with pros and cons; more movement = less power and more evasiveness, stationary = more power and less evasiveness, among other things), and the other would be to decide whether or not they move laterally or vertically [i don't know if vertical is the right word, but one involves a lot of circling, the other is moving in and out]. The footwork skill would determine how effective they are using said footwork; for example, if a fighter would have a very low footwork stat and would use a lot of lateral movement, they would likely end up backing up to the cage and moving in the same direction the entire time, whereas a high footwork skill under the same ticks would result in the fighter circling in different angles constantly (like the aforementioned Frankie Edgar). Vertical footwork would result in some Eddie Alvarez-esque in-out punching when the skill's high, and may result in some Ryan Bader-Lyoto Machida situations otherwise.

Footwork would also tie directly into striking defense. If they've got high footwork and they're balanced between staying stationary and moving, they'd probably end up with a style similar to Eddie Wineland. Also, much like Eddie Wineland, if they have low striking defense and keep their hands low and head up, they'll get hurt a lot more. High striking defense and low footwork while remaining stationary would result in them not taking much damage, yes, but it'd also likely result in them getting picked apart from the outside, assuming the fighter has high footwork and decent-enough striking defense. Low footwork and a lot of movement while they have high striking defense would result in them tripping over themselves a lot, gassing them out, sapping their morale, and maybe getting hurt a lot more. Remaining stationary while having high footwork would also result in a very effective, powerful infighting game.

Again, there are a lot of kinks to work out, but I really do feel that footwork and positioning is a very significant aspect of striking that isn't right to be overlooked, applying it to the game would make the game much more realistic and, if it was implemented properly (similar to the way I described), it would make the game much more fun. This's all also just the striking aspect of footwork; I'm sure people who're more privy than myself can explain how good footwork and positioning can greatly improve a fighter's wrestling and clinching game, as well.

[Shards]

When I picture fights I like to think the guys are utilizing movement, I sorta just assume a high level boxer and kickboxer would have a good understanding of footwork, adding this seems like a good idea on the surface but it's just getting into too much for my liking. On another note striking already seems to be the dominant trait for most fighters so I don't see the need to add anything that will improve it anymore.

 

I don't really have anything else to add, it's nowhere near as long as the original post but I guess my opinion just isn't as detailed. For the record I do like the effort put into it and I up voted your post since this was clearly a well thought out idea.

[Guest]

I have to agree with Shards. Its hard to imagine a guy reaching elite levels in the standup aspects without the footwork automaticly being a part of this progress.

[Rain]

I'd say Footwork could simply just be a Secondary skill that enhances your Striking Defense a bit and adds a lot to your counters (the higher the footwork, the bigger chance to counter).

[Shards]

I forget where I read it and I can't seem to dig it out but I recall people complaining that counters were too effective(mostly takedowns) so adding a skill that will boost this even more isn't likely a great idea. Perhaps it could play a bigger role in avoiding counters, that might be enough to get people on board with the idea - I still don't think we need a dedicated secondary, just some retweaks of the current system.

[Xartanz]

I have to agree with Shards. Its hard to imagine a guy reaching elite levels in the standup aspects without the footwork automaticly being a part of this progress.

 

That's the thing, though. Footwork and positioning isn't something that high level strikers just have; it's a skill they have to work on extensively, and working on it extensively is what separates the movement (and striking effectiveness-) of Anthony Pettis from that of Chris Leben. Kind of lumping it all under vague umbrella terms like "striking defense" and "stay on the outside" is like having it be "strikes" instead of "punches/kicks/knees". This kind of stuff is the reason that transitions and escapes got added to the game instead of just having it all as "defensive grappling". Also, the amount of strikers in this game is a big reason why I'd like to see this get implemented; ya gotta make the system more challenging for strikers if there really are that many of them (and, from what I've found, there are).

 

Finally, avoiding counters is one of the big reasons that footwork and positioning is so important. It's hard to get countered when you're not in a position to get countered.

 

 

 

On an unrelated note, does flexibility have any effect on TDD in this game? Cuz' a lot of those guys who're flexible enough to do the splits in the air tend to have at least above-average TDD (Lorenz Larkin, Cro Cop, a few others).

[Rain]

Actually, right positioning also helps with defending takedowns Especially counter takedowns, if your feet positioning is proper, you may react just in time when your opponent changes levels

[ClarkKent]

I suggested this a long time ago, I'll try and find the post and wanted it to basically effect everything standing but mainly striking. It got a little support but people don't seem to want more skills after how poorly transitions and escapes were implemented.

 

EDIT: Here is the link to my post about this made over 3 years ago. http://www.mmatycoon.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=21739&hl=footwork

[Wolf]

I love the idea. +1

 

 

What i was also thinking was maybe scrap the striking defense secondary and have 3 new ones (to make stand up more diverse) footwork, blocking and head movement

[UniConor]

I love the idea. +1

 

 

What i was also thinking was maybe scrap the striking defense secondary and have 3 new ones (to make stand up more diverse) footwork, blocking and head movement

I like these ideas a lot, I mean it will be hard to implement them I'm sure and people are gonna use the "What about the already created fighters" excuse, and I see what they mean but I also feel like that excuse can't be used forever otherwise nothing will ever be implemented, open your arms to change

[madbob]

I love the idea. +1

 

 

What i was also thinking was maybe scrap the striking defense secondary and have 3 new ones (to make stand up more diverse) footwork, blocking and head movement

 

i like this spin on the idea.

but lets say this happens, how to deal then with the skill cap? i think a lot of people will complain, but that maybe will result in fighters that are not all elite in every aspect and i am all for this.

[Xartanz]

Another idea I thought of today that would fairly easily begin to implement footwork into the game (and get people's feet wet with the concept) was to make an adjustment to the sliders. You know "Try to Clinch/Stay on the Outside"? That'd get changed to two separate sliders; "Try to Strike/Try to Clinch" and "Move Forward/Stay on the Outside". It'd add another element to infighting and would add some very interesting elements to the wrasslin' aspect of the game.

[Loveladdy]

This seems like an excellent addition to me.

[Southpaw]

Doesn't balance and agility play into footwork to some degree already?