Mindset
Playing with a clear head: judge decisions not results, commit instead of hesitating, deal with tilt, and focus on what you control.
At every rank
Judge the decision, not the result
A team game doesn't always reward good decisions, and a bad play sometimes works against a bad enemy. After a fight, ask whether you were in a good spot, on time, doing something useful, not whether you won it. Hunting for the one reason you lost a match rarely helps; it's usually several things.
Decide, then learn
A committed play you got wrong beats standing still. You can learn from a decision; you can't learn from autopilot or from hesitating until the moment has gone. Make the call, and if it fails, work out why afterwards.
Tilt
- Mute anyone flaming and move on. Arguing in a match costs you the next fight too.
- Take a minute away from the screen between games, and stop after a losing run. Hardstuck's Live tab suggests a break when you've lost three in a row, or four of your last five.
- Keep your effort high and your feelings about the result low.
Work on what you control
A teammate on an odd pick or a tank who keeps dying is part of the game. Play your part well, from a good spot. Your own deaths are the part you can fix.
At your rank
What matters changes as you climb. Pick your rank to open that section. We'll remember it next time.
Bronze and Silver1 tip
It's not your team
- What holds most players here back is how they respond to bad games, not what they know. Let the frustration pass before you queue again.
- Look at your own deaths before your teammates'. Most are preventable.
- Don't play for the scoreboard, and ignore teammates telling you to swap: they can't see what your deaths and trades bought.
- Trust your own call, but say it: call the high ground, and if nobody follows, go with your team.
Gold and Platinum2 tips
Stop playing scared
If nobody is pushing you, stand and shoot. Backing off with nothing threatening you is the most common way to do nothing all fight.
Fix the throws first
Rate your part in each fight: did you throw it, carry it, or neither? Cut out the throws before you hunt for carries; the neutral fights aren't why you lost.
Emerald and Diamond2 tips
Process, not the rank icon
- Take one game at a time and don't carry the last loss into the next.
- Playing scared is focusing on the outcome. Ask whether the fight was a good one to take, not whether you survived it.
- When you're unsure, take the fight and learn from the deaths rather than leaving every angle early. Getting out of a fight that has clearly gone wrong is a different thing.
Not your problem
A teammate far away or throwing is not yours to fix mid-fight. Help the teammates who are in the fight.
Master to Champion1 tip
Keep playing your game
- Don't give up on a fight just because your tank died or the matchup is bad: if you still have cooldowns and space to trade, play for what you can still get.
- Playing safer against a stronger team makes you lose more, not less. Play your game.
- Skip the ego duels: you don't need to win every one-on-one. Go in when your team can follow.
Take it into your games
Hardstuck reviews every match you play and shows what keeps coming up. This guide is in the app too, opened at your rank.