Best Approach to Learning Starcraft 2 as a Beginner - Is macroing really "most effective"?

• g # key

Like the task of selecting mutalisk, experienced players greatly underestimate the things with which a new player is tasked with learning. Experienced players might have the perception that a new player should begin with the following:

1. Spending their money

2. Scouting and reacting properly

3. Getting map vision

                All of which are great areas to focus somewhat early on, but they are not the absolute first things that a player needs to learn. There are a ton of things new players need to work on before they can even think of the suggestions above. Things which might be totally glossed over by an experienced player who does not even need to think of the basics.

                What new players need to learn

1. Making workers constantly

2. What the units and buildings do

3. The hotkeys for the units and the buildings

4. How to make control groups

5. How to attack move (this is less intuitive than you might think)

6. The macro cycle

                Also, some habits

1. Shifting workers back to mineral lines (if you play Terran or Protoss)

2. Consistently control grouping units & buildings

3. Not looking at the keyboard too much when using hotkeys

                These habits and techniques are much easier to learn in a simple environment without too many extraneous variables to account for. If the learning environment becomes too complex than not only is it going to be frustrating for the beginner, it is also going to lead to a poor learning outcome. The optimal learning environment is challenging, but not too challenging. Basic tasks on one base is plenty difficult enough for most new players. Search ‘flow’ for more information on the optimal state of mind for learning.

                Best Approach

So based on what players are actually learning when they start playing the game and believing strongly that maintaining an environment that is not too complex is vital for enjoyment and the acquisition of knowledge I think it’s a much stronger approach to begin with Bottom-Up learning. This will have strong benefits like making the experience less frustrating for the beginner, leading to enjoyable outcomes, resulting in visible improvement, and very clear goals and achievement. There is a place for top-down learning in a player’s development, but I believe bottom-up learning is considerably more conducive to learning at the beginning and top-down only has a place once the fundamentals have been acquired.

                So, a best approach might look something like this

                               Bottom-Up Learning -> Bottom-Up Learning #2 -> Top-Down Learning

                Ex)

                              Four Gate (low complexity) -> Two base charge-lot archon  (medium complexity) -> End
Game Discussion (begin building larger area of understanding)

By beginning with a four gate (could be another simple build), the learner has a chance to learn some of the tasks that an experienced player does not need to consider such as learning how to hotkey their production, training themselves to build workers constantly, practicing a simplified macro cycle & receiving more instantaneous feedback of their progress in the form of a win or a loss.