Yesterday i had an interview with @boatsandjoes & Lunaticker about their game Dr. Thongs l. And in talking about how he adjusted difficulty, he told me a story about a study that compared kids playing spelunky with adults. The study found that kids stuck with spelunky and had more fun because they werent playing to win, they were playing just to see what happens during each playthru. I made the comparison that they approached it more like minecraft than a traditional game.
I think folks should approach competitive games with this mindset too. When i play puyo, im generally not worried about winning, im mostly goofing around to see what i can pull off. Its less pressure, and lets me have more fun with the game.
It's probably harder with a fighting game, but viewing your matches as an open area for play instead of a place where you need to win may he helpful to folks.