I just made a suggestion of a JFF mode in the KO2CV thread about disabling trapping.
Trapping is of course one of the elements that make KO2 the great game that it is. But it is also a two-edged sword, in a sense. By aiming to trap the ball to increase control and start a new movement, you reduce the need for precision. You just have to hit the ball with the player, and boom, the ball is trapped and centered on the player.
The stop'n'go is a crucial technique in KO2. You trap ball, center joystick, release fire-button, and then embark on a new move with the player. The first time I really saw this technique in action was in Copenhagen Open '91 (
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=10915&start=13#p248930). After that, I went home and practiced it myself. Over time, this counter-intuitive stop'n'go becomes second nature, and then it ends up being easier to control the ball (due to the reduced need of precision) than if you only used changes in movement paths to control the ball.
I think only a select few discovered this stop'n'go technique on their own, and all the rest of us likely had a sensation of amazement the first times we saw it. I found it interesting when I noted that as strong a player as Klaus L didn't really use the technique much in his first WC. He was very strong anyway, due to an amazing level of precision, so that he could control the ball well anyway. Paolo, a new player debuting in KOA in the recent Milan tournament, also didn't use it, if I recall correctly. He now has the luxury of investigating a whole new world within KO2 for the first time, with all the excitement that that entails.
I also noticed that Kostas O, of recent Greek Championship fame, didn't use it when we played a few online games. I commented upon it, and tried to advertise the technique by saying something like "every time you trap the ball, you have like a blank page of options!". But Kostas was not easily convinced, and said that he likes KO2 as somewhat of a pinball game.
Anyway, once you are used to the technique, and then realize that you in part use it as a crotch to reduce the need for precision, you can begin to wonder if you have thus somehow neglected to maintain your movement precision. So this gives some motivation to the JFF suggestion. Also, it gives us a possibility to truly experience and enjoy KO2 as a pinball game, so that we can see the game the way Kostas sees it. The ultimate mode to practice movement technique is of course to play without joystick button at all. My record against the CPU was 4-0 when I practiced a bit in this way before the Athens WC, but I am sure that that record can be easily beaten.
