Similarly, when I played UT'99 (by the definition it was ages ago ;-)), I loved playing against stronger players. Yeah, losing a lot, but also getting better, decreasing the gap, learning new things, and at some point being able to win against some of them (or keep the match close). Lots of them was so good - I played solely Instagib, and a lot of 1-1s - that I was happy with just making some kills. But it was a lot of fun nonetheless.
But I've also seen a lot of players that could not cope with losing - maybe overly competitive, maybe a bit immature etc. etc.
But I've also seen a lot of players that could not cope with losing - maybe overly competitive, maybe a bit immature etc. etc.