1

AboutMe
ANoteaboutNotation
Abbreviations
CommasandXX
TheImportanceofHardwareConsistency
PlayStation4vs.PC
AGuidetoBuildingYourStreetFighterVPCbyMichaelMartin
PCBuild1
PCBuild2
BigTVsvs.GamingMonitors
WiFivs.Ethernet
Fightsticksvs.Controllers
AQuickShoppingList
FightingGames101
TheRock,Paper,ScissorsAnalogy
TheNeutralGame
TheImportanceofScreenPosition
TheBestOffenseisaGoodDefense
TechingThrows
YouWerentExpectingTheThrow
YouReactedTooLateorDidntRealizeYouWereinRange
YouMadeAnInputError
TheImportanceofBlocking
BlockingCrossUps
ResourceManagement
TheLifeBar
CriticalGauge
VGauge
ScreenPosition
ConsideringRisk/Reward
OverviewofStreetFighter5
SystemChangesandHabitstoChange
VSystem
VTrigger
PowerUpVTriggers
OneShotVTriggers
VSkill
VReversal
3BarCriticalGauge
TheComboSystem

2
 StunGauge
MagicPixel&ChipDamage
ThrowsandCrouchTech
CrouchTeching
NoFocusAttack
NoBackdashHitInvincibility
GreyLifeDamageonBlockedNormals
OverallHigherDamage
FewerHardKnockdowns
NormalandBackRecovery
CrushCounters
CrushCounter#1:st.HP
CrushCounter#2:st.HK
LearningtheGameThroughRyusEyes
WhatstheSameandWhatsNew?
StandingMediumPunch(st.MP)
StandingLightKick(st.LK)
StandingLightPunch(st.LP)
Throws(LP+LK)
VSkill(Parry)
VTrigger(DenjinMode)
StunBoost
DenjinHadokens(D,DF,F+P)
GeneralVTriggerStrategy
ActivatingintheNeutralGame
AfterANormalAttack
AfteraKnockdown
WhyOneCharacterisNotEnoughAnymore
BenefitsofLearningAdditionalCharacters
Infiltration:MasteroftheEntireCast
LoweringtheExecutionBarrier
APracticalFrameworkforLearningCharacters
AnalyzingVTriggerandWorkingBackwards
HowtoSuccessfullyUseVSkill
BuildingVGaugeWithCrushCounters
HowtoDevelopBlockstrings
ApplyingtheSameFrameworktoCammy
HowtoReadFrameData
StartupFrames
ActiveFrames
RecoveryFrames
TotalFrames
Hitstop

3
 HitandBlockAdvantage
HowtoAnalyzeFrameDatatoConstructOffense
BuildingMuscleMemoryinTrainingMode
PracticingDashing
PracticingHadoken(D,DF,F+P)
PracticingShoryuken
PracticingTatsumaki
PracticingstLKxxHadoken
PracticingThrows
PracticeWhiffPunishing
PracticeAntiAiring
AntiAiringwithShoryuken
AntiAiringwithNormals
BuildingMuscleMemoryforCombosandOtherSituations
BreakingCombosintoSegments
WatchingYourReplaysorTheValueofGettingYourAssKicked
WatchingYourReplays
TakingNotesonReplays
WhatsNext?
AppendixA:Resources
TournamentStreams
PlayerStreams
YouTubeChannels
WebResources
FacebookGroups
Tournaments&Events
AppendixB:Glossary
BackRecovery
Blockstring
ChainCombo
ChipDamage
CommandGrab
CriticalArt
CriticalGaugeorEXMeter
FocusAttack(MP+MK)
Footsies
LinkCombo
Meaty
Mixup
Neutralgame
NormalsorNormalAttacks
NormalRecoveryorQuickRise
Hardknockdown

4
 OptionSelect
UltrasakaUltraCombos
VGauge
VReversal
VSkill
VTrigger

5
AboutMe
Beforedivinginanyfurther,youreprobablywonderingwhoIam,whatIdo,andwhatmakes
mequalifiedtowriteaboutfightinggamefundamentals.

Well,foronething,Iwroteapreviousbookcalled SimplifyingStreetFightertohelpplayersget
intoStreetFighter4.Beforethat,myexperiencewithStreetFighterissteepedinhistory,going
waybacktothedaysofinsertingcoinsintoarcades.

IstartedwithStreetFighterII:WorldWarriorasakidin1991.Likemostpeoplewhoplayed
backthen,thearcadewasasecondhomeforme.Itwasthisearlycompetitionthatdrovemeto
learnasmuchasIcouldaboutthegame.

AsIgotolder,IcontinuedplayingeachiterationofStreetFighterwithenthusiasm:fromHyper
FightingtoXMenvs.StreetFighter,totheAlphaseriestotheStreetFighter3series,toStreet
Fighter4.

Throughouttheyears,IconstantlysearchedforwhateverinformationIcouldfindinorderto
improve.Inthe90s,itwasGamePromagazinesandtextFAQs,whichthenevolvedintothe
ShoryukenforumsandthenYouTube.

SinceIdbeenplayingsinceIwasakid,Ialwayswantedtobeoneoftheguysthatcouldwin
consistently.IstartedcompetinginStreetFighterIII:3rdStriketournamentsin2003andhoned
myskillsatthemeccaofNorthAmerican3rdStrike,FamilyFunArcade(orFFA)mayitrestin
peace.

Atthepeakofmy3rdStrikecareer,IhadtheopportunitytojoinJustinWongs2008Super
BattleOperateamandcompeteforachancetorepresentAmericainJapan.Duringmytimein
Japan,StreetFighter4wasbrandnewinthearcadesandalthoughIdidntplayitverymuch,
whenIreturnedtoCalifornia,StreetFighter4wasnowavailableatonelocationinSouthern
California.

Thiswasessentiallythenailinthecoffinof3rdStrikeandItransitioned(ratherpainfully)toSF4.
Icompetedfiercelyforafewyears,andthenduetoalackofmotivation,lowprizemoney,and
otherfactorsbegantofocusmoreoncontentcreation,namelyYouTubevideoswithmy
partnerincrime,MikeRoss.

CrossCounteroriginallystartedasaYouTubeshowonMachinima,afirstperson
shootercentricYouTubenetwork,andthenevolvedintoitsownchannelfeaturingdifferent
showslikeCrossCounterLIVE,ExcellentAdventures,RunninSets,andCrossCounterAsia.

6
IfoundithardertokeepupwithtopplayersandbecamedisillusionedwithplayingStreetFighter
4.Ofcourse,itwasalwaysfunontheshow(andourepisodesreflectthat),butcompetingjust
didnthavethesameappealanymore.

ButthatallchangedonemorningwhenIwokeuptothenewsthatStreetFighter5wasbeing
made.Thetrailer,featuringthetaglineRiseUp,reallyspoketome.WhatcanIsay?Ima
StreetFighterfanboyatheart.

IbegantogetbackintoplayingStreetFighter4andtriedtoseethegamedifferentlyfromwhen
Ididduringmycompetitivestreakinthepast.Thischangeinviewpointhelpedmegrowasa
playerbecauseImadeanefforttofilltheholesinmygame,suchaslackofcharacter
knowledgeandnotknowinghowtopracticeefficientlyorhowtoreadandutilizeframedata.

OnceStreetFighter5debutedatE32015andIplayed,Iwashooked.Allittookwasthatfirst
gametoknowthatthiswaswhatIwassupposedtodo.AtE3,Icompetedinatournamentwith
aPlayStation4asthe1stPlaceprize.Spoileralert:IwonandtookitasasignthatIshould
investasmuchaspossibleintobecominggoodatthenewgame.

Overthenextseveralmonths,IwenttopracticallyeveryStreetFighter5eventonthewest
coast.AsCapcomannouncedandreleasednewcharacters,Imadeanefforttolearnasmuch
aspossibleabouteachofthem.Whentheonlinebetascamearound,Iplayedthoseasmuch
aspossibleaswell.

Slowly,IbegantounderstandthenatureofthegameandhowitdiffersfromSF4.Ofcourse,it
tookmequitesometimetogetthehangofthegame.MaybeImaslowlearner,maybethe
gamehasarelativelysteeplearningcurveinsomeaspects,ormaybeitsalittlebitofboth.In
eithercase,Ivelearnedalotaboutthegameinthelastsixmonths.

NowIdontclaimtoknoweverythingthereisaboutthegame,butmygoalwiththisbookisto
saveyoutime,frustration,andeffortwiththeknowledgeIvegained.

Inanycase,Ihopethatthisbookwillserveasasolidreferenceforbothnewandexperienced
playersalikewhenitcomestolearningfightinggames.Althoughgamesvarybysystems,
characters,moves,andmore,manycoreaspectsfightinggamesremainunchanged.

Nowsyouropportunitytogetajumponyouropponentsandstartbuildingyourpathto
longtermsuccess.

WithinyoullfindanumberofdetailedstrategiesandobservationsthatIhavepainstakingly
developedoverthepasteightmonths2015toearly2016frommyexperienceswiththeStreet
Fighter5betaatvariouseventsandduringtheonlinebetas.Aswellas,ofcourse,my
experiencecompetingin3rdStrikeandSF4tournaments.

7
WhilethisguidehasbeenwrittenprimarilyusingStreetFighter5asatoolforunderstanding
andpracticingfightinggames,Ibelievealotofthisappliestomanyotherfightinggamesas
well.

Ithelpsifyouvereadmypreviousbook, SimplifyingStreetFighter,
butifyoudidnt,thatsokay
toosomeoftheinformationin SimplifyingStreetFighter
hasbeenincludedhereandupdated.

Thanksforreading,nowletsgetstarted!

gootecks( Instagram|
Twitter
)

8
A Note about Notation
ThefightinggamenotationthatIwillusethroughoutthebookcanbeconfusing,butdontworry,
youllgetthehangofitsoonenough!

Abbreviations
Weuseabbreviationsfrequentlyinfightinggamesbecauseusingthecolloquialnamescanbe
confusingfornewplayers.Inthe90s,whenyoulookedatStreetFighterarcadecabinets,the
buttonswerenamedasfollows:

Punches:jab(light),strong(medium),fierce(heavy)
Kicks:short(light),forward(medium),roundhouse(heavy)

Thesenamesarestillusedbymanyexperiencedplayersbecausetheyaresimplyfastertosay
thanlightpunchormediumkick.Forthesakeofclarity,wellonlyrefertothebuttonsusing
theabbreviations,orofficiallongnames.

LPLightPunch
MPMediumPunch
HPHeavyPunch
LKLightKick
MKMediumKick
HKHeavyKick

Also,weusethefollowingabbreviationstodescribewhichpositionyoumustbeinwhen
performingamove.

st.Standing
cr.Crouching
j.Jumping

Fromhereon,wellabbreviateUltraStreetFighter4,StreetFighter4,andStreetFighter5as
USF4,SF4,andSF5,respectively.

Commas and XX
WeusecommasandtheXXnotationtodenotewhenmovesarepartofacomboorsequence.

Acommameansthatonemovelinksintoanother.Alinkisatypeofcomboinwhichonemove
finishescompletely,thenthenextmoveconnectsandcontinuesthecombowhiletheopponent
isstillinhitstunandcannotblock.

9
AnexampleofalinkisRyusst.MP,cr.MPcombo.Thest.MPanimationfinishescompletely,
puttingtheopponentinhitstunafterwhich,thesecondcr.MPanimationmakescontactwhen
theopponentisstillinhitstun,andthus,makesthemunabletoblock.

WhenyouseeXXusedtodescribeacomboorsequence,itmeansthatthefirstmoves
animationiscancelledbythenextmove.Thisispossiblebecausesomeattacksanimationcan
becancelledintoanotherattackiftimedproperly.Inotherwords,thisallowsforsomemovesto
combothatotherwisewouldntifthefirstattackwasnotcancellable.

AnexampleofacancelisRyuscr.MPxxHadoken.ThecrouchingMediumPunchcontainsa
smallnumberofframesthatarecancellableintoaspecialattack.Whenyouquicklyperform
theinputforhisHadoken(D,DF,F+P) immediatelyafterinputtingcr.MP,Ryuwillunleashhis
Hadoken,ofcoursebutiftheopponentdoesntblockthecr.MP,theHadokenwillalsocombo.
Thegamewillthendisplay2hitcomboonthescreenifyoudiditcorrectly.If,however,the
opponentdoesblockthecr.MP,theHadokenwillstillcomeoutbecausethecr.MPwillhave
madecontact.

Ontheotherhand,attacksthatwhiff,ordontmakecontactwiththeopponent,generally
cannotbecancelled.Theexceptiontothisislightnormalswhichcanbechainedtogetherand
cancelled,eveniftheydontmakecontact.

10
TheImportanceofHardwareConsistency
BeforewecangetintothenittygrittyofSF5sgameengine,letsfirstmakesurethatwereall
onthesamepageregardinghardware.

Whensomeoneishavingahardtimegettingbetter,theyalmostalwaysoverlooktheirhardware
setup,whichIbelievetohaveagreatimpactonyourabilitytobeagreatplayer.NowImnot
merelytalkingaboutwhichstickorpadyouplayon.RatherImreferringtotheotherpiecesof
yourhardware:yourinternet,PCorconsole,andtypeofmonitor.

Welldiveintotheseshortly,buttounderstandtheimportanceofthesethings,youneedtofirst
understandsomethingcalleda1framelink.

Fightinggamesoftentimesrequiresverytighttimingandconsistencyinyourexecution,orability
tocarryoutacharacterscommandatwill.

SF5runsat60framespersecond.Thatmeansthatifyouhaveoneframetohitabuttonor
performacommand,youhaveliterally1/60thofasecondtodoso.Idontknowaboutyou,but
thatsoundslikeatoughwindowtohittome.Further,youllfindthese1framelinkstobevery
commonincombosandsetups.So,withsuchatinywindowofsuccess,youdwanttominimize
yourchancesoferrorbyhavingtherighthardwareforthejob.

IfyouveplayedSF4before,notethattherehavebeensomechangesinSF5(forthebetter).
SF5hasa3frameinputbuffer,whichmeansthatthereisa3framewindowofleniencywherein
theenginewillstillcounttheinputasthoughyouhititontime.Inotherwords,yourtiming
doesntneedtobeaccurateto1/60thofasecondonly1/20th.Soundslikeaminordifference,
buttherighthardwaremakesthisimportant.

PlayerswhoplayundersuboptimalconditionssuchaswithalaggyTV,laggyinternet,and
laggyconsolewilllikelydeveloptacticsandstrategiesthatappeartoworkwell(becauseoftheir
selfimposedhandicaps)againstweakerplayers,butwillfindthesamestrategiestoflopwhen
theyplayagainststrongerplayers.

PlayStation4vs.PC
Letsfirststartwiththeplatformyouplayon.

SF5isavailableonbothPlayStation4(PS4)andPC.Generally,thePS4versionisgoingtobe
thestandardbecausethe CapcomProTour isgoingtobeplayedexclusivelyonPS4
consoles.

11
Dontworry,youcanstillplayagainstPCplayersthankstoafeaturecalledcrossplay.Itallows
PCplayerstofightPS4players,andviceversa.

BecauseofSF5sinputleniency,Idontanticipatetheretobeahugedifferenceinplayingon
oneplatformversusonanother.IfyoudontalreadyhaveaPS4,Iusuallyrecommendmost
playerstocomparethecostsofadecentPCtothecostsofbuyingaPS4andotherhardware.

Heresaquickbreakdown:

PS4 $349.99
MadCatzPS4Fightstick $199.99
BenQ24Monitor(Evostandard) $251.84
Total:$801.82notincludingtaxandshipping.

Thatcanbealotofdough.ItalldependsonwhetherornotyouplantoplayothernonSF5
gamesonyourPS4(mostgamesareonPCaswell).Ifnot,itmightbemorecosteffectiveto
justkeepyourexistingfightstickandinvestinaPC.

Howmuchmorecosteffective,youask?IaskedfightinggamewriterandenthusiastMichael
Martintochimeinwithsomerecommendations.

12
AGuidetoBuildingYourStreetFighterVPCbyMichael
Martin
ManypeoplechooseconsolegamingoverPCbecauseitcanbeamoresimpleoption,
andyoucanbuildone.Ontheotherhand,youdonthavetobuildaPS4.Itsaonetime
purchase,andotherthanminoroptionalupgrades,aPS4ownercanresteasyknowing
theyaregettingsomethingplayableoutofthebox.Whenitneedsanupdate,itwill
automaticallydownloaditforyou.

NowifyouwanttoplaySF5onaPC,youneedtodetermineifyourPCcanrunitorrun
itcapably.Ifitdoesntmeettheminimumrequirements,thenextquestionis:doyou
upgradeorbuyorbuildabrandnewPC?

Takingintoaccountyourbudget,letstakealookatyouroptionsbasedonthehardware
requirementstorunthegameandtheircost.First,herearetheminimumsystem
requirementstoplaySF5onPC,accordingtoCapcom.

OS:Windows764bit
CPU:IntelCorei34160@3.6GHz
RAM:6GB
Video:NvidiaGTX480orhigher
Sound:DirectXcompatiblesoundcardoronboardchipset
DirectX:Version11
Internet:Broadbandconnectionrequired

Theserequirementsarentterriblytaxing,andifyouveboughtorbuiltacomputerwithin
thelastfewyears,oddsareyouhavesomethingsimilarandcanrunSF5.

Hereswhatisrecommended:

OS:Windows764bit
CPU:IntelCorei54690K@3.50GHz
RAM:8GB
Video:NvidiaGTX960
Sound:DirectXcompatiblesoundcardoronboardchipset
DirectX:Version11
Internet:Broadbandconnectionrequired

Forthemostpart,thegapbetweenminimumandrecommendedisntgreatasidefrom
therecommendedvideocard.YoullfindthatgettingintotheNvidiaGTX960+seriescan
getquitespendy.Thatsaid,ifyoufindyourselfinasituationwhereyoucanupgrade
parts,RAMandvideocardwouldbeyourbestbangforyourbuck.
13

NowmaybeyoujustwantanewPCorgetawayfromconsolegaming.Inthatcase,we
puttogetheracoupleofsamplePCbuildsasreferencetogettingthemostoutofSF5
andyourwallet.

PCBuild1
ThisbudgetPCwillgetyoubyjustfinewithmostcurrentgames.Youmightnotbeable
toplayeverythingatmaximumsettings,butitsmorethanenough,basedonthe
minimumsystemrequirements,tohandleSF5.Onethingtonoteaboutthisbuild:You
couldgowithalowerendvideocard,butdependingonwhatyoufindatcurrentprices,
lowerendvideocardscouldrunanywherefrom$20to$50less.Havingahigherend
cardsavesyouthetroubleofupgradinglatershouldyouwanttoupgradeotherparts
aroundit.

Beforethecostofthemonitorandacontrollerorfightstick,youllbelookingatabout$645
USD.Referringbacktothegamingdisplaysection,youcangowiththeEvostandard
BenQ24gamingmonitororsomethingthatsmoresuitabletoyourneeds.Abuildlike
thishaseverythingyouneedtogetstartedandaffordsyouthefreedomtopickand
choosepartsyouwanttoupgradelateron,whilekeepingthesystemviableforafew
yearsatleast.

IntelCorei361003.7GHzDualCoreProcessor $128.69

GigabyteGAH110MAMicroATXLGA1151Motherboard $45.99

KingstonHyperXFuryBlack8GB(2x4GB)DDR42133Memory $53.99

SeagateBarracudea1TB3.57200RPMInternalHardDrive $48.62

EVGAGeForceGTX9502GBFTWACX2.0VideoCard $159.99

ThermaltakeVersaH21ATXMidTowerCase $45.28

SeaSonicS12II520W80+BronzeCertifiedATXPowerSupply $65.99

CoolerMasterStormDevastatorGamingBundle $29.99

MicrosoftWindows10HomeOEM(64bit) $95.82

BenQRL2460HT60Hz24Monitor $245.68

14
PCBuild2
Ifyourelookingatbuildingahighendgamingrigthatyouwontneedtothinkaboutupgrading
foralongtime,weveputtogetherthissamplebuildthatfeaturesvirtuallyeverythingyouneed
toplaySF5andanythingelseatthehighestsettings.

Thehighendbuildcomeswithallofthebellsandwhistles,includingmechanicalkeyboardand
agreatheadsettogetyouusedtoblockingoutsoundwhileplayingintournaments.Youmight
alsonoticethesignificantleapinpricewiththevideocard.Whilelowerendcardstendtobe
relativelycloseinprice,thehigherendmodelscostmuchmore.Anotherdifferencebetween
thisbuildandthebudgetbuildisthe500GBSolidStateDrive.Itsfasterthanthe1TB7200
RPMharddriveandwillprovidebetterloadtimesforprogramsinstalledonit,whilethe
secondaryharddrivecanbeusedforstorage.

IntelCorei56600K3.5GHzQuadCoreProcessor $264.21

CoolerMasterHyper212EVO82.9CFMSleeveBearingCPUCooler $29.44

MSIZ170KraitGamingATXLGA1151Motherboard $134.99

CrucialBallistixSport16GB(2x8GB)DDR42400Memory $98.48

CrucialBX100500GB2.5SolidStateDrive $179.99

SeagateBarracudea1TB3.57200RPMInternalHardDrive $48.62

MSIGeForceGTX980Ti6GBVideoCard $650.90

PhanteksEnthooProATXFullTowerCase $109.99

EVGASuperNOVAG2550W80+GoldCertifiedFullyModularATXPowerSupply $89.99

RazerBlackWidowChromaWiredGamingKeyboard $159.99

RazerMambaTournamentEditionMouse $78.99

KingstonHyperXCloudII7.1ChannelHeadset $97.97

MicrosoftWindows10HomeOEM(64bit) $95.82

BenQRL2460HT60Hz24Monitor $245.68

15
Ifneitheroftheseappealtoyou,thereareplentyofPCmanufacturersthatofferaprebuilt
gamingPCorlaptop,butthosewillalwaysbemoreexpensive.Ifyouwanttogetthemostout
ofyourmoney,youwanttoideallypickandchooseyourownPCparts.

IfyourelookingtogobeyondplayingSF5andgetintocontentcreationorlivestreaming,the
budgetbuildmaysuffice.Butyoullfindthatinordertoproducehigherqualitystreamsand
content,amorepowerfulPCisneeded.

Maybeyoudontneedtogothroughtheprocessofbuyingorbuildinganewcomputer.Youcan
certainlyupgradeyourdesktoptosomethingcapableofmeetingtheminimumrequirements.It
mighttakeabitofresearch,butyoucanalwaysusethereferencePCbuildsasaguideline.
Needanewvideocard?PickuponeofthoseNvidia950s.RAMisalwaysanaffordableand
simpleoptiontoupgrade.

Asalways,therearedifferentopinionsonhardware.SomePCuserspreferAMDprocessors
andgraphicscardsoverIntelandNvidia.Withalittlebitofresearch,youcanfindwhateversuits
youbest.

Again,thanksto MichaelMartin
fordoingthelegworkandprovidingyouwithinformationon
buildingaPC.NowthatyouhavesomeguidanceonPCvs.PS4,letstalkmonitorsandTVs.

BigTVsvs.GamingMonitors
NowIhatetobethebearerofbadnews,butthatniceHDTVthatcostyouashinypenny
probablyisnotgoingtohelpyouwinmoregames.Usually,bigTVsthataregreatforwatching
TVandmoviesarenotoptimalforplayingfightinggamesduetogamesaforementionedtight
executionwindows.CheckifyourTVislistedonasitelike DisplayLagtoseehowitstacksup
againstgamingmonitorsthatareactuallyoptimizedforperformanceinsteadofjustbeing...big.

Okay,IadmitthatImnotamonitorscientist,soIdontknow whybigTVshaveaslower
responsetimeIjustknowtheydo.IalsoknowthatifyouconsistentlyplayonalaggyTV,play
and
overwifi, arenewtothegame,itsgoingtoskewthewayyouviewandthinkofthegame.

Themaindrawbackisthatifyouspendalotoftimeworkingonyourcombosandexecutionon
alaggyTV,andtheneitherupgradetoagamingmonitororstartcompetingoffline,youregoing
tohavetorelearnandadjustyourtiming.Talkaboutawasteoftimeandenergy,right?

Thebestthingtodoistoinvestinamonitorthathasaslittlelagaspossible.Ifyoureallywant
theadvantage,makesureitsthesamemonitorthatsgoingtobeusedatyourlocalandmajor
tournaments.

Foralongtime,thepreviousstandardwastheAsusVHseriesuntilEvo2015,whenthenew
standardbecametheBenQ RL2460HT .Ihaveoneandlikeitalot,butrecentlyboughta27

16
AsusMX279H whichisGODLIKEespeciallywhencombinedwitha LightPack
forsomesweet
backlighting.

Asanewplayer,itmaynotbeworthrunningouttobuyanewmonitorimmediately,butonce
youstartplayingonlineconsistently,itprobablywonttakelongbeforesomeofthoselossesfeel
liketheycouldhavebeenwinsifyoudbeenplayingonabettermonitororTV.

Sodependingonyourbudgetsituation,itmaymakesensetojustbitethebulletasearlyas
possibleinyourStreetFighterjourney.

WiFivs.Ethernet
Asyouprobablyalreadyknow,youexperienceacertainamountoflagwhileplayingonline.If
youliveoutsideofAsia,chancesarethislagissomewherefromslightlynoticeable,tohardto
ignore,tounplayable.Atthecurrentstateofonlineplay,thisissimplyunavoidableandunlikely
tochangeinthenearfuture.Thismeansthatthebestthingwecandoistoreducelagasmuch
aspossible.

Themainthingswecancontrolareourowninternetconnectionsandhomenetworksetup.If
youliveinanarealikeIdowithonlyoneprovider,thebestthingtodoisupgradetothehighest
speeds.Ifyouvealreadydonethat,thenextstepistomakesurethatyoureusinganethernet
cabletoconnectinsteadofusingwifi.

Whynotwifi?

Wifiisnotoptimaltoplayonbecauseofthelatencyandthesheeramountsofsignalsand
noisethatarelikelycrowdingthespectrumatyourplace.MaybeyouresomesortofITguru
whohasoptimizedyourwirelessforsuperperformance,foundawaytoreduceextralatencyto
0,areusingadifferentwifichannel,andexperiencenohiccupsatall.Thatsgreatforyou,but
therestofusarenotgoingtobeabletoreplicatethesameresults.So,stickwithethernet,the
strongerandsimplerchoice,toreducethenumberofvariablesthatcanimpacttheconnection.

Yeah,ethernetcanbeapainintheass,butsometimesallyouneedisalongasscable.Plus,
thereareotherwaysofgettingitdone,suchasviaethernetoverpower.Irecentlyinvestedin
anActiontecPowerlineEthernetadapter andwishIhadupgradedsooner.Iusedtoruna100
ethernetcablefromtherouterinmylivingroomtomyofficewithasecondrouternearmy
consolesandPC.Thiswasobviouslynotanelegantsolution,butnowthePowerlineEthernet
adapterworksperfectly,andIplugmyPCandconsoleintothewallwhichconnectstothe
routerinthelivingroom.

Asasidenote,youcanexpecta hugenumberofPS4playerstoplayonwifiprobablybecause
theyrenewtofightinggames(andnotreadingthisbook).Thiswillinevitablycauseanoverall
poorexperience.Pleasebepartofthesolution,nottheproblem.

17
Fightsticksvs.Controllers
Manynewplayersseeproplayersusingfightsticksattournamentsandthinkthatthey,too,
mustuseafightstickiftheywanttobestrongplayers.Thisisnottrue.Afightstickdoesnt
automaticallymakeyougreat,althoughtherearesomeadvantagestousingone:

Easyaccesstoallbuttons.
Advancedexecutionmethodslikedoubletappingareeasier.
TheabilitytoperformlongmotionslikeZangiefsSpinningPiledriverfaster.

However,therearedisadvantagesaswell.

Theresarelativelysteeplearningcurveifyouveneverplayedononebefore.Mostnew
playersstruggleforquitesometimewhenlearninghowtoplayonafightstickbecauseit
requiresfinesseandpractice.
Whenyouplayinperson,someplayerslistentotheiropponentsbuttonpressesand
lookattheiropponentsfightstickoutofthecorneroftheireye.

Mypersonalpreferenceistoplayonafightstick,butthatsbecauseIvebeenplayingonone
sinceIwasakid.Ialsodontplayalotofotherconsolegamesonacontroller,soIdonthavea
lotofexperiencewithcontrollers.Ultimately,whateveryouaremostcomfortablewithwillserve
youbest.

Ifyouareinterestedinlearningtoplayonafightstick,myrecommendationisa MadCatzTE2 .
IvebeenplayingonMadCatzstickssince2009,astheyaremyfavorite.Asofthiswriting
(early2016),theyarecurrentlyinshortsupply,butasthereleasedateofSF5getscloser,you
canexpectthemtobemorewidelyavailable.

IsuggestgettingaPS4compatiblestickbecausetheyworkonbothPS4andPC,soyoucan
playSF5oneitherplatform.IfyoucurrentlyhaveaPS3orXbox360stick,thesearelikelyto
workonPC,butwillprobablynotworkonPS4withoutanadaptersuchasthe BrookConverter ,
whichmayormaynotendupbeingtournamentlegal.Notethatyouneedadditionalsoftware
suchas JoyToKey touseaPS4stickwithSF5.Ihavenoideawhy,butthatsthewayitis
currently.

However,itsworthnotingthatifyouonlyplanonplayingonPCandalreadyhaveaPS3or
Xbox360fightstick,theresnoneedtoupgrade.Butitwouldalsomeanthatitwouldbeapain
intheassifyoutriedtoplayatafriendshouseoratournamentrunonPS4.

Ifyouremorecomfortableplayingonapad,Iwouldsuggestgettingoneofthenew MadCatz
PS4fightpads .ThesearedesignedwithStreetFighterVinmindandhavesixbuttonslaidout
nexttoeachotherwhichmakesiteasiertohitHPandHK.

18
AQuickShoppingList
Ifyouareabletotakethesesimple(althoughpossiblyexpensive)stepstowardconsistency,
youcanfeelconfidentthatyouarenotrelyingonlagtacticsortricksthatmayonlyworkinan
onlineenvironmentagainstweakplayers,andthatyouarelearningthegamethewayits
supposedtobeplayed.

Insomeways,havingtoinvestextramoneyinyoursetupcangoalongwaytowardsincreasing
yourcommitmenttobecomingastrongerplayer,too.So,saveupandbuyonepieceatatime
ifyouhaveto.Whenallissaidanddone,youwillfeelmoreconfidentinyoursetupandyour
game.

Heresaquickshoppinglistincaseyouarelookingformyrecommendations:

Playstation4
StreetFighterVCollectorsEdition
MadCatzTE2Fightstick |(
Canada
)
MadCatzFightPadPRO
BenQGamingMonitor
AsusMX279H27Monitor
LightPack
ActiontecPowerlineEthernetadapter

19
FightingGames101
Thissectionisforanyonewhoiscompletelynewtotheseriesorfightinggamesinparticular,or
justwantstobrushuponsomefundamentals.Eitherway,welcome!Thisisanexcitingtimeto
bedivingintofightinggames.Theresplentytolearn,sogetreadytoenteracomplexworldof
buttoncommands,mentalgames,andeSportsglory.

Fightinggames,andStreetFighterinparticular,arentjustaracetoseewhocanpressthe
mostbuttonsfasterinordertobeatthecrapoutofeachotherfaster.Fortheuninitiated,itsa
gameofcontrollingspace,makingquickandsharpdecisions,managingresources,and
maximizingopportunitiestoinflictdamageontheopponent.Mostnewplayersthinkthatifthey
justfigureouttheircharactersbestcombos,theyllsurelybeabletobeatmostopponents.
Unfortunately,nothingcouldbefurtherfromthetruth.

Withouttheproperfoundation,youllneverbeabletolandanyofthosecombosinarealmatch,
especiallyagainstanexperiencedopponent.Withoutstrongdefense,youredefinitelygoingto
loseagainstplayersofvariousskilllevelssimplybecauseyoudidntrealizedefensewas
important(thinkaboutit:howdoyoustopsomeonefromkickingyourass?).Withoutknowledge
ofthegame,youhavenoideathatthegameisfar,fardeeperthanyourealize.

Further,StreetFighterisallaboutyourexecution,oryourabilitytocompletebuttoncommands
flawlessly.Ifyoucannotexecutethepropermove,combo,ordefensiveoptionwhenitcounts,
youregoingtolose.Ihatetosoundlikeadowner,butIwanttogetthisintoyourheadthat
StreetFighter isntjustfunandgames
.Itsserioustraining,eventhoughwereonlyfighting
virtually.Thesameprinciplesofconsistency,dedication,respect,discipline,andincremental
progressapply.

Ifyouwanttolevelupfromweenooblettoproficientfighter,youneedthemusclememoryand
plentyofpractice.

Withoutfurtherado,letsgooversomeveryimportantbasicconcepts.

TheRock,Paper,ScissorsAnalogy
StreetFighterisoftencomparedtoafastpacedgameofrock,paper,scissorsbecausethe
threemainoptionsinStreetFighteraretoattack,block,orthrow.

Therock,paper,scissorsmodelhelpsyourealizethatthereisnomoveortechniquethatis
unbeatable.Infact,thereisusuallynosinglecorrectanswerforanymoveorsituationinStreet
Fighterjustshadesofgreyandpossibilities.Ofcourse,thereareexceptionstothisrule,but
thisisagoodplacetostartlearning.Ifyouunderstandthisframework,youcanuseittobetter
understandwhyyourewinningandlosing.

20
Theconceptofoffenseissimple.Ifyouareattackingtheopponentandtheydonotblock,they
takedamageandyouscoreahit.Ontheotherhand,iftheydoblock,theywilleithertakeno
permanentdamagefromanormalattackorasmallamountofdamagefromaspecialmoveor
CriticalArt.Thelatteriscommonlyreferredtoaschipdamage.

Intheory,youcouldwinifyoujustblockedeverythingthatyouropponentthrewatyou,right?
Notquite,becausewehaventconsideredthethirdoptionthrow.Throwsareaconstantthreat
whentheopponentisnearyoubecausetheyareeasytoexecuteanddoaconsiderable
amountofdamageandstuntotheopponent.

PerformedbypressingLP+LKsimultaneouslywhenyoureclosetotheopponent,throwscannot
beblocked,buttheycanbeavoided,or teched ,bytheopponent.Avoidingathrowistricky,but
itcanbedonebyalsopressingLP+LKsimultaneouslywithinasmallwindowoftime(about of
asecond).Further,throwsgenerallylosetofastattacks,suchaslightpunches,lightkicks,and
anumberofspecialmoves.

Thus,ifyouthinkyouropponentwillattack,youshouldblock.Butifyouthinktheopponentwill
throw,youshouldattack,orattempttotechthethrow.

Buthowdoyouknowwhatyouropponentwilldo?Yourabilitytorecognizeandutilizeeachof
theseoptionsintheheatofbattlewilltaketimeandexperiencetodevelop.Ofcourse,youcant
justmindlesslyusethesameoptionoverandoverthismakesyoupredictable.This
predictabilityiswhatseparatesbeginnersfromintermediateplayers.Beginnershaveonlyafew
attacksintheirrepertoireandusuallyhavenoconceptofhowtheseattacksworkandhowthey
canbecountered.

Ontheotherhand,experiencedplayersobservetheiropponentstendenciesandpatternsand
adjusttheirgametotakeadvantageoftheotherplayersweaknesses.Further,anexperienced
playerhasabetterunderstandingoftheircharactersoptions,aswellasthoseofhis
opponents,andcanadjusthisgameto baittheopponentintomakingmistakes.Forexample,
ifhenoticesthathisopponentneverblocksonwakeupandinsteadmashesbuttonsoruses
riskymoveslikeaShoryuken,hedblockorstandatasaferange,thenpunishrelentlesslywith
ahighdamagecombo.

TheNeutralGame
Theneutralgamereferstoanypointinaroundwherebothfightersareontheirfeetandnot
knockeddown.Technically,itcouldalsobewhereoneorbothopponentsareintheairor
blocking,butletsnotgetstuckonspecifics.

Everyroundstartswiththeneutralgame.Thisisanimportanttimeforplayerstofeeleach
otheroutandfightforscreenposition(theimportanceofwhichIlltouchonbelow),usinga
combinationofwalkingbackandforth,theirnormals,andspecialmoves.Anothertermto

21
 footsies
describethefightforspacecontrolintheneutralgameis ,whichusesnormalsand
specials.Youwanttodevelopstrongfootsiesbecauseyouwillhaveahigherabilitytodeal
damageandavoidgettinghit,allthewhilelimitingtheopponentsoptions.

Experiencedplayerstendtousequicknormalsthatarehardertopunish.Thereasonistodeal
smallamountsofdamage,yes,butmostlytoseehowtheopponentreacts.Thatshouldbeyour
goaloftheneutralgameoverall:todosmallamountsofdamagevianormalsandspecials,
whilepushingtheopponenttowardsthecornerandlimitinghisattackandmovementoptions.

TheImportanceofScreenPosition
Youmaynotknowitinitially,butscreenpositionisapreciousresourcethatcanbeusedtoyour
advantage,oragainstyouifyourenotcareful.

Whenyoupushtheopponenttothecorner,itlimitstheirmovementoptionsandcausesmost
opponentstocrackunderpressureandmakemistakesthatyoucanthencapitalizeon.
Generally,whentheopponentiscornered,youcanapplyoffensivepressurewithnormals,
throws,andoverheads.Onceyouvecorneredtheopponent,youshoulddoyourbesttokeep
himthere.

Asyoucontinuetoapplypressureanddealdamage,mostopponentswillbegintofeellotsof
mentalpressuretodosomethingaboutitordie.Thisiswhentheyareverylikelytotakeabig
riskinordertoescape,butthisisalsowhenthetimeisripeforyoutopunishheavily,provided
youcorrectlypredicttheserisks.

Butwhathappenswhen youretheoneondefense?

TheBestOffenseisaGoodDefense
Ifyourelikemostnewplayers,panicquicklysetsinwhenyoureknockeddownwhilethe
opponentisnearyou.Youmightcyclethroughsomecommonoptions,likeawakeup
Shoryukenorthrow,ormaybeyoumightmashrandombuttonsandprayforamiracle.

Doesthissoundfamiliar?

Dontworry,aweakdefenseisnormal.Withsomefocusanddiscipline,youcanmakegradual
stepstoimproveyourdefense.

Astrongdefenseisverydifficulttobeat,plainandsimple.Imaginethatyouhaveanopponent
cornered,butyoucantseemtolandahitbecausehetechsallyourthrows,blocksyourattacks,
andseeminglycanwithstandanendlessamountofcornerpressure.Thatsadifficulttobeat
defensethatseparatesgoodplayersfromthegreats,soletsstepyourowndefensegameup.

22
Teching Throws
Techingthrowsiscommonlytheweakestareaofdefenseamongstbeginners.

Athrowtechiswhenyourthrowgetsneutralizedbytheopponentsthrow.Thishappens
whentheopponentpressesthethrowcommand(LP+LK)atnearlythesametime.

Intheory,itsoundseasy,butinpractice,especiallywhenplayingonline,itsreallydifficultand
frustrating.

Asabeginner,youmightfailtotechthrowsconsistentlyduetooneormoreofthefollowing
circumstances:
1. Youdidntanticipatetheopponentsincomingthrow,plainandsimple.
2. Youdidanticipateathrowwascomingbutreactedtoolateduetoinexperience,online
latency,etc.
3. Youdidntrealizetheywerewithinthrowrangeduetounfamiliaritywiththethrowrange.
4. Youmadeaninputerrorduetolackofpracticeandprecision.

Theaboveareallverycommoninnewplayersbecausethrowscanbeadeceptivelycomplex
partofStreetFighter.Nowletsexaminemorecloselywhatyoucandotoreducethechances
ofanyofthesesituationshappeningtoyouinrealmatches.

You Werent Expecting The Throw

Notexpectingathrowisprobablythemostcommonreasonthatnewplayersgetthrown.You
probablywerenotawarethatathrowissocommonplaceandimportanttoyourgame.Thats
okay,weregoingtofixthatnow.

Thebestwaytolearnhowtointegratethrowsintoyourgameistocommittothrowingthe
opponenteverysingletimeyougetnearthemorknockthemdown.

Obviously,thisisnotahighlevelstrategyandwontworkagainstmoreexperiencedplayers,
butthatsnotthepoint.Thegoalistogetusedtoconstantlylookingforthrowopportunitiesso
thatyougainabetterunderstandingofhowtheycanimpacttheflowofthematch.

ActionStep:Playfivematchesandattemptatleastonethrowperround.

You Reacted Too Late or Didnt Realize You Were in Range

Thisisalsoverycommon,especiallyonlinewherevariousfactorslikeinternettraffic,latency,
monitorlag,andflatoutnothavingpracticedenoughcanheavilyinfluenceyourgame.

Youhavelessthanasecond(1/5thofasecondtobeprecise)totechathrow,soitsnowonder
yougetthrownalotwhenyoufirststartplaying.

23
Oftentimes,throwsaretechednotbecausetheopponenthasamazingreflexesbutbecause
theyalsoattemptedathrowatnearlythesametime.Whenconsideringthealreadysmall
windowyouhavetotechathrow,combinedwithonlinelatencyofanywherebetween50150ms
formostconnections,youcanseewhyitseasytogetthrown.

Theresnoperfectsolutiontosolvingalatencyissuesinceeventhelatencybetweenevery
onlinematchwillbedifferent.However,familiarizingyourselfwiththerangeofyouropponents
throwsisagoodstep.Sinceeachcharacterhasadifferentthrowrange(ZangiefsSpinning
Piledriverhasalongerrangethanregularthrows,forexample),youshouldtakethetimeto
carefullymeasuretheopponentsmaxthrowrangefromstandingandcrouchingpositions.

You Made An Input Error

Thethrowcommand(LP+LK)appearstobesimpleonthesurface,butduringanactualmatch,
itcandefinitelybeeasytomessuptheinput.Thiscanhappenifyoureunfamiliarwithhowto
positionyourfingersonthefightstick(ifyoureusingone),oritcouldalsobefromalackof
techingpractice.Tothelatterpoint,muchoffightinggamesrelysignificantlyonmusclememory,
sonewerplayerswillbenefitgreatlyfromspendingthetimetohonetechingthrows.

Asforinputerror,thereareanumberofdifferentvariables:youcouldbemissingthebutton
slightlyoryourtimingmaybeoffandyoudidnthitthebuttonssimultaneously.OnetrickIve
foundusefultomakethiseasieristogotoButtonConfigandsetonebuttontothrow.Either
thePPPorKKKbuttoncanbesettothrow,whichyoucanaccessmoreeasilywithpractice.

Theadvantageofaonebuttonthrowtechisthatfewerinputortimingerrorscanoccur.Plus,if
youbecomeproficientindoubletappingbuttons,youcaneffectivelydoubleyourchancesof
techingathrowthatwouldotherwiserequiretwofingerspressingtwobuttonstwotimes(thatsa
mouthful).

Ifyoureplayingonacontroller,settingonebuttontothrowisfairlycommonaswell,sodont
feelembarrassedtotryitsinceitcouldquicklyfortifyyourdefense.

RefertotheStartingStreetFighter5TrainingModeHandbook foranexerciseonhowto
practicetechingthrows.

TheImportanceofBlocking
Anothercomponentofastrongdefenseisknowinghowandwhentoblock.Blockingis
performedbyeitherholdingbackordownbackonthecontrollerwhentheopponentattacks.

Itseemsdeceptivelysimple,butnewplayersfrequentlystrugglewithblockingbecausetheyare
oftentimesoverwhelmedbythespeedofthefight.Agoodruleofthumbtorememberisthatif
yourenotsurewhattodoinanygivenmoment,yourdefaultdecisionshouldbetoblocklow.
Whylow?Blockinglowbeatsnearlyeverysingleoffensiveoptiontheopponenthas.Thetwo

24
exceptionsarethrows(bothregularandcommandthrows)andoverheads(whichmustbe
blockedhigh).

Theotherreasonyouwanttoblocklowinsteadofhighisthatingeneraloverheadsareslow
andeasytoreactto.Mostcharacterscannotdomassiveamountsofdamageafterconnecting.
Also,midattackscanbeblockedhighorlow,generallymakingblockinglowabetteroptionthan
blockinghigh.

InSF5,blockingnormalattacksincursasmallamountofrecoverablegreylifedamage,making
blockingslightlyriskierduetothepossibilityoftheopponentscoringacleanhit.Onceyou
createspacebetweenyouandtheopponent,andasmallamountoftimehaspassed,your
healthwillbegintoregenerate.

Onesituationinwhichyouneedtogetusedtoblockingisafteraknockdown.Thisistypically
wherenewplayersstrugglethemostbecausetheyarenotfamiliarenoughwiththeirdefensive
optionsortheiropponentsoffensiveoptions.Infact,themostcommonreactionforanew
playerwhentheygetknockeddownistomashbuttonsordoanunsafeReversal,likea
Shoryukenonwakeup.Thisisriskybecauseiftheopponentcorrectlypredictswhatyoulldo,
hewilllikelyscoreaCounterhitandgettheopportunityforbigdamage.

Inadditiontoblockinglowonwakeup,youmustalsoremembertoblocklowafternearlyevery
singlemove.Thisisanimportanthabittogetintobecauseifyouwhiffanormalandyour
opponentdidnotpunishfastenough,youllhavetheopportunitytoblockhisattack.However,if
youforgettoblockloweverytime,youllgethitduetobeingcareless.

Bymakinganefforttoblockonwakeupinsteadoftryingtorecklessly,say,Shoryuken,your
problemsaway,yourdefenseandmentalfortitudewillimproveandyouwillmakefewerrisky
decisions.Blockinglowandreactingtothrowsandoverheadsaregenerallythesaferoptions
aftergettingknockeddown.Afterblockingafewattacks,youshouldbeabletobackdashto
safetyandresetthesituationbyreturningtoyourfootsies/neutralgame,providedyouwerent
alreadycornered.

Rememberthatblockingbeatsallattacksexceptforthrows.Inadditiontoreactinghightoblock
overheads,youllalsoneedtoreacttothrowsbyteching.

Intheneutralgame,itsworthnotingthatyoushouldbecarefulaboutbackdashingorjumping
backbecauseyougiveupsignificantscreenposition.Allinall,takingsmallstepsandblocking
lowaresaferwaystoadvanceforwardthandashingorjumping.

25
Blocking CrossUps
Acrossupisusuallyanairattackthathitsontheoppositesideofwheretheopponentstarts.
Therewillbesituationswhereyouareforcedtoblockacrossupeitherwhilestandingoron
wakeup.

Crossupsmustblockedbyholdingtheotherdirectiononthecontroller,meaningthatifyouare
ontheleftandtheopponentisontherightandperformsacrossupjumpin,youmustholdright
onthecontrollerinordertoblock.Ifyoucontinuetoholdleftasthoughthejumpinwereaimed
tohitfromthefront,youwillgethitandlikelyeatalargecombo.

Thebestwaytodefendagainstcrossupsistoconsiderwhentheymaybeusefulandwhen
theymayputyouinabadsituation.Oftentimes,Iseenewerplayersgoforcrossupswhenthe
opponentiscornered,buttheyinsteadendupputtingthemselvesinthecorner.

Maybeyouregoingfortheelementofsurprise.Yes,itistruethatmostexperiencedplayers
wouldnotexpectyoutoputyourselfinthecornerwithacrossup.However,anexperienced
playerwilllikelybeabletokeepyouinthecornerforthedurationoftheround,thusdefeating
yourmasterplanofconfusingyouropponentwithanunexpectedcrossup.Donteverusethis
crossup.

Thebettercasewouldbewhenyouareinthecornerandrealizethatacrossupjumpinwillget
yououtofthecornerwhilestillkeepingyouropponentinblockstun.Iwouldarguethateven
whilestandingmidscreen,acrossupisnotaseffectiveasmakingyouropponent think
youwill
goforthecrossup.Thiswillallmakemoresenseasyouplaythegame,andcheckoutthese
generalrulesofthumbforcrossups:
Donotputyourselfinthecornerforthesakeofgoingforacrossup.Gettingscreen
positionadvantageismoreimportant.
Ifyoucanconditionyouropponenttoblockinfrontafewtimesafteraknockdown,a
crossupthenexttimeyouareinthatsituationismorelikelytohit.
Crossupscanusuallybehitbya3frameReversal,suchasaShoryuken.
Anambiguouscrossupcanbeagreatwaytoendtheroundiftheopponentisnear
death.

ResourceManagement
Asmentionedearlier,StreetFighterisalsoagameofresourcemanagement.Yourresourcesin
StreetFighter5include:
CriticalGauge(accesstoEXSpecialMovesandCriticalArts)
VGauge(accesstoVReversalandVTrigger)
Lifebar

26
 Screenposition,relativetohowfarawayyouarefromyourowncorner
Timer

Keepinmindthatyouropponenthasthesesameresources.Itlltaketimeandastrategyto
effectivelyuseeachofthese.Letsstartwithwhatisboththemostandleastobviousresource
ofthemall:yourlifebar.

The Life Bar

Formanysituations,thelifebarisimportantbecauseitseeminglydictateswhoisincontrolof
thematch,ormoresimply,whowillwinorlose.Yetinothersituations,thelifebarissimplyless
importantthanscreenposition,VGauge,andCriticalGauge.

Thatisbecausethelifebarmattersonlyifitreaches zero
.Youcouldbehangingbyapinkyat
1%lifeleftandyouropponentcouldhave100%,butitdoesntmatteruntiloneofyoureaches
0%.That1%meansacomebackisalwaysapossibility,regardlessofhowunlikelyitmayseem
atthetime.

Essentially,youcanuseyourlifebartogainmoreinformationaboutyouropponentandplace
betsonhowhewillreact.

Whenfightinginabestofthreescenario(suchasinatournamentinwhichyoumustwintwo
outofthreegamestoadvance),theentirefirstgamecanbethoughtofasanopportunityto
gatherinformationontheopponent.JohnChoi,OGStreetFighterlegendfromNorthern
CaliforniaandEvo2008Capcomvs.SNK2Champion,hasoftenstatedthatthepurposeofthe
firstroundistolearntheopponentscapabilitiesandtendencies.Then,youcanapplythat
knowledgetoroundstwoandthree.

Forinstance,youcanwagersomeofyourlifebartofindoutwhattheopponenttendstodoin
wakeupsituationsandwhattheyliketospendtheirresourceson.Youllfindthatoftentimes
playersgettooconcernedwiththeirlifebarandtendtomakecostlymistakeswhentheyfall
behindinhealth.Theyusuallyenduplosingbecausetheystartmakingerrorsoutofanxiety
andfear,likejumpinginatthewrongtime,pressinganimaginaryortemporaryadvantage,or
doinganunsafeReversalonwakeup.

Atfirst,riskingyourlifebarforinformationisnteasytogetusedto,butyoullgetbetterwithtime
andwillsoonbeabletogathermoreinformationonyouropponentwithoutpanickingand
makingmanyerrorsyourself.

Herearesomegeneralrulesofthumbaboutthehealthbarsasaresource:
Inabestofthreescenario,youhaveasfewasfourroundsandasmanyasninerounds
tolearnenoughaboutyouropponenttocountertheirstrategyandtendencies.

27
 Ifyouvefallenfarbehindinlife,rememberthatyourotherresourceslikeEXMeter,
VReversals,andVTriggeraretheretohelpyoumountacomeback.
Ifyouhavegainedthelifelead,becarefulnottooverextendyourselfbyattacking
recklessly.Usually,playingitslowandsafewillbeasurerpathtovictory.
Ifyoudonthavethelifeleadbuthavethemtrappedinthecorner,thescreenposition
advantageismoreimportantthanthelifedeficitbecausemostplayerswillcrackunder
cornerpressure.
Blockingprojectilesandotherspecialmovescostyousignificantlyonlyifyouhaveabout
1015%lifeleft.Intheearlytomidgame,youshouldntworryabouttakingchip
damageandshouldfocusyoureffortsonscreenposition.
Blockingnormalattacksnowdoesrecoverablegreylifedamagetotheopponent.Force
theopponenttoblockacontinualsequenceofattackssothatallitlltakeisonecleanhit
ofanyattacktomakethatdamagepermanent.
Trytokeepyourlifebaronparwithorslightlyaheadofyouropponents.Ifyour
opponentis510%aheadinlife,theresnoreasontotrysomethingreallyriskythatwill
costyoualargerchunkofhealthwhenitdoesntpanout.

Critical Gauge
YourCriticalGaugeisimportantbecause,asitbuildsup,yougainaccesstonewabilitiesand
options,suchasEXversionsofspecialmovesandCriticalArts(SF5sversionofSuper
Combos).

EXversionofspecialmovesaresimplypoweredupversionsofthecharactersmoves,giving
themadditionalproperties,suchasinvincibility,abilitytoscoreaknockdownonhit,dealing
additionaldamage,ortheabilitytopassthroughprojectiles.TheseallcostoneEXstockand
areperformedbypressingtwobuttonsattheendofthespecialmovecommandinsteadofone
(suchasD,DF,F+PPinsteadofD,DF,F+P).

Conversely,CriticalArtscostyourentireCriticalGauge(allthreestocks).Theseareusefulfor
endingaround,finishingacombo,orpunishinganopponentsmistake.Eachcharacters
CriticalArtvariesinhowitcanbeusedinbattle.SomecharactershavelotsofusesforEX
SpecialMoves,whileothersmightbebetteroffwithsavingtheirmeterforaCriticalArt.

CriticalArtsarealsoextremelyimportantinSF5becausetherearenomorechipdamage
victories(unlessyoublockaCriticalArt).InpreviousversionsofStreetFighter,chipdamage
victoriesoccurredwhentheopponenthadnohealthandblockedaspecialmove.InSF5,the
onlywayyoucanbechippedoutisbyblockingaCriticalArt.Inotherwords,ifyouhavereally
strongdefense,youcanmountquitethecomeback.

ThekeywithanEXMeterisknowingwhentouseittogaintheadvantageinamatch.Usually,
inexperiencedplayerseithercarelesslywastetheirEXMeter,orworse,theyforgettheyhave
EXMeteratallandmissmanyopportunitiestodeallotsofdamageorgainapositional
advantage.

28

HerearesomegeneralrulesofthumbaboutEXMeter:
TrytokeepyourEXMeteronparwithoraheadofyouropponents.
DyingwithfullCriticalGaugestillmeansyoulost,soyoumightaswellcreateaplanto
useitbeforeyoudie.
UsingyourentireCriticalGaugetoendacloseroundisstillbetterthanlosingtheround
becauseyouwerebeingtoofrugalwithyourmeter(especiallyifyouusedittochipout
anopponentwhoseeminglywouldnotdie).
Ifthereisasituationinwhichyouhavealotmoremeterthanyouropponentatthestart
ofaround,itslikelythatyoumissedsomeopportunitiestospendsomeintheprevious
round.
Generally,acombowithmultipleEXSpecialMovesdoesntdoenoughdamageto
warranttheextrauseofmeterandisinefficientcomparedtotheresourcecost.
Makeanefforttoapproximatehowmuchmeterisgainedorlostfromyourgoto
blockstringsandcombos,assomecharactersbuildmetermuchmorequicklythan
others.
Youbuildthemostmeterwhenyourattacksare not
blocked.Youstillalsogainasmall
amountwhentheyreeitherblockedoryoutakedamage.
Youdontbuildanymeterfromwhiffing(ormissing)normals,butyoudobuildalittlebitif
aspecialmovewhiffs.

InSF5,theEXMeterhasbeenchangedtomaxoutatthreebarsinsteadoffourlikeitdidin
SF4.Hence,youmustbemoreconsciouslyresourcefulwithyourEXMeterinSF5.Torecap,it
costsonlythreebarstouseyourCriticalArt,whileaEXSpecialMovecostsathirdofyourbar.

VGauge

TheVGaugeissimilartotheUltraMeter,ifyouwerefamiliarwiththatinSF4.Illgointomuch
detailinthenextsection,sofornow,justknowthatyoushouldfocusonbuildingastrategy
aroundusingitratherthansimplytryingtobuildthegauge.Thereasonisthatmostplayerscan
buildfourVGaugestocksprettyeasilyineveryround.Dontworry,wellalsogooverhowthe
VGaugeisbuiltinthenextsection.

Eitherway,rememberingthatyourVGaugeisaresourceandrebuildseveryroundisfoodfor
thoughtforbecomingastrongerplayer.

Screen Position
Screenposition,orpositionaladvantage,ismorelikeahiddenresourceinthegame,asthere
isnovisiblemeterforit.Mostnewplayersdontevenconsiderpositionaladvantagetobe
somethingworthpayingmuchattentionto.Butthinkaboutit:ifyoupushyouropponenttohis
farsideofthescreenandcornerhim,youwillmakeyouropponentpanic.

29
Theadvantageofhavingextraroombehindyouisthatyoudontneedtopressyouradvantage
toohard,ortakeverybigrisks.Theyllhangthemselvesforyou.Mostcorneredplayerswilldo
whatevertheycantoescape,includinganobvious,easytopunishjumporarecklessReversal.
Evenagainstareallystrongopponent,youwouldstillhaveplentyofextraroomtomaneuver
beforeyougetpushedbackintoyourowncorner.

MostcharactersintheStreetFighterfranchisedonothaveaneasywaytogetoutofthecorner.
Eventhosethatdo,suchascharacterswithteleports,mustincurafairamountofriskduetothe
recoveryandpredictabilityofthesemoves.

Letallofthissinkinfirstbecausewerenotdoneyet!Thenextsectionwillspecificallyaddress
thosechangesinStreetFighter5andhowtheycanbeappliedtoyourgame.

ConsideringRisk/Reward
Oftentimesyoursuccessorfailureinfightinggamescomesdowntoyourabilitytoproperly
assessrisk/rewardscenariosquickly.Riskandrewardreferstotheamountofdamageyou
coulddealifyourattackconnectssuccessfullycomparedtotheamountofdamageyouwould
likelyincuriftheopponentblocked.

Forexample,ifyougetknockeddownandchoosetowakeupShoryukenbecauseyouthinkthe
opponentwillattackyou,therewardis120damageifyouarecorrect.

Iftheopponentblocks,theriskisthatyouwilleatfarmorethan120damage,dependingonthe
resourcestheopponentusestopunishyou.AtypicalCrushCountercombowithnoVTrigger
orEXMeterusedwilllikelydealwellover300damage,makingitafarbiggerrisktoShoryuken
asopposedtoblockingandpotentiallyeatingathrowwhichwouldonlydoaround140damage.

Astheopponenthasmoreresources,therisk/rewardskewsevenmoreheavilyintheattackers
favor.

Thereisnoperfectanswerorsolutiontoanythinginfightinggames,butatleastconsideringthis
conceptinbattlecanhelpstopyoufrommakingcostlymistakes.

30
OverviewofStreetFighter5
StreetFighter5hasundergonemanychangesfromthemultipleiterationsofStreetFighter4.
ThegoodnewsisthatthecoreofStreetFighterwithanyfightinggameevenremainsthe
same.Thegoalisstilltogetyouropponentslifebartozerothroughacombinationofspace
controlanddealingdamagethroughcombosandpunishingtheirmistakes.

IfyouhavepreviousSF4experience,thetoolsandsystemsinSF5mightfeelreallydifferentat
first.Inthissection,Imgoingtooutlinesomeofthemajorchanges.

ThebiggestchangeisCapcomsdesignphilosophybehindthecreationofSF5.Basedonthe
conversationsIvehadwithvariousmembersoftheCapcomSF5team,itsclearthatthey
aimedtomakeagamethatwasevenmoreexcitingtowatchthanSF4.YoucouldsaythatSF5
wasbuiltwithesportsinmind.TheyalsowantedSF5tobeeasiertoplayfornewplayerstoget
started.

ThismarkeddesigndifferencemakesSF4feeldatedbycomparison.RememberthatSF4was
releasedin2008,whichmeansthatdevelopment started
severalyearspriortothat.Think
aboutthatforamoment.ItslikelythatpeoplewithinCapcomweredesigningwhatwould
eventuallybecomeSF4in20052006allbeforetheadventofYouTube,beforeFacebookreally
tookoff,andbeforethefightinggamecommunityandesportsexplodedinpopularity.

Now,SF5ischockfulloffeaturestohelpyouimprovecertainaspectsofyourgame,suchas
newtrainingmodefeaturesandtheabilitytoconnectwithplayersaroundtheworldthrough
improvedcommunicationandmatchmaking.Nottomentionthedifferencesinpacingandthe
ingamedecisionmaking.

ThinkofSF5asamixofthebestelementsfrompreviousStreetFightergames,suchasStreet
FighterIII:3rdStrike,StreetFighterAlpha,andSuperStreetFighter2Turbo,withalittlebitof
StreetFighter4bakedin.

Withthatsaid,thegameisbothsimultaneouslysimplerandmorecomplexatthesametime.
Howcanthisbe?Well,gonearethedaysofoptionselectsthatcovermultiplewakeupoptions,
likebackdashinvincibilityandReversals(moreonthislater).Infact,thewakeupgameis
probablyoneofthebiggestchangestothefeelandflowofthegame,sincethereareveryfew
hardknockdownsinthisgame.(Dontworry,wellgooverallofthissoon.)

Further,FocusAttackshavebeenreplacedbyVSkills,whichareuniquetoeachcharacter.
Thischangemeansnomorelowrisk/highreward,midscreenFocusAttacknonsense.Now
whenplayingfootsiesintheneutralgame,youmustrelyonyournormalstoconnectwithyour
opponents,notwiththenearcatchallFocusAttackofSF4.

31
TheremovalofFocusAttacksandmuchofthewakeupguessinggamemakesthegame
simpler,butwhatmakesitmorecomplex?

Answer:theCrushCounterandVGaugesystems.

InStreetFighter4,aCounterhitwasscoredwhentheattackersmoveinterruptedthe
opponentsmoveinitsstartupframes.TheseCounterhitsscoredalittlebitmoredamageand
stun,aswellasprovidedextraFrameAdvantageandallowedforCounterhitspecificcombos
thatwouldntotherwisebepossible.

InSF5,theCounterhitsystemhasbeenexpandedwiththeintroductionofCrushCounters.A
CrushCounterisscoredwhenconnectingwithaheavyattack(HPorHK)thatinterruptsthe
startupframesofanymove,includingthrows.AfteryoulandaCrushCounter,theopponentis
putinanextralonggroundedhitstunstateorairbornejugglestate,allowingyoutoscore
additionaldamage/stunandcontinuethecombo.

Thissystem,alongwiththeVGaugesystem(whichreplacedtheUltraMeterfromSF4),adda
lotofdepthtothegamebecauseeachcharactercantakeadvantageofbothCrushCounters
andVGaugeeffectively.TheVGaugeissimilartoSF4sUltraMeter:youbuilditbyincurring
damageandusingyourVSkillsuccessfully.

EachcharactersuniqueVSkillisperformedbypressingMP+MKsimultaneously.Someare
counterslikeRyusparry,andothersaremovementbasedlikeKensrun.

OncetheVGaugeisfull,thecharactercanactivatehisorheruniqueVTriggermove.Some
VTriggersstayactiveforaperiodoftime,likeM.BisonsPsychoPowermode(whichgives
certainmovesadditionaldamageorproperties).Othersareoneshotuses,likeNashsteleport.
HowyouuseyourcharactersVGaugeislargelyuptoyou,ofcourse.Mostcharactershave
multiplewaysforthemtousetheirVTriggersinsideandoutsideofcombos.

Additionally,thereisVReversal,whichissimilartoanAlphaCounterfromtheStreetFighter
Alphaseries.

Dontworry,asImentioned,wellgomoreindepthintoeachofthesenewfeatures.Thisis
simplyaquickoverviewofthenewsystemsbeforewegoanyfurther.

AsplayersgearupforthelaunchofSF5,therehasbeenalotofchatteramongsttopplayers
thatthegameistooeasyortoosimple.Icanassureyouthattheresplentyofdepthtothis
game.Justbecausesomethingisseeminglysimpleonthesurfacedoesntmeantheresnot
plentyofsubstancebelowit.

32
Iwanttoalsodispelthemyththatthegameisslow.Itonlyseemsslowbecauseyouprobably
haventseenitplayedbypeoplewhoreallyunderstandthegame.Ormaybeyoujusthavent
hadyourassbeatenquicklyandefficientlyyet.Thosedayswillsooncomejustyouwait.

Allright,nowthatyouvehadabrieftasteofsomeofthesechanges,letstakeacloserlookat
moreelementsofSF5andhowtheyalltieintogether.

33
SystemChangesandHabitstoChange
Asmentionedintheprevioussection,theVGaugeSystemandCrushCountersplayahuge
roleindifferentiatingSF5fromallotheriterationsofthefranchise.Letsdivedeeperintoeach
ofthese.

VSystem
PerhapsthemostnoticeabledifferencebetweenSF4andSF5istheVSystem.InSF4,the
equivalentistheRevengeGauge,a.k.atheUltraMeter,whichallowsyoutounleashaLevel1
orLevel2UltraCombo.

InSF5,thishasbeenreplacedbytheVGauge,whichbuildssimilarlyandresetseveryround.

YourVGaugefillsupby:
Incurringdamagefromtheopponentsattacks
Blockingtheopponentsattacks
SuccessfullyusingyourVSkill
ScoringaCrushCounterontheopponent

Somecharacters(RyuandCammy,forinstance)haveatwostockVGauge,whereasothers
(BirdieandM.Bison)haveathreestockgauge.Thisaddsanadditionallayerofdepthand
uniquenesstoeachcharacterbecauseyoumustmanageyourVGaugedifferently,depending
onwhetheryourcharacterhasatwoorthreestockgauge.

VGaugecanbespentonVReversalswhichcostonestockandVTriggerwhichusesthe
entiregauge.

LetstakeacloserlookateachelementoftheVSystem.

VTrigger
VTriggerbecomesavailablewhenyourVGaugeisfullystockedandflashesred.Asmentioned
earlier,somecharactershavetwostockVGaugesandothershavethree.

VTriggercanbeactivatedbypressingHeavyPunch(HP)andHeavyKick(HK)simultaneously.
EachVTriggerisuniquetoeachcharacterandtheygenerallyfallintooneofthefollowing
categories:

Ongoingpowerupmodes
Oneshotactions

34
HeresabreakdownofeachcharactersVTriggerandwhichcategorytheyfallinto:

Character OngoingPowerUpModes OneShotAction

Birdie
Cammy
ChunLi
Dhalsim
F.A.N.G.
Karin
Ken
Laura
M.Bison
Nash
Necalli
R.Mika
Rashid
Ryu
Vega
Zangief

Generally,VTriggerscanbeactivatedatanytimewhenyourcharacterisstandingorby
cancellinganormalattack,likeRyusst.HK.Normalsthatarespecialcancelable(i.e.Cammys
cr.MK)canalsobecancelledintoVTrigger.ThisallowsforVTriggertobeusedinthemiddle
ofcombos,aswellasintheneutralgameorafteraknockdown.

Somecharacters,suchasM.BisonandKen,canactivatetheirVTriggersduringspecial
moves,suchasScissorKicksandShoryuken.

PowerUpVTriggers
ForcharacterswithpowerupVTriggerslikeRyusandBirdies,theactivatedVTriggergives
thematemporaryboostindamage,stun,orenhancedabilitiesforspecialmoves.

Forexample,RyusVTriggergiveshimaccesstoDenjinHadokenswhichdealmoredamage,
stun,andbecomeunblockableiffullychargedbyholdingdownthepunchbutton.Othermoves,
likeCammysSpiralArrow,arefaster,gainprojectileinvincibility,andtravelthroughthe
opponentifblocked,makingthemhardertopunishandallowingmorechancesofjuggleifit
successfullyhits.

35

Onceactivated,powerupVTriggersslowlydraintheVGaugeataratethatvariesby
character.Ontheshortendofthespectrum,VTriggerlastsabout14realtimesecondsfor
Ryuandonthefarendofthespectrum,itlastsabout68secondsforBirdieanduntiltheendof
theroundforNecalli.

ThereareafewfactorsthatcanshortenthelengthofVTrigger,evenonceitsactivated.Many
charactersuseupsomeoftheirVTriggergaugewhentheyusetheirspecialmovesafter
activation,likewithCammysSpiralArrow.

SinceVGaugebuildsrelativelyquickly,youcangetoftengetmorethanoneactivationina
round.ItspossibletoactivateatwostockVTriggertwiceperround,ortouseonestockona
VReversal,ortwothroughouttheround,andhaveenoughtimetobuildupasecondVTrigger
gaugetowardstheendoftheround.

Additionally,VTriggerdoeshavesomestartupframes,whichmeansthatcharacterscanbehit
outduringitsactivation.However,evenifyougethitoutoftheVTriggerstartup,youstill
maintainyouractivationandthespecialpropertiesyourcharactergains.

OneShotVTriggers
MostpowerupVTriggersarerelativelystraightforwardintheiroffensiveutility,whereas
oneshotVTriggersarearguablymoreflexibleandversatile.

Forexample,NashsVTriggerisacontrollableteleportthatputshimeitherbehind,aboveand
infrontofhisopponent,oraboveandbehindhisopponent.Inadditiontoextendingcombos,it
allowsforextremelydynamicmixuppotential,aswellasawaytogetoutofstickycorner
pressuresituations.

R.MikasVTriggercallshertagteampartnerNadeshiko,whoattacksfromabove,left,orright
sideofthescreen.Thiscanbeusedwithincombos,asanantiair,ortocreateamixup
scenariothatforcestheopponenttoguesswhenandfromwhereNadeshikowillattack.

Technically,VTriggerscouldbeconsideredacomebackmechanic,butnotinthesameway
thatSF4sUltraCombosorUltimateMarvelvs.Capcom3sXFactorsare.Youstillhaveto
earntheextradamagepotentialthatVTriggeraffords.Itwillbeinterestingtoseehow
VGaugemanagementstrategydevelopsandevolvesaspeoplegainmoreexperiencewiththe
systemandthegame.

VSkill
EachcharacterhasauniqueVSkillthatcanbeusedbypressingMediumPunch(MP)and
MediumKick(MK)simultaneously.SomecharacterslikeRyu,Nash,andM.Bisonhaveaparry
orparrylikemovethatcandeflectregularattacksandprojectiles.Others,likeCammyand
36
ChunLi,haveVSkillsthatareusedtocoverweaknesses,suchasdifficultygettingaround
Hadokens.

VSkillsbuildVGaugewhentheymakecontactwiththeopponent,eveniftheyareblocked.
However,aparryVSkillwillnotbuildmeterifwhiffed.ParryVSkillsseemtobuildabout1/12
ofoneVTriggerstockifyoulandonesuccessfully.ForacharacterlikeRyuorNash,that
meansthatifyousuccessfullyparry24projectiles,youwillhaveafullystockedVGaugeand
canactivateVTrigger.

SomecharacterslikeRashidhavedifferentvariationsoftheirVSkillsthatallowforadditional
movementoptions.RashidscrouchingVSkillmakeshimrollonthegroundandincludesan
optiontoendonakickthatlaunchestheopponent.HisstandingVSkillisafastjump,withthe
optiontodivekickattheend.

VReversal
VReversalsareSF5sversionofAlphaCountersfromtheStreetFighterAlphaseries.They
areperformedbypressingforwardandallthreepunches,orallthreekicks,dependingonthe
character.

TheycostonestockofVGaugeandcanbeusedtoquicklycreatespacebetweenyouandyour
opponentwhentheyapplypressure.

MostVReversalsareattacks,andiflandedsuccessfully,inflictrecoverablegreylifedamageto
theopponent.(However,afewcharacterslikeNash,RashidandVega,haveevasion
VReversalsthatallowthemtogetoutofstickysituationsbutdonodamage.)Wellcovergrey
lifeindetaillater.

VReversalscanalsobeusedtosaveyourselffromtakingchipdamage,evenifyouareabout
tobechippedoutbyaCriticalArt.Forexample,ifRyudoescr.MKxxCriticalArt,Birdiecan
VReversalthecr.MKtoavoidbeinghitbytheCriticalArt.

Theyrealsousefulforhighpressuresituations.YoucanuseaVReversaltobuyafew
preciousmomentstoletyourstungaugereset,tostoptheopponentspressure,ortouse
towardstheendoftheroundbecausetheydoaproportionatelyhigheramountofrecoverable
greylifedamage.Afterall,ifyouhadlessthan100lifeleftandyougothitbyaVReversal,you
havetobeextracarefulthatyoudontgethitagainorelsethedamagebecomespermanent,
andyouareonestepclosertodeath.

LearningtobeobservantofyourVGaugeatalltimes,aswellashavingastronghandleon
yourVGaugemanagement,isanimportantpartofbecomingastrongerSF5player.Itcantake
sometime,butitswellworththeeffort.

37
3BarCriticalGauge
AmajoradjustmenttoSF5isthechangefromafourstockSuperMetertoathreestockone.In
SF4,youcoulduseonestockonEXSpecialAttacks,twostocksonFocusAttackDashCancels
andRedFocusAttacks,threestocksonEXRedFocusAttacks,andfourstocksonaSuper
Combo.

InSF5,withonlythreestocksinyourCriticalGauge,youcanstilluseonestockonanEX
SpecialAttack,butaCriticalArt,SF5sversionofSuperCombos,coststhreestocks.

Tomyknowledge,therearenoattacksthatcosttwostocks.

Ultimately,thisallmeansthatthewayyoumanageyourmeterwillbedifferent.Some
characterswillbenefitheavilyfromtheadditionaldamagethatonestockcombosafford,while
othersarebettersuitedforsavingtheirmeterforCriticalArtorEXSpecialAttacksthathave
invincibility.

Forexample,acharacterlikeRashidhasnoReversalwithinvincibility,exceptEXSpinning
Mixerwhichcostsonestock.HealsodoesnthavealotofcombosinvolvingEXSpecialMoves.
Infact,EXEagleSpikedoesntcomboinsomesituationsinwhichMKEagleSpikedoes.This
meansthatratherthanusingonestockofyourCriticalGaugeonanEXSpecialMoveina
combo,youmightbebetteroffsavingitforhisCriticalArtorusingitonaReversalEXSpinning
Mixertogettheopponentoffofyou.

AcharacterlikeR.Mika,ontheotherhand,mayfindherselffrequentlyusingmeterincombos
forscreenpositionadvantage.HerPassionPress(F+MP)canbefollowedbyanEXShooting
Peachandaffordherlotsofcornerpush,whichplaystoMikasstrength.

Thisseeminglyminorchangefromafourstockmetertothreecreateslotsofadditionaldepthin
thegame.Itwillbeinterestingtoseethestrategiesformeterresourcemanagementchange
andevolveforeachcharacterovertime.

TheComboSystem
Now,letstalkaboutsomeofthechangestothecombosysteminSF5.

ItsimportanttonotethatthecombosystemhasbeenrevampedabitinSF5.Frommy
understanding,thereslessemphasisonpreciseexecution(inotherwords,thereisadditional
inputleniency)tomakeotherwisedifficult1and2framelinkseasiertoperform.

38
Forexample,VReversal,VTrigger,andVSkillsdontrequireanycomplicatedmotionsor
precision,sotheyrealleasiertoexecutenow.Additionally,prioritylinking(plinking),whichwas
atechniqueinSF4tomakecomboseasier,hasbeenremoved.

ThisadditionalinputleniencyalignswiththeintentionalshiftinSF5sdesignphilosophy,which
aswediscussedpreviously,ismorefocusedonbeingspectatorfriendlyinanesportssetting.
Afterall,whyforceplayerstospendendlesshourspracticingridiculouslydifficult1framelink
comboswhentheycouldredirectthatenergytowardmatchupknowledgeandstudying
opponents?

Sowiththat,SF5scombosystemisdifferent.Foronething,SF4combosthatoncestarted
frequentlywithcr.LKorcr.LPnolongerworkthesameway.Forexample,Ryuscr.LPdoesnt
linkintocr.MPthesameway,butyoucanstillchainLPintoitself.

Additionally,chainednormalscannowbecancelledintospecialmoves.Thismightseemlikea
minordifference,andwithoutgettingtootechnical,thiswasamajorexecutionhurdlefornew
playersinSF4.InSF4,inordertocancelalightattackintoaspecialmove,youhadto link,
not
chain
,thelightattackstogether.Asarefresher:

ChainCombo Chaincombosusuallyinvolvemorethanonelightattackwhose
animationiscancelledintothenextlightattack.Theseusuallycanbecancelledintoa
specialattack.Forexample,RyucanchaintwocrouchingLightPunchestogetherand
thencancelintoaShoryuken.

LinkCombo
Thisisatypeofcomboinwhichonemovesanimationfinishes
completelyandtheopponentiskeptinhitstunlongenoughforthenextattacktoconnect
beforetheycanblock.Thisisdifferentfromacancelinwhichtheanimationis
cancelledinsteadofbeingallowedtofinish.

ThismadecombosneedlesslydifficultforbeginnerssoIdontthinkanyonewillmissthis
elementofSF4.

Additionally,SF5alsomakesmoreuseofTargetCombosthanSF4.

TargetCombo
Targetcombosarespecificbuttoncombosequencesthathavebeen
builtintothecharacterandflowtogether.Theydontrequireveryprecisetiminglike
linksdo,buttheydifferfromchaincombosinthattheyarentlimitedtolightattacks.

RyusTargetCombo,forexample,isst.MP,st.HP,st.HKwhichscoresaknockdownonhit.
SomecharacterslikeNashhaveaplethoraofTargetCombosthatkeepopponentsin
blockstun,ordoesextradamageifhegetsanopening.

39
AsaresultofTargetCombosandlessfocusonperfectingexecution,moreplayersshouldbe
abletospendlesstimeondifficultexecutiontrainingandmoretimeonstrategydevelopment.

StunGauge
ThestungaugeisawelcomeadditiontoSF5.Locatedjustunderneaththelifebar,itshows
howcloseyouortheopponentisclosetobecomingdizzy.

DizzieshavealwaysbeenapartofStreetFightergames,andthestungaugeisntexactlynew
either.Itwasafeaturethatwaslastseenin3rdStrike,butwasnotincludedinSF4forsome
unknownreason.

In3rdStrike,itwasrelativelyraretoseeadizzybecausemostcombosdidntdoenoughstun
damage,whereasinSF4itwasdifficulttotell whenyouropponentwasonthevergeofbeing
dizzied.Thisoftentimesledtodizziescomingfromseeminglyoutofnowhere,bothonoffense
anddefense.

InSF5,thestungaugebuildsupquicklyfrommanydifferentsituations,makingiteasytotell
whenyoushouldbekeepingthepressureonyouropponentandwhenyouneedtoplay
carefullyondefense.

Thestungaugewillcontinuetobuildasyoutakedamage,yetitwillremainstaticifyouare
blockingorusingaVSkillthatabsorbshits,suchasRyusparry.

Ifyoureabouttobedizzied,dontpanic.Yourstungaugewilldecreaseonitsownwhenyou
evadehitscompletelyforafewmoments.Agoodwaytocounteroffensivepressureiswitha
VReversal.Itcanbuytheprecioussecondsneededtoresetthestungauge.

Youcanactuallyusethestunmetertoyouradvantage,especiallyifyouropponentstarts
gettingovereagerintryingtolandthelasthitortworequiredtodizzyyou.

Insuchhighpressure,neardizzysituations,astrongdefensewillsaveyoufrombeingstunned.

MagicPixel&ChipDamage
TheMagicPixelreferstothelastbitoflifeyouhaveinyourhealthbar.InpreviousStreet
Fightergames,ifyouhadasliverhealthleft,youcouldbechippedoutbyaspecialmove,
suchasaHadokenoraSuperCombo.InSF5,youcannotbechippedoutbyspecialmoves,
makingitalwayspossibletokeephopealiveandcomebackwithaseriesofsmartdecisions
andclutchplay.

40
However,youcanstillbechippedoutbyaCriticalArt,butsinceCriticalArtscostallthree
stocksofyourEXGauge,itisarelativelyexpensivewaytoendaroundifyourenotconfident
youregoingtowinthegame.

WiththeMagicPixel,acomebackisalwayspossible.Itisaveryinterestingandcomplex
comebackmechanicthatrequiresstrongdefenseandthecorrectreads.

Evenwithawidegapinhealth,anopponentwithnohealthleftbutishardtokillcanbecome
increasinglyscary,potentiallyleadingyoutooverextendormakemistakesthatcouldresultina
swiftturnofthetides.
SomecharacterswithoutanoverheadoraCriticalArtthatdoeschipdamage(i.e.R.Mika)may
findthemselvesinverydifficultsituationswhentryingtofinishoffanopponentthatseemingly
willnotdie.

ThrowsandCrouchTech
Throws(LP+LK)areanimportantpartofStreetFighterbecausetheyarethemost
straightforwardwaytocounteranopponentsblocking.Theyhavebecomestrongerinsome
areaswhilebecomingweakerinotherareas.Letsstartwithhowtheyvegottenweaker.

Allthrowshavea5framestartup,asopposedtoSF4s3framestartup.This2framedifference
makesitmucheasiertojab(cr.LP)anopponentoutofathrowattemptinSF5.

Additionally,throwsnolongercauseahardknockdown,whichmeansyoucanQuickRisefrom
them.Thischangesthewakeupgamesignificantly.Now,insteadofhavingtimetodash
forwardandforcetheopponenttodealwithyouroffensivepressure(byforcingthemtochoose
toblock,attemptathrowtech,wakeupwithaReversal,orbackdash),theopponentcan
recoverintimetojabyououtofthrowsandmostnormalattacks.

Letstakethisscenario,forexample:IfRyuconnectswithaforwardthrow,thendashesforward
toattemptanotherthrowornonlightmeatyattack,hewilleasilybehitbyawakeuplowjab
fromtheopponent.Whatsmore:most,ifnotall,backthrowsleavetheattackerat2frame
advantage,makingitpracticallyimpossibleforyoutocontinueoffensivepressurewiththem.

Further,thismeansthatafteraforwardthrowandinordertotimeameatyattackyoucannot
dashfirstandattackbecausethenyouropponentwillhavealreadystoodup.Thischangemay
takesomegettingusedtoforlongtimeSF4players.

Itsnotallbad.OneareawherethrowshavegottenstrongerinSF5isthatmanydo170200
stun.Thatsahugeincreaseofabout2050stunpointsfrommostthrowsinSF4!Withthat,
plusthecombinationoflongerstartupandseeminglyshorterranges,Ibelievethrowsarebest
savedfortheendofanoffensivesequence,whentheopponentisnearstun.

41
CrouchTeching
InpreviousStreetFightergames,suchas3rdStrikeandSF4,itwaspossibletoprotectagainst
throwswithacrouchtech. Becauseitseeminglyhadverylittleriskwithhighreward,itwas
widelyabusedbyplayersofvariousskilllevels.Nowcrouchtechinghasbeenremovedfrom
SF5completely.

OptionSelect Anoptionselectisasinglecommandthatexecutestwoormore
optionsinthegame,dependingonwhattheopponentdoes.Thesewerewidely
abusedinSF4wheresomeoptionselectswouldsaveyoufrompressureorallowyouto
applyadditionalknockdownpressure.
Forexample,asimpleoptionselectispressingcr.LP+cr.LKwhileblockinglow.Ifthe
opponentattemptsathrow,youlltechsuccessfully,butiftheydoanythingelse,acr.LK
willcomeoutwhichcanthenbeconvertedtopotentiallylargeamountsofdamage.

InSF5,wheneveryoupressLPandLKsimultaneouslywhilegrounded,yourcharacterwill
executeastandingthrow,evenifyouareblockinglow.Thiscanleaveyouextremely
vulnerableifyouropponentanticipatesitandpunishesaccordinglywithahighdamagecombo
when/ifitwhiffsandyoucanexpecttogetpunishedseverelyifyouwhiffathrow.

Baitingwhiffedthrowsandpunishinghardwerecrucialin3rdStrikeandSF4,soyoushould
expectthesameinSF5.

However,thereisamajordifferenceinstuffingthrowsinstartupanimation.

TobetterunderstandwhatImeanbythat,IhavetobrieflytalkaboutwhatthismeantinSF4.

InSF4,iftheopponentperformedawakeupthrowandyoucounteredbyhavinga meatyattack
timedastheywakeup,thethrowwouldbestuffedwithnoadditionalindicationfromthegame
thatsomethingimportanthadhappened.

MeatyAttacks Ameatyisanattackthatstimedtoconnectastheopponentisgetting
upfromaknockdown.Thisforcestheopponenttoblockortakethehit,unlessthey
haveaReversalwithstartupinvincibility.

However,ifyoustuffanopponentsnormal(nonthrow)attackinitsstartupframes,aCounterhit
isscoredandthegamenotifiesyouassuch.

ContrastthattoSF5sengine,wherestuffingathrowinitsstartupframeswithanattackresults
inaCounterhit,orCrushCounteriftheappropriateattackisused.(Wellgetmoreindepthinto
CrushCounterslater,butfornowallyouneedtoknowisthataCrushCounteredthrowcan
leadtomajordamagewithoutneedingtospendresourceslikeEXMeterorVTrigger.)

42

ThemoralofthestoryhereisthatifyoufallintooldSF4habitsofcrouchtechingonwakeup,
yourwhiffedthrowswillbepunishedbylotsofCrushCounterdamageandthrowsby
experiencedandpreparedplayers.So,makesureyoudoyourbesttoridyourselfofthisbad
beaten
habitbeforeyougetit outofyou!

NoFocusAttack
YetanotherdifferencebetweenSF4andSF5isthestarkabsenceofFocusAttacks.Once
activatedbypressingMP+MK,FocusAttackswereusedtoabsorbonehit(ormultiplehitsinthe
caseofRedFocus)fromyouropponentandcounterattackwithcripplingdamageifcharged
longenough.Additionally,thingslikeFocusAttackDashCancels(FADCs)werealsousedto
cancelspecialmoveslikeShoryukenstosafelygetoutofstickywakeupsituations,orextend
combosintoUltra.

AsImentioned,youwontfindtheseinSF5.InplaceofFocusAttacks,youhaveVSkillwhich
wecoveredinanearliersection.

NoBackdashHitInvincibility
SF5hasdoneawaywithhitinvincibilityduringbackdashstartupframes.

Backdashinvincibilitywasacontroversial(andoftenabused)featureinSF4.Everycharacter
hadit.MostcharactersinSF4hadeightframesofbackdashstartupinvincibility,whichmade
characterslikeRoseandChunLi,whohadespeciallylongbackdashes,extremelyhardtopin
downafteraknockdown.Additionally,techniqueslikeFocusAttackBackdashmadeitpossible
toabsorbonehitandthenusethebackdashinvincibilitytoescapeoffensivepressureafter
beingknockeddown.

WithoutbeingabletoFADCawakeupReversal,crouchtech,orbackdashwithinvincibility,you
havefewerpracticalescapeoptions.Thismeansyouneedtobuildastrongdefensivegame,as
wellasdeveloptheabilitytotechthrows.

Eventhoughyoudonthavebackdashinvincibility,youarestillconsideredairborneduring
startup,makingbackdashesaviableoptionifyouthinktheopponentwillattemptathrowon
yourwakeup.

BackdasheshavethepotentialtobeCrushCountered,justlikethrowattemptsdo:Hittingthe
startupframesofabackdashwillresultinaCounterhitstate,andsubsequently,aCrush
Counterscored,ifyouusethecorrectnormalattack.

43
GreyLifeDamageonBlockedNormals
Greylifedamagereferstorecoverabledamageincurredfromblockingnormalattacks,
absorbinghitswithanarmoredmove,orsuccessfullylandingaVReversal.Thislife
regeneratesovertimeonitsownunlessanotherattackmakescontact.

ThisissimilartothegreylifesysteminSF4,whereyouwouldtakegreylifedamagewhen
absorbinganattackwithaFocusAttackorarmoredmove.

However,inSF5greylifedamageisincurredbyblockingnormalsandgettinghitby
VReversals.Thisisbrandnewtotheseriesbecausenormalshaveneverdealtgreylife
damagebefore.

Greylifedamagebecomespermanentifahitisscoredsuccessfullybeforeitregenerates.
Blockingadditionalattackswhilehavingincurredgreylifecompoundsyourgreylifedamage,
althoughgreylifebeginstoregenerateafteraperiodof90frames(or1.5realtimeseconds)of
nocontactwiththeopponent.Ifgreylifebeginstorecoverbutyoublockanattack,the
90framecounterresetsandyoutakeadditionalgreylifedamage.

Essentially,youmustplayverycarefullywhenyouvesustainedgreylifedamagefromblocking
normalsorgettinghitbyaVReversalbecauseonehit,nomatterhowsmall,leadsto
permanentdamage.

Blockednormalattacksdeal15%oftheirnormaldamagevalueingreylife.Forexample,a
movethatdoes100pointsofdamageonhitwoulddeal15pointsofgreylifedamagewhen
blocked.

Thischangehasbeenmadetodiscourageapureturtling(highlydefensive)styleand
encouragefast,rushdownoffenseandaddadditionalmentalpressuretothedefender.

OverallHigherDamage
Youmaynoticethattheresbeenanoverallincreaseindamagedealtbycombos,special
moves,andCriticalArts.Highdamagingcombosmakeforfaster,moreexcitingroundsthat
alsomakeSF5feelmorequickpacedandlessforgivingthanSF4.

Thedamagescalinghasalsobeenchanged.CriticalArtsthatoccurafterdizziescanstilldeala
substantialamountofdamage.ContrastthiswithSF4,whereusingaSuperafteradizzywas
generallyconsideredtobeawastebecauseitdidverylittledamage.Takingintoaccountthese
changesandconsideringyouravailableoptionsnowavisiblestunmeter,VTriggeractivation
andMagicPixelcomebackscandefinitelyhappenquickerthantheydidinSF4.

44
Still,keepinmindthattheyhavetobeearnedbymakingseveraldecisionsinsteadofmaking
justonethatresultsinahighdamagingUltraCombo.

FewerHardKnockdowns
Previously,ahardknockdownmeanttheopponentcouldnotQuickStand,affordingyouthe
some
opportunitytogetameaty,unblockable,orframetrap.InSF5,itseemsonly (notall)
CriticalArtscausesahardknockdown,whereasyoucouldachieveahardknockdownfrom
sweeps,throws,commandthrows,Supers,andUltrasinSF4.

Ultimately,thismeansthepaceofthegameissignificantlyfasterbecauseyoudonthavethe
luxuryoftimetogoforatrickysetup.

NormalandBackRecovery
Withtheremovalofmanyhardknockdownsituations,SF5insteadaddsthisnewelementtothe
wakeupgame:BackRecovery.BackRecoverydiffersfromNormalRecovery(orQuickStand
fromSF4)inthatyourcharacterdoesabackfliponwakeupwhichpushesyouabitfurther
awayfromtheopponentonknockdown.

Thisgivesyoutheoptiontocreateadditionalspaceonknockdowns,andmakesitabitharder
fortheopponenttocontinueoffensivepressure.

Thatsaid,thecommandforeachrecoveryshouldbeperformedasyouhittheground.

ThecommandforBackRecoveryissimplypressingbackonthecontrollerortappinganytwo
kickbuttonswhileNormalRecoveryisperformedbypressingdownortappinganytwobuttons
withthesametiming.

Heresaquickrundownofwhichoptionisavailableduringeachtypeofknockdown:

TypeofKnockdown NormalRecovery BackRecovery

Throw

CommandThrow

CrushCounter

SpecialMoves

Sweep

CriticalArt

45

ItsworthnotingthatsomeCriticalArtscauseahardknockdown,whichmeansneither
Recoveryisavailableinthoseinstances.

Tobesure,thisisalotofinformationtoprocess.Youvegottorememberthatbothoptionsare
availabletoyou,butalsodecipherwhichRecoveryyouropponentwilluse.Thesewilldefinitely
takeabitofgettingusedtobecausetheylookverysimilarandarebothveryquick.

ItsimportanttobeconsciousofwhichRecoveryyouareusingbecausesomeknockdown
mixupsworkonlywitheitherNormalorBackRecovery,whereasothersworkwitheither.

CrushCounters
CrushCountersareaspecialtypeofCounterhitthatiscompletelynewtotheStreetFighter
series.

TherearetwotypesofCrushCounters:onethatlaunchestheopponentandputstheminjuggle
stateandonethatkeepstheopponentgrounded,butcausesalongerhitstunandspinout
state,allowingyoutoeasilyconvertintoacombowithsomepractice.Mostcharactershavetwo
heavyattacksthatCrushCounter,thoughsomehavethree.

TogainmoreinsightintothisnewSF5system,welluseRyusCrushCounters.First,Crush
Counterstatesareavailableinthefollowingscenarios:

Whenhittingtheopponentsnormalattacksduringstartupframes
Whenhittingtheopponentsbackdashduringstartupframes
Whenhittingtheopponentsthrowsduringstartupframes
Whenhittingtheopponentinrecoveryframesafterblockingaspecialmovethathas
invincibility,likeShoryuken

Also,ifyouscoreaCounterhitwithasweep(cr.HK),orafterblockingaspecialmovewith
invincibility,itwillcountasaCrushCounter.Ryuespeciallybenefitsfromthisfeaturebecauseit
giveshimtimetofullychargeaDenjinHadoken,whichwillguardbreakablockingopponent
andleavehimvulnerabletobeingpummeledbyabiggercombo.

ThekeytomaximizingpunishopportunitiesistomastertheappropriateCrushCounterpunish
afterablockedReversal.Letsinvestigate.

CrushCounter#1:st.HP
Ryusst.HPdoes90damageand150stunregularly.IntheSF5beta,itsblockadvantage
variedbetween+1inBeta2and2inBeta3.

46
However,ifyoulandast.HPasaCrushCounter,thedamageincreasesto108andthestun
increasesto180.Thisisanoveralldamageandstunincreaseof20%.

RememberthattheaddedeffectofaCrushCounterst.HPputstheopponentintoajuggle
state,ajuicyopportunityuponwhichRyucanconvertintomoredamagewithamidscreen
CriticalArt.

Additionally,cancellingintoVTriggerunlocksevenmorepossibilitiesthatdontrequireafully
stockedCriticalGauge,allowinghimtojugglewithHPShoryukenorHadoken.

CrushCounter#2:st.HK
Ryusst.HKishisotherCrushCounterandisbetterthanst.HPincertainsituations.Itdoes80
damageand150stun,butifyoulandaCrushCounter,itgetsthesamepercentageincreases
thatst.HPgetswhichamountsto96damageand180stun.

st.HKedgesst.HPoutincertainsituationsbecauseitcausesagroundspinoutstate.(Recall
thateachcharacterhasaCrushCounterthatjugglesandonethatcausesagroundspinout
state.)Sincest.HKdoesntjuggle,itallowsformoredamagingcomboopportunitieswithout
yourneedingtospendthreebarsonCriticalArt,orneedingVTriggertojuggle.

However,thedownsidetousingst.HKwhenfishingforaCrushCounteristhatthehitboxis
prettyhigh,makingitsusceptibletobeinghitbylowattacks.

Itwillprobablytakesometimeforyoutogetusedtorecognizingthesituationswhereyoucan
CrushCounter,aswellaspracticingreactingtothemandconvertingintoanappropriatecombo.
Thetrainingmodesectionwillhaveanindepthpracticalsectionthatincludesexercisesonhow
toimproveyourCrushCounterabilities.

47
LearningtheGameThroughRyusEyes
IstandbymybeliefthatthegamesengineismodeledafterRyuscharacter.

SincethebeginningofStreetFighter,Ryuwasthecentralcharacteraroundwhicheverygames
systeminthefranchisewasbuilt.Allthemechanics,features,matchups,designphilosophies,
andsystemswerecreatedwithRyuasthefoundation.ThismeansthatbylearningRyuyouare
learningthegameitself.

Mypreviousbook, SimplifyingStreetFighter, alreadythoroughlywentintoRyusmechanicsin

SF4.Ifyouhaventreadit,thissectionwillbeveryusefulforyou.Ifyouhave,feelfreetoskip
thissection.

Iknowwhatyourethinking.Butgootecks,Ryuisbooooringandeveryoneplayshim!Idont
wanttobelikeeverybodyelse!

Thatsfine,Igetit.YoumightthinkRyuisboring,andyeah,hemightnotbethemostexciting
character,butthisisnotaguidetobeinganexcitingplayer.ThisisaguidetolearningSF5and
whatsnecessarytobe good. Likeitornot,playingRyuisthemosteffectivewaytolearn,and
gradually,buildasolidsetoffundamentalsthatwillcarryovertoothercharacters.

ItsalsohelpfultokeepinmindthatjustbecauseyouarelearningthegamewithRyudoesnt
meanyoumustbeaRyuplayerforever,thoughnotthatthatsevenabadthing.Lookatthe
shiningexamplesofdedicated,worldclassRyuplayerslikeDaigo,AlexValle,andJohnChoi.
TheseguysarenotonlysomeofthegreatestRyuplayersofalltime,butsomeofthegreatest
StreetFighterplayersofalltime.

Doyoustillthinkyouretoogoodtolearnthesamecharacterthattheseguyshaveusedtohone
theircraftandbuildtheirfightinggamecareerson?

Ididntthinkso.

So,pleasebearwithmeandcontinuewithanopenmind.

WhatstheSameandWhatsNew?
Experiencedplayersalreadyknowwhatsup,butRyussecretsauceisworthmentioningforthe
beginnersoutthere.

48
LetsstartwithRyusgeneralgameplan,whichislargelyunchangedsincetheearlydaysof
StreetFighterII:WorldWarrior:applypressuresafelywithHadokensandpokes,andantiair
emwhentheyjumpatyouwithShoryuken.

Certainlytherearetonsofnuancesandoptionstoconsiderbasedonthecharactermatchup
andopponentyouarefighting,butthatsthegistofit.Usethisbasicgameplanasthe
foundationforyourownRyu.

Now,letstaketakeaquicklookatRyusmovesettoseewhatsnew,different,andsimilarto
hisSF4iteration.

Move Changes

Hadoken Largelyunchanged.

Shoryuken Largelyunchanged.

Tatsumaki HKputsyoubehindtheopponent.

LP Makescontactwhentheopponentiscrouchingandcanbeusedasantiair
withacrossundermixupopportunity.

MP Extremelyusefulnowandlinksintocr.MP,cr.HP,anditself.

HP Nolongerspecialcancellable.CrushCountercausesjugglestateandcan
becanceledintoVTrigger.

LK AngleddowninsteadofupasitwasinSF4andisspecialcancellable.

MK Seemslikeabettermidrangepokethanitwasbefore.

HK CrushCountercausesgroundspinoutstate.Whiffsagainstcrouching
opponents.

F+HP Largelyunchangedbutnow2onblockinsteadof0.

F+MP Largelyunchanged.

B+HK Completelynewmove.

cr.LP Nolongerabletolinkintomediumattacks.StillchainableintoanotherLPor
LK.

cr.MP Significantlyimprovedhitboxandutility.

cr.HP Largelyunchanged,butlinkableafterclosest.MP.

49
 cr.LK +1onblock,but1frameslowerthanst.LPwhichalsohitslow.Nolonger
abletolinkintomediumattacks.Generallynotthatusefulanymore.

cr.MK SeeminglyshorterrangethaninSF4.Nolongerasusefulbecausecr.MK
xxHadokenislargelyunsafe.

cr.HK Movesslightlyforwardnowandseemstohaveslowerstartup.It
DEFINITELYhaslongerrecoveryonblock.

j.LP Largelyunchanged.

j.MP Largelyunchangedandstilldoestwohitsandjuggles.

j.HP Largelyunchanged.

j.LK Largelyunchangedandstillcrossesup.

j.MK Largelyunchangedandstillcrossesup.

j.HK Canmakecontactclosertothegroundforseeminglydeeperjumpins.

AlthoughRyusmovesetseemsmostlythesameonthesurface,itisdeceptivelynuanced.You
willalsonoticethattherearenoclosenormalsonlystandingandcrouching.Thisremovalof
rarelyusedclosenormalsisconsistentwiththerestofthecastandthegame,andseemstobe
aconsciousdesignchoicetosimplifythegame.

First,hisstapleblockstring,cr.MKxxHadoken,isnolongeraseffectivebecauseofHadokens
longrecovery.Itisunsafeatcloserangesandiseasilypunishedbycompetentopponents.In
otherwords,youcannotjustthrowoutHadokensifyourenotsuretheywillhit.

Anotherthingtonoteisthatneitherofhiscrouchinglightattackslinksintomediumattacks.In
otherwords,thedaysofcr.LP,cr.LP,cr.MPxxHadokenaregone.Infact,youmightaswell
trytoforgetthisevenexistedinSF4becauselightsintomediumattackshaveprettymuchbeen
removedfromthegame.

Fortunately,youcanstillcombotwolightsintoaspecialmove,butthisisnotmajordamageand
doesnotpayoffinthesamewaythatlandingasinglelightattackoncewouldhaveinSF4.

Furthermore,thestrategyofzoningwithlongrangeHadokensagainstmanycharactersisno
longereffectiveduetotheVSkillsystem.Forinstance,characterslikeM.Bison,Nash,and
ZangiefhaveVSkillparriesthatabsorbHadokenseasily,makinglongerrangeHadokens
nearlyuseless.ThischangeforcesRyutoplayupcloseagainstmanycharacters.

ThegoodnewsisthatRyuhasaparryaswell,soyouregoingtoneedtolearntouseitwisely.

50
StandingMediumPunch(st.MP)
Themostsignificantchangetohisnormalmovesetisst.MP.InSF4andmostotherStreet
Fightergames,Ryusst.MPhadlowdamageandashorthitboxthatrendereditnearlyuseless
andoverallinferiortocr.MK.

InSF5,st.MPisthegatewaytoalotofhisoffense.Afterall,itisthebeginningofhistarget
combo(st.MP,st.HP,st.HK),anditlinksintocr.HPatpointblankrangeandcr.MPifyourea
bitfurther.

Analyzingthisabitfurther,weseethat...

IfyouscoreaCounterhitwithst.MP,youhaveenoughtimetoeasilyhitconfirmintothe
restofhistargetcombo,st.HP,st.HKunlesstheyarecrouching,inwhichcasethest.
HKwhiffs.
st.MP,cr.MPxxHadokenisaprettysolidblockstringthatbuildsanicechunkofmeter
andalsogivesyouenoughpushbacktousuallybesafeaftertheHadoken.
Italsopacksquitealotofhitstun,givingyouampletimetoconfirmintoyournextmove.
Andnowwithitsimprovedhitbox,itcanalsohitcrouchingopponentsfrommaxrange.

StandingLightKick(st.LK)
Before,st.LKwasalmostalwaysnearlyuseless.Sure,itcouldbeusedasaweakantiair,but
therewaslittleuseforitoutsideofveryspecificsituations.

Withitsnewandimprovedrange,angle,andcancellability,st.LKisnowsimilartoSagatsst.
LKinSF4.Youcanusest.LKxxHadokenatmaxrangeforarelativelysafeblockstringat
midscreen.Thisisausefultoolagainstalotofopponentsbecauseitallowsyoutobemore
mobileintheneutralgame,whilestillforcingtheopponenttoblockHadokensfromausually
saferange.

StandingLightPunch(st.LP)
Thismovenowresembleshis3rdStrikeiteration,whenithadahitboxthatwasangledhigh
enoughtobeusedasanantiair.Ifyouantiairwithst.LPandfollowupwithadash,youcan
performatrickycrossunderthatislikelytohitmostopponentsatleastoncebeforetheycatch
on.

Thest.LPisalsohisonly3framegroundnormal, andithitscrouchingopponentsANDis+2on
block.Thesemakethismoveidealfortickthrows,whichusedtobeidealwhenstartingfroma
cr.LK,cr.LPblockstringinSF4.Now,twolightattackswillpushtheopponenttoofaroutsideof
yourthrowsreach.
51
Throws(LP+LK)
Speakingofthrows,histhrowsappear
tobethesame,buttweakstothegamesenginehave
changedthemsignificantly.

Nowthatyoucantdohardknockdownsafterthrows,youcanassumethatmostplayerswill
almostalwaysNormalRecoveryafterbeingthrown.Thismeansyoudonthavethetimeto
dashinandsetupyournextmixupasyoudidinSF4.

Infact,thesamescenarioleavesyouatadisadvantageof1sincethrowsgiveyou+15ona
QuickRiseknockdown,butyourdashis16frames.Andyoucanforgetaboutsettinganything
upafterabackthrow,whichleavesyouat2.

Theupsidesarethatforwardthrowdoes170stunandbackthrowdoes200stunanicechunk
ofmoredamagethaninSF4.

VSkill(Parry)
Ryusparryisdefinitelyoneofthestrongestaspectsofhisgame.Ifyouanticipateanyattack
coming,suchasaprojectilefromfaraway,youcanpressMP+MKtogetherandRyuwilldeflect
theattack.DoingthisalsoopensawindowforacounterattackandbuildsVGauge.Note,
however,thatyoumustparry12projectilesinordertobuildoneVGaugestock.By
comparison,youneedtoblock15projectileswithoutparryingtobuildoneVGaugestock.(Itsa
slowroadtoVTrigger.)

Onthebrightside,parryingcanbeextremelyrewardingwhenyounailit,butitcanbeextremely
frustratingwhenyouscrewupthetiming,ormakeanincorrectread.Itmayseemlikean
allpowerfultechniqueifyoucanperfectthetimingonmultihittingattacks,butthereisonebig
drawback.Beforewegettothat,Iwanttotalkaboutparryingin3rdStrike.

Parryingwasauniversaltechniquein3rdStrikethathadalowerriskthanitcurrentlydoesin
SF5.Youperformeditbytappingforwardforahighormidattack,ordownforalowattack.If
theopponentdidntattack,youdsimplytakeatinystepforwardorcrouchforasplitsecond
therewasnostartuporrecoveryanimation.

InSF5,parryingforRyuandothersnowcarriesahigherelementofriskbecausethere are
startupandrecoveryframes.So,youmuststartparryingsoonerthanyouneededtoin3rd
Strike.Furthermore,gettinghitduringrecoveryresultsinaCounterhitstate.

IfRyuparriestooearlyortheopponentchoosesnottoattackatall,theopponentcanlanda
hugeCrushCountercombobybaitingaparry.Inordertoavoidthisfate,youmustbe

52
absolutelysurethattheopponentwillattackatthatprecisemoment,oryouwilltakeahugerisk
forwhatcouldendupbeingarelativelysmallreward.

HerearesomegeneralrulesofthumbforRyusparry:
Projectilesfromhalfscreenorfurthershouldberelativelyeasytoparrywithpractice.
ParryingmultihitmoveslikeEXHadokensshouldalsobecomerelativelyeasierwith
practice,butyoucannotparrythefirsthit,thenblockthesecondduetotherecovery
framesoftheparry.Onceyoucommittoparryingamultihitmove,youmustparryall
hitsbecauseoftherecoveryframes.
Parryingjumpinattacksusuallyisntworththeriskbecausetheopponentwilllikelybe
abletoblockyourcounterattack.
Parryinglightattacksusuallywontallowyoutocounterattackduetotherecovery
frames,solightattacksarelikelynotworththeriskeither.
Wakeupparryingisextremelyriskyiftheopponentisnearyoubecauseyoucouldeata
hugeCrushCountercomboduringrecovery.
Itispossibletoparryinbetweenhitsofmanyblockstrings,butitsalsoveryriskyifyou
mistimeit.Also,therecouldbelittlerewardforparryingmanylightandmedium
normalsatdifferentdistances.

Onetrickthatyoucanusetomakeparryingeasieristobindthecommand(MP+MK)toa
button,likePPPorKKKbutton.Asalongtime3rdStrikeplayer(read:competentparrier),Ifind
itmucheasiertotaponebuttontoparryinsteadofpressingtwoatthesametime.Thatway,I
feelthatlesscangowrong.

VTrigger(DenjinMode)
WefinallygettothepartofRyusgamethatseparateshimthemostfromhisSF4iteration:his
VTrigger.ActivatedbypressingHP+HK,RyusVTriggergiveshimaboostincertainmoves:
increasesstunonhispunches,increasesspeedandstunonHadokens,andincreasesdamage
andstunonhisShoryuken.

Soundsgood,right?Letstakeacloserlook.

StunBoost
AfteractivatingDenjinMode,allofRyuspunchesgainanadditional30stunonhit.(Thiscould
changeinthefinalbuild,butitssafetosaythathewilllikelyretainhisstunpowerup.)This
affectshisstandingLP,MP,HPstunvalues,increasingthemfrom70/100/150to100/130/180,
respectively.

Atfirst,youmaynotthinkthisincreaseisabigdeal,butwhenyoutakealookatthestunvalues
fromapercentageincrease,youllrealizeitsprettysignificantforlightattacks.

53

Move Normal VTrigger Percentage Normal VTrigger Percentage
Damage Damage Increase Stun Stun Increase

st.LP/cr. 30 30 0% 70 100 42.86%

LP

st.MP/cr. 60 60 0% 100 130 30%

MP

st.HP/cr. 90/80 90/80 0% 150 180 20%

HP

F+MP 60 60 0% 100 130 30%

st.HP 108 108 0% 180 216 20%

Crush
Counter

Hadoken 60 80 33.33% 100 150 50%

LP

Hadoken 60 80 33.33% 100 150 50%

MP

Hadoken 60 80 33.33% 100 150 50%

HP

Hadoken 100 120 20% 150 200 33.33%

EX

Shoryuken 100 120 20% 150 200 33.33%

LP

Shoryuken 120 140 16.67% 150 200 33.33%

MP

Shoryuken 140 160 14.29% 200 250 25%

HP

Shoryuken 160 180 12.5% 200 250 25%

EX

Bylookingatthiscolorcodedchart,wecanseethatthebestvalueisintheLP,MP,HP
Hadokens.Eachgetsa33.33%damageincreaseanda50%stunincrease.

EXHadokenandLP/MPShoryukenallget33.33%stunboosts,whichissignificantaswell.
Generally,LPShoryukenisnotthatuseful,butMPShoryukenisdefinitelyusefulasanantiair.

54

Also,hisst.LPgiveshimawhopping100stunwhileinVTriggeranddealsthesameamountof
stunasst.MPdoeswithoutVTriggeractive.TwochainedLPs(standingorcrouching)deals
190stunwithscaling,whichisnearly20%oftheaveragecharactersstungauge.Thismakesit
significantlyeasiertolandthatfinalhitortwoanddizzytheopponent.

DenjinHadokens(D,DF,F+P)
ThisiswherethingsgetreallyinterestingforRyu.Forthosethathaveplayed3rdStrike,youre
probablyveryfamiliarwithRyusSuperArtIII,theDenjinHadoken.Thiswasanunblockable,
potentiallygamechangingSuperCombothatcouldbechargedbyholdingthepunchbutton
downandwigglingthestick.

Oncefullycharged,theDenjinHadokenwoulddealenoughstuntodizzytheopponent.The
onlywayoutofitwastoparryallfivehits,orguesscorrectlyandjumpoverit.Withproper
meatytiming,especiallyinthecorner,3rdStrikeRyusDenjinHadokenhadhugecomeback
potential.

InSF5,DenjinHadokensaresimilar,butwithsomeimportantdifferences.

Firstoff,whenRyuactivatesVTrigger,allofhisHadokensbecomemuchfaster.Likein3rd
Strike,theycanbechargedbyholdingdownthesamepunchbuttonyouusedtothrowthem.
ThelongeryouchargetheHadoken,themorehitsitwilldouptothree.Whenyoureleasethe
button,theHadokenisreleased.

FullychargedHadokenscauseabriefguardbreakiftheopponentisblocking,allowingyouto
convertintoacomboifyourecloseenough.

HoldinganyofthepunchbuttonsforabouthalfasecondaddsanextrahittotheHadoken.
Theycannotbeheldindefinitely,however,andoncetheyreachtheirfullcharge,theHadokenis
releasedevenifyouarestillholdingthebutton.

IfyouchargeLP,MP,orHPHadokenfortwohits,theyalltravelatthesamespeed.The
advantageofusingchargedEXHadokensisthatitreachesafullchargefasterthantheother
strengths.

ButtheproblemwithchargingtheHadokensandgoingforaguardbreakisthateventhough
chargingmightseemfast,itactuallytakesquitealongtimeinanactualmatchandleavesyou
vulnerabletojumpinsandotherattackswhileyourestillchargingtheHadoken.

SincethereareveryfewhardknockdownsinSF5,tryingtotimeameaty,fullychargedDenjin
Hadokenontheopponentswakeupwillgiveyouropponentenoughtimetojumpandcounter
attackwhileyourestillinrecovery,orcharging.

55

ConsideringthethingsImentioned,youllrealizefullychargedDenjinHadokensaresignificantly
lessusefulthantheymightappear.

Sincetheseguardbreaksareprettyhardtocomeby,thereisanotheroptionavailable:his
CriticalArt.WhenRyuhasVTriggeractive,hisCriticalArtguardbreaksonblock.
Unfortunately,unlessyouhavethemcornered,thisguardbreakputsyoutoofarawayto
convertintomoredamage.

However,ifyouhavethemcorneredandmanagetogetthemtoblockyourCriticalArtwith
VTriggeractive,youcanconvertintohisTargetComboforaneasyadditional170damage.
AccordingtohisBeta3framedata,heis+8ontheguardbreakafterCriticalArt.

Thismightseemprettygood,butbasedontheresourcecostandriskofgettinghitbya
wakeupReversal,thiscouldberiskydependingonthesituation.Itsalsoworthmentioning
thatusingCriticalArt(whetherithits,isblocked,orwhiffs)immediatelyendstheVTriggerstate.

ImsuretherewillbesomereallygoodDenjinsetupsdiscoveredintime,butrightnowthats
beyondthescopeofthisbook.

GeneralVTriggerStrategy
WhenyourefirststartingoutwithRyuinSF5,itcanbeeasytoforgetthatyouhavethe
VGaugetoworkwith.ThatswhyIrecommendkeepinganeyeonitandactivating
immediatelywhenyourVGaugeisfull.

Obviously,sucharunandgunstrategyisnotalongtermrecipeforsuccess,butatleastitll
getyouintothehabitofkeepinganeyeonyourVGaugeandfindingdifferentwaystouseit.
DyingwithafullystockedVGaugemeansyoumissedoutonopportunitiestouseVTrigger
andVReversal.Plus,youredead.

HerearethemainscenariosinwhichyoucouldactivateVTrigger:

Intheneutralgamewhenyouandyouropponentarestanding
Afteranormalattack,insideandoutsideofcombos(Ryucantcancelanyspecialsinto
VTrigger)
Bycancellinganormalattackwhentheopponentisinblockstun
Afterahardorsoftknockdown

Nowtogoovereachinmoredetail.

56
ActivatingintheNeutralGame
YoullfindthatagainstmanyopponentsactivatingVTriggerintheneutralgameimmediately
shiftsthemomentum.ThisisbecauseDenjinHadokenscanbeveryintimidatingtoalotof
players.Itcancauseopponentstopauseforamomentandstopattacking,whichissometimes
allyouneedinordertoturnthetideinyourfavor.

Ifyoualreadyhavethelifeleadand/orscreenpositionadvantage,activatingVTriggercan
allowyoutoincreaseyourleadthroughintimidationandcarefuluseofunchargedand
halfchargedDenjinHadokens.

Inmanyways,VTriggeredRyufollowsmuchofthesamegameplanashedoeswhen
VTriggerisnotactive:applypressurewithHadokensandantiairwithShoryukenwhenthey
jump.

RememberthatyourShoryukensdoadditionaldamageandstunwhenVTriggerisactive.MP
Shoryuken,asitwasinSF4,islikelytobetheonewiththemoststartupinvincibility,makingit
yourreliablegotoantiair.ItsworthnotingthatHPShoryukencanstillbeusediftimedcorrectly
wheninVTrigger.

Butwhyriskit?youmightbeasking.

Well,ifyouantiairandscoreaCounterhit,theHPShoryukendoes192damageanda
whopping300stun!ThatsasmuchstunasanyofthefullychargedDenjinHadokens.TheEX
Shoryukendoesntdo300stunonCounterhitpossiblyduetostunscalingonthesecondhitof
theShoryuken.ThismakesHPShoryukenanextremelyappealingantiairwhenVTriggeris
active...butonlyifyoumanagetogetyouropponenttojumpatyouinthefirstplace.

Theresaway,ofcourse.

SincehisHadokenissignificantlyfasterwithmanyvariationsduringanactiveVTrigger,his
Fireballgamebecomeshardertodealwith.Rememberthatlight,medium,heavy,andEX
versionsallhavedifferentspeeds,andcharginganyofthemforamomentcanthrowofftheir
reaction.

AsImentionedearlier,fullychargedHadokenshaveareallylongstartupsotheymaynotbeall
thatusefulinnumeroussituations,buttheoptionsarethere.Youmightbeabletofindwaysto
usethemthathavenotyetbeendiscovered.

ThereasonwhytheadditionalHadokenspeedsareimportantisthatwhenVTriggerisactive,
therecoveryonallHadokensisreducedaswell.ThismeansthatyoucanthrowHadokensat
rangesthatwouldntbesafeotherwise,andthereforebaitopponentstojumpatyou.Whenthey

57
do,theygethitbyaVTriggerHPShoryukenthathasthepossibilityofadditionalCounterhit
damageandstun.

AfterANormalAttack
EverynormalinRyusarsenalcanbecancelledintoVTrigger,butnoneofhisspecialsshares
thisability.

So,therearelotsofcombosthatareonlypossiblewhileVTriggerisactive.Italsomeansthat
youcanactivateVTriggereveniftheopponentisblocking.WellgetintomoreVTrigger
combosinalatersection,soallyouneedtoknowrightnowisthatactivatingmidcomboisan
importantpartofRyusgame.

Additionally,activatingwhiletheopponentisinblockstuncanbeusefultoapplypressurewith
DenjinHadokensandbaitthemintojumping.

AfteraKnockdown
ActivatingVTriggeroffaknockdowncanvaryinusefulnessdependingonwhetheritwasa
hardorsoftknockdown.Tomyknowledge,RyusonlyhardknockdownisaCrushCounter
sweep(cr.HK).AsImentionedbefore,thishasthepossibilityofguardbreakingDenjin
Hadokensetups,which,tomyknowledge,havenotyetbeenfullyexplored.Softknockdowns
arefarmorecommonanyway.

So,onepossibleuseforVTriggerisrightafteranattemptedsweep,sinceanynormalcanbe
cancelledintoVTrigger.YoucancancelyoursweepintoVTriggertoessentiallymakethe
sweepsafebecausehissweephasareallylongrecovery.Thisisnowhereasgoodas
activatingVTriggermidcomboforextradamage,butitispossibleandcanbeusefulinsome
situations.

Wrappingitup,IthinkyouhaveaprettygoodheadstartonRyustacticsandabilities.I
stronglybelievethatlearningRyuisthemosteffectivewaytolearnthegameandthis
investmentearlyonwillpaydividendsinthelongrun,evenifyoudecidetoswitchtoadifferent
characteronceyouhaveasolidfoundation.

SinceRyuissowellrounded,hemakesastrongadditiontoanyplayerscharacterrostersince
hecancoversomeunfavorablematchupsyourfuturemaincharactermighthave.Hesalsothe
mostcommonlypickedcharacter,sobeingwellversedinyourmostcommonopponentisalsoa
smartchoice.

Nowletsshiftgearsandtalkaboutdevelopingadditionalcharacters.

58
WhyOneCharacterisNotEnoughAnymore
IfStreetFighter4taughtusanything,itsthevalueofbeingabletoplaymultiplecharactersata
highlevel.

Therewasnoundisputed,singlestrongestcharacterinthegamebecauseeverycharacter,
eventheonesthatwerewidelyconsideredtobeSTier,thebest,hadbadmatchups,or
charactersthattheywereweakeragainst.Thiswasanintentionalpartofthedevelopers
designchoiceinordertoestablishsomedegreeofbalance,sothatnoonecharactercanbe
clearlyacutabovetherest.Notsurprisingly,SF5followssuit.

Therewillalwaysbebadmatchups,butthatsagoodthingbecauseitforcesgrowthasa
player.

Oneschoolofthoughtisthatyoucan(andshould)learnyourbadmatchupstoshiftintothe
mindsetthatwillmakeyouastrongerplayer.Everymatchup,nomatterhowdisadvantagedit
mayseemtoyou,canbeovercomewithresearch,discipline,patience,andeffort.Thisiswhy
manyoftheoldschoolplayerscanbesostrong.Theyvedevelopedthisimportantmindset
fromthedaysofarcades.I,ontheotherhand,usedtostubbornlysticktooneortwocharacters
becausethatwasthethingtodobackthen.

Timeshavechangedalot.Theonlineworldhasmadeitpossibletotrainwithmultiple
charactersandtrainwithanyoneintheworld.

Backthen,yourcharacterwasseenasanextensionofyou,theplayer,andsoalotofvalue
wasplacedoncharacterloyalty.Atmyhomearcade,FamilyFunArcadeinGranadaHills,CA
(RIP),playingwithyourbestcharacterwasawaytoearnrespectamongstyourpeers.Asa
result,playersstrivedtobethebestintheirareawithonecharacter.(Plus,whenyouwona
game,youcouldntchangeyourcharacterinthecharacterselectscreen.)

Mymentalitywasthatanytimespentlearningothercharacterswasbetterspentworkingon
improvingmyUrien(preferredcharacteratthetime)skills.Icontinuedtothinkthiswaywiththe
introductionofStreetFighter4andBalrog.IstuckwithBalrogforalongtimeuntilfinally
switchingtoRoseinSuperStreetFighter4.Buteventhen,IstilloccasionallyusedBalrogasa
secondaryanddidnttakethetimetolearnmoreofthecast.

Simplyput,Ilearnedfirsthandthatthisarcadementalityisnolongereffectiveinthepresent
dayfightinggameenvironment.Tobehonest,Icouldntkeepup.IseenowwhereIwent
wrong.Thearcadereleasehadcomeoutmonthsbeforetheconsolerelease,withwaittimes
rangingfrom3060minutesduetosomanyotherplayersandonlyafewarcademachines.

59
Withoutbeingabletopracticeathomewithtrainingmode,therewasverylittleopportunityfor
exploringdifferentattacksandstrategies,andtherewasevenlessroomforexploringnewand
unfamiliarcharacters.

Nowadays,everyoneisstartingSF5athomewithtrainingmode.Wearefreetoexploreany
andallcharacterstowhateverdegreethatourtime,drive,andabilitieswouldallow.

BenefitsofLearningAdditionalCharacters
Iwishsomeonehadmademeunderstandthebenefitsoflearningmorecharacters,asIwould
havebeenastrongerplayerinboth3rdStrikeandSF4.So,dontmakethesamemistakeIdid.
Learnmorethanyourfavoritecharacter.Waymore.

Themostobviousbenefitisthatyouknow
theprosandconsofmultiplecharactersandcan
dealwithopponentscharactersappropriatelybyswappingoutamaincharacterforanalternate
iftheresabadmatchup.(ThisdoesntapplyinaonegameRankedMatchscenario,butit
certainlyappliesintournamentandinpersonmatches.)FornowinSF5,itshardtosaywhat
thebadmatchupswillbe,butrestassuredthere willbe
some!

Thebenefitofhavingasecondaryortertiarycharacterinyourarsenalisthattheycoverthe
weaknessesofyourmaincharacter.Thiscanbeakeycomponenttowinningmorematches.

Forinstance,inSF4,GuileisgenerallyconsideredadifficultmatchupforM.Bison(Dictator)
duetoBisonsfloatyjumpanddifficultyindealingwithprojectiles.Guilesshortrecoverytime
onhisSonicBoomandextremelyeffectiveantiairscanmakeitnearimpossibleforBisonto
approach.SinceBisonhasnoprojectileorpracticalwayofdoingdamagefromlongrange,
especiallywithoutmeter,heisatadisadvantageandtheBisonplayerislikelytolosetoaGuile
playerofasimilarskilllevel.

If,however,theBisonplayerlearnedRoseasasecondary,hewouldhaveacontingencyplan
incaseherunsintoaGuileplayeratatournament,arcade,orwherever.Rosegenerallyshuts
downGuilesSonicBoomgameprettyeffectivelybyabsorbingorreflectingwithSoulReflect,
andshecaneasilyantiairhisfloatyjumps.So,iftheBisonplayerhasacompetentpocket
Rose,hehasastrongerchanceofwinning.

Inadditiontocomplementingtheweaknessesofyourcharacterinbadmatchups,learning
morecharacterssimplyprovidesmoresubtle,hiddenbenefits,likelearningtheirstrengthsand
weaknesses.Thisisntusefulonlyforplayingthecharacterwell,butalsoforwhenyoure
playingagainst
thecharacteraswell.

Firsthandexperienceofusingacharactergivesyouamajoradvantagewhenfightingagainst
thecharacteronline,inperson,andintournaments.Essentially,youhavethebenefitof
understandingbothendsofthematchup:yourowncharacterandyouropponents.Youmay

60
knowthetendencies,whattheopponentislikelytodoincertainsituations,andcanproperly
comeupwithwaystobaitanddismantleyouropponentsoffenseordefense.

Idontblameyoufornotinitiallyhavingthedesireortimetomastereverycharacter,butyoud
besurprisedbyhowmuchyoucanlearnaboutacharacterinjustasmallamountofhandson
time.Thatknowledgedirectlycorrelatestohavinganeasiertimefightingthatcharacterinareal
match.

ImagineinSF5thatyourmaincharacterisKarinandyouropponentinamatchisRyu.Based
onyourexperiencewithreadingthisbook(ANDIMPLEMENTINGTHEEXERCISES,DAMMIT),
youhaveafairamountofknowledgeaboutwhatRyuiscapableof,whatheislikelytodo,and
whathisgameplanis.ButdoesyouropponentknowmuchaboutKarin?Ifnot,thematchis
alreadystackedinyourfavorassuming,ofcourse,thatbothyouandyouropponentareequally
skilledinfundamentalsanddecisionmaking.

Oneofmyfavoritebenefitsoflearningmultiplecharactersismoresocialinnature.Youare
moreeasilyabletoconnectwithotherplayersanddiscussstrategiesandmatchups.Whether
youretalkingwithatopplayeratatournamentorjustanotherplayerinyourcircle,being
competentwithasmanycharactersaspossiblecanmakeiteasiertogrowyourownknowledge
baseviainformationtradingwithmoreplayers.

Epiphaniescansuddenlystrikewhileconversingwithotherplayers.Maybetheyshareatipor
strategyabouttheirowncharacter,whichinturn,canbeappliedtoyourowncharactersand
game.Soundsgood,right?Butyoumissoutonthisbenefitbynottakingthetimetolearnmore
charactersandgettingintothemanyconversationsthatcanleadtobreakthroughsinyourown
game.

Similarly,learningasmanycharactersaspossibleallowsyoutowatchmatchesmoreactively
andlearnmorefromthem.Itssimplyapartofbeingastrongplayer.Whetheryourestream
monsteringathome,waitingforyourturntoplaynextonthecouch,orwaitingforyournext
tournamentmatch,youregoingtobewatchingalotofmatches,especiallyifyouretakingSF5
seriously.

Ifyouknowhowtoplayatleastoneofthecharactersinanymatchyouwatch,youcanput
yourselfintothemindofthatplayerandthinkaboutwhatyouwouldhavedoneindifferent
situations.Intheprocess,youlllikelydiscovernewwaystousefamiliarmovesandstrategies.

Ontheotherhand,ifyoudontknowwhatsgoingon,thenuancesofthematchcaneasilygo
overyourheadifyoureunfamiliarwiththecharactersoptionsindifferentsituations.Youll
likelystillknowwherethemajorturningpointsofthematchare,butyouwonthaveagood
grasponwhereeachplayercouldhavemadedifferentdecisionstoaffecttheoutcomeandwhat
theseadjustmentscouldhavebeen.

61
 should
Nowthatitsclearyou learnmorecharacters,youshouldaimforcompetencywithevery
characterinordertotrulybeawellroundedplayer.Whatcompetencymeansforyouisan
individualchoice,buttakeitfromme,alittlebitgoesalongway.JustthinkofalltheSF4Evo
champions:

Daigo
Fuudo
Infiltration
Xian
Luffy
Momochi

DoyouthinkthattheywouldbeabletobeatpracticallyanycasualSF4playerwitharandom
select?Ofcoursetheywould,becausetheyvetakenthetimetolearnatleastthebasicsof
eachcharacterandhavestrongfundamentals.

Infiltration:MasteroftheEntireCast
TheresoneplayerinparticularwhomIwanttouseasanexemplarymodel.Hisnameis
Infiltration.Hehastakenhiswideknowledgeofthecasttoawholenewlevel.

InEvo2013,hewasonthevergeofbeingeliminatedbyPRBalrog,anothergreatplayer.PR
Balrogwasup21inafirsttothreeset,withthewinnerbeingabletoadvancetotheLosers
FinalsandclinchaTop3finish.

PRBalrogwasusinghisstaplecharacter,Balrog,whereasInfiltrationhadbeenusingAkuma,
thecharacterwithwhichhewonbothEvo2012andCapcomCup2012.AsInfiltrationthought
aboutwhatadjustmentsheneededtomakebeforethefifthandfinalgameoftheset,hewent
backtothecharacterselectscreen.

AttheriskofsoundinglikeaBuzzfeedarticle:whathedidnextshockedtheworld.

HepickedHakan.

ForthosenottoofamiliarwiththischaracterandhowHakanstacksupagainsttherestofthe
SF4cast,hesgenerallyconsideredtobeoneoftheworstcharactersinthegame,withpoor
normals,relativelybadmobility,andweakantiairoptions.However,whenheisoiledup,he
becomesoneofthestrongestcharactersinthegame.

Generally,Balrogstrugglesagainstgrapplers(inmyopinion)duetohispoorwakeupoptions
andtheirabilitytopunishblockeddashpunches.TofurtherhighlightInfiltrationsoddcharacter
choice,HakanisoneofthemostinfrequentlyusedcharactersinthegamewhileBalrogisone
ofthemostfrequentlyused.

62

Takethetimeto watchthematchsometime .YoullseethatInfiltrationwasabletocatchPR
BalrogwithUltra1ontwoseparateoccasions:oneasaDashPunchpunishtheotherasa
DashPunchbait.Eventually,InfiltrationcameoutontopandeliminatedPRBalroginoneofthe
bestmatchesinStreetFighterhistory.

FlashforwardtwoyearstoEvo2015,andInfiltrationwouldagainsurprisetheworldonstage
duringTop8whenhewasdown21againstGamerBeeinLosersFinals.Hewenttothe
characterselectscreenandhoveredoverRolentotogaugethecrowdsreaction.Thecrowd
(andGamerBee,unsurprisingly)wasnotinfavorofaRolentopick,likelybecauseRolentois
consideredacheapcharacterwholackstheexcitementofInfiltrationsothercharacters,like
Decapre.

Finally,hesettledwithJuritogoagainstGamerBeesElenabecausehefeltthatevenifhed
wonwithRolento,GamerBeewouldhaveswitchedtoAdonandmadethingsmoredifficult.

Infiltrationlostthematch.Inan
interviewwithCoreAGaming ,hesaidhestillconsideredita
successbecausehehadhadagreatmatchwithGamerBeeandalsohadbeenabletotesthis
EvilRyuagainstMomochiandotherplayers.Hethereforehadbeenabletolearnmoreabout
hisownpersonalstrengthsandweaknesses.

Idontthinkthereseverbeenanotherplayerwhohasusedsomanydifferentcharacterson
streamatEvo.HesusedEvilRyu,Abel,Elena,Juri,Decapre,andChunLiallatalevelthat
mostplayersnevergettowiththeirmaincharacter.Infact,accordingto @meowklaskis
CharacterDepthGraphoftheTop50RankedCPTplayers whichtalliesthenumberof
characterseachplayerusedthroughouttheseasonInfiltrationusedastaggering14different
charactersthroughoutthe2015season.

63

Credit:
@meowklaski

64
TherunnerupwasRyanHartwhoused only only
seven.The hereisemphasizedinasarcastic
mannertoillustratethatmostoftheTop50playersin2015usedthreeorfewercharacters
withinacastof45.

Inparticularlymemorablemomentin2015,InfiltrationwentupagainstSnakeEyezintheGrand
FinalsofFirstAttackinPuertoRico,aCapcomProTourRankingevent.SnakeEyezpickedhis
trademarkZangiefandInfiltration(again)shockedtheworldbypickingHugo.

Howfittingthathewoulduseprowrestlingtofightprowrestling.

TheplayerSnakeEyezisusedtobeingtheaggressorandbullyinghisopponentswithhis
neutralgameandlongSpinningPiledriver(SPD)range.

However,whenInfiltrationpickedHugo,anothergrapplerwhosgenerallyconsideredtobeon
thebottomendofthetierspectrum,SnakeEyezwaslikelyassurprisedaseveryoneelse.
AlthoughInfiltrationmadeafewexecutionerrorsandmissedafewopportunitiestopunishin
thefirstset,hestuckwithHugointhesecondsetafterbarelylosingthefirstsetinthelastround
ofthelastgame.

Inthefinalgameofthesecondset,hefinishedthelastroundwithaconvincingwin,usinga
characternoonehadeverseenhimplaybefore,andsecuredevenmoreCapcomProTour
RankingPoints,whichleduptoCapcomCup2015.

Admittedly,IdontknowenoughaboutZangieforHugotopointoutexactlyhowInfiltrationwon
(see,youneedtolearnmorecharacterstoknow!),butIdwagerthatInfiltrationbenefited
greatlyinthesepocketcharacterscenariosduetothefollowingfactors:

Theelementofsurprise: Hisopponentsweretakenabackbyhischaracterchoicesin
highpressuresituations.
Unfamiliaritywiththecharacters: Hakan,Hugo,andJuriarerelativelyobscure
charactersthatyoudontseeveryoftenintournamentplay.
Strongknowledgeoftheopponentscharacters :Balrog,Zangief,andAdonareall
popularcharactersthathedfoughtplentyoftimesbefore.ElenaisacharacterInfiltration
alsoplays,sohewouldknowherstrengthsandweaknesses.

Basically,Imjustdrivinghomethepointthattakingthetimetolearncharactershelpsyou
becomeaformidableplayer.Infiltrationsdedicationtolearningmost,ifnotall,ofthecastata
highlevelwasagreatinvestmentofhistimeandpaidoffinspadesthroughouthisSF4career.
Heprovedthathecouldbeaforcetobereckonedwith,whetherornotheusedAkuma,the
characterwithwhichheusedtodominatein2012.

65
LoweringtheExecutionBarrier
AsImentionedearlier,SF5nowhasadditionalinputleniency,makingexecutionalotless
dependentonprecision(andungodlyamountsofpractice).InpreviousgameslikeSF4and3rd
Strike,thesteeperlearningcurvewasowedinparttomasteringthehighexecutionbarrierthat
wasrequiredtocompeteatahighlevel.

ManyessentialcombosformanycharactersinSF4hadextremelysmalltimingwindows,
includingmultiple1and2framelinks.Inordertobeabletopulloffthesecombosconsistently
inhighpressuresituations,aplayerhadtospenduntoldamountsoftimepracticingtheir
executionandreactions.

InSF5,thesetighttimingwindowshavebeenreduced,thankstotheadditionofa3frameinput
buffer.Thismeansthatyourtimingcanbeoffbyasmuchasthreeframes,or1/20thofa
second,andthegamewillstillregisterthebuttonpresscorrectly.Nowyoucanspendmore
timeonyourstrategiesformatchupsandlesstimepracticingtightlinksandcombos(thanks,
Capcom!).Ofcourse,thiswasaconsciousdesignchoiceonCapcomspart.

PeterCombofiendRosas,AssociateProducerofSF5,saidduringthe Evo2015Capcom
Panel :

Playersrightnow,theyseemtobeabletodoallthecombosthataretechnically
oneframelinks(andIknowwhichonestheyarebecauseIactuallylookatthe
framedatainmyoffice).Theyrenothavingahardtimedoingit.That,tome,
seemslikeitsfine,becauseattheendofthedaywewantpeopletoaccess
damage,combos,thingslikethatsothattheycanconcentratemoreonhowthey
approachthematchupagainstapersonversushowtheyapproachthecharacter.
Wedontwantthemtofightthegame,wewantthemtofighttheotherperson.

Formostveteranplayersandplayersingeneral,itsnoweasiertolearnmorecharacters
becauseyoudonthavetoinvestsomuchtimepracticingtheircombos.Onceyoulearnthefirst
andhavepracticedforabit,youshouldntneedtodedicatealargeamountoftimestrictlyto
executionpractice.

Theinputbuffershouldalsohelpwhenplayingonlineand/orundersuboptimalhardware
conditions(seemysectiononhardwaretounderstandwhatImean).Thischangeshouldcome
asarelieftomanyplayerswhoonceputupwithonlineormonitorlag,aslagwasamajor
hindrancetotightcombosinSF4.That,combinedwitheachplatformrunningataslightly
differentspeedandonesownimperfectexecution,ledtountoldnumbersofroundslostand
endlessfrustration.

66
Ultimately,thisallmeansthatafteryoulearnthegamewithRyu,itshouldbestraightforward
andmucheasiertoplayothercharactersinhighpressuresituationssinceyounolongerhave
tospendasmuchtimepracticingexecution.

Ofcourse,theresanefficientandalessefficientwaytolearnothercharacters.Luckily,Uncle
gootecksisgoingtosharethisframeworkwithyounext.

67
APracticalFrameworkforLearningCharacters
ThoughIdorecommendlearningRyufirstanduseRyufornearlyexampleinthisbook,
eventuallyyoullneedtolearnothercharactersinordertokeepupwiththecompetition.

Heresapracticalframeworkforlearningcharactersfromthegroundupyourselfwithout
needingtorelyonforums,videos,orotherguidestolayitalloutforyou.Youcancertainlyuse
theseresourcesifyoudlikeandthereareplentyavailable,however,ifyourethetypeofperson
thatlearnsbydoing,thismethodmaybemoreeffective.

1. StartwiththebenefitsandpossibilitiesyourVTriggeraffordsandworkbackwards.
2. FigureoutwhatyourcharactersVSkilldoesandhowitcanbuildyourVGauge
3. Learneachofyourcharactersnormalsincluding:
whatitsmaximumrangeis
whetheritscancelableintospecialmoves
whattheycouldbeusedforinarealmatch
whetheritcouldbeusedasanantiair
havingabasicunderstandingoftheframedata
4. FigureoutwhichofyournormalsareCrushCounters.
5. Learnyourcharactersmaximumthrowrange.
6. Learneachspecialmovethesamewayyoulearntheirnormals.
7. LearnwhateachEXversionofeachspecialmovedoesandthinkabouthowthiscould
beusedinarealmatch.
8. LearnwhatyourCriticalArtdoesandhowitcouldbeusedinarealmatch.

AnalyzingVTriggerandWorkingBackwards
SinceeachcharactersVTriggerisunique,thegeneralgameplanforeachvariesbecauseofit.
YoumustfirstfigureoutwhatacharactersVTriggerdoesandhowitcanbeusedinareal
match.ThisisdonebygoingintoTrainingMode,settingyourVGaugetoAutoRecoverin
GaugeSettingsandthenactivatingbypressingHP+HK.

Generally,whoevergetsafullVGaugefirstusuallyhastheadvantage.Thatmeansweneedto
gettoVTriggerfasterthantheotherplayer.So,whatarethethingswecandotomorequickly
buildVTrigger?

IdiscussedthispreviouslyinthesectiononVTrigger,butinanutshell:VTriggerbuildsby
takingdamage,successfullyusingyourVSkill,andbylandingCrushCounters.Wellfocuson
thelasttwosincetakingdamagewillhappenonitsown.

68
HowtoSuccessfullyUseVSkill
EachcharactersVSkillusuallyfallsintooneofthefollowingcategories:

Defensive:Ryu,Nash,M.Bison,Zangief
Attack/movement:Ken,ChunLi,Cammy,Karin,Vega,Necalli,Rashid,Laura,Dhalsim
Powerup/variable:R.Mika,Birdie,F.A.N.G

CharacterswithattackandpowerupbasedVSkillscangenerallybuildVGaugefasterthan
characterswithdefensiveormovementVSkills.Itsoundsunfair,butthereasoniswithinits
mechanics.MovementVSkillssimplydontbuildVGaugeontheirown,andbyvirtueofhow
VSkillswork,defensiveVSkillsrequiretheopponenttoattack andf
oryoutoproperlytimeyour
VSkill.

YoucanstarttoseethatthepracticalsituationsofattackbasedVSkillsoutnumber
defensivetypeVSkills,allowingthemtobuildfaster.

BuildingVGaugeWithCrushCounters
OncewefigureoutthebestwaytobuildmeterwithVSkill,thenwecanfigureouthowtolanda
CrushCounter.CrushCountersaretheotherwaytoactivelybuildVGauge,althoughsome
buildmorethanothers.
Forexample,Birdiesst.HKbuildsonestockofVGauge,whilehisF+HPbuildsonlystockby
comparison.

ThismeansthatsomeCrushCountersnetyoutheVGaugeequivalentofaVReversal.

Interestingly,CrushCountersthatbuildVstockfortheattackeralsobuildfortheopponent.
ButCrushCountersthatbuildoneVStockonlybuildorVStockfortheopponent.

Forsomecharacters,itcanbearacetoafilledVGaugetoshutdowntheopponentsoptions.
TakeZangiefandBirdiesVTriggers,forexample.Theybothdoaprettygoodjobofshutting
downprojectiles.ThedownsideisthatbothofthemarethreestockVTriggers,makingthem
difficulttoactivateintheearlyandmidgame.

Next,weneedtoknowwhichCrushCountertouseindifferentsituationssincesomelaunch
andotherskeeptheopponentgrounded.

UsingRyuasanexample,hisst.HPlaunches,butunlessyouhaveVTrigger,thatsnotgoing
tobeterriblyeasytoconvertintobigdamage.Ontheotherhand,hisst.HKcausesaground
spinoutstate,makingitmucheasiertoconverttohighdamagewithoutneedingresourceslike
EXorVTrigger.
69

Seethedifference?

Letsanalyzehowwewouldlandeachoftheseinarealmatch.Getready,itsabouttogetreal
nerdy.

Ryusst.HPisgoodasameaty,whentheopponentisgettingup,forpunishing
backdashesandstoppingbackdashes.
Ryusst.HKisgoodasapunishafterablockedReversal,oragainstathrow.

Nowletstakealookattheframedataofeachofthesemovestoseewhatwecanlearnabout
them.( Note:Theframedataunderwentchangesthroughoutthebetaperiodandwilllikely
changeperiodicallythroughoutthegameslifespanaswell.So,keepinmindthatnothingisset
instone,butlearninghowtouseframedatastillcanbeanimportantskillsettodevelop.Check
thesectiononframedataforfurtherdetails.)

ThestartupofHPis7HKis10.Threeframesmaynotseemlikealot,buttrustme,it
is.
TotalframesofHPis29andHKisalso29.
BlockadvantageofbothHKandHPis1,whichmeansthatyoudonothaveframe
advantageifeitherisblocked..
Theframedatanotethatst.HPscoresaknockdownandthatHKgivesyou+16on
Counterhit.So,oneCrushCounterknocksdownwhiletheotherscoresaground
spinoutstate.
Counterhitdamageandstunare108/180forbothHPandHK,respectively.

Nowthatweknowmoreaboutthenumbersbehindthesetwoimportantmoves,letsseeifthere
areanymovesthatmightflowintothem.

First,lookatthestartupframesofourstandingandcrouchingnormalsandseewhatwecan
learnfromthesenumbers.

Move Startup BlockAdvantage

standLP 3 2
standMP 5 1
standHP 7 1
standLK 4 1
standMK 8 2
standHK 10 1
crouchLP 4 2

70
crouchMP 5 2
crouchHP 6 10
crouchLK 4 1
crouchMK 6 4
crouchHK 7 11
*
BetaFrameDatafromgilley .
UsetheframedatatoseeifframetrapsarepossibleintoeitherCrushCounter.

st.LPisblockadvantageof2.Ifwefollowitimmediatelywithst.HP,weleavea5framegap
thattheopponentcouldusetohitus.

Thisgapiswaytoolargeforittobeeffectivebecauseitlosesto3and4framelightattacksas
wellastothrows,whichstartupinfiveframes.

IntheearlydaysofSF5,itslikelythatyouwillbeabletocatchinexperiencedplayerswiththis
simpleframetrap,however,asthegameevolvesandplayersimprove,thiswillworklessand
less.

However,thissimpleintroductiontoframedataleadsustothenextsectiononbuildingoffense:
piecingtogetherblockstrings.

HowtoDevelopBlockstrings
Ablockstringisasequenceofattacksthatisusedtoaccomplishthefollowing:

Buildmeter
Convertintoacomboiftheopponentisntblocking
Leavetheattackersafefromcommonattacksifthedefenderisblocking

Theprocessofdevelopingblockstringscanbecomplex,butIllwalkyouthroughhowI
developedonewithRyu.Traditionally,inpreviousStreetFightergames,Ryusblockstrings
endedwithaHadokenbutinSF5,blockedHadokensafteracr.MPorcr.MKarealmost
alwayseasilypunishable.

LetsseeifwecanfindablockstringthatmakesourHadokensafeagainstmostretaliating
normals.

First,startbyanalyzingthenormalsthathavethemostblockadvantage.

ForRyu,theyrest.LP,cr.LP,cr.MPbecauseeachis+2onblock.WhenIsayamoveis+2
onblock,Imreferringtoaframedatatable,suchastheoneabove,whereyoucanseethe
blockadvantageforthemoveis2.

71

Nowweneedtoexploreeachofthesenormalsdeeper(sinceeachhasthesameblock
advantage)andfigureoutwhichisgoingtobemostpracticalandusefulinthemostnumberof
situations.

Forstarters,noteverymovewillhitiftheopponentiscrouching.Somemovesjusthavebetter
rangesandhitboxesthanothers.(Hereiswhereweneedtoutilizethedummysettingsin
trainingmodeandsetStatetoCrouchandGuardtoAll.)

So,letsstartwithst.LPsincecr.LPisalsoonourlist.Thedifferencebetweenst.LPandcr.
LPisthatst.LPisoneframefasteronstartup.Inmostinstances,thisisnotabigdeal,but
whenitcomestopiecingtogetheranoffense,itisanimportantdetaillateronwhenwestartto
comparemoves.

Continuingon,bothst.LPandcr.LPhitiftheopponentisblockinglow.Becausebothst.LP
andcr.LPhavethesameblockadvantageandcanhitacrouchingopponent,theyarenearly
equalexceptst.LPisaframefaster.Thisslightdifferencemakesitabetteroffensestarter.

Ifyoutrytoseehowmanyyoucanhitbeforeyourepushedoutofrange,youllfindthemaxto
betwo.Inotherwords,wecanmaketheopponentblocktwost.LPs,eveniftheyrecrouching.
Thatsaprettygoodstarttoanoffense!Keepthatinmind,aswelookatothernormalswithfast
startup.Atthispoint,wevedoneeverythingwecanwithourfastestnormal.

Oncewevefoundthebestnormaltoinitiateourblockstring,thenextstepistofindanormal
thathasa2or3framegaptofollowit.Sincest.LPis+2,wecanlookat4frameand5frame
normalstoseewhatthepossibilitiesare.

Ryus4framenormalsarest.LK,cr.LP,andcr.LK,soletsstartwithst.LKandcr.LK.

st.LKis1onBlockandcr.LKis+1onBlock.Bothwillhitacrouchingopponent,butthe
opponentmustbeblockinglowinordertoblockcr.LK,givingittheedgeinthatregard.

However,onlyst.LKisspecialcancellable,makingitapossibilityforHadokenpressure,or
othercomboopportunities.Rightaway,wecanruleoutcr.LKasthenextpossibilityinour
blockstring.

RememberthatevenatmaxdistanceRyucancancelst.LKintoHadoken,sothisisapretty
solidblockstring.

ItsworthnotingthatmostblockstringshavegapswhereintheopponentcanuseaReversalthat
hasafaststartup(i.e.Shoryuken),likelyhittingyoubeforetheHadokenmakescontact.
However,thisrequiresprecisetimingandisriskybecauseifyouweretogethitbyitafew

72
times,yourealsolikelytostopyourblockstringshortoftheHadoken.Asaresult,youbaitout
theirShoryukenandpunishhardwithaCrushCountercombo.

Ifyoustartthisblockstringatpointblankrange,youareattheperfectrangeinwhichto
whiffpunishmostoftheirattacks.

Ifyouencounteramirrormatch,dontworry.IfRyufollowsthisblockstringwithst.MK,itbeats
cr.HKandst.MKmidscreen.IfhehastheopposingRyuinthecorner,st.MKbeatsalotof
otherpokes.

Okay,sofarsogood,butwhatiftheopponentisblockinghigh?Well,sincetherearentalotof
combosthatstartwithlowlightattacks,theresnoreasontobecrouching.Ryucannotdotwo
st.LPsbecausethesecondonewillwhiffiftheopponentisblockinghigh.Instead,youhaveto
dost.LP,cr.LP,st.LKxxHadokenbecausethecr.LPhasmorerangethanst.LP.

So,nowwehaveadecentblockstringthatworksiftheopponentisblockinghighorlowwitha
2framegapbetweeneachnormal.

NowletslookatRyusnormalsthathavea5framestartup:st.MPandcr.MP.Inthiscase,
5framemovesareusefulbecausetheycreatea3framegap,givingtheopponentaslightly
largerwindowinwhichtohitabuttonthatwouldresultinaCounterhitforus.

st.MPandcr.MPbothdo60damageandhitbothcrouchingandstandingopponents.Ifwe
beginwithst.LP>cr.LP,wecanuseeitherst.MPorcr.MP,bothofwhicharecancellable
intoHadoken.

However,iftheopponentisblockinghigh,thest.MPwillwhiff.Then,thisblockstringisno
good.

Instead,sincewereaimingfora3framegap,letscutoutthecr.LPandgostraightfromst.LP
tocr.MPorst.MP.

Rememberthatst.MPandcr.MPbothhave5framestartups,butcr.MPis+2onblock,
whereasst.MPisonly+1.BecausewerecancellingbothintoHadoken,theblockadvantagein
thisinstanceislargelyirrelevant.

Butifwelookdeeper,couldwefindareasontouseeitherst.MPorcr.MPovertheother?Its
alwaysgoodtohavecertaintyandknowexactlyWHYyouaredoingaspecificmoveinsteadof
randomlythrowingoutoneortheother.

Inthisinstance,themajordifferencebetweenst.MPandcr.MPisthatst.MPisthebeginning
ofRyusTargetCombo:st.MP,st.HP,st.HK.Thisputsst.MPinamajoradvantageovercr.

73
MPbecauseiftheopponenthitsabuttonorattemptsathrowafterblockingyourst.LP,youll
scoreaCounterhitandcanvisuallyhitconfirmintotherestoftheTargetCombo.

Andiftheopponentblocks?Basedonthelastblockstringwedeveloped,weknowthatst.LKis
keyduetoitslongrangeandcancellability.

Conveniently,witha4framestartup,italsoleavesa3framegapafterst.MP...justincasethe
opponentpressesabutton.

Finally,wecancelthest.LKintoHadoken,andtherewehaveit,folks.Wehavetwogenerally
safeblockstringsthatwecannowpracticeinwarmupsintrainingmode:

st.LP,cr.LP,cr.MPxxHadoken
st.LP,st.MP,st.LKxxHadoken(orreplacest.LKwithst.HP,st.HKifyouscorea
Counterhit)

Thefirsthasa2framegapwhichmightbeabitoverkill.Thesecondhasa3framegapthat
makesitmorelikelytobepracticalandleadstowaymoredamageifthest.MPscoresa
Counterhit.

ApplyingtheSameFrameworktoCammy
LetsseeifwecanapplythesameframeworkwithRyutoanothercharacterknownforstrong
frametraps.EnterCammy.

Tostart,EXRazorSliceris+3andst.LPis+3,anditsevenpossibletohitconfirm
after.Sodoesthismeanthisisatrueblockstring?
Nextnormalsarest.LPandcr.LP.Bothare+2andandhavea3framestartup,so
theyrebasicallythesamemovethatis,bothhitcrouchingandstandingopponents.
B+MPhasa4framestartup,butis1onblock,thereforemakingitlessusefulifwere
notsuretheopponentisgoingtoblock.
cr.MPisheronly5framemove,andseeingashowshehastwomovesthatare
functionallythesamewiththesameframedata,thisseemslikeanimportantmove.
SinceLP(wontdifferentiatebetweenst.LPandcr.LPfromhereonout)is+2andhasa
faststartup,wecancreatea3framegapanytimewemakesomeoneblockaLP.
Thatsprettydarngood!

Okay,nowwehaveourfirstblockstring:LP,LP,cr.MP(crouchingorstandingdoesntmatterin
thisinstance).Additionally,cr.MPalsoleavesherat+1andiscancellableintoanyspecial
move,sothatmakesthisbuttonquiteadeal.

Furthermore,st.MPhasa6framestartupbutis+2instead.Afterst.LP,youcoulddost.MP,
whichhasa4framegapandislongenoughforanopponenttohitabutton.

74

Letstestitoutandmakesure.

1. StartTrainingModeandpickCammyasPlayer1andRyuasthedummy.
2. GotoDummySettingsandSetGuardto All
.
3. GotoSetGuardRecoveryandthenselect RecoverySlot1.
4. Recordast.LPimmediatelysothatitsasthoughthedummymashedst.LP.
5. SetRyusGuardActionRecoverySlot1to On .
6. MakeRyublockanyattack.IfheimmediatelypressesLPafterwards,youdiditright.If
not,gobacktoStep2andtryagainuntilyougetitright.Thiscantakeafewtries,so
dontworryifyoudontgetitrightaway.

YoullseethatifyoupressLP,thenst.MPandyoufollowitupwithcr.MP,youllscorea
Counterhit.Similarly,ifyoupressLP,thencr.MP,cr.MP,youllalsoscoreaCounterhit.

Nowwehaveourselvesanotherblockstring:LP,st.MP,cr.MPorLP,cr.MP,cr.MP

Thefirsthasa4framegapwhilethesecondhasa3framegap.YouwouldntwanttouseLP
>st.MPagainstacharacterwitha3framenormal,likeRyusst.LP.Instead,youmustuseLP
>cr.MPbecauseitonlyhasa3framegap.

Afterthisblockstring,Cammyisleftattheperfectrangeforcr.MK,whichisalsocancellableinto
SpiralArrow.Ifyouscoreacr.MPCounterhit,youhaveenoughtimetovisuallyhitconfirmwith
cr.MKsothatyoudontaccidentallythrowitout.Getthehangofitbysettingthedummyto
CrouchandguardtoRandomandpracticingforalittlewhile.

Nowyoumustbewondering:WhichSpiralArrowshouldyoudo?

Itsnotaneasyquestiontoanswer,aseachonedoesdifferentdamageandleavesyouata
differentframeadvantage.(Also,IdontconsidermyselfaCammyplayersoIcouldbetotally
offhere,butatleastitgivesyousomefoodforthought.)

Tocomplicatemattersfurther,youreleftatadifferentframeadvantagewhenyouBack
Recover.Thatstosay,thereisatotalofeightdifferentrecoverytimingsfromSpiralArrows!
Heresahandychart:

SpiralArrow Knockdown Frame ForwardDash NetFrames

Strength Advantage Frames

LK Normal 25 16 9

LK Back 30 16 14

75
 MK Normal 21 16 5

MK Back 28 16 12

HK Normal 22 16 6

HK Back 27 16 11

EX Normal 24 16 9

EX Back 29 16 13

ItsunlikelythatwewoulduseEXSpiralArrowsinacombobecauseithasarelativelylow
increaseindamage,soletsnotworryaboutitfornow.

Herearethepossibleframeadvantagesinwhichwecouldfindourselvesastheopponent
wakesupfromSpiralArrow:

5
6
9
11
12
14

Theylookallovertheboard,butletsseeifanyofthesenumberscorrespondtothestartup
framesofherothermoves:

5frames:cr.MPofcourse!
6frames:st.MP
9frames:st.HK
11frames:none,butF+HKis12frames
12frames:F+HK
14frames:EXHooligan>CannonStrike

WhatthisallboilsdowntoisthatifyougetanopportunitytoSpiralArrow,youshoulduseLK
becauseitgivesyouthemostframes,despitewhetherornottheyNormalorBackRecovery.
YoucanfollowitupwithEXHooligan>EXDiveKick,whichhasblockadvantage.Yetyou
cantCrushCounterbecauseitstooslow.

Itseemstomethattherealquestionis:howmanyoptionscanyoucoverwithonebutton?If
youuseLK,youhaveplentyoftimetoeasilysetupst.HKCrushCountertiming.

76
Tosumthisallup,ifyouuseMKSpiralArrow,youmustusest.MPiftheyNormalRecovery,
butF+HKisbetterifyouthinktheyllBackRecover.IftheylowjabonNormalRecovery,you
gethitoutofF+HK.IftheyBackRecoverandlowjab,theF+HKwillhit.

Thereyouhaveit!ItseemslikeLKisthebestoverall.

NowthatweveappliedthisframeworktoRyuandCammy,youcanadaptittoothercharacters
andlearntobuildtheiroffenseinasystematicandefficientmanner.

77
HowtoReadFrameData
Framedataarerelativelycomplex.Mostfightinggameplayershaveheardoforareslightly
familiarwiththem,butarenottotallysurehowtheywork.

Simplyput,framedatarefertothedifferentnumbersof,youguessedit,framesthateverymove
inthegamecontains.Likemostmoderngames,SF5isbuilttorunat60framespersecond
(fps).So,usethatasabaselinetohelpwithunderstandingtheframesandmovesbetter.

Tobegin,framedataareusuallyseparatedintoseveralcategories.Letsstartbylookingata
sampleofRyusframedatafrom gilleysbetaframedataspreadsheet
.Keepinmindthatthese
dataarefrombeta2,sothevaluesmaychangebythetimeyoureadthis.

Hit Block
Move Startup Recovery Total Hitstop Advantage Advantage
standLP 3 11 8 4 2
standMP 5 17 12 6 1
standHP 7 29 15 1 1
standLK 4 17 8 1 1
standMK 8 26 12 2 2
standHK 10 29 15 4 1
crouchLP 4 11 8 3 2
crouchMP 5 19 12 4 2
crouchHP 6 33 15 7 10
crouchLK 4 12 8 2 1
crouchMK 6 21 12 0 4
crouchHK 7 30 15 KD 11

StartupFrames
Startupframesrefertothenumberofframesrequiredforamovetostart,orcomeout.Moves
withfaststartupsaregenerallylightattacks.InSF4andSF5,thefastestnormalattackshave
a3framestartup.

Foragamethatrunsat60fps,threeframesequateto1/20thofasecondthatsprettyfastby
anyonesstandards.

78
Duringyourcharactersattackstartupframes,yourcharacterisvulnerabletogettinghitbyyour
opponentsmove.Iftheopponenthitsanattackduringitsstartupframes,hellscorea
Counterhit,whichinturn,providesa20%damageandstunboost,aswellasanextra
Counterhitonlyhitadvantagethatallowshimtoconverttobiggerdamage.CrushCounters
alsocountasCounterhitsandprovideevenlongerhitadvantagestates,suchasjuggleora
groundspinout.

ActiveFrames
Activeframesrefertotheframesoftheactualattackanimationduringwhichtheattackcan
actuallyhittheopponent.Activeframesfollowstartupframesandareusuallyatleastaslong
asthestartupframes.

Activeframesarenotlistedingilleystablejustbecausegilleydidnotincludethemforwhatever
reason.However,thatdoesntmeantheyshouldbeignored.Youshouldlearnwhattheymean
incaseyoucomeacrosstheminfutureframedatacharts.

RecoveryFrames
Followingactiveframes,recoveryframesrefertotheanimationframesoftheattackduring
whichitisretracting,orfinishingup.Youcannotblockandarevulnerabletobeinghitwhilein
recoveryframes.Ingeneral,moveswithlongrecoveryareeasiertopunish.Themoveswiththe
longestrecoveryusuallyareheavyattacks.

Recoveryframesarealsonotlistedinthetableabove,buttheyrealsoimportanttotakeinto
considerationwhentryingtounderstandwhysomemovesareharderthanotherstopunish.

TotalFrames
Thetotalframescolumnisthesumofstartupframes+activeframes+recoveryframes.Thisis
usefulbecausewecannowusethisnumbertoworkbackwardsandestimatewhatthemissing
activeandrecoveryframeswouldbe.

Hitstop
Hitstopiscurrentlyabovemylevelofexplaining,but
SonicHurricanehasagoodarticleonit
here.Iencourageyoutogoreadthat.

HitandBlockAdvantage
Hitadvantageisthenumberofframesofadvantageyouearnwhentheattackisnotblocked.
Thisnumberiswhatallowssomemovestocombointoothers.

79

Blockadvantage,ontheotherhand,isthenumberofframesofadvantageyouearnwhenthe
attackis blocked.Thisnumbercanbepositive,zero,ornegative.Letsexaminewhatthese
numbersmean:

Amovethatisplusonblockmeansthatyouhavetheadvantagewhenperformingyour
nextattack.Advantageinthisinstancemeansthatyournextattackgetsaheadstart,so
tospeak,ontheopponentsnextattack.
Amovethatiszero(oreven)onblockmeansthatthesituationisneutral,andneither
playerhastheadvantageaftertheattackisblocked.
Amovethatisnegativeonblockmeansthattheattackerwouldbeatadisadvantage
afterrecovery,andthus,thedefendersnextattackwouldhaveaheadstart.

Whenthinkingaboutframedata,itcanbeeasytogetlostinthetechnicaltermsandoverthink
things.IdliketonowuseanIRL(inreallife)analogytohelpyoubetterunderstandhowallof
thisfitstogether.

Imaginethatyouareinarealfightandyouareabouttopunchyouropponentwithapowerful
righthandpunch.Youpullyourrightarmbackandbegintothrustitforwardwithallofyour
might.Thatmotionrightthereistheequivalentofstartupframes.Nowyourfistismaking
contactwiththeopponentsface,yourknucklescrackingopenhisjawthisconnectionwouldbe
partofactiveframes.

Andfinally,asyouretractyourarmbacktoyourside,confidentyouveknockedthecrapoutof
youropponent,youwouldbeinrecoveryframes.Thinkofthepunchinthreemodes,fromstart
tocompletion:startup,active,andrecovery.

Gotit?

Okay,letslookatoneofRyusmovesandexaminetheframedataandwhattheymean.

Hit Block
Move Startup Recovery Total Hitstop Advantage Advantage
standLP 3 11 8 4 2

Ryusst.LPisausefulandimportantpartofhisarsenal.Bylookingatst.LPsframedata,we
canlearnmoreabouthowitcanbeintegratedintoourgameplan.

Bycomparingits3framestartuptotherestofhisgroundednormalattacks,wecanseethatitis
hisfastestnormal.Thedifferencebetween3and4framemovesmayseemunimportant,butit

80
isactuallyveryimportantwherea3framenormalcouldsaveyoubuta4framenormalwould
betooslow.

Sowith11framesofanimationtotal,wecanconcludethatitisslightlylongerthan1/6thofa
second.InStreetFighterterms,thatsprettyfast!

Thedifferencebetweenitsstartup(threeframes)andtotal(11frames)iseightframes,which
are,inturn,splitbetweenactiveandrecoveryframes.Atthispoint,wedontknowhowmany
framesareactiveandhowmanyarerecovery,butitdoesntmatterrightnowforthisexample.

Withhitadvantageoffourandastartupofthree,wecanconcludethatRyusst.LPshould
combointoitself.Whyisthat?IftheLPisnotblocked,theopponentisinhitstunforfour
frames,andsinceLPonlyhasa3framestartup,thatleavesoneframeofleeway.Block
advantageistwo,soifitsblocked,wellhavea2frameheadstartonournextattack.

Butthisinformationbyitselfdoesnttellusmuch.Itoffersonlyasmallsnapshot.Weneedto
lookattheframedataforallofhisnormalsinordertogetabettersenseofthebigpicture.

HowtoAnalyzeFrameDatatoConstructOffense
Whenyouanalyzeacharactersframedata,youshoulddosointhecontextoffiguringouthow
toconstructyouroffenseanddecidingwhichmovesareusefulfordifferentsituations.Frame
datacanhelpyouconclusivelydecidewhichmovesaregoodtousetogetherasblockstrings
andwhichmoveshavethemostframeadvantage.Puttogether,youarefurthersolidifyingyour
offense,defense,anddecisionmaking.

HereisthemethodIusetofindblockstrings:

1. Findthemoveswiththemostframeadvantage.
2. Findthemoveswiththefasteststartup.
3. Analyzetheblockadvantageandstartupofdifferentbuttoncombinationsinorderto
constructblockstringsthataresafe,orhardtopunish.

Blockstringsareusefulbecausetheywouldbehardertohitagainststrongopponents.Andifthe
opponentdoesntblock,orhitsabuttonduringagap,blockstringscanusuallybeconvertedinto
combos.

Letsmoveontodiscusshowtofigureoutwhichmovesareuseful.

Step1.Sortthecharactersattacksbyframeadvantageindescendingordersothatthemoves
withthemostframeadvantageareatthetop.

81
 Hit
Recov Tota Hitsto Advantag Block
Move Startup ery l p e Advantage
standLP 3 11 8 4 2
crouchLP 4 11 8 3 2
crouchMP 5 19 12 4 2
standMP 5 17 12 6 1
standHP 7 29 15 1 1
crouchLK 4 12 8 2 1
axekick(b+HK) 8 33 12*15 7 1

Notethatrightnowwedontcareaboutanyofthemoveswithnegativeblockadvantage.Ryu
hasnonormalattacksthathavezeroblockadvantageanyway.

Step2:Examinethemoveswiththemostframeadvantagefirst:st./cr.LPandcr.MP,inthis
case.Thesewillbethefoundationofourblockstrings.

Step3:SortRyusnormalsbystartupframestofindhisfastestattacks.

Hit
Move Startup Total Hitstop Advantage BlockAdvantage
standLP 3 11 8 4 2
standLK 4 17 8 1 1
crouchLP 4 11 8 3 2
crouchLK 4 12 8 2 1
standMP 5 17 12 6 1
crouchMP 5 19 12 4 2
crouchHP 6 33 15 7 10
crouchMK 6 21 12 0 4
standHP 7 29 15 1 1
crouchHK 7 30 15 KD 11
standMK 8 26 12 2 2
standHK 10 29 15 4 1

Ingeneral,wedwanttostringnormalstogethertocreateablockstringthatendswitha
Hadoken.

82
Whenconstructingablockstring,itsnotenoughtoonlylookatthenumbersandconstruct
theoreticalblockstrings.Youalsohavetotakeintoconsiderationthepushbackthateachmove
causesonhitandblock,aswellaswhethertheattacksconnectwhentheopponentis
crouching.

Itsalsoimportanttoleaveframegapsincasetheopponentpressesabuttonortriestothrow.
Remember,ifoneattackconnectstoanotherwhileinstartupframes,itllscoreaCounterhit.On
thatnote,someblockstringsareusefultowardfishingforCounterhits,whereasothersare
simplyawaytobuildmeter,inflictwhitedamage,andpossiblyconvertintoalargercombo.

InpreviousStreetFightergames,thetraditionalcr.MKxxHadokenblockstringwasastapleof
Ryusoffenseandwashardtopunish.However,inSF5,thisiseasilypunishable,soweneeda
blockstringthatwillpushRyuoutfurther.

Sincest.LPis+2onblockandhasonlya3framestartup,thatleavesa1framegapwherethe
opponentcoulddosomething,likethrow,hitabutton,orattemptaReversal.Thatsapretty
tightwindow,andImsurethatsincest.LPischainable,thisisatrueblockstringwithwhichthe
opponentcannotdoanythingexceptdoaVReversal.

st.LPis+4onhit,soiftheopponentdoesntblock,st.LKwillconnectnextwhichthencancels
intoHadoken.

Nowtryst.LP,st.LP,st.LKxxHadoken.IfyoudontuseHPHadoken,itwontallcombo.(This
isgoodinformationtoknow.)However,iftheopponentisstandblocking,thesecondst.LPwill
whiff,whichmeansthatweneedanattackthathitsbothstandingandcrouchingopponents.
Thest.LKwillstillconnectandcancelintoHadoken,butthiswouldbeanunsaferangeandyou
caneasilybepunished.

Thisiswherecr.LPcomesin.

Ata4framestartup,itwouldleavea2framegap.Becauseitischainable,theopponentisalso
stuckinblockstun.Effectively,wehavea2hitblockstringthatstartswithRyusfastestmove
andisthenfollowedbyanotherfastattackthatconnects,regardlessofwhethertheopponentis
standingorcrouching.

cr.LPis+2onblock,sowewouldlookatmoveswitha4or5framestartupnext.Weknow
fromearlierthatst.LKconnectsandiscancellableintoHadoken.

Allinall,wenowhaveabasicblockstring,butweshouldtestittoseeifitssafeonblock
againstnormals.Rememberthatcr.MKxxHadokenbyitselfisnolongersafe,soinorderto
compensateforHadokensbeingnegativeonblock,wehavetoaddextrahitstoour
blockstrings.

83
Totest,setthedummytoPlaybackRecordingandrecordst.LP,cr.LP,st.LKxxHPHadoken
intoRecordingSlot1.ThenturnRecordingSlot1to Onforthedummytoplayitback
repeatedly.Tryallofyournormalstoseeifanyofthemwillhitthedummywhilehesstillstuck
inHadokenrecovery.

Nothingworks,sowevefoundourfirstsafeblockstring!Butcanwemakeitbetter?Iwonder.

Sincecr.LPis+2,letslookatourmovesthathavea5framestartup.Thatleavesa3frame
gapduringwhichtheopponentcouldpressabuttonortrytotechathrow.Bothst.MPandcr.
MPhavea5framestartup,butcr.MPis+2onblock.Theybothdo60damage,butletsgo
withcr.MPsinceithasoneframeofadvantagemorethanst.MPdoes.

Meanwhile,st.LKdoesonly30damage,butthinkaboutit:anextra30damageisa100%
increaseifitconnects!Also,cr.MPbuildsalittlebitmoremeter,whichgivesyouanother
reasonnottousest.LKinthisinstance.

Asaresult,wehaveaslightlymoreoptimizedblockstringthatconnectsonstandingand
crouchingopponentsalike.Checkitout:

st.LP,cr.LP,cr.MPxxHPHadoken

Takenote,however,thatthisisnotacombo.Thus,iftheopponentisntblockingatthestartof
theblockstring,helllikelybeblockingbytheend.

Letssummarize:

IftheopponentisNOTblocking,st.LP,st.LP,st.LKxxHPHadokenisbothacombo
andasafeblockstring,regardlessofwhethertheopponentisstandingorcrouching.
Iftheopponentisblockinghigh,thesecondst.LPwillwhiff,soweneedtousest.LP,cr.
LP,cr.MPxxHPHadoken
Iftheopponentisblockinglow,st.LP,cr.LP,cr.MPxxHPHadokenisasafe
blockstring.

Soundsgoodsofar,butwhatifweknowthattheopponentisgoingtobeblocking?Letstakea
lookathowwecanoptimizeevenfurther.

Whilest.LPis+2onblock,itsfairtoassumethatevenifitsblockedhigh,theopponentwill
likelyshifttoblockinglowinordertoavoidgettinghitbyalowattack.st.MPhasa5frame
startup,asdoescr.MPbutst.MPisonly+1onblock,whereascr.MPis+2.Inasituation
whereweknowtheopponentwilllikelybeblocking,thenwecandost.LP,cr.MP,cr.MPxxHP
Hadoken,whichhastwo3framegapsduringwhichtheopponentcouldhitabuttonandyou
couldscoreaCounterhit.

84
But!

Onepotentialreasontousest.MPhereisthatitsalsothebeginningofRyustargetcombo(st.
MP,st.HP,st.HK).Iftheopponentpressesabuttonorattemptstotechathrowafteryourst.
LP,youllscoreaCounterhitandcanhitconfirmintotherestofthetargetcomboonreaction.

Letspractice,shallwe?

SetthedummytoStandandRandomBlock,andsetCounterto On.Startyourblockstringwith
st.LP,thenpressst.MP.Sometimesthedummywillblock,butothertimesitwillgethit.

Ifitblocksst.LPbutgetshitbyst.MP,youllscoreaCounterhitandhaveenoughtimetoreact
withtherestofthetargetcombo.However,iftheopponentiscrouching,thelasthitofthe
targetcombowillwhiff.

Ifthatsthecase,youdthinkthatitdmakethistacticrelativelyuseless.Onthecontrary,my
friend.Iftheopponentwerecrouching,theydprobablybeblockinglow,inwhichcaseyou
wouldnotbelookingforaCounterhitanywayyoudjustcontinueyourblockstringwithcr.MP
xxHPHadoken.

Ineffect,wehaveanoptimizedblockstringfordifferentsituations:

State Blockstring

Notblocking(highorlow) st.LP,st.LP,st.LKxxHPHadoken

Blockinglow st.LP,st.MP,cr.MPxxHPHadoken

Blockinghigh st.LP,st.MP,st.LKxxHPHadoken

Blockingthentryingtotech st.LP,st.MP,*hitconfirm,st.HP,st.HK

Takecaution:Eachoftheseblockstrings,exceptst.LP,st.MP,cr.MPxxHPHadoken,would
beunsafeiftheopponentwerecornered.Otherwise,theyareallgenerallysafemidscreen.

85
BuildingMuscleMemoryinTrainingMode
Uptothispoint,Ivegivenyouatonofinformation.Simplyreadingaboutthemdoesntmake
youabetterplayerpractice,practice,andmorepracticedoes.

Iknowthatmostpeopledontlikehearingit,butitsthetruth:withoutdedicatingtimetopractice
thesethings,yourgamewontgetanywhere.Putinthetimetopractice,evenifitsanhourper
day.

Yes,alotofushaveajob,afamily,agirlfriend,alife,otherhobbies,workouts,responsibilities,
andoverall,justalotonourplate.Letsfaceit,weallhaveotherthingsinlifetodobesides
playStreetFighter.Evenyourboygootecksdoesntsitaroundcrackingoutalldaylikeheused
to.

Withourevershrinkingpooloffreetime,wehavetomakesurethetimethatwe do
spend
traininghastobeasefficientandeffectiveaspossible.Ofcourse,efficiencyheremeansthat
wegetalotofvaluefromthatinvestmentoftime.Similarly,effectivenessmeansthatwe
continuetoseeimprovementsinvariousaspectsofourgameconsistently.

StreetFighterrequiresbothphysicalandmentalprocesses.Itsnotanoverstatementtotreat
traininginthegamewiththesamerespectandintensityasyouwouldanyothertypeof
reallifetraining.Inotherwords,youneedtobediligentandconsistent,anddedicateasmuch
timeandeffortasisrequiredtobuildmusclememory.

Thatsaid,youmightnotknowwheretostartorwhattodoinTrainingMode.Herearemy
recommendations.

Settrainingmodesettingstothefollowing:
KeyDisplay:On
AttackData:On

Dummysettings:
Guard:AfterFirstAttack
Recovery:NormalRecovery
Stun:Normal

Gaugesettings
LeaveasAutoRecover

Eventhoughthegamerelieslessonperfectexecution,itsstillworthspendingtimepracticing
yourcharactersbreadandbuttercombosandcommonpunishes,especiallyifyouarenewto
StreetFighterorfightinggamesingeneral.
86
Alotofthishasbeentakenfrommypreviousbook, SimplifyingStreetFighter.
Feelfreetoskip
overthissectionifyouvealreadyreadthatandbuiltthemusclememoryrequired.

PracticingDashing
Dependingonthecontrolleryouuse,dashingcaneitherbeeasyorfrustrating.(Forthenew
player,itsprobablythelatter.)Withastick,itcanbeespeciallyawkwardatfirstdependingon
whetheryouarelefthandedorrighthanded,andwhichsideofthescreenyouareon.

Someplayershaveastrongersidethattheyprefertofighton,typicallybecauseitseasierfor
themtodashorperformspecialattackmotions.Ifyoufinditeasytodashononesidebut
difficultontheother,youmustthenfocusonimprovingtheweakersideinordertobalanceyour
strengthasmuchaspossible.

Letslookatyourownphysicalbodytomakeapoint:Themoreyouusethedominantsideand
neglectthenondominantside,themoreimbalanceyoullexperienceinphysicalstrength.You
canconfirmthisbyliftingapairofdumbbellsinbothhands,andnoticethatitsmoredifficulton
oneside.Thisisthesamething.Dontbetheplayerthatobviouslyplayseffectivelyonlyonone
sideofthescreenandendsuplosingbecauseofit.

Agoodwaytogetbetteratthisistodothefightinggameequivalentofrunninglapsonatrack:
dashfromtheleftcornerofthescreentotherightcorner,andthenbackagain.Ifyoucantdo
this10timesconsistentlywithminimaleffort,thisshouldbethefirstthingtopracticewhenyou
beginyourexecutiontrainingfortheday.

Flawlessdashingisimportantbecauseitcanbeahighlyversatileandeffectivetoolforboth
offenseanddefense.Onoffense,ithelpsclosethegapbetweenyouropponentaftera
knockdownandpushesthemtowardthecorner.Ondefense,itcreatesspacebetweenyouand
youropponent,andhelpsyougetoutoftightsituations.

PracticingHadoken(D,DF,F+P)
RyusHadokenisimportantbecauseitisusefulincombosandtocontrolspace.Practicethe
down,downforward,forwardmotionbecauseamajorityofRyusgamedependsonusingit
effectively.Plus,themotionisverycommonplaceinStreetFighter(andmanyotherfighting
games)soitsagoodinvestmentoftimeanyway.

ThebestwaytopracticethrowingHadokensoranythingelseinfightinggamesitistoturnon
KeyDisplayasmentionedabove,soyoucanseewhatbuttonsanddirectionsyourehittingon
yourcontroller.Atthispoint,itdoesntmatterwhetheryouareplayingonapad,stick,or
keyboardwhateveryouaremostcomfortablewithwillwork.(NotethatIllbereferringtothe
controllerasastickbecausethatswhatIuseandammostcomfortablewith.)Allthatmattersis
whetherornotyoucanhitall8directionsandall68buttons.

87
Ifusingastick,heresasimpleexercise.Mostpeopleusetheirlefthandtocontrolthestickand
holditbetweentheirmiddleandringfingers.Youshouldpracticejustdoingthedown,
downforward,forwardmotiononthestickrepeatedlyontheleftsideandthenagainontheright
sideofthescreen.

Thegoaloftheexerciseisaccuracy,notspeed.Yourejustgettingafeelforhowmuch
pressureyouneedonthestick.

Practicethismotionfortenseconds,thenpracticegoingdown,downback,backonthestick.
Repeatforanothertenseconds.

Afterworkingonjustthemotion,begintointegratehittingLPafterdoingthemotion.Youdont
needtopressLPatthesametimebecausethatmaybetoomuchforyourmusclememoryat
thispoint.JustpressLPafterrollingthestickfromdowntoforwardandonceyougetusedto
pressingthebuttonafterthemotion,thenbegintodothemotionalittlefaster.

Afteryouvedonethemotionalittlefaster,focusonpressingthebuttonalittlesooner.Finally
afterafewminutesofpractice,itshouldbegintofeelnatural.

NowtrytothrowtenFireballsinarow.Ifyouscrewup,thatsokaylookatyourinputsandsee
whereyouwentwrong.

Maybeyouhitthepunchbuttonwhenthestickwasatdownforwardorupforwardinsteadof
forward.Thatsverycommon,butwithpracticeitllhappenlessandless.

Eventually,itllbecomesecondnatureandyouwillbeabletothrowtenFireballsinarowon
eachsideofthescreen.ThatsgreatbecauseitstheStreetFighterequivalentofaddingmore
weighttoaliftingmovement.

Inthesamewaythatamusclegrowsstrongerwhenyouconsistentlystimulateitwithheavier
andheavierloads,yourmusclememoryforexecutionalsogrowsstrongerovertimefrom
repetition.

PracticingShoryuken
RyusiconicShoryukenishisstrongestantiairoption,doesalotofdamage,andisusedin
commoncombos.WhenyoucanShoryukenatwill,youmakeitharderforopponentstojumpin
onandcanmaximizedamageincombos.Manygamesarewonandlostbecauseaplayer
missedanopportunitytoShoryuken.

Sotogetbetter,practicetheforward,down,downforwardmotionbyitself(similarlytohowyou
practicedtheHadokenmotion).Aimtobeaccurateyoudonthavetoperformthemotion
quicklywhenstartingout.

88
PracticethisforfiveminutesadayonceyoucanthrowaHadokenconsistentlyoneachside.
Slowly,youwillbuilduponyourRyuarsenal.

PracticingTatsumaki
TheTatsumakimotionistheoppositeofaHadoken:down,downback,back.Itcanbeusefulin
combosandgoingthroughprojectiles.ItsnotascommonlyusedashisHadokenor
Shoryuken,butitsimportanttolearnnext.

IfyoulearnedhowtoHadokenproperlyoneachside,aTatsuisnoharderbecausethemotion
isexactlythesame,exceptwithakickbuttoninsteadofpunch.

PracticingstLKxxHadoken
Thisisyourmostusefulgroundtoolbecauseitdoesdecentdamage(ifitconnects),doeschip
damage(ifitsblocked),isdifficulttopunish,andisrelativelylowrisk.

Thest.LKanimationcanbecancelledintotheHadokenbydoingtheinputimmediatelyafter
pressingst.LK.

Practicehittingthisfrommaximumst.LKrange.Thiswillhelpyoudevelopaneyeforthat
specificrange,inwhichyoucanmakecontact,yetavoidbeingsofarthatyourst.LKwhiffs
whichwillleaveyouvulnerable.

PracticingThrows
Throwsareimportantbecausetheycounterablockingopponent.Typically,ifsomeoneis
blockingandnottakingdamage,hecaneasilybethrown.Thisthreatkeepsplayersfromjust
blockingtheentirematch.

Learnhowtoutilizethrowswellbecausetheyareausefuloffensiveanddefensivetool.Plus,
theyreeasytoperform(LP+LK),doanoninsignificantamountofdamage,andarean
importantpartofanycompetentplayersgame.IfyoudontthrowinStreetFighter,itslike
playingrock,paper,scissorswithoutknowingscissorsexist.

Hereshowtogetstarted:seehowfaryoucanstandfromthedummywhileperformingathrow
andstillhaveitconnect.Ifitmisses,thisiscalledwhiffingathrow,whichputsyouina
disadvantageousstatecalledrecoveryframes.Whileinrecovery,youcannotblockandare
vulnerabletobeinghit.

Throwsarebestusedwhenyouthinkyouropponentwillbeblocking,gettingupfroma
knockdown,orafterblockinganotherattack.However,iftheotherplayerexpectsit,beaware
thattheycaninputthesamethrowcommand(LP+LK)to techthethrow,whichmeanstheywill
escapewithnodamage.Thisrequiresacombinationofgoodreactionsandanticipation,but
becomeseasierwithtimeandexperience.

89
Formoreindepththrowexercises,refertotheStartingStreetFighter5TrainingHandbook
whichcanbedownloadedhereifyoupurchasedthisbookthroughKindle,orifyoupurchased
onGumroad,youllfinditinaseparatefile.

PracticeWhiffPunishing
Whiffpunishingistheartandscienceofexploitingyouropponentsmissednormalsandspecial
moveswithyourownnormalorspecialcounterattack.

Developingthisaspectofyourgameisimportantbecausewhenyouestablishthatyouare
skilledinwhiffpunishing,youropponentwilllikelybehesitanttorecklesslystickoutnormals,
whichwillmakethemmoredefensive.Ifyouropponentisreluctanttoattackduetofearof
beingwhiffpunished,youcaneasilypushthemtothecorner,thensystematicallydismantle
theirdefense.

Letslookatasimpleexampletodemonstratewhiffpunishing:

1. InDummysettings,statustoPlaybackRecordingandthenselect ActionRecording
Settings.
2. Select RecordingSlot1.NowyouarecontrollingthedummyRyu.
3. PerformonecrouchingHK(sweep)whileholdingdownbacktoblock.
4. Pausethegame,theninActionPlaybackSettings,setRecordingSlot1to On.
5. Standoutsideofhissweeprangeandseehowcloseyoucangetwithoutgettinghit.
Onceyouhaveagoodideaofitsmaxcontactrange,youcanwalkinsideandoutsideof
itcarefullyandnotgetknockeddown.
6. Practicewalkingnearthedummyssweepandhittingitwithyourownsweepatmax
range.Thegoalistohitthedummyslegasitretractswhileavoidinggettinghityourself.

Ifthedummyblocks(youwereholdingdownbackwhenyourecordedthesweep,right?),you
didyourownsweeptoolate.

Afterafewminutesofpractice,youshouldbeabletodothisprettyconsistently,oratleastbe
betteratitthanyouwerewhenyoustarted.Onceyourecomfortable,tryblockingthesweep
andcounterattackingwithyourownsweep.

PracticeAntiAiring
Onceyouhavelearnedtocontrolthegroundthroughst.LK,st.MK,sweeps,andHadokens,
youropponenthasnochoicebuttotaketotheair.Yourabilitytoantiairconsistentlyand
effectivelyusuallymeansthedifferencebetweenlifeanddeathinthegame.

90
Manynewerplayerstendtojumpfrequently.Youwanttoavoiddoingthisyourselfyetbe
preparedtounleashantiairseffectively.Ryuhasseveralantiairtoolsfordifferentanglesand
situations.

AntiAiringwithShoryuken
HismostdamagingantiairishisShoryuken(goodthingyoupracticedthemotionuntilyou
coulddoittentimesinarowconsistentlyandeasilyoneachside,right?Right??).Ifyou
neglectedyourShoryukentraining,heresanotheropportunitytopractice.

ShoryukenAntiAirExercise
1. InDummySettings,setStatusto PlaybackRecording, gotoActionRecording
Settings,andselectRecordingSlot1.
2. Nowyourecontrollingthedummy.Timeaj.HKtoconnectonyourRyus
shoulderarea.Ifyouhitthebuttontooearly,hellconnectonyourRyushead,
whichishigherthanwhatwewant.Ifyouwaittoolong,thekickwontcomeout
intimebeforethedummylands.
3. Pausethegame,thengotoActionPlaybackSettings,andsetRecordingSlot1
to
On.
4. NowpracticeantiairingwithMPShoryuken.

ThereasonyouuseMPShoryukenisthatithasthemostinvincibility.

TimetheShoryukentohitasdeepaspossible,meaningthatyouShoryukenatthelast
possiblemomentbeforedummyRyumakescontactwithyourRyu.Thisistoensuremaximum
damageandinvincibilityframes.NoticethedamagedifferencewhenyouShoryukentooearly
andyouonlygetthefirsthitcomparedtowhenyoudoitlateandscorebothhits.

Itlltakepractice,andagain,justafewminutesofpracticeadaywillgoalongway!

AntiAiringwithNormals
Sometimesyoueitherwontbeinrangeorwonthaveenoughtimetoreacttoajumpinwithan
Shoryuken.Luckily,Ryuhasafewothertoolsthatcanbeusedasantiairssuchasst.HKand
cr.HP.

StandingHeavyKickisgoodforwhentheopponentjumpsinfromlongrange.Thisisastrong
tendencyofnewplayersbecausetheyhaventlearnedthatwalkingacrossthescreenissafer
andmoreeffectivethanjumping.

st.HKwillalsoscoreaCrushCounteriftimedproperly,allowingyoutojugglewithCriticalArt.

Thismaytakeafewtriesandyouwillprobablyneedtohitthebuttonearlierifyouaregetting
hit,oriftheattackstrade.

91

CrouchingHeavyPunch(cr.HP)isgoodatacloserrange.Thiscanbeusedtostopnearlyany
airattackifexecutedearlyenough.ThiscanbeastrongalternativetorelyingonMP
Shoryukenearlyoninyourtrainingwhichtakeslotsofpracticetoperforminaclutchmoment.

YoucanpracticeantiairingwiththesetwonormalsbyusingthesameRecordingSlotasyou
usedtoantiairwithMPShoryuken.

Onceyourexecutionreachesproficiencyintheseareas,youcanmoveontothenextstageof
executionpracticewhichislearninghowtopracticecombos.

92
BuildingMuscleMemoryforCombosandOther
Situations
OnceyouhavebuiltthemusclememoryforexecutingRyusbasicmoves,thenextstepisto
extendthatmusclememorytoothersituations,suchascombos.Thegoodnewsisthat
learningRyusbasiccomboswillhelpyouunderstandhowtobuildmusclememoryforany
character.

Beforegoinganyfurther,youmustfirstunderstandthewaythecomboengineworksinSF5in
ordertotroubleshootyourexecutionwhensomethingdoesntseemtobeworking.Familiarize
yourselfwiththedifferenttypesofcombosbelow:.

Links
Alink
referstoacombosequenceinwhichonemovesanimationfinishescompletely
andputstheopponentinenoughhitstuntoallowthenextmovetoconnectbeforethe
opponentcanblockagain.

AnexampleofalinkcomboisRyusst.MP,cr.MP.Thestandingmediumpunch
animationfinishescompletelyandthesecondoneconnectswhiletheopponentisstillin
hitstun.

Chains
Achain isasequenceofnormalattacksthatcanbecancelledintoanothernormal
attacktypicallyitselforanotherlightattack.

AnexampleofachaincomboisRyuscr.LPxxcr.LP.Youcanchainmultiple
crouchinglightpunchestogetherinacombo.

Cancels
Acancel occurswhenanormalattacksanimationiscancelledintoaspecialmove.
Usuallythecancelwindowisonlyafewframes,meaningthatifyoutriedtocancel
towardstheendoftheanimation,itwontwork.

AnexampleofacancelisRyuscr.MPxxFireball.Youneedtoperformthemotionfor
theFireballimmediatelyafteryoupresscr.MP.Ifyoudoittoolateintheanimation,the
Fireballwontcomeoutorthegamewontregistera2hitCombo.

BreakingCombosintoSegments
Youcanpracticecombosmoreeffectivelybybreakingupthecombointoasmanysegmentsas
necessarytobuildyourmusclememoryforthatsegment.

93

LetsstartwithasimpleRyucombo:j.HK,cr.MPxxMKTatsu

Thecombocanbebrokendownintotwosegments:
1. j.HK,cr.MP
2. cr.MPxxMKTatsu

First,practicejumpinginwithHeavyKickandlinkingcr.MPwhenyouland,aimingtohitthe
opponentbetweenthewaistandtheshoulders.Thisiswhatscalleda deepj
umpin.Ifyoutry
tohittoolow,theattackwillwhiff,andifyouhittoohigh,youwonthaveasmuchframe
advantageiftheopponentblockedinarealmatch.

Next,practicecancellingcr.MPintoMKTatsu.Ifyouhaventyetreachedthepointwhereyou
candoMKTatsueverytimeeffortlessly,Isuggestyouworkonthatfirst.

IfinditeasiertoholdDownForwardonthestickwhileIhitMP,becauseitseasierformetoroll
fromDownForwardtoBackthanitistotrytodoitfromDown.Thisisbecauseyoumay
accidentally startthemotionfromDownBackinstead,whichwillnotgiveyoutheinputrequired
fortheTatsu.

Onlyonceyoureabletodothissegmenttentimesinarowshouldyouputthetwosegments
together.

Youvealreadybeenpracticinglinkingcr.MPafterthej.HKandcancellingcr.MPintoMK
Tatsu,solearningthesetwoseparatelyshouldfeelmuchmoremanageablethanitwouldhave
beenlearningthewholethingatonce.

Foranydeterminedbeginner,itideallyshouldtakenolongerthanfivetotenminutesto
successfullyandeffortlesslyperformthiscomboatleast50%ofthetime.Ofcourse,itwilltake
moretimetoreach90%accuracy,butthisisagoodstart.

Formorecomboexercises,refertothe StartingStreetFighter5TrainingModeHandbook.

94
WatchingYourReplaysorTheValueofGetting
YourAssKicked
Losinginanything,fightinggameornot,canbetough.Youmayfeelastringofemotionssuch
asanger,disappointment,shame,embarrassment,orselfloathing.Infightinggames,Street
Fighter5inparticular,thispaincanbeincreasedtenfoldbecausewhenyoufirststartoutasa
beginner,youregoingtolosealot.

Youknowwhatsworsethanlosing?Losingeverytimeyouplay.Itsonethingwhenyoureon
abasketballteamandyouplayafewtimesaweekandlose.Itsanotherwhenyoureactively
tryingtoimproveyourfightinggameskills,butbehindeveryrankedmatchopponentisan
experiencedkillerwaitingforhisnextvictim.

Learninghowtoloseisimportantinfightinggamesbecauseitsoneofthebestwaysto
improve.Thankstomoderntechnology,suchascapturecards,aswellasthebuiltinreplay
systemsthatmostmodernfightinggames(especiallySF5)have,youcanmoreeasilywatch
backyourmatchestoseewhereyouwentwrong.

Thiscanbeatoughpillfortheegotoswallowbecauseoftheemotionsyoufeelwhenyoulose.
Butunderstandingthatlosingisapartofwinningisanimportantstepintheprocessof
improvingasaplayer.

Itcanbeeasytodownplaylossesaswell.Youmayblameyourlossonacheapcharacter,an
opponentslaggyconnection(itcouldntpossiblybeyours,right?),lackofexperience,your
controller,oranyothernumberofexcuses.Butultimately,youaretheonetoblame.

Youweretheonethatthrewaprojectilefromanunsaferange.Youweretheonethatdida
wakeupShoryukenthatgotblocked.Youweretheonethatcouldnttechthatthrow.Youwere
theonethatwasunfamiliarwiththeopponentscharacter.Thelistgoeson.

Takingresponsibilityforyourlossesisdifficultbecausetheegoisfragile.Byaccepting
responsibility,itmeansthatwearenottheplayerweimaginedourselvestobe.Butthatsokay
becausewiththerightframeofmind,alossisnotablowtotheegoasmuchasitisan
opportunitytoimprove.

Watchingbackonesreplaysoratleastthinkingaboutwhyyoulostisimportantinfiguringout
whereyouwentwrongandhowyoucanimprovenexttime.

95
WatchingYourReplays
StreetFighter5hasreplaysavailableattheendofeachmatchinVersusMode,aswellas
availableaftereachonlineRankedMatch.AllyouhavetodoisgototheCapcomFighters
Networksectionandtheonlinereplaysarethere.

NewtoStreetFighter5istheabilitytospeedupandrewindyourreplays.Thisisuseful
becausewatchingthematchatafasterspeedcanhelpyoutheflowofthegamealittleeasier.
Beingabletorewindallowsyoutorewatchacertainpart.Watchinginslowmotioncanbe
usefultothinkmoreclearlyaboutthedecisionsyoumadeineverysituation.

IrecommendwatchingwithAttackDataandKeyDisplayonaswell.

Herearesomegeneralthingsyoucanlookforwhenwatchingareplay:
executionerrorsonyourpart
botchedantiairs
misuseofresourceslikeEXmeterandVGauge
whichmovesorsituationsyoutookthemostdamagefrom
missedopportunitiestopunishanopponentsmove
tryingtopunishanopponentsmovethatwassafe
punishingwithasuboptimalattackorcombo
beingmoreobservantoftheopponentspatternsandtendencies
wheredidyoulosecontrolofthematch

Generallyitcanbeprettysoulcrushingtowatchyourreplaysrightafterthematch.Instead,try
watchingreplaysfromthedaybeforeatthestartofyourtrainingsessionsoyoucanwatchthem
withfresheyeswithoutstillbeingemotionallyinvolved.

SF5makesiteasytocreatealistofreplaystowatchusingyourFightersProfile.Within,you
canfindalistofallofyourmostrecentRanked,CasualandBattleLoungematches.Createa
listofthesethenwatchthemback.Ifyoulostalotlasttime,addafewwinsintheresoyoucan
feelyourselfabitaswell.

TakingNotesonReplays
Asyouwatchthem,takespecificnotesaboutwhatyoucantakeawayfromthematch.Your
goalistocreateanactionablechecklistofitemsyoucanaddressinTrainingModeafter
watchingthereplays.

Thischecklistshouldbeasspecificaspossiblesothatyouknowwhenyoucancheck
somethingoffthelist.

96
Irecommend Evernote
,whichiswhatIuseforStreetFighternotesaswellastoorganizework
andreallifestuff.

Hereisanexampleofabad,unspecifiednotes:
needtolearntheRashidmatch
stopdoingwakeupthrows
antiairwhentheyjump

Hereisanexampleofspecific,actionablenotes:
howdoIpunishRashidsSpinningMixer?Isitevenpunishable?
practicetechingthrowsfor3minutes
recordRyujumpinginwithj.HKandpracticepunishingwithMPShoryukenfor1minute
oneachside

Yes,thisprocesscanbeapainintheass.Yes,itskindanerdyandacademic.However,being
systematicaboutyourtrainingisastrongmethodofconsistentlyimproving.

Developingapositiveattitudewhenitcomestolosingisimportant.Ratherthanblaming
yourself,thecharacter,thegame,ortheopponent,askyourselfwhatyoucanlearnfromitand
thencreateanactionablelistthatyoucanworkoninTrainingModesoyouneverlosethesame
waytwice.

97
WhatsNext?
Congratulations!Ifyoumadeitallthewaythrough,Imsureyoulearnedafewthingsabout
fightinggamesandStreetFighter5inparticular.Thenextstepinyourfightinggame
developmentistogetoutthereintotherealworldandplaywithrealpeople.

NoteveryonecanbethenextDaigoUmeharaorJustinWong,butnoteveryoneneedstobe.
Youdontneedtobethebest,youjustneedtobethebestplayeryoucanbe.Sofindingalocal
groupofplayerstotrainwithiscriticalintakingyourskillstothenextlevel.

IappreciateyourtakingthetimetoreadanypartofthiseBookandhopethatitwasusefulin
somewaytoyou.Hopefullysomenewconceptswereintroducedandsomethingsthatyou
mayhavebeenunsureabouthavebeenclearedup.

Ifyouhavecommentsorquestions,feelfreetohitmeupon Twitter
.Ifyourelookingfor
oneononecoaching,Imaystillbeofferingitatthetimeofthiswriting,butifnot,thereare
plentyoftrainersthatcanhelpatCrossCounterTraining .

Ifyouaresoinclined,youcanalsotipmevia PayPal.

Thanksforreadingandgoodluck!

gootecks(Twitter|
Instagram
|
YouTube |
Web)

98
Appendix A: Resources
Yourjourneytobecomingastrongerplayerdoesnotendwiththisbook!Becomingapartofthe
fightinggamecommunity(FGC)bycompetingintournaments,watchingstreams,contributing
information,andmoreiswhatwillalsohelpgetyoutothenextlevel.

Herearesomeresourcesthatyoucancheckoutthatwillhelpyoukeepupwithwhatsgoingon
inthesceneandconnectwithotherplayers.

Tournament Streams
TeamSp00ky TeamSp00kystreamstonsofmajorandlocalfightinggame
tournamentsthroughouttheyear.BasedinNewYorkbutfrequentlybroadcastingfrom
differentnationalandinternationallocations.
LevelUpLive ThehomeofSoCalRegionalsaswellasweeklytournamentseries
WednesdayNightFights.
CapcomFighters ThehomeoftheCapcomProTourandCapcomProTalkwithMike
RosseveryTuesday.
Showdown ShowdownrunsweeklyfightinggametournamentsonTuesdaysand
ThursdaysfromTheFoundryinSanFrancisco,CA.
KhaosGaming CoversthePacificNorthwestFGCincludingNorthwestMajorsandwill
beputtingoutmoreSF5contentasthegamereleases.

Player Streams

AlexMyers
Aris
brenttiscool
BrolyLegs
ChrisG
EG.JustinWong
EG.PRBalrog
FGTVLive
fLoE
IFCYipeS
Infiltration
LIJoe
Maximilian
NuckleDu
nycfurby
PandoraHouse
Poongko
ReNiC
RicoSuave

99
 RZR.Xian
TeamPIE
Tuboware
UltraChenTV
YomiGaming

YouTube Channels
CrossCounterTV Shamelessselfpromotion!Theentertainmentnetworkforfighting
gamefans,featuringExcellentAdventureseverySundaywithmyselfandMikeRossas
wellasfindothertutorialcontent.
CrossCounterTraining Moreshamelessselfpromotion!Weuploadtutorialvideosto
helpplayerslikeyougetbetter!
VesperArcade ThehomeofthebestSF4tutorialseriesyoucanfindontheinternet.
VesperArcadewillbeproducingtonsofSF5contentsomakesuretosubscribe.
Maximilian OneofthehardestworkersintheFGC,Maximilianspassionforfighting
gamesisunmatched.Hesproducedsomeofthebestfightinggametutorialvideosever
suchasthe AssistMe! series.
AirBehrDojo CanadaCupGamingsAirandVancouversBehrudyteamuptoproduce
highleveltutorialvideosthatwillhelpyoustepupyourgame.
Air
CanadaCupGamingsAiralsoputsoutsolovideosandtutorials.
BafaelTonsoffightinggametutorialsforallplayerlevelsforanarrayofdifferent
games.
JayRego Extremelywellproducedvideosthatteachyoubeginner,intermediate,and
advancedtopics.
Supermansajam BasiccharacterguidesandcombosforSF5andotherfightinggames.
GeofftheHero Theguyskindofadick,buthistutorialvideosareprettygood.)

Web Resources
Shoryuken Thegranddaddyoffightinggamewebsites,SRKhasalargeforumarchive
ofSF4andpreSF4postsaswellasafrequentlyupdatednewssectionandscheduleof
upcomingtournaments.
EventHubs Thebestplaceforfightinggamenews,tournamentresults,popularstreams
andmore.Youcanalsofindframedata,moveslists,combosandmoreforalmostany
fightinggame.
r/StreetFighterTheStreetFightersubredditonRedditwhichisagreatplacetofindthe
latestnews,usefulvideos,memes,andstreams.
CrossCounterTraining Weofferpersonaloneononetrainingforaspiringplayersjust
likeyouthataretryingtogetbetter.
FGCCommunityLocationsDatabase NotsureiftheresalocalFGCnearby?There
probablyisandthisGooglespreadsheethasadirectorywithatonofthemworldwide.
SimplifyingStreetFighterFacebookGroup TheFacebookgroupforthisbook!Joinit
andconnectwithothernewplayersandleveluptogether.

100
 ExcellentAdventuresofgootecks&MikeRoss Notexactlyaresourceforgetting
better,butwatchingusloseshouldcertainlyhelpyoufigureoutwhatNOTtodo.
CapcomFightersLiveViewingSite ThisisTHEbestwaytoviewalloftheCapcomPro
Tourevents.Iworkedcloselyinthecreationofthissiteandamextremelyproudofwhat
itcandotoimprovethestreamingviewingexperience.

Facebook Groups
Birdie
Cammy
ChunLi
Dhalsim
FANG
Karin
Ken
Laura
M.Bison
Nash
Necalli
R.Mika
Rashid
Ryu
Vega
Zangief

Tournaments & Events

Evolution LasVegas,NV
CapcomCup SanFrancisco,CA
SoutheastAsiaMajors Bangkok,Thailand
SoCalRegionals Ontario,CA
NorCalRegionals Sacramento,CA
NorthwestMajors Seattle,WA
CommunityEffortOrlando Orlando,FL
FinalRound Atlanta,GA
BigEGaming Philadelphia,PA
FirstAttack PuertoRico
DefendtheNorth NewYork,NY
ComboBreaker Chicago,IL
TheFallClassic Raleigh,NC
KumiteInTennessee Memphis,TN
CanadaCup Toronto,ON
RedFightDistrict Amsterdam,Netherlands
StunfestRennes,France
DreamhackWinter Jnkping,Sweden

101
 RewiredAZTucson,AZ
AbsoluteBattle
Dallas,TX

102
Appendix B: Glossary
Back Recovery
AnewwakeupoptioninadditiontoNormalRecovery.BackRecoverycausesyourcharacterto
doabackfliponwakeup,creatingadditionalspace.Thisisperformedbypressinganytwokick
buttonsorbackonthecontrollerasyouhittheground.

Blockstring
Asequenceofattacksthatflowtogether,forcingtheopponenttocontinuetoblockorgethitby
oneoftheattacks.Mostcommonly,theybeginwithlightattacks,thoughmediumsandSpecial
Movescanbeincludedaswell.

Chain Combo
Chaincombosareusuallymadeupoflightattacks,whoseanimationsarecancelledwhen
anotherlightattackispressed.Chainscannotbecanceledintospecialattacksandaretypically
usedinblockstrings.Forexample,Ryucanpresstwocr.LPsquicklyandtheywillchain,which
wouldthenremovetheabilitytocancelwithaspecialmove.However,ifhewaitsasplitsecond
andthetwocr.LPslinkinstead,aspecialmovecanbeperformedimmediatelyafterwards.This
isadmittedlyaminornuanceandseeminglyunimportant,however,whenyourunintocombos
thatyoucantperformeventhoughyourepositiveyouredoingtheinputsproperly,thisislikely
thereasonwhy.

Chip Damage
DamageincurredfromblockingSpecialMovesandCriticalArts.InSF5,normalattacksdogrey
lifedamagethatissimilartothechipdamageamountfromspecials.Becauseitisgreylife,it
canberecoveredquicklyonceyouareawayfromtheopponent.Ifyoudiefromchipdamagein
around,thegamedenotesthiswithaCiconintheroundbubblemarkerinsteadofaV,S,orU.

Command Grab
Atypeofspecialmovethathassimilarpropertiestoaregularthrowbuttypicallydoesmore
damageorhasmorerange.ExamplesofcommandgrabsareZangiefsSpinningPiledriverand
AbelsTornadoThrow.

Critical Art
ASpecialMovethatrequiresthreestocksofCriticalGaugetoperform,usuallyresultinginhigh
damage,andisconsideredaseriousingamethreat.

Critical Gauge or EX Meter

Thebaratthebottomofthescreenthatbuildsasyouscorehits,takedamage,andperform
specialmoves.Asyoubuildmorestocksofmeter,yougainadditionaloptionssuchasEX
SpecialsandCriticalArts.

103
Focus Attack (MP+MK)
AnSF4exclusivemechanicthatallowstheplayertoabsorbonehitofanattackandswiftly
retaliate.FocusAttacksincurgraylifeifyouabsorbandalsohelptobuildyourUltrameter.

Footsies
Theprocessofjockeyingforpositiononthescreen,usuallyusingnormals.Usually,amixof
lightandmediumattacksareusedtothrowofftheopponentsabilitytojudgethedistance
effectively,andthenwhiffpunishwithamediumorheavyattack.Developingstrongfootsiesis
amustforbecomingastrongplayer.

Link Combo
Thisisatypeofcombowhereonemovesanimationfinishescompletelyandtheopponentis
keptinhitstunlongenoughforthenextattacktoconnectbeforetheycanblock.Thisisdifferent
fromacancelwheretheanimationiscanceledinsteadofallowedtofinish.

Meaty
Meatyattacksareperformedastheopponentstandsupfromaknockdown.Meatiescouldvary
anywherebetweenalightattacksequencelikecr.LK,cr.LPtoacr.MPorevenaFireball,
dependingontherangeorsituation.Thegoalofthemeatyattackistoforcetheopponentto
blockonwakeuporgethit.Generally,meatieswillbeat(nonEXcommandgrab)throwsand
attackswithoutstartupinvincibilitybutareinferiortoattackswithstartupinvincibility,suchasa
ShoryukenorCriticalArt.

Mixup
Anoffensivescenarioinwhichtheopponentmustguesswhattypeofattackyouwillattempt
next(i.e.low,mid,overhead,orthrow).

Neutral game
Anypartofthematchinwhichbothplayersareontheirfeetandjockeyingforpositionthrough
theuseoftheirmovement,normals,andspecials.

Normals or Normal Attacks

Anysinglebuttonpress,usuallyusedwhentalkingaboutacharactersstandingattacks.A
characterwithgoodnormalsistypicallystrongintheneutralgame.

Normal Recovery or Quick Rise

AtechniqueinSF4andSF5thatallowsyourcharactertogetupfasterafterbeingknocked
down,andisperformedbypressinganytwopunchbuttonsasyouhitthegroundorbypressing
downonthecontroller.TheadvantageofusingNormalRecoveryisthatyouropponenthas
lesstimetosetuphisnextmove.

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Hard knockdown
AknockdownwheretheopponentcannotQuickRise.InSF5,onlysomeCriticalArtscausea
hardknockdown.

Option Select
Aninputorseriesofinputsthatfunctionsasmultipleattackswheretheoutcomeisdetermined
bythegameengineandtheopponentsaction.Theyareusedoffensivelyanddefensivelyto
challengeoneormoreoptionsofyouropponent.InSF4,thesimplestexampleofanoption
selectisacrouchtech,whichisperformedbyhittingcr.LP+cr.LKwhilecrouching.Ifthe
opponentattemptsathrow,youwilltechitiftimedcorrectly.Iftheopponentdoesanything
asidefromthrow,cr.LKwillcomeout.Thissimpleoptionselectisusefulbecausethe
alternativeofstandingtotechathrowmightresultinawhiffedthrowwhichisfarriskierand
easiertopunishthancr.LK.However,thishasbeenremovedfromSF5.

Ultras aka Ultra Combos

ASpecialMovethatrequireseitherLevel1orLevel2UltraMetertoperform.SimilartoaSuper
Comboindamageoutputandexecutionbutdifferentforeachcharacter.

VGauge
Theredgaugeatthebottomofthescreenwhichbuildsasyoutakedamage,scoreCrush
Counters,andsuccessfullyuseyourVSkill.SomecharactershavetwostockVGauges,while
othershavethree.Thisgaugeresetseveryround.

VReversal
AdefensivemoverequiringonestockofyourVGauge.Damageincurredtotheopponentis
greylifedamagewhichcanbemadepermanentbyscoringanadditionalcleanhit.Itis
performedbypressingF+PPPorF+KKKwhileinblockstun.

VSkill
AmoveuniquetoeachcharacterthatisperformedbypressingMP+MK.Thisisusuallyamove
thatcoversaweaknessinthecharactersoverallgameplan.SuccessfullyusingyourVSkill
buildsyourVGauge.

VTrigger
ActivatedbypressingHP+HK,eachcharactersVTriggerisunique.Someareapowerup
offensivemode,someareaoneoffactionorattack.EachconsumestheentireVGauge.

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