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...01. Forward..............................................................
.....02. Special Moves......................................................
.......03. Throws...........................................................
.........04. Regular Moves..................................................
...........05. Other Stuff..................................................
.............06. Version Differences........................................
...............07. Ken Kombos...............................................
.................08. Some More Tactics......................................
...................09. Fighting Human World Warriors........................
.....................10. Fighting Computer World Warriors...................
.......................11. Afterword........................................
.........................................
...01. Forward..............................................................
....................
Ken, when used properly, and with a great degree of skill, is definitely
one of the most powerful characters in the game of Street Fighter 2. With
the transition from Classic to Champion Edition and then to Hyper Fighting,
Ken has become more and more popular among the world SF2 players. A good
combination of ground and air tactics, mixed with decent speed, a better
than average throw, killer combos, and perhaps the _single_ most powerful
move in the game, makes Ken a force to be reckoned with.
In the original World Warrior game, Classic, we found that Ken and his pal
Ryu were *identical* in their moves and tactics. However, with the advent
of the Champion Edition, Ken and Ryu became less alike. Ken had increased
the range of his Strong and Fierce Dragon Punch by about 150%. While losing
a bit of power on the way, he more than made up for in the number of combos
gained with the new range. His Hurricane Kick has now become a fast flurry
of spinning kicks, that if placed right, can easily dizzy the opponent. The
strength of these kicks is considerably less than Ryu's. Now, in this day
we are blessed with HF, the powers of Ken seem more useful than before. His
speed is increased even more, the Dragon Punch has lost a bit of the delay
after landing, his fireball delay has also been shortened. He and friend
Ryu have added a new dimension, the ability HK in the air. Now is the time
to document strategies for him.
........................................
.....02. Special Moves......................................................
....................
Assuming that you are facing to the right, Ken's special moves and attacks
are done and can be described as below. If you are facing left, just do the
mirror image of the move shown, i.e. left->right and right->left.
Dragon Punch (DP) --O | \ and then any punch button.
----------------- O O
The dragon punch is invulnerable all the way up to the apex, but after that,
you must wait until you hit the ground. The Fierce DP will hit twice if Ken
is close enough to the opponent. If the second hit of the Fierce DP hits,
the opponent will fall down. If the opponent is in the air, and is hit by
any DP, s/he will fall to the ground. If Ken hits with a Jab or Strong DP,
the opponent will always fall after the first hit, and there is no way of
hitting twice with either of them (unless blocked), unlike in Classic.
Fireball (FB) | \ --O and then any punch button.
------------- O O
The fireball is a ranged projectile, with which the speeds can vary. The
delay after Ken throws a fireball is short, but not short enough to not get
hit by every incoming aerial attack. This weapon is used to tick energy off
the opponent one by one as they block. It can be used to trap the opponent
in the corner. It cancels other projectiles. Beware if you play Ryu, the
delay for Ken is just long enough so that the number of hits that you take
from the mistiming could cost you the round. :(
Hurricane Kick (HK) | / O-- and then any kick button.
------------------- O O
To do the hurricane kick in the air, do the Hurricane Kick motion while you
are airborne. If you do it while jumping forward or straight up, you will
then go to the right, if done while jumping backwards, you will go left. He
does not have invulnerability at any point of the HK like Ryu. Ken can do
the HK over the Yoga Fireballs and the Sonic Boom. His HK can be used from
the air to strike taller opponents, and possibly dizzy them. The HK can hit
the opponent many times, getting them in an "eggbeater" type trap. From a
large distance, the Short HK can be used to go over projectiles in order to
avoid blocking the projectile. The most I have seen the Roundhouse HK hit
is around 7 to 8 times, which usually resulted in a dizzy, it was not very
damaging, unfortunately.
Strategies for the special moves can be very irritating. Perhaps the most
annoying "trap" in the game is the Fireball-Dragon Punch trap. It is most
effective while holding the opponent in a corner. Once the opponent is in
the corner, throw fireballs of various speeds, fake occasionally, and Dragon
Punch the opponent if they make an effort to escape or attack you to get
out. It must be executed without pattern, and it may kill the opponent when
executed flawlessly, but there are *few* people who can do this. There was
an article posted a long while back on how the FB trap might be executed to
incinerate Guile. Worth reading.
........................................
.......03. Throws...........................................................
....................
To throw the opponent, stand close to them, then press towards or away
from them, and hit Strong or Fierce to do a shoulder throw, or hit Forward
or Roundhouse to do a back roll throw. Each type of throw does the same
amount of damage, but it *seems* easier to get off the Strong and Forward
throws. His range on HF has been _vastly_ increased. If you charge up the
"extended throw range", you can grab the opponent from about 2 to 3 inches
away. To get a better feel for throw range, try to use throws instead of a
combo when the opponent misses a special move. Try to throw them from larg-
er distances until you've found the maximum range for his throws. I also
suggest that you read the "Art Of Throwing" and "Counter-Throwing" guides by
Eu-Ming Lee to get an in depth look at throwing in general.
I have noticed a difference, in case you didn't, here it is. The kick
throws will put you farther away from the fallen opponent than the punch
throws will. If you plan on KO'ing them with throws by any means necessary,
then the punch throws are the way to go. You will be within a range that is
easily reachable after the guy hits the turf. The kick throws propel the
enemy farther away from you, a bit more than 2/3 screen distance. Choose
your throw wisely, as it can set up your next attack. Make note of the
effect of throwing the opponent into the corner while you are in the corner
with the kick throws; you will be near them afterwards unlike an open screen
throw.
As *I* became more and more skilled with Ken, I found that his throw was
probably his second most useful weapon, only behind the DP. Once I learned
the ranges, and of course the timing for the throws, I became a better play-
er overall. This holds for any character, but unlike some other characters,
Ken's throw really isn't *needed*, but since he does have it, it should be
exploited to it's full potential. At his peak, a "cheap" Ken style is per-
haps the most devastating of the "cheap" played characters. But, be careful
of where and to who you do this to!
........................................
.........04. Regular Moves..................................................
....................
Standing
--------
Jab: Can knock opponents out of some special moves.
Strong: As the Jab, more difficult to time.
Fierce: Looks as Strong, decent range for opponents outside throwing range.
Short: A kick towards the head, stays out for a while.
Forward: Looks as Short, more hang time.
Roundhouse: A crescent kick, can be used for air-counters; cool combos.
============================================================================
Standing Close
--------------
Jab: Useful to begin ticking your opponent.
Strong: An elbow in the face of most characters.
Fierce: A standing pseudo-uppercut(?), semi-air counter.
Short: A low-hitting knee.
Forward: A knee in the groin of most characters. Style!
Roundhouse: A double hitting axe kick.
============================================================================
Crouching
---------
Jab: Ticking, and counters some special moves.
Strong: Straight punch.
Fierce: An uppercut, useful as an air counter.
Short: Useful to begin ticking the opponent.
Forward: A foot sweep that doesn't knock down opponent.
Roundhouse: A foot sweep that knocks the opponent down.
============================================================================
Jump Up
-------
Jab: Punch down. Counter Blanka Ball and Sumo Torpedo.
Strong: Punch down, useful to get a quick air counter.
Fierce: Like Strong, more damage, less priority.
Short: Gimpy kick, looks strange.
Forward: Like Short kick, good priority, range.
Roundhouse: Gull-type kick, good damage, decent priority.
============================================================================
Jumping Towards/Away
--------------------
Jab: Like straight jump up.
Strong: Like straight jump up.
Fierce: Good to begin combos with, similar to jump up.
Short: Flying knee attack, good to begin "cheap" attack or combo.
Forward: Low damage, better priority vs. body attacks, use as Short.
Roundhouse: Good damage, combo starter.
........................................
...........05. Other Stuff..................................................
....................
Ken's uniform colors are as follows:
Any attack button --> Blue/Purple (Indigo)
Player start button --> Original Red (Classic)
Battle Quote: "Attack me if you dare, I will crush you!"
For those of you who don't already know, Ken's ending is all mushy and what-
ever. His girlfriend Eliza comes over from the States and meets Ken after
he puts Bison six feet under. Then he asks her what she is doing there, and
then there is some obligatory stuff, then they get married. Big deal.
Then, he takes his place on the winner's podium, at number 1!
........................................
.............06. Version Differences........................................
....................
Here is a (hopefully) near complete list of the differences for Ken (and
in general for the other 11 characters) in the versions of SF2.
>From Classic->Champion Edition
------------------------------
New uniform color is added: jet black (Classic red is still present).
Less damage for all moves (about 65-75% of Classic).
New Hurricane Kick is faster, hits more often.
New Dragon Punch knocks down upon strikes with Jab and Strong.
DP also knocks down with the second hit.
DP has much better range than before.
Speed increase allows smoother combinations.
DP range increase introduces TOD combo.
HK combos work to an extent.
>From Champion Edition->Hyper Fighting
-------------------------------------
New uniform color is added: indigo (jet black is gone)
It is easier to get the DP and do DP combos.
Can now do the HK in the air.
Damage has been INCREASED for the DP, relative to CE.
Other moves do less damage in relation to CE.
Dizziness is easier to induce upon opponents.
HK combos do not work now, except air HK combo.
Overall range of effectiveness for DP is increased.
Ken has foot speed and DP speed increase.
Blocking delay is decreased.
FB combos are more likely to be blocked.
TOD combos involving the Jab and Strong DP are more likely to connect. For
example, flying Roundhouse, Standing Fierce, Strong DP.
........................................
...............07. Ken Kombos...............................................
....................
Ken is the *most* versatile of the street fighters in the number of combos
that he is capable of performing. You may want to see the FAQ for a defini-
tion of a combo. It is imperative that you can buffer as well to pull off
the most dangerous of the combos. If you have problems with these, remedy
it by reading the "Buffering and Combos Workbook" by Tom Cannon for a good
look at how these can be done. One of Ken's combos is covered in this guide
as well.
Practically all of the Ken Kombos follow this pattern: jumping towards air
attack that hits late, most any attack from the crouching or standing close
position (not a special move), buffered into any of the three special moves.
The best of the combos uses the DP, the easier of the three involves the FB,
and the most difficult and best looking are the HK combos. Unfortunately,
most of the time, the HK combos do not work, and are not as useful with Ken
as they are with Ryu, for obvious reasons.
Any of the regular attacks may be used for the air attack, as long as it
strikes the opponent late. The second strike of the combo will be close in,
and can be any of the buttons except a Roundhouse. Which of the standing
or crouching attacks you do depends on the special move, and how fast you
can do the move itself and the move between the buttons. The last hit is
the most important, since it pushes your opponent far away, or will knock
them down. You must know how to buffer attacks for these to work. These
are the most impressive and difficult combos to learn, but once they are
learned, you will be a more dangerous Ken player. Here are common combos:
"Touch Of Death": Flying Roundhouse (Neck Kick works best for 4 hits)
Standing or Crouching Fierce
Fierce DP.
"Triple DP": Standing Close/Crouching Strong/Fierce
Fierce DP (any other DP knocks down after the first hit).
"Air Hurricane": Jumping Towards Attack that hits high
Immediately followed by an aerial HK.
"Sweep Fireball": Jumping Towards Strong/Fierce/Forward/Roundhouse
Crouching Forward
Strong/Fierce FB.
"Ground Hurricane": Jumping Towards Strong/Fierce/Forward/Roundhouse
Standing Close Fierce
Forward/Roundhouse HK.
"Jab Dragon": Jumping Towards Fierce/Roundhouse
Jab DP.
There are many variations of Ken combos, and it is not set in stone about
which buttons you need to use. Most of the buttons will work for the combos
but it may be more difficult to get a certain set of attacks to work. There
is also a defensive "combo", if you will. It follows the above pattern, but
it is not really a combo. It is designed to push the opponent a good dist-
ance away from you. If you are playing in the "Krazy Ken" style, this is
not what you want, but it is useful at times. It is the following:
"Defensive Combo": Jumping Towards Fierce/Roundhouse (late strike)
Crouching Roundhouse
Any FB.
Any of the air attacks may be used, but you will want to stiffen the penalty
for not blocking... Using Roundhouse will knock the opponent down if not
blocked, but if blocked, the FB pushes them further away. Mix up the speed
of the FB's to throw off your opponent, and you may get a lucky FB strike in
once in a while. Be careful, there are some players who may try to jump
over the FB as it comes towards them and get a deadly combo on you. Most
better players, though, are able to switch their intended combo before the
first ground strike, so that a crouching Roundhouse will not be used if the
air strike hits, leading to a much more damaging combination of strikes. In
the above mentioned combo, there is one character that can counter it with
reliability. That person happens to be Ken. After the crouching Roundhouse
sweep, it is possible to launch a DP into the opposing Ken's face if he goes
for the FB. Not an easy tactic to see coming, but is worth mentioning for
both sides, offensive and defensive.
.........................................
.................08. Some More Tactics......................................
....................
Here are some common tactics, attack series, and other things that you may
want to try out in the course of your fighting. These aren't necessarily
combos, and some of them are mentioned in the Fighting Human World Warriors
section coming up. These are by no means guaranteed for everyone, and in
general, it helps if you are speedy on the buttons and with the joystick.
Two crouching Short kicks, followed right away by either a Forward or Round-
house sweep, and then a Jab FB, and on some characters, it is safe to follow
up with a Fierce FB. In the case that it is not safe, use a Fierce instead
of Jab FB. Better be fast on the buttons, some players can throw you or get
an attack in before you are finished. Ken is one of them.
This is a combo, but it is a little combo... Use it when the opponent is
getting up. Don't do this all the time; you CAN be thrown out of the Short
kick! Try doing a crouching Short, then a buffered Jab DP. You will fall
out of the range of most characters afterwards, in addition to doing no less
than two ticks of damage. A bonus occurs if they don't block low. You may
use the Forward sweep if you want, it is easier to get thrown out of though.
This is an unusual tactic/tick. It freaks out some players because of your
stance at first, and it really shouldn't be hard to counter, but people have
problems with it sometimes. Walk near the opponent when they are getting up
and do a standing Jab. That is the freaky part. Throw 'em. The evil part!
Another evil tactic, but it can be countered by those not scared of the 1st
hit in this series. Neck kick, Short sweep, throw. Hahahaha!
Like the one above with 2 Short kicks, the sweep/FB attack, this works vs.
Blanka moderately well, and is a pain for some others. Jabs, crouching
Strong, Strong FB.
This is a tactic that works sometimes well and other times not-so-well...
Short air HK then when you land, hit with a DP of some sort. Use the air HK
to avoid big damage from the DP in some cases, and also to escape some trap-
ping and other previously (in Classic and CE) unavoidable damage.
There are countless others. Just watch Ken players. They come up with a
lot of the different ones, like doing many buffered attacks in a row invol-
ving the FB and DP. Not all attacks hit, but it sure as hell looks cool.
........................................
...................09. Fighting Human World Warriors........................
....................
The following is a set of strategies and hints for defeating human contr-
olled World Warriors. Most of the strategies are what I use to defeat the
specified player, and others are ones I have seen work for other players.
Hints are given to help you play better versus the named character. Not all
of these strategies will work in every given situation, or against every
different style of play. They should, however, work against a good portion
of the players out there, especially those who know what they are doing, but
don't quite know everything to win consistently. I try to cover many of the
play aspects for each of the characters, by mentioning special moves or cer-
tain situations that may arise during play. To save a great deal of space,
some things have been left out, such as doing air counters, and DPing the
opponent if he is close. You are expected to already know the rather ob-
vious points of play. If you do not yet know these, find the local Ken or
Ryu (suitable for general purposes) masters and watch them to pick up these
"obvious" points. I hope that these are somewhat complete, and clearly des-
cribe a way in which you might be able to defeat your opponent. Good Luck!
============================================================================
Ryu: Ryu's main advantage over Ken is the faster Fireball and the faster
---- recovery after the Fireball. The Hurricane Kick can be used with some
effectiveness, but smart play will not let you get hit by it. Avoiding the
very powerful Dragon Punch of Ryu will be a key in securing a victory. How-
ever, Ken is not at a loss in all aspects, he does have some major differ-
ences that will aid you in your quest for a win. Number one is the range of
Ken's Dragon Punch, and the relative ease (compared to Ryu) of getting the
high knockdown hit when further away. In addition, Ken has better range and
speed overall on the Dragon Punch, so you can go slightly faster, and have a
better chance of hitting from further away than Ryu. The last and second of
the major differences in favor of Ken is foot speed and move speed. Ken is
flat out faster than Ryu in every aspect, except the Fireball. You can out-
run Ryu on the ground, your moves execute faster, and you jump up and come
down faster than Ryu, so it is necessary to have very fast reflexes when you
play Ken, especially if you are a Ryu-to-Ken convert. Ken also appears to
have an easier time with ticks and countering than Ryu does, partly due to
his DP speed, and partly due to speed in general.
Most Ryu players are generally what I (and many, many others) call "Boring
Ryu" style. Well, that is how Ryu is played almost everywhere , and since
Ryu's moves and speed lend more to this type of play, you will see many of
these players in a place where other characters are not powerful, and where
Ken players are rather dominant. So Boring Ryu will come in, and, more than
likely, either defeat the Ken player, or give an outstanding battle that
annoys the Ken player. But, not all Ryu's are played that way, and I
especially dislike that method of play for Ryu. I can do quite well playing
Ken-style Ryu. And you will occasionally see this type of play. Since you
play Ken, it is easy to recognize this type of play, he will more than
likely be going for ticks and playing around with ranges, throwing an occ-
asional FB, not relying on corner trapping to defeat you. So then, it is
most like fighting a slower and slightly more powerful Ken (see Ken section
below). The main changes in the style lie in timing your jump ins after
badly placed FB's. You must be able to anticipate the FB and be willing to
take that risk. Ryu has no TOD combo, so he must resort to a flying attack,
Strong, Strong DP combo, or the more popular flying attack, Forward sweep,
FB combo. You are not as likely to come out dizzy after one of these att-
acks, so watch out for a surprise short kick or throw soon after the combo
strike.
For Boring Ryu, the most annoying (and lame) tactic that he has, but is so
useful due to his FB speed and recovery time, is the corner FB trap. This
is made up of the FB attack forcing you to block, then is you make a foolish
attempt at escape, you are likely to be put back in there, probably by a
very painful DP. Ryu will probably mix up the speed of the FB enough as to
get a hit now and then if you make an attempt to jump straight up over the
incoming attack, but it can yield results if Ryu is in FB trance and tosses
another before you lose your chance to try something like a Short air HK
to gain a close in spot, and perhaps a quick DP on him. Not likely to work
many times, but it is worthwhile to keep in mind. Among the other options
that are available are regular attack, the FB and DP. The HK will be use-
less since you can not use it to escape this projectile attack from the
ground. The regular move option will only be useful if the opponent is in
close enough to get hit by a foot sweep, either a Forward or Roundhouse.
The Forward has a bit more range, but not that much. The Roundhouse will
put him to the ground, but any well executed FB trap will not place Ryu at
such a close distance. But is case Ryu is in this close, you can also hit
him with a Strong or Fierce DP, to put him to the ground, but be careful of
the range at which you do this from, as there is a critical distance at
which you will miss, and be suspect to a combo. If Ryu is out a bit further
than normal, it might be possible to interrupt to flow of things by using
the to escape an inevitable FB strike, or cancel one his FBs with one of
your own. But if Ryu happens to have the distance correct, which practic-
ally all of the veteran Ryu players will have down pat, it is difficult for
you to escape taking a sizeable amount of damage before getting out. You
want to increase the chance that you can escape this nearly impossible sit-
uation. So look to well timed and placed Jab DPs, straight jump ups, and
possible fake outs to lure Ryu into a situation that will allow you to knock
him to the ground, letting you free. Not much more can be said about this,
as getting out of it is a task that must be learned and dealt with as the
situation and other player allow. You might want to take a risk and do any-
thing that might confuse the other player, creating an opening for you.
Perhaps one of the best ways to learn of ways how to get out might be having
a friend apply different situations to you so that you can determine what
might be the better choices at that time. Also, try FB trapping the higher
level computer opponents, and see what they do to get out, but be aware that
there are certain things that the computer can do in order to compensate for
not having artificial intelligence. And the computer will only be able to
provide a good solution if you able to provide a difficult problem (i.e. if
you are able to execute the FB trap correctly).
Your FB attack is limited in its uses vs. Ryu, and that is evident when
you are in close proximity to him. Try to avoid throwing a FB from a range
at which you will not be able to recover in time to DP or block the HK. You
will pay heavily in damage, or sometimes, the Ryu player will risk jumping
in on you to get a possible dizzying combo. The safe distance is something
like 1/3 of the screen or more. Any closer, and you run the risk of getting
hit by a HK. Please note that this HK knocks you down on the first hit, and
it might be used as a lead in for a FB trap or tick. Some of the combos
that you use involving the FB can be escaped with a perfectly timed HK, or
mistimed combos can be easily escaped, and you not like the results after a
HK to the head. If and when Ryu ever uses the air HK, you simply need to
place yourself correctly, get the timing, and let it rip with a simple DP
combo. If you happen to dizzy Ryu, the best choice will be to get as much
damage as possible while placing yourself at the lowest risk. This would
be a FB combo, or the TOD combo with the Jab or Strong DP. Ryu does too
much damage to risk an Fierce and expect to be able to make a solid comeback
everytime.
Once you get Ryu to the ground, the safest attack is obviously the FB from
the safe range. And that is just about it, you can't have a 100% confidence
that jumping in will not result in a DP counter, and attempting a neck kick
is worthwhile, but the DP counter is still present, plus it is not that
difficult for the Ryu player to counter-throw you as you land, or for that
matter just block and accept the FB for the pixel or so of damage. Ticking
is a good option, but the risk of a DP, or a throw into a corner is usually
enough of a threat to prevent me from trying it many times. I try it once,
if it works, I try again a few times later, but once it fails, I will not
try it again, or will wait two or three times longer than I normally would
have. If you are a fan of the Short sweep/Jab DP combo as the opponent is
getting up, Ryu can use his DP to get you while you are doing the Short
sweep, and if you happen to time it so that you are doing the DP at the same
time, Ryu has a good chance at hitting you as you lose the invulnerability.
Determine what the most likely response from this player will be when you
jump in, then adjust your attack accordingly so that you will be able to max
out the damage that you will be able to get as he is getting up.
You might want to try playing versus Ryu in the Boring Ken style, which
has a chance at succeeding, but the main flaw in this type of attack plan is
the speed and recovery time of your FB. It is simply too slow to allow you
to get an effective FB trap for very long. Your damage is also a bit lower
as well, and you do lack the invulnerability of the HK at the beginning and
end that can be so useful to Ryu at times. You must be a truly good and
experienced player to defeat the best of the Ryu players. Ken is at a loss
in this fight, so you must exploit your advantages, however meager to have a
decent shot at consistently winning this tedious battle.
============================================================================
E. Honda: Honda at least commands some real respect in HF. His damage is
--------- is very good compared to the other opponents, and he has a nice
array of double hitting attacks, as well as a pair of slightly invulnerable
moves, a couple of grab attacks, and the Hundred Hand Slap to boot. In my
opinion, the best way to beat Honda is to be random. You can't just sit in
close on him for the whole round since he will eventually hit you some how
or grab you, but you can't stay away forever either because he can avoid the
attacks you use from the range also. So, try to fight Honda a bit like you
would fight vs. Blanka. About an average distance of 1/2 to 2/3 the screen
away should be effective in the long run. At this distance, most of Honda's
attacks are neutralized, and you can control Honda from there. He shouldn't
be able to get too close to you, but he will be able to move back so far
until he has to stop. The main danger at the range at which you play will
be the Sumo Butt Dive (the new attack for HF). The range on this move isn't
quite what the computer uses, but it still is decent enough to reach you at
about 2/3 screen distance away. Fortunately, this move requires a large
amount of charging, and you should be able to anticipate the coming of this
move well in advance. If you can't meet the move in the air before the 1st
hit, then you should block it if necessary , or wait until he begins coming
back to the ground. When he does this, the solution is simple: DP. You,
however will not always be close enough to make the DP worthwhile, so if you
can't get the big damage part of the DP to connect, go for the Roundhouse
foot sweep to take him down.
What to do when Honda is knocked down is, of course, dependent on the
habits of the Honda player. The vicious Honda players will always Torpedo
you if you try to jump in. A pretty good idea, and some of those players
have the timing that will allow them to be able to get you with two hits of
the Torpedo if you mistime or misplace your jump. Not a worthwhile gamble
for Ken since Honda can dizzy the opponent easily with one or two more hits
soon after the Torpedo. The other Honda is not willing to take the risk,
either not realizing the ease of Torpedoing the opponent as he jumps in, or
simply not smart enough to try it. In this case, the only other options for
Honda to counter your jumping in attack is a standing Fierce, which is quite
painful as veterans of fighting the computer can attest, or the new attack,
the Sumo Butt Dive. I wouldn't count on the new attack as being effective,
but there is bound to be someone out there who is capable of getting this
move off regularly. The Fierce is much like Zangief and Dhalsim's standing
Jabs as you come in. It starts near their head, and makes a sweep over the
head and down towards their body, capable of taking down airborne opponents.
To avoid this, jump in a bit sooner, but make sure that you connect and
finish promptly with another attack. Honda can easily grab you from between
these attacks if you put any delay there. So, what is the best option? I'd
have to say that you should take the time that he is down to get yourself
better ground position, or throw a FB at him that he must block. Make sure
that it will connect with his body; some Hondas will be attentive and try to
get either the new attack or the Torpedo off.
When Honda grabs a hold of you, chances are that he will chase you down
with a HHS mow attack. If you are up to it, a DP placed right can put Honda
in his place, or you can opt to throw him if the distance is appropriate.
If you are willing to block the hits that are coming to you, be certain that
you block low, not high. Even when you block high, there are attacks in the
HHS that hit low enough so that you need to block low also. Honda grabs
a hold of you in two ways usually, one way is when you mess up a move when
you are close to him, the other way is a tick. Hondas tend to do this with
a double knee then throw. Do not try to sac-throw this tactic. Chances are
pretty good that the knee will dizzy you, then Honda can do it again and go
for the throw if he wants. The throw won't be used all the time, since the
grab leaves you close enough once you get out of it to be mowed down by the
HHS. Once you are out of the block forced by the HHS, if Honda insists on
trying to hit you, you only need to use crouching Jab to stop the Hands.
The air game is not a great choice vs. Honda, so stick to the ground if
at all possible. Honda does too much damage in the air where you have no
chance to block. The sumo wrestler also has good priority over your attacks
while you are airborne. Use the never fail counter to airborne opponents if
he is close enough while in the air. To gain ground backwards easily, the
air HK away from the opponent should let you obtain better positioning. But
don't do the HK from the ground, or from the air at a range that will put
you very close to Honda, it is too easy for Honda to use the Torpedo, the
grab, or any of his attacks to make you pay for your mistake, and you will
pay in a big way.
The last mistake to not make vs. Honda is trying to get a triple-DP combo
to hit all three times on Honda. It simply won't hit Honda three times no
matter how close you are. It is hard enough to get the DP to hit twice, let
alone twice after being pushed back a small distance from the attack in the
triple. If you must go for a TOD combo, switch over to Strong or Jab DP,
otherwise you will make an easy target for the mighty E. Honda.
============================================================================
Blanka: Here is one of the toughest fights for Ken and Ryu, especially Ken.
------- Ken is faster than Ryu, but Blanka is even faster than Ken. Ken's
slow FB's don't help any, but at least he has a fast DP. The key here is
ranges. You don't want Blanka to stay back in the corner far from you, but
you don't want him to be able to jump in and hit you either. The compromise
is about 2/3 the screen away; throw a FB when he is at this range. Not-so-
patient Blanka will jump over the FB and can be easily taken down with a
crouching Roundhouse. If he gets in close to you, you will want to try to
back away from him, but you want to avoid getting trapped in the corner.
It is hard to keep him away, since his jump and speed work well vs. the FB
traps. Once Blanka is in close to you, he usually likes to try and hit you
with a crouched attack, usually a Fierce or Roundhouse; they have very good
range... If you want to be risky, try to DP his arm or leg. If you must
play defensive, wait till he is close, then after he attacks, or when is
walking towards you, throw a Fierce FB from close range. The Blanka might
take the hit without blocking it; this is an unusual tactic, and that is why
it is not blocked. Remember ranges. Know when you can hit him with a DP.
Ryu isn't as dependent on the DP as Ken, since he has his HK to get him out
of hairy (heh) situations. This might not work well, since Blanka can adapt
easily, but if the Blanka you play against isn't too smart, he will die
quickly and very painfully. To counter a ball attack from the air, try
jumping back and using an attack other than fierce or roundhouse. Using
those you usually don't get a trade or a clean hit for that matter, but with
Forward and Strong you should be able to trade damage. It is not a great
trade, but it will be good if you can dizzy him or KO him if you have the
life left to take the hit. You do not want to strike him with the thigh
part of the leg. When you use Forward or if you insist on using Roundhouse,
the ankle part of the leg is the best place to hit him if you jump in (know
your ranges!), especially if he is getting up from a knockdown. The same
goes for the Fierce and Strong punches. Try to find the range where you can
usually hit him without risk of getting ball attacked. This is just far
enough so that you will land clearly in front of him, while just striking
him as he gets up. Follow the rest of the move up with a FB combo that will
push him a ways back, and maybe even connect if he gets careless.
The neck kick on Blanka in CE was a beautiful weapon. It still is, but
Blanka now has that annoying vertical ball attack. If you can manage to get
him down, and you are close enough, you might want to go for this. Hit him
with a neck kick, if he blocks, proceed with a Short kick, then a throw. He
usually can't counter this if he didn't get you with the ball, so go for it.
If you manage to connect, go for the gusto, and wallop him with a big combo.
Chances are he'll be dizzy, so then go for the kill after that. Even if you
manage to hit Blanka, and don't want to go for the combo, still go for the
Short kick/throw tactic. It is very possible that he will come up dizzy
after this quick assault. The neck kick seems to dizzy easier, so either
way, he could be dizzy if you hit him.
Pretty much forget about the HK for Ken. Not much he can do with it vs.
Blanka. Perhaps you may use it as an escape tactic of sorts, but you should
have only limited success with it. Doing the Air HK towards Blanka is a no-
no. He can take you down with a standing Fierce or a vertical ball. If you
are tricky, it is possible that you can figure out a way to consistently hit
Blanka while in the air with this move, but I would doubt it, and the damage
is weak compared to how much you are likely to take from Blanka anyhow. Do
not use the HK as a means to escape the horizontal ball. If you are in the
air already, and unless you are going to get hit, don't use it. You might
just land right smack on top of him when he finishes, and then you can kill
him with a deadly combo, much the same as Honda.
Defensive Blanka will present the most problems for nearly any Ken players
anywhere. Blanka need only sit back and wait for the chance to damage you.
In this case, work your way towards him, using FB's and doing some standing
Jabs every now and then to prepare for the ball attack. Eventually, you may
get him backed to the corner. Don't get too close. About 1/2 to 2/3 screen
distance will be good from here. The disadvantage with the corner is that
you are close to it as well, so don't get trapped back there for too long.
Be bold once in a while as well. You can't just cower behind your FB's for
the match. You might win, but have fun for once! Try just walking forward
without pulling any attacks. See what the Blanka does. If he balls you,
then next time you do it, watch the guy's hands or watch the screen very
closely to anticipate the ball coming, then DP him. If he seems to do no-
thing, see how far upon him you can get. Move in and out, and figure out
what this player will do when you threaten from close range. Many Blankas
rely on the crouching Fierce, Roundhouse sweep or ball to counter your move-
ments on the ground. Watch it if you are hit with a crouching Fierce, it is
very possible that you will get dizzy in one or two more hits, the same can
be said for both the horizontal and vertical ball attacks. The DP is the
best weapon vs. these attacks, but on occasion it may be necessary to use
the crouching Fierce to counter the vertical ball as it comes down. If you
do, make sure that you know where Blanka will come down so that you can hit
him. In any event, the DP at this stage will likely be the best option. If
you don't already know, learn the intricacies of the vertical ball so that
you know what it will do in certain situations.
Knowing what to do in all situations for Blanka is very important, more-so
than other characters since he does more damage, and there tends to be a
"hate" towards Blanka from Ken players. I hate Blanka myself, and I like
this fight because it is challenging for me. I learned a lot about this
fight recently, and the thing that helped me most is the fact that you sim-
ply can't attack him all the time like you can vs. Chun Li. Learn to play
vs. many situations, not patterns. Patterns will be covered by most players
and they will not be much problem. The players that mix it up a lot are the
tough ones to beat. I still ain't great at this battle, though...
============================================================================
Guile: You are man enough to fight with this guy. If you can win this fight
------ using Ryu, then you are in for a major battle plan change. The HK
is practically useless vs. Guile. Easy for Guile to come up with a Flash
Kick (FK) or crouching Fierce punch (ouch!). If he decides to do neither of
those, it is a safe bet that he will be going for the throw, and this is the
opportunity to get him if he messes up. A DP or a throw are the most common
attacks used in this situation. Don't count on Guile screwing this up, do
not use the HK as an offensive weapon except to show off when you kill him
when he has to block it or whatever. At long ranges, it is safe to use the
Short HK to go over the Sonic Booms (SB) that are annoying. You might want
to experiment with the other two HK's to get better positioning on Guile.
Know the ranges of this special move.
Ken's greatest assets versus Guile are his speed and DP. The FB isn't too
great vs. Guile (not like Ryu's), and the HK is limited in use. Ken moves
faster than Guile on the ground, but Guile is not a snail. Many Guiles can
still get the slow SB/throw sometimes. It shouldn't happen vs. Ken, unless
he tricks you with a fake or something else. If Guile does this, then it is
up to you. You can go for the Jab DP for the easy knockdown, or mess around
with the timing for the throws. The throw is foolproof. Either you get the
throw, or you get thrown yourself. The DP is different. If you manage to
hit him, he will be on the ground and at your mercy, but there is not a law
that states that he must proceed to meet your fist. He might stop, wait for
you to miss, then go for the throw. What fun. This is where it gets tricky
for Ken. You have many options, but only a handful will provide you with
something that might be useful afterwards. You might want to get some Short
kicks in there. Trying to stop Guile's forward progress is not a bad choice
at all. A well timed Fierce or Strong will put an end to this situation. I
realize that not every one has immaculate timing, but if you have no sem-
blance of good timing, this is one of the ways to learn it. Even a simple
Roundhouse or Forward sweep may put an end to your worries, but you must
know when you have the time to do these moves. If you wait until Guile is
breathing down your throat, then the only real options are throwing and the
Dragon Punch. If you have a window to get him, then a regular attack should
tie Guile up for a moment.
Most Guile players cannot $afford$ to play an offensive style vs. Ken. It
just won't work, since Guile will get hit at every opportunity, usually by
a painful DP. So, Guile likes to play defensively, and annoy you with low
kicks and backfists. The backfist problem can be corrected. It usually is
used after you throw a FB in close quarters. Well, don't throw a FB from
within his backfist range, unless you anticipate it and counter with a DP.
The backfist is used primarily after you do a FB, but keep a sharp eye for
it when you are in the corner. One of the forward sweeps might be replaced
by one of these punches. In any case, blocking is a safe bet, but if you
have the eye for it, nothing beats a DP. On occasion, Guile will come
knocking on your door, probably with a surprise up his sleeve, usually a
Forward sweep, throw, or Fierce punch. Anticipate these moves (esp. the
sweep) and give Guile the boot (heh), er..., fist.
Knocking Guile out of the FK isn't what it used to be in Classic, so don't
be hoping for this to happen anytime soon. The fail-safe methods to counter
attacking the FK is a FB or DP. Or, if you happen to be lucky enough to be
on the weak side (how, I don't know), then you can smash him in the air if
you like, but it is much more fun to break his jaw when he lands after any
missed FK. If close enough, give him reason to go home, and smack him with
a furious triple-DP combo. He should be dizzy if you got all three hits,
then it is a moot point after that. Otherwise, it is not a bad trade. I
have yet to see a Guile player do anything devastating after a missed DP to
a Ken/Ryu/Sagat. The worst is usually a throw or punch/FK combo. Guile is
not quite the (unbalanced) monster he was in Classic with absolute zero
delay time. He stands there for about 1/2 second with his eyes glazed. So
don't think you can't reach him, your throw range is awesome, and if you are
remotely close, you should be able to inflict more damage than a measly FB.
Once you have Guile to the ground, you might want to go throw him around a
bit, or try playing tricks on him. Walk up near him like you are going to
tick him, then step back, and counter his move. You can also do the small
Short kick/Jab DP combo above, but be sure to mix it up with plain Jab DP's
and ticking. If you do the same thing over and over, Guile is sure to FK or
throw you. Feeling risky? Go for a neck kick. Only the best of the Guile
players will be able to change the direction of the upcoming FK. However,
many of them will be able to throw you as you are coming down. If this is
the case, try jumping in earlier or later on different occasions to keep the
other guy wondering. Jumping in on Guile from the front is generally a risk
that doesn't amount to much. The most you should come away with is one FB
that was blocked. If you got lucky and scored more than that, the other guy
made a mistake. A FB combo when you jump in is the safest bet. Stay on the
ground when you are near a grounded Guile. He can move fast, and has the
range to hit you from long ranges.
Guile's feet are extremely suspect to being hit by the DP. Keep your eyes
open for these opportunities while he is on the ground and in the air. You
should be able to get more damage if you get him with the strong part of the
DP as he comes down with his foot extended near your head in the air. Diz-
ziness has become a part of Guile's life it seems. He apparently falls into
dizzies more easily than he used to, so it is worth the extra effort to get
three quick hits on Guile. If he is still standing after three Fierce or
Roundhouse attacks, then that Guile probably should be considered lucky...
============================================================================
Ken: An MK mirror match! Ken vs. Ken is one of the most exciting battles to
---- watch and play in. The fact that Ken is able to pull off such damaging
combos, and jump back in the game is the big draw to him. This match can
easily sway on one mistake, made by either of the players. This situation
is both good and bad, depending on what happens to you. In any event, you
are almost always assured an exciting battle that will raise your heartrate.
It is likely that you will see one of two major types of Ken players. One
is influenced by Ryu slightly; the other is much more free and more likely
to make the big moves that can give him or cost him the match. If you are
up against a "boring" Ken, then you should fight in a way that is similar to
the style of fighting against Ryu. For brevity, I'll just go over some
lighter points, and focus on the Krazy Kens out there.
The boring Ken relies more or less on basic FB-DP strategy to keep you at
bay. If he can't DP you, he will count on a foot sweep to hit you when you
land as a deterrent. You can avoid this sweep, if you can get the air HK
off in time. When you come upon one of these pattern type players, you must
attempt to break the pattern. Play in close to them and be krazy. Jumping
over a misplaced FB to capitalize on the excessive delay time will provide
an easy victory with the right combos. If you jump into the DP of this Ken,
or Ryu for that matter, try to lessen the amount of damage that you will
eventually sustain. Do an air HK before you get low enough to take the
brunt of the damage. This will keep you off the _very_ painful part of the
DP. This Ken style is not really reliant on much more than hurting you a
bit at a time, since his tactics don't really allow for much attacking.
Prance and dance around outside the Roundhouse sweep range, perhaps a bit
further. The other Ken might panic in this situation and go into a blocking
frenzy, freezing up mostly, and not offering much resistance in the way of
countering, just blocking and reactionary playing. Go up and throw them.
That will wake them up, and possibly shake them for the remainder of the
round or match, which is to your advantage. This type of Ken sometimes uses
the extra range of the Fierce DP to just nick you for a bit of damage. He
usually just hits your foot, fool them by doing an early Roundhouse kick, or
doing nothing at all, then whoosh!, up he goes and you have a free combo on
him. Probably is dizzy afterwards, so go kill 'em.
Boring Ken is just a nuisance, really. The real match up comes when the
other guy is just as krazy about Ken as you are. Air HK's now become an
effective tool for getting out of tight spots. The DP is a factor in the
match, but it can kill you if you are careless with it. The same can be
said for the FB. The DP is primarily a defensive attack, except when used
in deadly combos. In the case of dizziness, Krazy Ken will try to kill you
with the big combos, too. So, play it safe with the TOD, and go with a Jab
or Strong DP when they will not be KO'ed by it. This will leave you with
the opportunity to gain ground or lengthen your lead. Follow some of the
tactics listed in the following section for some added results.
Krazy Ken as an opponent is a great fight. Fast and furious action to the
max, plus the possibility of huge combos, and quick fights. However, you
will want to ensure that you don't wind up on the short end of too many of
these fights, as they can be short. So, to make it go a bit more in your
favor, try some of the following tactics. If they fail once, then it would
not be wise to attempt it more than once more. Also, on success, unless the
Ken is an utter idiot, it probably won't work more than twice either, so it
is time to try something new once in a while, and improvise. Here are some
tactics that may lead to success with varying degrees, depending on how well
you are able to mix and match with your moves. Many of the Kens have seen
this before: the Forward sweep used as a common offensive weapon. The kick
has less retraction time than the Roundhouse sweep, and is therefore less
likely to counter with regularity. Try to get a fireball out with each of
these kick to maximize the effectiveness, but watch out if you miss, you may
be fodder for an easy combo if you do the FB at the wrong time. Another
tactic that worked well for a while, then everyone figured out how to throw
out of it, but you might still be able to catch some people with it if you
can time it right. This would be the neck kick. Quite effective, and if
you are fast enough on the buttons, you can make this as safe as the other
guy allows, depending on if he gets hit or not. If he is hit, only one real
choice for me here: TOD! Otherwise, if he blocked, try one or two Short
kicks then a throw. This neck kick/short/throw will often dizzy if the neck
kick connects, so it might be to your advantage at certain times to go for
the throw instead. Mix it up a little by throwing more Short kicks then
doing a Roundhouse or Forward sweep/FB series on him. Watch out for the Ken
players who seem to get a hit in before the Roundhouse sweep, but after the
Short kicks. Once you see this, stop this attack tactic at once, you will
be paying in the future if you insist on continuing with the attack. If you
are upon this situation where you will be on the receiving end, the most
obvious counter will come to mind, the DP. Good choice, but you need to be
good enough to get it everytime without doubt, otherwise an incorrect choice
could lead to your early demise.
As you know, Ken's HK is mostly a joke in most situations, but be on the
look out for the clever players who range it right to come down at get you
with a surprise DP or throw. In the air HK case, I usually play it safe for
once, and just hit the up in the sky, or just as they are coming down before
they hit the ground so that they will not have a chance to throw me.
The key to defeating another Krazy Ken is no patterns, and better no pat-
terning than the other guy. You must mix it up a lot, and know what the
options are in every situation. For a boring Ken, just see the Ryu section,
but will have a bit more freedom since Ken is not really meant to be played
like Ryu.
============================================================================
Chun Li: Ken should be able to cleanly defeat most Chun Li's, but there are
-------- the occasional few that are a real pain to defeat. The best way
to defeat her is to get ahead on her, and then she will usually try to get
in close to you to do lots of damage in a short amount of time. The pesky
Chun Li players will use the Spinning Bird Kick a lot. They will use it as
an air defense, as an escape, or as an offensive weapon. This move is a
real trip, it will almost always dizzy you after two hits, plus it does a
ton of damage. The main reason why people get hit by it so much is lack of
knowledge of how to get out of it. If she does it close in, wait until she
is already spinning and kicking in the air, then just hit her with a crouch-
ing punch. If you are hit cleanly by the first hit, don't try to hit her
before the second hit comes, just block instead. You are in danger of be-
coming dizzy soon after the first hit. Chun Li's also like the SBK as a way
of escape in the air. She will get the heel stomp on you somehow, then will
flee at the peak of her rebound with a SBK. In this situation, you are left
with two options. You can turn around, and immediately DP her for a small
amount of damage (this is not risky usually), or if you are feeling con-
fident, chase her down, then as she is falling, try to catch with the strong
part of the DP (the hit next to Ken's body on the ground). You will do good
damage, plus you leave yourself in a better attack position afterwards. In
this case, for the most setup after the DP, use a Strong or Jab instead of a
Fierce, since you will come down faster.
Once you get Chun Li to the ground, after a sweep, DP, or whatever, it is
a good idea to press the attack on her. Of all the options you have, this
is the silliest if Chun Li likes to use the SBK a lot: jumping in, and try-
ing to do a kick. She will just use the SBK when she stands, you will not
hit her since she is invulnerable at that moment, and you will usually fall
into the flurry of her feet, sometimes leading to an easy dizzy. So what
should you do? You can jump in with a punch, which won't hit her, then you
will fall under her as she is beginning the SBK. At this time, you can use
a crouching Fierce to nail her, or go for a DP. The DP is a bit more risky
but worth it if you can get it every time you do this jump in. Those are
good if you are nearby her, what if you are across the screen, or not within
safe jumping range. Well, the FB trapping is a good idea, but it is hard to
keep her in one place with Ken, so don't rely on this for very long at all,
as a matter of face, count on her escape, but have a plan to do a move that
will keep her there. I don't know what you will do, but a DP usually does
the trick. If you are feeling risky, or the Chun Li isn't so hot at throws,
walk up and do a crouching Short-Jab DP to tick off some life. Or you can
do the "defensive combo" described above to push her back. Watch for her
jumping over the FB after the Roundhouse though. Some Chun Li's are the
trickiest little things when it comes to throwing. To find out what type of
thrower she is by doing a Roundhouse sweep that misses. If she comes in to
try and throw you before the sweep retracts, then you need to be extra care-
ful about missing foot sweeps for the rest of the match. This type of thing
can cost you 1/3 of the life bar easily.
Don't underestimate Chun Li's FB! The best of the Chunners can fire them
just as fast as you can, plus, they tend to not fall into the "I gotta FB"
mentality. Her delay is about as long as Ken's is, but not nearly as short
as Ryu's, thank God! Since your HK is the weenie version, you can't do the
HK over it like Ryu would be able to do. So, you will either have to match
FB's or come up with something of your own. Her FB is comparable speaking
in terms of speed, but it does little damage, usually. With Chun Li's delay
you can jump over it the FB and still have plenty of time to hit her if she
threw it from the wrong distance. If she was too close, you can get a dead-
ly combo, and put her near death, if she isn't there already. Chun Li has
good air "priority", and likes to use the air throw, since it is now much
easier to do than in the CE. The FB can be used to make you jump over it,
and then she will meet you in mid air usually with a Forward kick, or an air
throw. If you feel that you might be thrown, go into a HK while in the air
to minimize the chances that she will get you, or if you prefer, you can try
a Jab or Short kick to keep her away. Ken's air game doesn't strike too
much fear in hearts of Chun Li players, and therefore, you should try to
limit your game to the ground when possible, only leaving the ground to get
her when she is vulnerable. Look out for the Chun Li who uses the FB to
draw you into the SBK as you come down. If you see this happening, your
best bet will be a punch if you haven't already attacked, or go for the HK
before you get too close. It is possible that you will hit her out of the
SBK if you are lucky but there are no guarantees here, it all depends on the
timing of the Chun Li player.
There are Chun Li players who will attempt to play around outside your
range, flirting with your FB's and Roundhouse sweeps. In this situation, it
is wise to avoid the DP if at all possible. She will con you into it, then
throw you when you land. She is fast enough to get in that close . Same
thing for Roundhouse sweeps. If you miss, she can come in and grab you from
the back for an easy throw. You will want to back away from her, or try to
trick her and go if for a throw of your own. This is a tense situation, and
you must stay alert. Moving back may work, but Chun Li will tend to follow
you where you go. Here it is your chance to psyche her out, and maybe get
a combo if you do it right. Tossing a FB at the right time may give you the
time needed to get away from her. Be tricky and use fakes to get her either
in the air or further back by forcing her to jump. This is a fun fight, but
you have to have a game plan when she starts to get into that area where you
must think to win. Your mileage may vary with this, but I do well enough in
this match to think that this will work for most people. Another tactic
that should be implemented if you are to win is to stay on the offensive.
If Chun Li has you at a disadvantage, make sure that you weren't playing too
defensive. Chun Li has the tendency to be able to annoy you with Forward
kicks and her long reaching punches, in addition to her excellent priority
air attacks.
============================================================================
Zangief: This is one of the harder fights for me, so I enlisted the help of
-------- Jowfus (Justin Hogue). He gave me some tips on how Ken players he
faces give him problems. I have tried some of them out when possible, and
they seem to be reliable, and in line with how Ken really should fight vs.
Zangief. So, special thanks to Jowfus for the help here.
First of all, Zangief is slow... You can take advantage of that by not
getting very close to him. He lacks the speed to seriously challenge Ken's
speed or DP. The style of air attacks that are successful are either very
close in, or very far away. When you have Z on the mat, you can exploit the
speed of him in the following ways. You can tick him. Zangief is not that
great of a counter thrower, but I'm sure that there are some that will be
able to make you pay with a SPD or throw everytime, so look out for this
brand of Zangief. This is one of the cases where you will be getting close
in on Z. Generally, you want to make him block several Short kicks or the
like, then drain a bit of energy with a FB or two. Say, Z is down, jump in
with a Fierce punch that will hit him on top of the head or right in the
face, follow up with Short, Short, Roundhouse/Forward, then FB or something.
If you are lucky, you can get a dizzy if he tried something when you came in
on him. The hit should get there right as he stands up, so all the sudden
his head and the fist will connect. Too soon and you get Jabbed or hit with
a Spinning Lariat. Too late, and it is very possible to get SPD'd, thrown,
or swept. From afar, the goal here is to nip him as he stands. Jump in and
use a Roundhouse kick. It should have the same timing as the above Fierce
attack. The tip of the foot should just connect with him, preferably in
the chest area or a bit lower. In this case, you might land too far to hit
with another Roundhouse sweep, so land then wait. If he does nothing, try
a throw or something. He is probably shocked that you didn't attack right
away, so you might also be able to DP a foot that he stuck out in anticipa-
tion of something else.
Some Ken players have such difficulty with Zangief, for me, it is just in
the head, but for others, it lies in the style. Patterns or Fireballs are
most likely the problems in this situation. Getting in a pattern vs. Z is
a no-no. Most Z players are probably accustomed to overcoming patterns, and
will probably smash you for doing so. Everytime you jump in, don't do the
same things. Try the first three hits the same when you jump in, and vary
what you do after that. Like throw another FB right after the previous one.
That seems to work especially well once you get Z stuck in the corner. FB's
can cause problems though, and will cause death. Never throw a FB in close
range if you hadn't 'block stunned' him right before. Don't keep doing this
over and over. He is likely to eventually get you with something. If you
are feeling scared (Ken should not be scared), you can retreat back to the
other side of the screen, and make it difficult for Zangief to reach you,
but that is not likely to be successful for long. Try walking up and doing
a Roundhouse sweep. Your sweep is much faster than Zangief's is, plus Z is
at a big disadvantage when you knock him down. Knocking the big man down
provides you with a chance to hit him with the air HK combo. Don't try it.
He will do something horrible when you touch down...
In general, the HK vs. Zangief is limited in its use. I use it to escape
from a tight situation or to improve my position, but only rarely to attack.
The only time I would use the HK to attack would be if I was really, really
desperate, or wanted to surprise kill him. It is too easy for Z to hit you
when you pass by him, so try to stay away from the HK if at all possible.
Play basketball? Then you have heard of this concept: stick 'n move. In
other words, stay in one spot for a while, then move in for an attack. Move
back out afterwards, then wait, then repeat. Basically, you have to annoy
Zangief to death. He takes less damage from opponents, so the blocked FB
still has the same effectiveness vs. Dhalsim as Zangief. Make Z block a FB
if at all possible. But don't stick there too long, move! A strange move
would be to Fierce DP as he gets close. If you miss, the side that of Z
that you land on is likely to be the other side, and that could throw him
off. Not very reliable, and I wouldn't count on the opponent making such a
big mistake, but it does happen.
In the air, you can overtake Zangief if you have the distance right. You
need to catch him as he comes down. He will almost always get the hit if
you are too early. Z's air game isn't great, but it doesn't have to be when
he takes less damage and dishes out more than other characters. The air HK
actually works OK vs. airborne Zangief. If you have no other option in the
air while he is up there, do this, and sometimes, good things come from it.
This is another one of those battles that I have problems with, and these
tactics work with good success, but I am not patient enough to sit around
fighting against all the Zangiefs. It is best to get a feel for what this
Zangief will do in certain situations, and play around those, for example,
watch for the standing Jab from the defensive players, and the Roundhouse
sweep as you are getting up. The best way to counter the SPD for me is to
wait until they try it, then DP. If they have some problems with it, I can
get the throw out in time. I'm sure that you might try another attack in
there, but the faster the move, the better your chances for getting out of
the SPD situation. If jump towards him in the air, watch for the SPD as
soon as you hit the ground. Some of the Z's out there are good at grabbing
you from a mile away and taking you for a ride (a lot like the CPU). You
need to find out how aggressive with the SPD this player intends to be. The
Lariat attacks/defenses can be annoying, but you needn't worry as long you
aren't foolish with the FB and the jump in timing. As long as you time your
jump ins right, and the FB spacings, you should never have to deal directly
with the Spinning Lariats. Be sure you can recognize the Spinning Lariat
versions right when they are executed.
Perhaps a little known bit of info to keep in mind, not only for Ken, but
for the other characters as well. Zangief takes less damage than other
opponents do from the same moves and combos. Just watch his life the next
time you get him with a TOD combo in the middle of the round. It tends to
do about 35-40% on Z, while about 45-50% on most other characters, most of
the time. I guess it helps to be as big as Zangief is.
============================================================================
Dhalsim: Most Dhalsim players give a very tough fight for Ken , but in the
-------- end, Dhalsim wins more then Ken does. There are a few Dhalsims
out there who can not be beaten with Ken, and will give Ryu an exceptionally
difficult time. This is perhaps one of the more annoying fights for Ken.
All of Ken's moves are lightning quick, while all of Dhalsim's remain on the
slow side. Doesn't help Ken any though. Dhalsim's moves are geared towards
defeating Ken and Ryu. Ken seems to be the weaker of the two overall, even
with the improvements he has, but Ryu's power and patience seem to be key in
defeating Dhalsim. So, that is what can defeat Dhalsim, patience. Ken can
not sit back and wait for Dhalsim to come charging in. Any Dhalsim trying
to jump in on you and surprise you must be a newbie or trying to lose so
badly that they are willing to sacrifice themselves. The main key to take
out Dhalsim is hitting his limbs and knocking him down when possible, then
overloading his defense with a relentless assault of ticks, fakes, and power
moves. Playing back in a corner for the whole match will not get you any-
where in this fight unless the Dhalsim is a moron for getting his limbs
snapped off.
Playing in the corner for the whole round obviously will not work, but it
might be necessary to go in the corner for a while in order to knock him off
his feet, or perhaps to protect a comfortable lead. If you are in the lead,
you are probably safe until the timer runs out. The only problems you will
encounter will be avoiding too much damage from the Yoga Fireballs and Flame
attacks (if they are used at all). Make note that the HK can go over the
Yoga Fireballs only when you are completely in the air, not at the beginning
or end of the HK (when Ryu cannot be hit). It is useless to attempt to go
over a Yoga Flame at anytime, since you will get hit. Dhalsim's projectile
attacks are the only ones that will knock you down if you get hit by it, so
be aware of this fact when you are playing, as to be wary of the slide/tick.
When you are in the corner, the best bet for you is to jump straight up and
try to hit Dhalsim's limbs with the punches. It will work with the kicks,
but Dhalsim needs to a bit further back for that to work. The best Dhalsim
players will not stick their limbs out in vain like this too many times, if
at all, during the fight, so watch out. Jumping in on Dhalsim from the
corner is usually bound to fail unless you manage to trick Dhalsim into
something he shouldn't have. You want to watch out for when you hit D, if
you hit him too high, and you are close to him when you land, I'd say that
there is a good chance that you will be thrown or noogied. Among the other
options that are available to you when you are in the corner is the air HK
to attempt a high escape path. It will fail unless you somehow manage to
trick Dhalsim, like usual. If you have the range right when you are on the
ground, it is possible to hit the ends of Dhalsim's limbs with crouching Jab
punches.
If Dhalsim uses the teleport, it is likely that it was used to escape an
incoming attack of yours. I would consider it foolish for D to try and use
the teleport to gain an inside attack on Ken. Ken's strong game is when he
has an opportunity to attack the opponent right away, when there is a window
of vulnerability, and that is what the teleport provides, so if you see him
coming in right next to you , a triple-DP combo should dizzy him, then you
can get the TOD to hit four times from the neck kick, and sometimes four
from the front if you space the jump in correctly. Dhalsim's most dizzying
move is the headbutt, if he manages to get both hits of the headbutt, then
it is very advisable for you to take a breather in order to avoid an almost
certain dizzy on the next hit. Just blocking low for a time will usually do
the trick, but sometimes there is a Dhalsim that will use an air based
attack in order to catch you off guard. As a rule of thumb, it is safe to
block high vs. air attacks. Unless it is obvious that it will hit you in
the feet (as is the case of the best placed foot drills), then it will be
necessary to block low. If Dhalsim makes a mistake, or foolishly thinks
that they can use the head spear in close quarters, they are seriously mis-
taken. It is easy for you to throw them right as they land, or for that
matter, smash them with a triple-DP combo.
Once you have Dhalsim to the ground, it will be your chance to inflict
some damage. Jump in so that there is no airspace between you once he gets
up, otherwise it is possible for him to teleport away, or even use a Jab
to stop you. I find that it is better to come in close to his body by using
Fierce punch as the air strike, then following up with a F B combo of some
sort, or even throwing him. Watch out for Dhalsim's throw, it has good
range, and is relatively easy to use in comparison to the other character's
throws. Instead of coming in with a punch, you might want to try a neck
kick, which is a good idea against a character that is not used often in a
close combat situation. It might catch the other guy off guard, so mix it
up a little when you have the chance to jump in on him because I'm sure that
ther will not be very many opportunities. Any air attack that Dhalsim does
has much horizontal range, so wait until you think that he will attack, then
just a split second after you see the move come out, use a DP to knock him
down. You will probably be far away, so you will need to use a FB to do
some long distance damage. Make sure that the FB connects when he stands
up. Unlike other characters, Dhalsim can slide under the FB given enough
time, and he will hit you if you are too close. When Dhalsim has you at his
best range (about the length of his Fierce punch extended) , it is not safe
to use a FB, so don't use one, otherwise you will probably get knocked down
by the Roundhouse slide.
Never just sit there and let Dhalsim annoy you to death. That is what the
Dhalsim player likes to do. He does so little damage compared with you
though that you can afford to take a hit now and then as long as you are
able to return the favor. Get close in on Dhalsim, do your damage, then
annoy him to death by not letting any of his attacks do damage.
============================================================================
Balrog: This man was a wus in CE, but he is back with a vengeance. He is
------- an opponent to be taken seriously... He can induce dizziness very
easily, and his blows do good amounts of damage, which could lead to a short
round if you are not careful. Something that is easy to exploit about 'Rog
players is to determine if they like to TAP (Turn Around Punch) through your
FB's. If they don't, then just ignore that part, and things should be a bit
easier for you, how lucky! Balrog has long arms, so be wary if he is about
1/4 screen distance away. Few things he can do from this range: TAP through
a FB if you decide to throw a FB, try to trade damage by using a standing
Fierce punch to hit you in the noggin, or he can jump. It is usually not a
good idea for Balrog to be jumping in, unless he is able to anticipate very
good, or is able to catch you with the very end of the glove. If he gets an
air attack on you, you can try to DP him when his next punch comes, or throw
him as he lands. Do not use the Fierce DP's vs. Balrog, unless he is dizzy!
You can hit him all over the place with the DP, but he never seems to fall
down when the big DP connects. Use the Strong if you need the range. His
fists and arms make very good targets for a DP. But... there is always a
down side. Be selective when you DP, Balrog's long range make it easy for
him to hit you when you miss even a Jab DP. That pretty much covers basics
for fighting him, now some more good stuff.
The HK: a weak weapon, and a liability if you use it carelessly. He can
simply charge after you with an uppercut, or duck under, then hit you with
a crouching Fierce. Also, Balrog seems to snatch Ken up after a missed air
HK very easily, so if you must, HK from the ground. So, the moral is,
unless you are Ryu, it's not a good trade... This would be a good tactic
for when he is getting up, to do the air HK combo to drain off some life,
but the headbutt is very capable at grabbing you after you are finished. See
the rest below, but you'd better be early if you do this, otherwise, you
won't be doing any damage. The best of the Balrogs use all the punches like
there is no tomorrow, and will not hesitate to use one to hit you out of
the air HK. Even if you go backwards with it, he still can charge after you
with an uppercut for easy damage. Same thing for just jumping backwards. I
think that if you must air attack him, use a punch, as opposed to a kick for
a better chance at a clean hit, or at least a trade.
So, what now? You've knocked Balrog's big ass to the ground, what to do?
Well, if you are going to jump in on him, you'd better be early, cuz Balrog
just loves to hit you out of the air with his Strong or Fierce punch. Stay
on the ground or arrive early. If you attack from the air, go for a combo
with a FB in it. That should keep him back a bit. A DP combo attack is not
such a good idea, too easy for Balrog to hit you after a miss, or otherwise.
Tick him every so often to keep him from being able to anticipate your next
move, but be careful with yourself if you are weak. Balrog can do lots of
damage very fast, not good for you. If you are a good anticipator, DP his
lengthy limbs (not with a Fierce!). It does good damage considering how far
away you are. If you like risk, when he charges at you with a charging
punch or TAP, you might try to strike his fists with one of yours. A stand-
ing punch will usually do the trick. That is good to hit the foolish Balrog
who TAP's from too far away.
When Balrog gets you in a headbutt, beware of the things that so many of
the craftier players will do afterwards. The best 'Roggers mix it up a lot,
and rarely go for the same attack within a few tries of each other. These
are the things that you might see. After he lets you go, a TAP is not un-
common, and then it is usually followed up by another attack, sometimes by
a dashing punch, other times by regular attacks. You must avoid getting hit
by the TAP, or tons of damage will be yours to keep. Try just blocking or a
DP. You can never tell though, he might come in for another headbutt after
the TAP, so keep you eyes peeled. The other thing Balrog might do is to run
behind you after he lets go, then Jab or Short punches you for some surprise
hits and a possible headbutt. This is tricky the first couple of times you
see it, so don't get angry, get even the next time he does it, and give him
a throw for Christmas, or better yet, a well timed DP. Ah, but Balrog isn't
quite the idiot... He might decide to just do the fast punches, then step
back or whatever, and wait for you to go up and down (a DP you moron :) for
an easy grab or punch in the back. It is usually safe to try a Forward or
Roundhouse sweep to push him back, but watch your range so that the sweep
connects, else you will get a fist in the head.
The last part to defeat Balrog is to be smart. He can hit you at oddball
times. Especially after a missed sweep or punch. He will take anything to
whittle your lifebar away, and the Balrog corner is not a joke. If he gets
you there, it is very possible that you will panic and die. In this case,
you will need iron nerves. A relentless attack will fry you with your first
mistake. Then, you are limited to a few tactics. However, lookie here for
some helpful hints: do not jump straight up. Try it once, and you'll see
why. Jumping towards is a good attempt, but no good there either. Seems
hopeless? Well, Balrog's major weakness is his feet, obviously. But the
good Balrog will try to protect them, so it's up to you to try and hit them.
If he moves a tad too close, a Roundhouse sweep will make him sit down. You
had better knock him down, or he'll still be able to attack you. If you do
not seem to have any luck there, remember this... his hands can be hit! A
standing Jab maybe your ticket out of this. Experiment a little, as Balrog
is an under played character, and styles of these guys is unique from player
to player because of it. Hence, you must be able to adapt well to win.
============================================================================
Vega: Begin the round by stepping back, do not jump. Waiting for Vega to
----- come to you at first is a good idea. You must be quite proficient at
the DP for this tactic to be effective. You must throw fireballs occasion-
ally to force the opponent to jump. If he jumps anywhere near the DP range,
smack him with it. You want to knock him down a lot. When you knock him
down, go after him. Jump in and use a combo, even if it is blocked. Try
to make it a combo with a DP or FB. If you use the HK, confidence in your
throw as you land is important. Another good tactic would be to use the
"Air Hurricane" combo described above as you fly in on him. Vega is very
tall, and can be hit easily while he is on the ground from the air. Mixing
up speeds of both your HK's and FB's is important. Vega is much faster than
Ken, so use your abilities to control where he goes. If he goes for an
aerial attack from the wall, hold your ground at first, then strike quickly
with a DP. If you are in the corner, a standing Fierce or Roundhouse will
do. The air HK is good, but you need to be in the air early. As Vega hits
the ground after being knocked out of the wall attack, he may fall right
next to you. If he does, either move FAST or do a Jab DP or a Roundhouse HK
to prevent the easy throw. If he's going to throw you, make him take damage
first.
If you make a mistake, and Vega does not throw you, but you are taking
many quick hits, it is VERY difficult to get a DP in between those strikes.
Just take it like a man. Vega's attacks are very weak compared to Ken's.
It takes him two to four strikes to do what one of yours would. Be careful
after taking a series of these though. You may get dizzied very easily.
Making a mistake vs. Vega is not that bad... What if it were Ken? Probably
the worst he can do is throw or do the rolling claw. Watch yourself if he
slices you with many of the rolling claw strikes. If Vega rolls at you
while you are on the ground, almost any attack placed right can stop him
cold. If Vega rolls at you as you are getting up from a fall, place a DP in
his face. Never use the HK to try to stop the rolling claw, you will almost
always get hit. It won't even trade, HK wisely, as you can trap Vega in the
eggbeater, resulting in an easy dizzy.
Vega's Roundhouse slide can be quite obnoxious at times, but block it at
the right time or place, and Vega is meat for a well placed combo, foot
sweep, or throw. In the air, Vega can be a terror, but the air HK has
good priority, and can take most airborne opponents out, including Vega.
Using this attack from the air to hit Vega while he is on the ground is a
good way to disorient your opponent. If you manage to get him dizzy, the
TOD is a nice thing, but be careful if you mistime, Vega will throw you. It
may be safer to walk up and do a triple.
If the Vega is a sucker for the Backflip, the you only need wait until he
is finished in his little romp, then bash his head in with a triple combo,
or toss his skinny body into the corner. Vega is more prone in the corner,
and if you fight the computer often enough, you will know this. This is the
perfect opportunity to tick him, or do the air HK combo, or your favorite
pestering attacks on him. You don't want to throw many FB's since he can
escape easily. Go for foot sweeps, HK's and DP's to keep him there.
A lame strategy if you knock his claw off: Go wait in the corner, cont-
inually doing Short kicks, this will stop his attacks from the ground inclu-
ding his tumbling claw and foot slide. Then if he jumps at you, or tries
the wall attack, you know what to do...
============================================================================
Sagat: He is a tough one... for Ryu. Ken's speed and DP range are big ad-
------ vantages vs. Sagat. Sagat can be a problem at times, but, if you
follow Eu-Ming Lee's Krazy Ken style, you should be well off. Sagat's big-
gest advantages over Ken are his TU damage and FB speed. On the down side
though, he is very tall and lacks many really powerful combos. Obviously,
you will want to avoid being stricken with the TU if at all possible since
it is a real life drain. Also, his Firebirds are quite hazardous to your
health, since the FB's dizzy you quite easily. Ah, you say, avoid these and
I should be okay. Wrong. His other attacks rate right up there in damage
with Ken and Ryu. His limbs are quite long, making a mistimed FB a big mis-
take since you should get a foot or long reaching fist to the head. OK, now
that you know something about Sagat, here is the real stuff. As usual,
start the round off this way: Either a Fierce FB or defense. You can also
try to predict a FB before the round and jump in for the death combo. Of
course, this is risky, but it is worth it if you tag him. His high Firebird
attack is annoying, but bear with it. If you are close to him, and he is
crazy enough to think he can hit you, let him try. Then smash his arm with
a Strong/Fierce DP. If you're feeling a bit lucky, try to walk in on him
for the throw. This may be successful, as Sagat's throw range is PATHETIC!
He can only defensively throw you, and since his recovery time is longer
than yours, take advantage of it. Or if you guessed well enough, you can
jump on him for a lethal 4-hit combo.
His low FB's are another story... You must block them low. However, you
can use a Short HK to go over it w/o problems from the right distance. Jump
up over some of them, and cancel one now and then with a FB of your own, but
do not try to match him one for one, that is a losing battle. OK. Once you
work your way closer to him, say about 1/3 screen distance, then you might
want to take a shot at jumping in on him. Beware of the TU zone when you do
this, the idea is to put as little of yourself within that range while get-
ting yourself close enough to barely hit him with a flying attack. The
tip of the Roundhouse works well, or if you happen to know that you are just
a bit too close, use a punch instead, you might get lucky and nail Sagat if
he tries a TU at this range. A trick tactic is to jump in from the, shall I
say, horizon range for the TU. Jump in on him so that the Roundhouse will
get nailed, BARELY, by the TU, but don't stick your foot out. As you go to
the ground, Sagat will narrowly miss you and sail to the sky. Make him pay
dearly with a "triple DP" combo.
Playing at about 1/3 screen or closer is ideal vs. Sagat. There's a great
defensive effort on Sagat's part to keep you away, and bewilder you with a
maze of FB's. Coming in this close usually forces him to stop throwing them
since you could jump in at any time. So, he will have to change his posi-
tioning. You must stay with him. If he happens to stick out a lengthy arm
or leg for you, strike it with a DP, or if you are closer, knock him to the
ground with a Roundhouse. When Sagat is on the ground, try something other
than the usual FB. Go up to him and sock him with a Jab DP. Sagat usually
tries a TU if you come in close to him, either that or tries a really crappy
throw. Vary it slightly by coming in with a modified triple DP combo. Do
a crouched Forward followed by a Jab DP. If Sagat was absent minded, and
forgot to block low, bam, you've got two more hits. If he did block, you
will still take two ticks of life from him. This little Forward-DP thingy
is quite useful, and is somewhat difficult to counter with a throw, so use
it occasionally against Sagat, as well as vs. the other 11. Watch for the
Tiger Knee as you are close in to Sagat, 1/5 screen distance or closer. He
may try to surprise you by hopping over a misplaced FB. Be aware, and look
for the easy throw when this happens. If all else fails, go really "cheap"
on Sagat. He is a terrible counter thrower for most players, and you can
take him out this "easy way" if you prefer. Be sneaky on how far you stand
when you begin Short kicks, and do them sporadically to trick Sagat into
hitting air with a TU. Hopefully, you meet with some cheap success.
Last thing. The HK is not a good weapon vs. Sagat. Not a good trade when
he racks your balls with a full TU. Really only useful for long distance
escape of low FB's. If you're feeling really lucky, do the "air hurricane"
attack on him once in a while. You might dizzy him that way, but why mess
with it? In the air, Sagat is OK vs. Ken. But if he ventures into the air
too often, give him some DP medicine, and he should stick to the ground. If
the Sagat player is for some reason, "air happy", let him be. Sagat seems
to be most effective from the ground, and should not pose too many problems
for Ken. If you must meet him in the air, go for a Fierce punch rather
than a kick. Sagat's long leg will hit your leg, and you will go down. In
regards to what is said in the first paragraph, this fight is _not_ easy for
either of the fighters, you want to be a headache for Sagat when you fight
him, keep him guessing, and don't let him get you too close to the corner.
============================================================================
M. Bison: As dangerous as he may seem, Bison should pose no real problems
--------- for Ken. Ken has all the advantages over Bison, including long
range projectiles, and a move that can stop any of Bison's dead in it's
tracks. The beginning of each round will begin with you either fireballing
or him doing his body attack (flame torpedo or scissor knee). If you feel
confident that Bison isn't foolish enough to mess with the DP at first, go
ahead and throw a fireball, if not, just block or jump back right away.
Jumping back or straight up gets you out of the way of his moves, and it is
possible to strike him as you are coming down. If you are going to get hit
by him as you come down, try an aerial HK to avoid serious damage or the
throw. Bison is somewhat easy to keep away if the Bison player is not very
creative. If he is a torp-throw, torp-throw type, try throwing a steady
barrage of slow fireballs to keep him off your back. While doing this, mix
a few Strong and Fierce FB's to keep 'em clean. Beware if he's ahead
though, he may just sit back in the corner jumping over the FB's as they
come by. When this thing happens, continue the above, but inch forward each
time you throw a FB. Eventually, he will be backed into the corner, and
then you can command his actions from there. Bison's hang time in the air
is a big drawback vs. Ken. Use this little quirk about Bison to your advan-
tage, and learn the distance at which he can safely escape. Keep your eyes
open for the Head Stomp as well. While not very damaging, it has a surpris-
ing amount of dizzying "power". Bison's foot slide can be a pain if you are
not paying attention. I know I am able to catch many people off guard when
I play Bison using the Roundhouse Slide. Wide open eyes and quick reflexes
will prevent the slide from hitting you. Block it, then throw him, or if
you are fast enough, give him a "triple DP" combo. Should dizzy him.
If Bison somehow manages to play in close to you, it is not likely that he
will do a flame torpedo, it's too obvious and easy to counter, so look for
the standing Forward and Roundhouse kicks: they have good range and damage
along with good speed for such a strong attack. If you can anticipate one
of these coming, give him the 'ole DP in the foot. Close in, you can rip
Bison to shreds, but avoid doing a risky Jab DP if he can block it, a flame
torpedo will be coming your way if you do this. Instead, try being "cheap"
on him. Throw often vs. Bison, as he has the capability to come back very
quickly with that throw and torpedo. When you jump in on Bison, use the
"defensive combo" described far above to move him away. Don't use any one
jumping in combo all the time; try to smack him with an "air hurricane"
combo as he is getting up, or strike late and do a walk in throw. You are
capable of many different styles of play, and Bison cannot counter many of
them very well. If you want to play defensively vs. Bison, do this: When
the torpedo starts flying, DP if you can, otherwise take the hits, and throw
him out in to the center of the battle arena. Bison likes his opponents out
in the open, so put him there instead, don't let yourself stay out in the
open of the fighting area, because that gives Bison a greater chance to hit
you with more of his moves, besides, you will force him to jockey for posi-
tion, while you have one spot all to yourself. When you are waiting in the
corner, and he does a torpedo, jump back into the wall and do a Roundhouse,
it usually knocks him out of it. Also, the distance away from you after the
torpedo is different when you are in the corner. Take it from there, play
wisely, and you should defeat him.
On the offensive end of the battle, throw him into the corner when you get
the chance. The trick is to keep him there. For defense you put yourself
in the corner, well this time, put him there and go after him. Once he is
fallen in the corner, throw a fireball at him, then jump in. Hit him so
that you do not fall right next to him. At this point, you should be just
outside of his throwing range. It is up to you to decide what you want to
do to him, but you can throw, try combos on him, FB trap him to the corner
or whatever, but you want to prevent him from making any attacks at all.
Continuously attack him, striking with FB's, and DP's if he goes to the air.
Use the markings given on the stages to gauge the correct distance to stand
from him. Jump from there, and attack from there as well. This should pro-
vide all you need to beat him. Bison has no really effective air counter,
and his special moves are slow to start, so you should be able to stop them
as they start off. Of course, don't do a Jab DP if he will block it, that
will allow him to escape. This will lead to an eventual win as you will
effectively annoy him to death with FB's and DP's. Once you get started on
this, Bison should find it very difficult to escape, provided that you re-
main unpredictable. One more thing, when you dizzy Bison, go in for the
"Touch Of Death" combo. It should always hit him four times if you use the
neck kick, and sometimes it gets four hits from the frontal attack. If you
must attack him from the front, try a HK or FB combo instead, as it is much
safer to do, or if you are a stud, switch the DP button to Strong or Jab.
If you were good at fighting Bison in CE, look out for his faster speed
out of the head stomp and the torpedo. Those are the changes in his favor
that will be somewhat troublesome. His scissor kick has massive delays at
the start and finish of the move. Also, Bison who head stomps can go for a
throw if he crafts the movements right in the air, so be careful of when you
try to hit him, or you'll pay for it with a hip toss.
........................................
.....................10. Fighting Computer World Warriors...................
....................
Now, this part is not going to be as long as the previous section, since
the computer tends to stick to 2 or 3 different patterns for the most part,
and will stray from it once in a great while. If you know the patterns for
all the characters, then fighting them simply allows you to practice your
stuff to keep them from getting dull. This strategy is how I have defeated
a better than average computer with great consistency. Not too much variety
in it, but I can stay sharp on what I feel is important to my game in this
way. Each one will be considerably shorter than the human ones for rather
obvious reasons. Fighting the computer can only get you so far, and if you
wish to become better at fighting in the game of Street Fighter 2, you will
have to fight humans. On that note, I have never seen a person who fights
only the computer win at SF2:HF's computer opponents. It seems that the
fighting styles of the opponents is meant to match those of the players who
are better than the average lot with that player. The basic strategy that
won't be mentioned all the time is learn the patterns!
============================================================================
<=-Ryu-=> He is a punk now. One of the toughest fights if you get him as
the last of the computer opponents. Keep these things in mind: rarely does
the HK, never does the air HK, loves FBs, usually throws two FBs then waits,
will always use the DP if you jump in when he is down, and it is almost im-
possible to beat him in the air. Remember and learn his FB patterns since
those are the times at which you can easily kill him with combos. Don't try
to meet him in the air with any attack except a DP or jumping straight up
attack. Jumping towards him won't get you anywhere, and the computer does
more and takes less damage than you, in general. When Ryu is on the ground,
it is best to throw FB's at him from a safe distance. If it is not safe for
him to jump over, he will do something that benefits you somehow. If it is
safe to jump over, he probably will take to the air with a Roundhouse kick,
and then will proceed with FBs. Ryu likes the air Roundhouse/foot sweep
combo a lot, and it is really annoying since you can never block it. Watch
for the times that he will jump in early when you are getting up making you
think to block high, and then foot sweeps you. Every now and then he will
walk towards you. Try to wait until he is next to you, then throw or combo
him.
Don't challenge in the air.
Take advantage of his small, but consistently vulnerable FB delay.
No jump ins after he has fallen.
He never does the air HK, and the ground one only rarely.
The computer is not afraid to throw you, and ground ticks almost never work.
Don't miss Roundhouse foot sweeps.
============================================================================
<=-E. Honda-=> Only one way to do this fight. Most boring, but it is how I
win this battle. Depending on when I fight, I throw a FB. If it is before
the first bonus stage, I do, otherwise, I just back up. The rest of the
round comprises of FBs and DPs when he comes in with an attack. Mixing up
the speed of the FBs will sometimes fool Honda into jumping on one of them,
which in turn will force him to block another as he is getting up. To beat
Honda with some consistency, and in general, without getting smashed to by
his new move all the time, follow this. Keep a lot of space between you and
him; you'll need it. Throw various speeds of FBs at him. The big idea is
to make Honda do his 'Sumo Butt Dive' attack. This move has better range
than any human player does, so watch out for the surprise hit from a seem-
ingly safe spot. Every now and then you will get hit cleanly as he is going
up, and the other times you will be able to block, he will miss, or you will
be able to get an attack off. In any of the cases where you are able to hit
him when he is coming down is your chance. Crunch him with the big damage
part of the DP as he falls to the ground. Repeat the FB thing over and over
pretty much until he his dead, or you screw up. If the Butt Dive attack
hits you twice, you are probably guaranteed a dizzy, so don't throw a FB if
you are too close to him. Never jump in on Honda when he is getting up from
a fall, you will get Sumo Torpedoed.
He does a lot of damage.
Watch for his Bear Hug, he will take lots of damage if he wants to.
Don't jump in if he is fallen.
Your DP is faster than any of his attacks, so make use of the fact you can
knock him down very easily.
Mix FB speeds up.
============================================================================
<=-Blanka-=> Toss a FB at the beginning of the round. Then wait until he
walks toward you, then throw another one. Repeat pretty much until he goes
dizzy, then combo him. You can beat him in the air from the right distance.
Beware of his silly vertical ball, horizontal ball "combo". He will do two
vertical balls of Strong or Jab speed at distance that will get him closer
to you, so hit him then. If he goes into electricity, just throw a FB at
him since is more likely to ball you than get hit out of it with a DP . If
you can get the range right, just throw him out of it. If he does some jump
around stuff away from you, then you must move closer, or try to make him
jump right into a FB. When Blanka is getting up, throw a Strong FB so that
it will get to him a split second AFTER he gets up. He is stupid enough to
try a ball attack into the FB. Repeat until dizzy, then kill.
Never jump in, you will get ball attacked.
He does lots of damage, and can do impossible combos.
Will do a walking forward ball attack on occasion.
Watch out for his bite attack.
============================================================================
<=-Guile-=> About the stupidest of the computer guys. If he is on a low
level of attack (like one of the 1st 3 computer opponents) just toss FBs and
then use DPs and jump ins until he is dead. If he is on a high level of
attack, go about 1/3 the screen away, and do a Jab DP. He will Flash Kick
that should not hit you, or will be blocked. When he comes down, lay a huge
triple-DP combo on his for a dizzy, then finish him off with a TOD. If it
comes down to the nitty gritty battle, the plan is to use the FB trap on him
and then smash his body with a DP as he comes down. This battle should be
easy if you have the Jab DP range down where he won't hit you.
Guile likes to throw.
Jumping in on a fallen Guile is not a good idea, but it can work.
Watch out for his infamous standing Flash Kicks and walking forward SBs.
Take advantage of his foolish double Roundhouse kick, easy DP target.
He doesn't use the backhand too much, so canceling his SB is a safe bet.
============================================================================
<=-Ken-=> Until Ken goes nuts, he is tough, but after that, just block and
then kill him with big combos when he does the patented Fierce DP flurry.
Ken won't block a lot of FBs, he will jump over or cancel it with his own.
Use this fact to force him into a jumping in situation, and then hit him
with a DP. When he is getting up, toss a Strong FB at him, and he usually
will take the hit, and then be more suspect to a dizzy. He tends to miss
his attacks after you do a Fierce DP, so you can feel somewhat safe after
you use it in a TOD of combo, but don't make a habit out of it. When he
goes Krazy, just block until you have any easy shot at him. His DP is like-
ly to dizzy you since he has the fortune of almost always getting the 2nd
hit of the Fierce. Also, watch out for his insane attack series of DPs and
HKs which can drain a lot of life even when you block, so place your attack
in there carefully.
Like Ryu, don't challenge him in the air, or jump in when he is fallen.
He will use the HK and DP offensively, but recklessly.
Can be beaten with FBs from across the screen, but he can do his jump back-
and-forth routine to annoy you.
This Ken is easy to dizzy.
Watch out for his neck kick attack.
Likes to throw you if you aren't paying attention.
============================================================================
<=-Chun Li-=> She is not quite the opponent she used to be, but she can be
difficult at times, especially since she fights like Ryu in a way. Once you
get Chun Li knocked down, it should be safe to jump in with a FB combo. She
will sometimes take the hit from the FB. Since Chun Li likes to attack from
the air, use the DP to take her out whenever possible since she will then
fall to the ground. Chun Li will use her FB attack in a style like Ryu, she
will throw two and then wait or jump back. You can take advantage of her FB
delay and use a big damage combo on her, or you can coax her into jumping by
walking towards her. The easiest way to beat her it to get her in the cor-
ner and making her jump around a lot so you can have your way with her.
Difficult to beat in the air.
Throws two FB's in a row.
Safe to jump in on, usually.
Doesn't use the SBK much, at least not offensively.
Likes to use the wall spring and heel stomp.
============================================================================
<=-Zangief-=> He cheats a lot. You will get tough breaks every once in a
while in this fight, so bear (heh) with it. The cheese strategy is just to
use straight up and down Roundhouse kicks, or if you are in the corner, jump
back and use Roundhouse, then sweep/FB or DP when you land. Most people are
scared of Z though, and you should be able to get a lot of damage on him by
taking the offensive. As long as you don't mess up your combos and stay
next to him for too long, you should be safe from the SPD. When you knock Z
down, jump in so that you can hit the top of his head with a punch, or so
you can knick him with a kick. Then proceed with combos from there. Never
stay in one spot for too long, since he will come for you eventually. You
can wait till he gets close enough to you, then throwing a nearly point
blank FB at him when he has no chance for jumping over it. It works in some
cases, and can be a good way to dizzy him. If he knocks you down, and he is
right next to you, you can easily throw him. And in many other instances,
it will be OK to walk into him and throw him if he is somewhat nearby.
Z takes less damage from your attacks.
Can SPD from a long ways away, so watch out.
Uses the Spinning Lariats a lot, hit his face with a punch, or use a DP to
make him stop.
Block if he knocks you down and tries to foot sweep you.
Use throws when you get desperate.
Don't be foolish, Z does a lot of damage, it can be hard to come back.
============================================================================
<=-Dhalsim-=> The easiest way to defeat him is throwing him to death. Pick
a point at about one edge of the rug on the screen, then throw FBs from that
spot. Dhalsim will is likely to jump over, take the hit, or teleport behind
you for an easy combo or throw. If you decide to throw him, toss him back
to the place he came from, and then repeat with FBs. Jumping in on Dhalsim
when you have him can work, but be alert when he does the teleport from
under you as you come in. There will be a time in the match when Dhalsim
starts to do the body torpedo (head first). Once he does this, you can be
assured the match. Block the attack, and right when he lands, nail him with
a triple-DP combo. He should be dizzy, jump in as close to him as you can
without doing the neck kick, and do the TOD, it should get him four times.
If you don't have the right ranges for throwing a FB, try using foot work to
make Dhalsim do something. If you don't have the space, try a ground or air
HK to get better positioning on him.
Remember to be careful if he hits you with the headbutt.
HK over his FBs, or cancel them.
If he does a Yoga Flame, then air HK nearer to him and attack from there.
Triple-DP combos hit three times more often vs. Dhalsim.
Mix up the FB speeds often.
============================================================================
<=-Balrog-=> He is still one of the weaker computer opponents, even though
he can do tons of stuff that no one else can. Simple FB trapping might be
enough to put an end to this match, but there is an easier way if you can
get him down. Once you have him knocked down, it is pretty safe to go ahead
and jump in on him as he gets up. You want to get there so that your attack
arrives at him as he stands. It should connect, then finish with a combo.
If he gets dizzy, and TOD is likely to hit four times, and then the match
will be about done. If Balrog starts hitting you with standing Fierces and
other types of hits, then take a short breather by blocking, and then wait
for an opening where you can foot sweep him for a knockdown. If you want to
meet Balrog in the air, you need to far enough away so that you get in the
air and have your foot or fist higher than his when you contact, otherwise
you will get hit, not him.
Balrog can kill you quickly, be careful if you are close to dizziness.
Be careful of how far you are when you throw a FB at him. He can jump over.
Combos when is getting up can win you the match, so take advantage of his
lack of blocking.
The HK isn't greatly useful, but it can be used when is getting up.
Throw if he tries a TAP from close range.
============================================================================
<=-Vega-=> First step back, wait for him to go off the back wall, then hit
him with a DP as he descends. Then do what you would have in Classic, jump
towards him until he is in the corner, and throw or crush him with a combo.
You really need not throw any FBs in this fight, since he will jump over
them all anyway. You can make Vega jump by walking towards and away from
him. Moving the screen around Vega will make him want to jump. When goes
for the wall climb, back up so that the DP will hit, and let it fly when
Vega does. You might want to go back into a corner and try a Fierce punch
when he comes in for the attack, but this is risky. It does pay off though
if you connect, since Vega doesn't block right afterwards, and you can get
him with a triple-DP combo. Any attack that Vega does can be DPed, so do it
if Vega lets you.
Vega does little damage, but he can dizzy you quickly.
The screaming eagle tends to do more damage than his other attacks.
If you miss a Jab DP, Vega will throw you when you are close enough.
You can attack him with just about anything when he does the rolling claw.
His Roundhouse slide can be annoying, so remember to block low until you are
ready to make a move.
============================================================================
<=-Sagat-=> Of the boss characters, Sagat is probably the toughest for Ken.
This seems to carry over from the good fight that he can give if played by a
human, but with the right strategy, Sagat can be defeated. Since Sagat has
a habit of throwing many high FBs , you can hit his hands with a jumping in
kick or punch quite easily, and then finish with a combo, or you can stay on
the ground and try to do something sneaky from there. As such , you might
try to DP his arm when it is extended, or duck under it then do something
like a throw from there. Don't attempt to get in a FB war with Sagat, since
the computer throws without fail and in pattern, plus his FB is faster. You
try to jump in and do damage when he throws FBs, but there are sometimes you
will want to trick Sagat into missing a Tiger Uppercut. When you make Sagat
do this, hit him with a triple-DP combo as he comes down. The beginning of
the round can set the tone for the rest of that round, so you will want to
make sure that you start off correctly. Sagat usually jumps in with his
knee (Short kick) attack, and then will jump kick a few more times. Just DP
him here, then do some sort of ground series of attacks on him, like Short,
Short, Roundhouse, FB. Be careful of how many times you do this, since the
computer has the timing able to put a TU after the Short kick. I have never
seen the computer Sagat throw, so you don't have to worry about that, rather
watch out for his standing punches and kicks in their place. A DP will take
any of his moves out, so keep a sharp eye for opportunities. Sagat is very
tall, so you should be able to hit three- and four-hit combos without too
much problem.
His TU does a lot (about 1/3 life bar at max) of damage. Try not to get
hit by it. He is not invulnerable either.
Sagat is suspect to low attacks when he does high FBs.
He is easily attacked from the air when he throws low FBs.
Don't jump in on Sagat as he is getting up, you will get TUed.
============================================================================
<=-M. Bison-=> Still one of the hardest fights, IMO. I only win this about
50% of the time. Bison is weaker than he used to be, but the speed increase
from CE is murder, literally. Bison can now do the Flame Torpedo without
any delay from the beginning, but thank God that he can't throw everytime
when he could. I usually start off the round by jumping straight up, but
Bison doesn't always come in with a head stomp, so I try backing up right
away sometimes, and I find that it is a better start off, since you have to
put more space between the two of you at first , then you can close in once
you knock him down. Once Bison is knocked down, you can go in with just
about any FB combo in the book, and as long as you do it cleanly, he will
always have to at least block it, and maybe he will even take the FB hit.
When you jump in on him, you need to get there as he gets up , much like you
have to for Zangief and Balrog. Otherwise, he can get a kick or Torpedo off
in time to scorch you. Bison comes out of dizziness fast , much like the
tougher regular opponents and high level computer opponents, so unless you
are close enough to get a guaranteed combo, jumping will probably get you
flamed, but if you do connect, a big combo works well, in fact, just about
any combo with a FB always hits Bison. Never just sit back in the corner
doing nothing; Bison doesn't hesitate to walk up and throw you. And never
stand next to him when he is getting up, he will throw you. Bison loves the
throw whenever he can get it, so watch out for it. The scissor knee should
not provide much problem since you can always DP it , and the head stomp is
used to fool you, but if you can block it, you will be safe.
Bison is an air attacker (for some reason), stay on the ground.
He will throw you if are close to him.
Bison rarely uses crouching kicks, so he will be using punches instead.
Keep in mind the reach of his standing kicks.
Block the flame torpedo if you can't DP it; too much damage.
Jumping in with punches is generally safer if you are close enough.
........................................
.......................11. Afterword........................................
....................
This thing took forever to write, mainly due to waiting until I felt more
comfortable fighting all of the opponents, namely Guile, Blanka, and Ryu.
This is in no way supposed to be completeness for fighting with Ken. I use a
lot of _Improv_ play when I do battle. I stick to a very, very basic strat-
egy: win. I do what I must to win. No patterns over the long haul. A
round of pattern play is OK, but patterns will not win you matches over and
over against the better human foes. I mix it up in the many ways that Ken
allows. Before sometime in late May '93, I had been thinking about one of
the strategies that I point out up in the combos section. This has to deal
with that "defensive combo" and Ken's ability to escape it. Obviously it is
not a real combo versus the wily Ken players. I found this out by trying it
when I had nothing to lose (I had a round, and was ahead in the 2nd). The
best way to play Ken is picking up your own style. Reading all this babble
might give some pointers, but play in a way that will allow you to win, not
like I think that Ken should be played. I play in one of the many ways that
Ken can be played.
