Month: November 2014

The addition of Ultra Street Fighter IV’s Red Focus mechanic afforded most characters a method to stylishly blow a full super meter without having to resort to actually using supers. In many cases, the combos that resulted from this heavy meter expenditure were rather underwhelming thanks to the way damage scaling works within the Street Fighter IV engine. There were, of course, exceptions to this rule, like Yun, who became even more heavily cemented among the top echelon of cast members thanks to the damage that he gained from proper use of the mechanic.

As Ultra has matured, viable Red Focus technology has started to surface for several more members of the cast. Thanks to players like Nishikin and CCG|Lap Chi, as well as this video from Indo Imran, Blanka now counts himself among the characters harnessing the power of this shiny new mechanic. It seems that the Brazilian fighter can net some pretty impressive numbers by using EX Red Focus cancels off of his Rolling Attack special, Vertical Roll special as well as his standing roundhouse. While some of these options are more practical than others, many of the combos that lead into them can be initiated immediately after performing a hop so Blanka players don’t have to sacrifice shenanigans for the sake of damage output, which is always nice.

Source: Indo Imran

Anyone who has put time into online matches for the 3DS version of Super Smash Bros. 4 has likely seen the throngs of Little Mac players itching to land his signature Knock Out Punch for easy kills. In spite of what this may suggest about the boxer, there’s much more packed into those green gloves and that excellent pink jogging suit than may first meet the eye.

As with Dezmu’s previous Mega Man breakdown, his latest tutorial video covers options for approaching the neutral game, the sorts of combos that you should be looking to land as Little Mac and, of course, when to actually go for those KO Punches. Dezmu offers up an interesting option for recovery, too, which involves using Mac’s counter on approach to keep him safe as he makes his way back to the edge. On the opposite side of the coin, Mac’s edge guard tactics are covered as well and look to be quite formidable when in the right hands–or gloves, I guess.

If you’re looking to don those green gloves for the first time or if you’re just looking to incorporate more of Mac’s kit to your game play, this tutorial is a great place to pick up some tactics before stepping through the ropes.

Source: Dezmu