Month: November 2016

Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-‘s newest roster addition, Dizzy, has been a part of the overall franchise for a long time. She’s a very stunning character visually, making her presence in an already diverse roster very distinct. Her presence–tournament wise–has been a bit hot and cold however, potentially due in part to just how recently she’s been released.

Part of improving play is sharing tech, and this CMV, created by Y.Xiao, delves into some practical combos to help on this front. While it does offer widely usable scenarios, it isn’t afraid to show off some fancy and situational stuff. There are notations in the video description as well, in case you’re interested in assimilating this into your game.

Source: Y.Xiao

Editor’s note: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the writer, and do not reflect Shoryuken.com as a whole.

Kenryo “Mago” Hayashi has long been referred to as the 2D God. Always one of the highest ranked players in both arcade and console play, whatever the game, and always having been a threat in Topanga A League in Street Fighter IV, he has already proven himself one of the strongest Karins in Street Fighter V.

But how strong is the deity heading into Anaheim?

Less Than a God

Mago’s reign was not decisive at the start of SFV’s life span. My first real glimpse of Mago’s play was at Street Fighter V Crash. One of the first things I recognized was how he seemed to be the weakest link of Team Topanga. With Tokido and EG|Momochi sporting the best records of the team, Mago seemed to be an afterthought on the championship team.

That’s not to say Mago was bad. Around the same time, the only tournament where he had lackluster results was at Stunfest, where he finished 25th, when he finished 3^rd at Battle Arena Melbourne the week before, and 1^st at TWFighter Major two weeks after. His below-par play continued when it came down to rise to his throne at Evo and prove himself the best Karin in the world; he fell short of top 32.

It’s clear that he had some transition problems going into Street Fighter V. But once he worked them out, he began his ascension.

But More Than a Man

Mago hasn’t traveled much, but what he has done in Asia has truly proven him a force to be reckoned with. Outside of Southeast Asia Majors and G-League, Mago has not once missed a top 8 in Asia.

Further, he capped his season by winning the Asia Regional Finals. Of all the events to directly qualify, he had one of the hardest roads. The bracket was stacked with more killers than you could imagine. Just to win, he had to run through MOV, YouDeal MJS|Haitani, and GGP|Kazunoko, among others.  If anyone has any doubts that he can be at the top of the heap in Anaheim, all they have to do is just look at the Asia Finals for proof.

Straight to the Point

In Street Fighter IV was known for his Fei Long. A straightforward character through and through, he just oppressed you with relentless offense.

After years of sticking it out with Fei, Mago’s pick of Karin makes sense in this game. He puts Miss Kanzuki to work in much the same vein. He doesn’t need fancy mixups. He just needs pressure. Mago is not daunted repeating the same thing endlessly, because at some point, it will work.

He did so much of this during Asia Regional Finals, just picking his spots until he can continue the same relentless offense that scored him wins in the previous rounds. It’s not that his opponents don’t know what’s coming, but that they have difficulty anticipating when Mago will reach in for that strike. That’s what makes him dangerous, round after round.

Coming to America

Here’s the biggest flaw I see in Mago. He has an impeccable record in the East. In the West? Not so much. Sure, he hasn’t been here a lot, but that may be to his detriment.

Early on, he struggled to find footing, barely even coming close at NorCal Regionals and Stunfest. While he just breached top 8 at CEO and Dreamhack, he fell short of top 32 at Evo.

His results in America improved with 9th at Brooklyn Beatdown, and making top 4 at SoCal Regionals. However, losing to names like EG|K-Brad, Commander Jesse, and NVT|Flash suggests that Mago has not studied the American scene. He has not prepared for a Western style of play, so if he goes up against K-Brad, MC|XsK_Samurai, or Liquid|NuckleDu come Capcom Cup, is he going to be ready?

Final Thoughts

Mago is playing out of his mind right now and is peaking at just the right time. American players at the event are minimum, but he is going to likely struggle should he have to face them.

I like Mago to go top 12. Depending on his road there, he could go a lot farther. I’d truly fear this man come Anaheim. After all, what are mere mortals to a 2D God?

Feature image: Bartosz Hołoszkiewicz

Super Smash Brothers Melee was released in Japan on November 21, 2001, with its release in North America being a few weeks later. The game was a huge success, having sold over seven million copies and cementing itself as the best-selling GameCube game ever. Among the critical reception, the sales figures, and the legacy, a fanbase was bound to form around the title. A competitive community, however, was the last thing most of the gaming world expected.

Over the years since its release, countless memories and exciting moments have transpired for the Melee community, never mind Super Smash Bros. as a whole. Hardships, triumphs, upsets, turnarounds, the rise of Smash gods, donation drives–there is too much that has transpired to even summarize. So, in celebration of the anniversary, YouTuber Smasha has compiled some of the most memorable moments from the game’s history. It’s a bit long, but well worth the watch.

Source: Smasha

Gaston “zZInsaneZz” Reid found something new in the lab yesterday. Previously, due to the initial active frames on forward medium punch, it was impossible to link standing medium punch or light punch after. But, thanks to the power of Mika’s Irish Whip, he found a way to make it work, and in the process, make R. Mika’s mixup game even more devastating.

He found that if you reset the Irish Whip immediately after a standing medium punch, the initial active frames of forward medium punch will whiff. This allows the forward medium punch to hit on its last active frames, causing the hitstun to take effect much later than normal. This delay in hitstun allows both aforementioned normals to link from forward medium punch.

He made note to mention that obviously, the standing light punch would be the easiest and most practical link to perform, but in both neutral and the corner, this adds yet another dangerous mixup to Mika’s arsenal.

Source: zZInsaneZz

EVO is getting into the spirit of Black Friday with steep discounts on their remaining 2016 merchandise! Starting NOW you can get up to 50% on shirts, hats, pins, glass-wear, and even the EVO hockey jersey! Whether you missed out on something at EVO this year or are just looking to stock up for the Holiday season this looks like the week to do so! Hurry, items will start selling out fast and will not be restocked!

Head on over to the Evo Merchandise website and place an order now!

With the release of patch 3.5 for Killer Instinct, skeleton warrior Spinal received a substantial increase to his meter gain, along with a new move which allows him to summon back Skulls to help regain or increase his momentum. In order to determine if these buffs have radically changed Spinal’s place within KI, the commander of the skeleton army UA|Bass has played some first-to-10 sets with other notable Killer Instinct players to put Spinal to the test.

First off, we have Bass playing against Aganos and Gargos player, LetalisVenator.

Next up is TBS Sickle and his ferocious Glacius. This set is especially good, as Bass and Sickle regularly trade games rather than it ending up a total blowout for Bass.

Finally, CrazyLCD’s Orchid takes a swing at the skeleton. The tweet following this set may hint at what non-Spinal players may think of his changes.

Expect more of these first-to-10s coming out of Bass’ channel in the coming weeks as he gets to grips with Spinal’s new toys, so check out his channel for top-level Killer Instinct play.

Source: XiBassiX