Author: Corey "Missing Person" Lanier

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

Hiroyuki “Eita” Nagata of Team Hail Mary is no stranger to the grandest stage. This year, he took part in the most-viewed Evolution top 8 to date, finishing a respectable 7th out of over 5000 players. His Ken was able to do what EG|Momochi and so many others couldn’t; make it to TV in America. And the pressure was doubly heavy on him, since he had to play against America’s favorite son, LI Joe, with the whole country rooting against him.

He already has experience under immense pressure and time in the limelight. Can he return there in December at Capcom Cup having qualified by points?

The Fire Inside

One of the most tremendous attributes that Eita has is his relentless offensive prowess. With a style honed by his use of Akuma in the Street Fighter IV, Eita doesn’t let up. Once he knows that his pressure is putting his opponents into disarray, he will not stop.

This is Eita’s bread and butter. He makes his opponents panic and press buttons and makes them pay for those presses.

Contingency Plan

The problem Eita faces is that he doesn’t know how to play other than this. If an opponent plays patiently and does not get fazed by his relentless offense, he finds himself at a disadvantage. There’s no Plan B, and Eita often pays heavily for that. Part of this is his fault, as he will often throw out unsafe moves even on block, and get punished heavily for it.

Even worse, once his opponent plays his aggressive game back at him, Eita defaults toward timidity. He has major issues when he is forced to play defense, as he simply doesn’t do a good job of blocking. Without balance on offense and defense, you are just not going to win as much as you lose.

Predictable

One of the things that hurts Eita the most is his predictability. That’s not to say he’s a bad player, but he has patterns that top level players have picked up on.

One of the greatest examples is Joe “LI Joe” Ciaramelli. At the Evo Pre-party at Gameworks, Joe and Eita played a first-to-5 set, where Eita narrowly won. As coincidence would have it, the two would face again in losers top 8 at Evo. It was apparent that Joe gained the upper hand after the set at Gameworks, and beat him handily, and did so when it mattered most.

It seems that the more Eita plays against someone, the more he struggles against them. When you see players that are from Japan, they usually come out on top against him. It is also why, at the Asia Regional Finals, Eita could beat HuomaoTV|HumanBomb, but then lose to YouDeal MJS|Haitani and RZR|Infiltration–the latter of which is not from Japan, but is one of the fastest on the circuit to pick up on player tendencies. It’s also why his wins have come at tournaments with less Japanese presence. The less people that know his gameplan, the better.

Final Thoughts

Eita is one of the best Kens out there, but he’s facing everyone who knows how he plays. There’s going to be no surprises at Capcom Cup; everyone will have done their research. He hasn’t taken his game to another dimension just yet, and it may be that he hasn’t meshed with Ken perfectly. I’d expect more out of him when–and if–Akuma is available in the game, and he can open up his creative flow with a character he’s comfortable with. For now, let’s just say that I believe he may score one win against a player who’s unfamiliar with him, but lose to the Japanese players he has to face later down the line.

With him putting up so much Street Fighter V content nearly daily, it is rare that we see footage of XusesGB playing. However, when he puts up footage of his own play, he delivers.

In this replay, he shows off his Ken against former Capcom Cup qualifier Valmaster’s Chun-Li in a first-to-five. The resultant match is a down-to-the-wire battle of reactions and reads. Both players make a lot of adjustments over the course of the match, and show off some serious high-level play.

Source: XusesGB

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

Kenneth “K-Brad” Bradley of Evil Geniuses has had a solid year to date, despite a rocky initial relationship with Street Fighter V. This is without question one of the strongest years in his career. His Cammy is looking good, and he is continually improving.

With his entry into Capcom Cup being due to Misterio’s sudden withdrawal, will he be able to be the Rocky Balboa of the finale and shock the world?

Killer Bee

If there’s one thing to note about K-Brad’s Cammy, it’s how utterly aggressive it is. As opposed to Qanba Douyu|Xiaohai and GGP|Kazunoko who play a more balanced, reactionary-style play at times, what you’re likely to see from K-Brad is keeping the noose tightened on his opponents, and then pulling on the rope.

He was one of the first to address how Cammy has become less mix-up-dependent in this iteration of Street Fighter, and he has adjusted his play to compensate. While his play is far more straightforward, his basic gameplan of just smothering his opponents hasn’t changed. It has worked to his advantage more often than not.

Changing Gears

But that style of play can also be to his detriment. Once players start playing more patiently against him, K-Brad, much like HM|Eita, gets himself into trouble. He continues pushing, and he ends up hanging himself.

He’s very comfortable on offense. He isn’t as comfortable on defense. He’s always had the most success in games where it has paid to be an aggressor. He played Marvel, then played Cammy in the SFIV series, both of which requires absolute aggression to stay on top.

This isn’t working in this new game, and he hasn’t fully realized the defensive side of his game. Once he rounds himself out and becomes more at ease playing the reactionary game, his results will improve.

When it Counts

Because of these issues, K-Brad has faltered in some of the biggest events on the circuit. In some of the most stacked brackets, he hasn’t even finished within Top 16. He wasn’t able to breach top 32 at either Japan Cup or EGX. He finished 25 at Brooklyn Beatdown. These were tournaments where killers showed up, and he just wasn’t able to prove his mettle against them.

While he’s been doing performing well at events such as SoCal Regionals and Canada Cup, the tale of the tape show him losing to Liquid|NuckleDu and YouDeal MJS|Haitani at the former and OR|Nuki and NuckleDu at the latter. Losing to someone as strong as NuckleDu may seem a petty complaint, but it reflects that K-Brad isn’t showing the progression he needs to hang around at Anaheim without losing.

Final Thoughts

K-Brad is still in the midst of a learning curve. His Cammy’s offense is on point. His Cammy’s defense is not there yet. He’s still not on the level of the true killers that are going to be at Capcom Cup.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see him take a match off an unsuspecting victim, but would lean more toward 0-2 at the event. This will be a learning experience for Bradley, and I hope he soaks it all in and makes his adjustments for next season. Don’t underestimate him this time around though, because if everything goes to plan, he can certainly blow some top competitors away.

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

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

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

Team HORI’s Naoto Sako is basically the Bret Hart of the Fighting Game Community. He is the excellence of execution, and it is 100% real to all of us, damn it.

Having only played ten events in 2016, Sako has managed to claw his way into Capcom Cup by way of the Asian Leaderboard. What does the walking combo video have in store for the biggest event of the year?

Sako Combos

If there is anything Sako is known for, it’s his crazily impeccable execution. He was known for redefining Cammy play with his amazing combos. Some were viable for us average Joes, while others made you look at Sako and think, “Are you even human?”

While his original combos are, so far, few and far between in Street Fighter V, his execution remains intact. His main in Street Fighter V, Chun-Li, has a higher execution barrier than most of the cast, which fits Sako perfectly. His conversion into combos from instant air legs is amazing. He hits the combos that a lot of Chun-Lis drop regularly. He doesn’t have to worry about whether to shorten his combos due to his execution, because he can 99 times out of 100 achieve maximum damage. The man plays Street Fighter like he’s using tool-assisted macros, and it’s amazing to watch.

Fundamentally Solid

If Sako was playing with the mindset of executing combos and showing off, he wouldn’t be a winner. He manages to maintain solid spacing, and waits for his moments. Most people that rely on execution alone tend to go fishing for a hit to start a combo, but Sako doesn’t do this. Rather, he finds his opportunities and then capitalizes.

Moreover, he is a very calculated player, treating the entire game like a chess match. He has played one of the most abbreviated schedules on the circuit, but does well against all comers. This comes from constant practice and homework. He is known as a lab monster, and has all the tools at his disposal to learn every matchup at a high level.

Time to Step Out of the Pack

Despite being sponsored, Sako has played the vast majority of his events in Japan. However, the only two events he has won have been outside of Japan. He was able to win the last chance qualifier in Europe, but fell short of even making top 8 in the main event.

At FV Cup, he won against GGP|Kazunoko, who is a solid player but one of the lowest seeds in Capcom Cup. While beating someone that is a low seed doesn’t inherently mean he’s not ready, he himself is also seeded low–and his victory against Kazunoko was no landslide. At Capcom Cup, however, he will be going up against the killers who have already proven their excellence. He will not have any rest, as every match will be an uphill battle.

Further, at Asia Regional Finals, he lost to Mago, who also is only in on points, and RB|Bonchan, who couldn’t close out a win to make it to Anaheim. When he faces better players, like RZR|Infiltration or EG|Momochi, at Capcom Cup, will he be able to ramp it up?

Final Thoughts

Sako is great, and if he put more work into the game this year with his travel and focusing on learning players more than basic matchup 101, he would be a killer.

Despite how strong he is in the muscle memory realm, it’s not going to matter if he can’t set up the situations he needs against players who have more experience in the heat of combat. I’m not expecting Sako to go deep, but I do expect he will win one or even two in losers bracket. One thing is for sure though–don’t be surprised to see his name in a gif or two come December.

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

Team Razer’s Kun Xian Ho never seems to take the road of least resistance. Notorious for his stellar use of unusual characters, Xian rode Gen–one of the most execution-heavy characters in the Street Fighter IV series–to glory at Evo 2013. While others would wear out their resolve in the battle of attrition required to play such difficult characters in the competitive environment, Xian is back at it again–this time taking up the mantle of the unusual newcomer F.A.N.G in competitive play.

To the surprise of many his pick has served him well, netting him 10th place on the SRK leaderboard and a global leaderboard entry into Capcom Cup. But can the Singaporean top the field in Anaheim with his poisonous play?

Two Minutes

Xian’s choice of F.A.N.G should come as no shock to anyone. His ability to thrive when facing an uphill battle is one of his best assets. It was what netted him the best year of his career in 2013 as his Gen barreled through the competition, leading up to a decisive victory at Evo against Tokido in Grand Finals.

While not inherently as execution-heavy as Gen was, Xian faces another uphill battle with F.A.N.G in Street Fighter V. The weaknesses of the character are well noted. Outside of poison, he has little in the way of damage potential. Without spending his critical art, he has no invincible reversal. He has one of the weaker V-Reversals of the entire cast.

Yet, Xian makes F.A.N.G work in his favor. There is a clear difference in his approach when you compare his play to other notable F.A.N.G players. Most F.A.N.Gs attempt to play with keep-away in mind. They will stay at neutral or further, and use poison traps to make their opponent’s approach difficult. The disadvantage of this style is that, should the opponent get in, they now have the advantage–anything that they attack with may as well be a counter. Once this happens, F.A.N.G is in a situation where it is hard for him to win. His weak reversal options mean that he cannot do anything on wake-up except for block. He is at the whim of whatever mix-up the opponent wants to do, and he must guess right to get a chance to get damage in.

Eventually F.A.N.G builds meter and has a chance to use wake-up critical art as a reversal option. But this isn’t reliable, nor does it guarantee that the opponent won’t block appropriately.

Xian does not rely playing lame. Rather, he is aggressive from the start. He doesn’t relinquish stage control, instead using smart, safe pokes, blockstrings, and frame traps to force his opponent to make defensive mistakes. He still uses poison, but within blockstrings, combos, and at safe ranges. This is the x-factor that Xian makes F.A.N.G work in, and is why, despite the low opinions of the character, F.A.N.G becomes a problem when he is in the hands of Xian.

The Danger of Being Number Two (or Number Ten)

The fact that Xian has made F.A.N.G work has not escaped attention. People started paying attention in Street Fighter IV when the world fell victim to his Gen. Xian made it no secret in 2013 that he was discouraged after his Evo win, because everyone started figuring out the Gen matchup.

This time, they won’t be making the mistake of losing to Xian before doing their homework. Just because Xian has not been winning large events does not mean he has escaped the attention of the pro circuit. Whatever advantages Xian has found in using F.A.N.G has been noted by everyone else. With more footage of him now than during his emergence as one of the best in the world, everyone sees what he’s doing. This gives ample time to find a way to counter it.

And the top level rose to the occasion. In his time playing, he has won a paltry three events out of 22, with no victories since August. People have had relative ease in figuring out F.A.N.G, even in the hands of a specialist like Xian. What’s worse is that F.A.N.G as a character has far more glaring flaws than Gen did in the Street Fighter IV series. With that kind of problem, it’s no wonder Xian has not been winning at the champion-caliber you would expect of him.

Pocket Character

It is also no secret that Xian has developed a pocket character in Ibuki. In the two tournaments that he used Ibuki in any shape or form, he finished second. How much that has to do with the secondary is arguable, but the point still stands.

Certainly Ibuki has less flaws than F.A.N.G, but she is by no means a leading character in the game. Xian has still found a way to make her work, and could likely use her again if pressed upon. However, we haven’t seen his Ibuki in competitive play since September, and there is no sign since that he still uses her at all.

Ibuki could cover some of F.A.N.G’s deficiencies, but if Xian has not kept up his practice with her, it will be a moot point in Anaheim.

Final Thoughts

Xian is always a fun player to root for, but I can’t in good conscience do so at Capcom Cup if I’m looking to pick winners. With a Season Two patch looming, we can hopefully expect some of F.A.N.G’s drawbacks to be fixed to make the character more competitive. That means nothing this season.

Due to the deficiencies of his character alone, and the questions about his pocket character, I pick Xian as going 1-2 in this event. If his character receives buffs in the update, I’d expect much more to be said of him in 2017.

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

Ryan “Filipino Champ” Ramirez is perhaps the best villain in Street Fighter. The Panda Global representative is a polarizing figure in the FGC. People love him. People hate him. People love to hate him. People hate to love him. And FChamp appears to love being hated.

Love him or hate him, FChamp has proved himself, finding his way into Capcom Cup through points. Naturally gravitating toward the heel role of the community, can FChamp feed off the boos all the way to glory?

Namaste

Champ has stuck to his roots in Street Fighter V. A dedicated Dhalsim main in Street Fighter IV, he has not budged off his man in Street Fighter V. And what a great time to pick Dhalsim.

Of all the original characters, no character changed more than Dhalsim in Street Fighter V. Despite having the floatiest jump in the series, Dhalsim has always been mobile. Between his dive kicks and teleports, he can move around the screen fast. But in SFV he adds fast normals, arced projectiles, and a V-Skill that keeps him in the air for longer than usual, the recipe for a fast-paced guessing game.

This is what the best Dhalsims show off in SFV, and Champ is no exception. Having already solid fundamentals, adding the sort of gimmicks that brought such success in the Marvel games has made him a true monster. Furthermore, like in most Street Fighter iterations, Dhalsim isn’t a popular pick, allowing Ramirez to test his opponents with character unfamiliarity. The combination of these factors is why Champ will often find himself deep in every tournament he goes to.

Impervious

If there is one thing that doesn’t bother FChamp, it is nerves. He has experience in dealing with a plethora of circumstances. He has dealt with the inherent bad matchups that come with his character. He has dealt with crowds being against him. He has been in high pressure situations, on the verge of cracking, and held it together all the way to an Evo title in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

At this point, Ramirez isn’t merely unfazed by what happens at events, he embraces it. He embraced his role as the heel of the community; the boos feed his ego. Confidence of any sort helps to breed champions, just like practice. Champ has found his confidence, and flaunts it.

Transparent

Dhalsim is always an overwhelming character at the onset. When players find their usual methods of approach being shut down by Dhalsim’s unique style of play, they become frustrated and crack. That’s one of the greatest assets of the character, and Filipino Champ takes full advantage.

The problem is, with time, players will learn the matchup. Once they are no longer stymied by Dhalsim’s superior poke game, Dhalsim now has to rely on gimmicks to win. Eventually, the best players learn the predictability and the ease of reaction to these gimmicks. Once that equation has been solved, it’s lights out for all but the top Dhalsim players.

I don’t feel like any Dhalsim player can call themselves a cut above the rest just yet. Nobody has added any additional equations to the problem of winning as Dhalsim. All the top players can assess exactly how to approach, and how to react to Dhalsim mixups. It makes winning as Dhalsim a very daunting task, and FChamp faces that task.

Middling

Facing that very task, Champ has faltered. Without going to Google or searching his name in our rankings list, how many tournaments has Filipino Champ won? It’s shocking that out of 19 events, he has won two. This is not to insult FChamp, but just to speak of the incredibly uphill battle Dhalsim mains face in any given tournament.

Sure, he has made a lot of top eights, but were they where they count the most? When you look at the most stacked events, the answer is no. At SoCal Regionals, Brooklyn Beatdown, and Evo, he was unable to crack top 32. At CEO, he didn’t make Top 16. At Canada Cup and Red Bull Battlegrounds, he just narrowly missed out on top eight.

Those latter tournaments suggest he is elevating his play to compete. But given how stacked the bracket is at Capcom Cup, will he be able to replicate that success?

Final Thoughts

Filipino Champ is arguably the best Dhalsim player right now, but just being the best at your weapon of choice isn’t going to propel you to the top spot at an event like Capcom Cup. Especially given that no one else playing your character is even coming close, and you’re just barely cutting it at times yourself.

I expect Filipino Champ to go 1-2 at Capcom Cup. I’d love–or hate to love–to see him bring more innovation and work into Dhalsim next season to make an even bigger splash on the circuit. But as always with Dhalsim, that’s a hard road to traverse. If there’s anyone with thick enough skin to do it, it’s FChamp.

Comedian and actor Tom Arnold is older than most of us, and was alive to see the first wave of video gaming in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Now, he is exploring the modern era of gaming, and how far that has come from its predecessors in a documentary called Unlocked.

In this clip that will be sure to excite fans of the series to watch the rest of the documentary, Arnold talks to Capcom’s marketing manager Matt Dahlgren about the company’s most storied franchises. The topic then shifts to what is considered by most of us to be the most storied of all–Street Fighter.

The entire docu-series will be released on Decmeber 15th, and will feature celebrities such as Penn Jillette and Zelda Williams.

Source: Mediajuice Studios