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.

Yusuke Momochi of Evil Geniuses doesn’t need to think about proving himself. He’s been here before. He’s done it. I’m not quite sure if he received a T-shirt, but he certainly received a trophy and a fat payday for his trouble.

But this was in the Street Fighter IV series. This is a whole new game, and if there’s anything we’ve learned this year, it’s this is anyone’s tournament to win. But will experience count, and Momochi become the first person to win two Capcom Cup titles?

Strong from the Start

Like Infiltration, Momochi didn’t take too long to come out of the gate swinging. He may not have had as quick a start as the Korean player, but Momochi was able to take a title to secure his entry into Capcom Cup within a few short months of play. He started off with 33rd place at Final Round but outside of Evolution, where he lost surprisingly early to Arturo Sanchez to put him into an impossible losers bracket, he has not finished lower than that in any event he has played. On top of that, he has earned a string of seconds and thirds, with only a couple of instances of finishing outside of top 8.

Further, Momochi was a proverbial menace to society during Street Fighter V Crash. Particularly in the finals he ran through a five-game winning streak for Team Topanga, besting Fuudo, Infiltration and Xian of Team Razer in decisive fashion. In recent times his attendance to events has been sparse, but when he has shown up, he has shown up to win. In only 11 events scored on the circuit, he has earned enough points to nestle himself into 6th place on the SRK global leaderboard.

Immune to Pressure

If there’s one thing that can be said about Momochi, it is that he is a cool customer under the pump. He’s been in these high-pressure situations before. He’s won in these high-pressure situations before. He just isn’t fazed, and can maintain focus on the match no matter what is going on.

Most people will never be able to forget his part in the joystick fiasco at Evolution 2015. With his joystick shorting out, and ZOWIE|GamerBee taking the 2nd round by default, it looked like the type of situation where Momochi would simply crack. He didn’t, and—with a new and unfamiliar stick–in an amazing display of focus and execution, took the title over GamerBee in one of the most dramatic displays we have seen in the FGC.

It’s one thing to win Capcom Cup. It’s one thing to win Evolution. But to do these two things back to back, and to finish it off in a situation where it seems like Murphy’s Law is slapping you in the face? Momochi did just that, and showed the iron jaw that he has in the face of adversity.

Too Many Pots on the Stove?

One of the things that has kept Momochi’s tournament schedule limited this year has been that he has been busy with other endeavors aside from competition. He has been hosting a stream with his wife and teammate–Yuko “ChocoBlanka” Kusachi. The two of them also have formed a company aimed at training promising Japanese players for tournament play, called Shinobism.

Much like RZR|Infiltration—who has spent his time splitting interests between coaching up and coming players in Korea with commentary duties with Spirit Zero—with these two things alone, Momochi has had to take his focus away from competitive play. When you divide your interests, it detracts from your results. And, at times, the results have visibly been less impressive than Momochi can actually put up. In this season, he has only won one event–the Stunfest tournament that got him into Capcom Cup. When he won three tournaments in 2015 and two in 2014, that is simply not up to par with what Momochi can do–if and when his sole purpose is competing. Does he need to pick a hat to wear and keep it on?

He Knows What Tournament This Is

But here’s the thing–despite the low level of focus on recent tournaments and the other things he has on his mind, Momochi knows where he’s going. He knows when Capcom Cup is. It’s hard to think that he would not be preparing for this. Even if Shinobism is his primary focus now, what better way to cement the brand in the minds of impressionable Japanese players than to have the head coach of the team win the most prestigious circuit in the FGC–for the second time?

You can expect Momochi to show up with his A game. He is still showing up to the events he does play at his best, and it is paying off. It may not be netting him trophies, but you can most definitely believe that if he’s going to be aiming to win one tournament, it’ll be Capcom Cup.

Passing Him By

If you had asked me in June who the better player was between Tokido and Momochi, I would have said Momochi. That would have netted a lot of counter-arguments, but I believe it to be true. Momochi was already a complete player, and was playing Ken with enough efficiency to beat anyone standing in his way. He wasn’t struggling with matchups, and he was looking comfortable. Tokido looked great, but he still looked like he was figuring out which direction he was wanting to take his Ryu, and what it would take to make it to the top of the heap.

Ask me today, and I would say the results have flip-flopped. It’s Tokido looking comfortable, and Momochi who hasn’t been pulling out all the stops.

If Momochi is still playing like he can, and I’m sure he will be knocking rust off rapidly this month, then he hasn’t been surpassed by others in the field. But players like Qanba Douyu|Xiaohai, Liquid|NuckleDu, and Tokido–who have made large strides in his absence–stand to give him a run for his money at Capcom Cup.

Final Thoughts

This is a very gutsy pick, but I have a feeling Momochi is showing up with all limiters removed. His clutch factor and his ability to ignore tournament nerves are something that cannot be ignored even if he has played in fewer tournaments this year.

I look for Momochi to join Tokido in grand finals, for the ultimate match of which shoto is better.

Liquid|NuckleDu is setting himself on another plane of existence in the American FGC. If this last month has been any indication, he is undoubtedly the best player in North America, and looks to be reaching–if not already at–the level of the international players.

So what happens when he comes across Tampa Bison, one of the best M. Bison players in North America? Well, to give spoilers, a vicious 10-0 mauling of the Florida player was in order. While it’s no secret that Bison is not the best character in the game, he is lesser-played, which gives Tampa Bison a seemingly slight advantage in the character-familiarity realm–he is more apt to know the Mika matchup than Du the Bison matchup.

But when it comes to NuckleDu, that is apparently irrelevant, as you will come to find out when you watch the replaysprovided below by XusesGB.

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.

YouDeal MJS|Tatsuya Haitani came out of the gates swinging on the Capcom Pro Tour. He has a consistent attendee on the circuit this year, and his efforts have put him into a respectable 10th place on SRK’s global leaderboard.

Not only that, but Haitani has easily qualified for Capcom Cup with a mountain of points. How does the Necalli main stack up against the field?

Innovation

I have already mentioned several Necallis who have qualified–including BX3.TP-Link|Phenom, ZOWIE|GamerBee, and SOA|Brolynho–and have discussed their strengths with the character. But what they are currently doing, Haitani blazed the trail for early on.

Haitani was the first Necalli to make his mark on the circuit, proving the strength of the character as early as Final Round. If you want to see Phenom’s grimy mix-ups, Haitani knows when to pull them out. GamerBee’s aggressiveness with frame traps? Haitani has that. Brolynho’s patience? Haitani can go there too.

But one thing that doesn’t get mentioned about Haitani is his trust in his reads. His Necalli is willing to believe his opponent is going to go for a meaty, DP, and be right. He has a fantastic understanding of what his opponent is looking for, and always seems to be ready with the buffer into super.

Despite losing to Tokido, the above match shows the full breadth of Haitani’s range with the character. You can’t take anything away from any other Necalli player in Capcom Cup, but if you want an early example of top level Necalli play, this is where to look. It’s no wonder James Chen noted the Japanese were calling Haitani the best player early on.

More Top Eights Than God

Haitani has been on the grind this year, and his results prove how his devotion to traveling to events has paid off. Of the 24 tournaments he has attended this season, he has made 18 top 8s. That’s a staggering 75% success rate.

Equally impressive is that out of those 18 top 8s, he has finished 4th or higher two-thirds of the time. To play that volume of top level matches with those level of results is staggering. Of the players in in the top 10 on Shoryuken’s rankings, only EG|Justin Wong and RB|Luffy have attended as many tournaments as Haitani. Justin only has only one more top 8 than Haitani from the same number of tournaments. Luffy has 17 top 8s out of 26 tournaments.

In that context, Haitani’s rate may not seem like an amazing statistic. But the proof is in the pudding. Luffy did nearly everything, with the exception of Brooklyn Beatdown and Evo 2016, in Europe. Justin pulled off the same feat Haitani has with only four excursions outside of North America. Haitani has not stayed put. 14 of his 24 events were played in Asia, the rest internationally. Two of his three worst tournament results were inked in Asia. His only tournament win on the circuit was achieved in Australia. This man has gotten around more than any player on the circuit this year, and has managed to stay consistent throughout the year despite that.

Complacency

One of the biggest concerns for Haitani is that some of his worst results have come near the tail end of the season. He placed 25th at two consecutive events in the run up to the Capcom Cup–Japan Cup and Manila Cup. It’s also worth noting that around the same time, conversations were being had about whether he could make waves at all.

While a lot was said of his recently lackluster performance, we can also look back at the start of the season, where there were claims that he was the best. He was basically defining proper Necalli play at that point. You almost wonder if Haitani has just gone on autopilot in the home stretch.

If you look at his match with Xiaohai at SoCal Regionals, some signs point to this. He was not doing anything stellar–it just looked like cut and paste Necalli play. Xiaohai took advantage. As a matter of fact, Xiaohai conditioned him to do just that to punish him.

Has Haitani plateaued with his character? Or is it something else?

Jet Lag

It’s quite possible that Haitani is just worn out. As mentioned, he has one of the most extensive travel schedules of all the pros on the circuit. He has made it his goal to compete as much as possible this season. Has he pushed himself too hard in his travel? Perhaps the reason that he is on autopilot with his play is that he’s just tired?

If that’s the case, then he is doing the right thing right now. After SoCal Regionals, he has retreated to Japan. While he is still playing online, he is certainly taking a sabbatical from traveling, sitting out Canada Cup and Red Bull Battlegrounds. If it’s burn out he’s suffering from, this should help him recharge before he jumps back into competition in Busan for the Asia Regional Finals.

Final Thoughts

Haitani has been a divisive player this year. He has the tools, the focus and the deep character knowledge to be a threat to go far in a tournament. But his results have slid over the last two months, and there is concern that he doesn’t have enough fuel left to propel him deep into the fray at Capcom Cup.

If he utilizes his much-needed break properly and returns firing on all cylinders, I’d call him to go top 8. But he could range anywhere from there to top 16 at this point. He’s definitely more of a wildcard than he should be, but he could make it to the depths of the bracket–provided he focuses.

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

Bruce “GamerBee” Hsiang of Zowie is one of the leading players to emerge in the Street Fighter IV era. Hailing from what was once a vacuum of top fighting game players in Taiwan, he emerged as a sudden powerhouse in the game, proving the viability of what was then-considered a weak character in Adon, and becoming one of the most popular players in the FGC.

Despite his popularity, Hsiang has never been the favorite when it comes to major tournaments. Has that changed in this season?

Always the Bridesmaid, Never the Bride

The first thing that comes to mind with GamerBee is his perpetual underdog status; although he’s always a threat, GamerBee registers an unusually low number of tournament wins. Over the course of his career, he has seen–at most–three wins per season. This is by far the lowest out of any player analyzed so far, save for Liquid|NuckleDu.

Also of note is the fact that, much like NuckleDu, Hsiang is yet to capture any sort of win at Evolution. Sure, he has come close many times over. He has been runner-up twice, made three top 8s, and has not been outside of top 16 since he began competing at Evo.

The consistency of ‘Bee is well noted, and he is never not a threat in any tournament. He is always on the verge. But often, when it’s time to show that he well above the echelon of players that just come close, he fails to set himself apart.

Learning Curve

Much like Daigo Umehara, GamerBee had a difficult transition to Street Fighter V. This was evident in ‘Bee’s early results. Even at Street Fighter V Crash, where he fought on Team Southeast with Secret|Poongko and HuomaoTV|HumanBomb, GamerBee appeared the weakest out of the three, with Poongko and HumanBomb doing the brunt of the work in taking out teams on their own.

GamerBee actually admitted to not understanding the game during an episode of the Jump-In Podcast, and it is evident in his early play. He was relying on what he already knew from Street Fighter IV, and was playing Necalli as though it were his patented Adon. The similarities between the two are duly noted: both have strong DPs, both are able to change their jump arcs, and both have amazingly strong pokes in the neutral.

It was the differences in the characters and the core mechanics of their respective games that hindered GamerBee’s progress this season. Once he began to understand this and overcome the differences, he became a more complete player in Street Fighter V, and the results began to reflect that.

Ramping it Up

Any doubts whether GamerBee could compete in SFV were wiped clean at Japan Cup. Facing a top 8 that included two Evo 2016 top 8 players, as well as other strong players like Poongko, Mago, and GGP|Kazunoko, GamerBee stood out on top of a stacked bracket. To further prove that win wasn’t a fluke, he went ahead and took EGX in a field that included Daigo Umehara, OR|Onuki, and BX3.TP-Link|Phenom–two of the three with tickets punched directly into Capcom Cup.

If GamerBee weren’t a real threat, would he seriously be able to do that?

Proving Himself

GamerBee has always had a hard time in a field that, given his strength as a player, he should be able to trounce easily. It could be attributed to a number of things that may be true or not, and only Hsiang may fully know the reason. Some could be bad luck, such as losing momentum after the stick disconnect issue in Evo 2015 grand finals against EG|Momochi. Some could be choking under pressure, such as Evo 2013. It could even be attributed to just coming up against players who were just absolutely impossible to beat at the moment they played him, such as Infiltration at Evo 2012.

The account of his losses have been more telling than his wins over the years. In 2014 he missed out on Capcom Cup, and nearly made the decision to retire in 2015. He has obviously decided to stick around, and you know that in his mind, he is wanting to prove in every instance he was right to do so.

When a man has so much to prove, it can be a double-edged sword.  GamerBee has been known to play more emotionally at times than other top players, so it’s definitely a worry that, by attempting to prove his worth at Capcom Cup, he do just the opposite. It will take a lot of chutzpah to keep himself focused, but he is capable of doing so. We’ll know in December which side of the coin he lands on.

Final Thoughts

Going into his second Capcom Cup, GamerBee will to want to win. So does everyone else, but no other player has as much emotionally invested into this as Hsiang.

Bruce will–in my opinion–not finish lower than top 12. If he is able to treat this as just another tournament, and not let his emotions or nerves get the better of him, he has the capability to finish top 8 or even higher off the strength of his Necalli pick alone. The risk is the fact that when he is emotionally invested, he tends to lose more often, and I have a hard time seeing him not doing so here.

The field is irrelevant because he has proven he can outdo the best in the world. At this point, GamerBee’s worst enemy is himself.

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

Keita “Fuudo” Ai was on a tear in the beginning of the season. At Street Fighter Crash, he was the player on Team Razer to beat. He then took his teammate Infiltration to the limits during the Grand Finals of Evolution 2016.

With him getting into Capcom Cup on points, what will become of Fuudo when he hits Anaheim?

The True Pro Wrestler

Fuudo has made huge changes in style between Street Fighter IV and Street Fighter V. In the former game, the 2011 Evolution champion was almost boring to watch, with a very rigid and straightforward Fei Long. He was a great player, but it was almost too difficult to watch–unless you were looking for a masterclass in spacing and stage control.

In Street Fighter V he has proven his versatility by switching to a very mix-up heavy character in R. Mika and not just making it work, but becoming one of the most successful proponents of the character. While Liquid|NuckleDu may be the Mika taking the titles, Fuudo was the originator of many of the setups and mix-ups and traps that all R. Mika players are working with now.

The man is the walking compendium of Mika play, and can hit you with anything out of his arsenal at any given moment. Just as an example, during one salty suite at ArcadeStream after Street Fighter V Crash, Hyunkyu “Nin” Park (Yes, the Nin from Tekken fame) was sitting behind him the entire night, taking notes on his play as an aspiring Mika player. By hour two, Nin had taken at least ten pages of notes regarding Fuudo’s play.

That is the amount of approaches and match-up dependent plays that Fuudo has and makes on a regular basis. When you have that sort of depth of understanding, you are going to see solid results.

The Infiltration Influence

Much like Infiltration, Fuudo has taken it easy since his crazy performance at Evo. Although he has played more tournaments than Infiltration has since July, he has only played four, and three of them were smaller Japanese events. While one of those, he won, the players he had to face are players such as Itabashi Zangief, and GGP|Kazunoko–both great players, but only one of them has a shot of making Capcom Cup, and is the lowest seed in the bracket currently.

One thing that Fuudo has got going for him is his respectable 5th place finish at ESL’s Brooklyn Beatdown. This bodes better for him than Infiltration’s results at the same tournament. However, beating players like YouDeal MJS|Haitani and Arturo Sanchez–who aren’t in the playoff picture–and dropping games to EG|Momochi, and losing in the runback against Haitani–does not instill confidence in Fuudo going into December.

Further, he has been noticeably absent in the tournament scene since that very tournament, which occurred at the beginning of October. If this continues until Capcom Cup, there is a very real risk of rust going into the tournament.

Never a Long Shot

Here’s the thing though; Fuudo is never the odd one out. He came out of virtually nowhere (though players that followed the Japanese scene in SFIV closely would beg to differ) to win Evo 2011 when he was more known for his Virtua Fighter play. He was always on the cusp of a top placement after that win, staying within the top 32 every year before getting third place during RB|Luffy’s warpath to the championship at Evolution 2014. These results came despite the waning strength of Fei Long in the SFIV series after the 2012 and Ultra updates. Fuudo, unlike some other Fei Long players, simply adapted.

At this point, as everyone is getting force-fed their collective dosage of Mika match-up experience from NuckleDu, one thing cannot be discounted: Fuudo does not care how much you understand about his character. He does not care whether the character stays popular or high in the tiers. If there’s a way to make it work, he will make it work. While Mika may be under fierce scrutiny thanks to her mix-up oriented style, Fuudo will go into Capcom Cup confident that he has the tools, and understanding of the tools at his disposal, to make them work.

Download Complete?

How much has Fuudo been tooling his game since Evolution? Obviously he has not on the tournament circuit as much, but this is a player who will no doubt be in the lab practicing. He knows how Infiltration got into his head that night in Las Vegas. He knows that Infiltration won by reading him like an open book. Fuudo is not the type to just resign to that fate. He has likely been working online and offline, making sure that mistake doesn’t happen again.

Should he face Infiltration again, will the results be different? It’s quite possible, given Infiltration’s slump and Fuudo’s ability to adjust to the meta.

Final Thoughts

It’s very hard to judge Fuudo’s chances because, much like GAM|DR Ray, Fuudo hasn’t been traveling enough to draw conclusions from. He has all the experience at the highest level to pull off a win, but with not a lot of tournament and international experience, it could be hard for him to capitalize on player knowledge, which could be costly. We’ve seen his ability to adapt well in the past, however, and that may well come into play.

Despite the problems he potentially faces, I still like Fuudo’s chances enough to see him make top 8. Like what Mika’s going to do after a knockdown: it’s really an unknown from there.

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

This is one of the more polarizing pieces I will write in the series. Everyone has their own side to Daigo Umehara, and talking about where he is in the game, in relation to everyone else, tends to cause a lot of arguments.

A lot of people will say Daigo is irrelevant in the scene today. Others will say he is still a threat. Some think he is too washed-up to play Street Fighter V properly. His supporters will still say that he is just learning at a different rate. Many argue that he can’t win anymore. There are those will say that he will become a threat very soon. A lot of people will still say he’s surpassed merely winning, and chooses not to.

It’s difficult to objectively analyze a player like Daigo, since he is so wrapped up in mystique and long-term success.

But how do I feel about Daigo’s chances?

Greatest Player Ever

Simply put, Daigo will go down as the greatest fighting game player ever. It doesn’t matter what players like Infiltration do, Daigo will always reign as the Wayne Gretzky of the FGC. There has not been a man who has battled across the plethora of fighting games he has played, and found championships in nearly all of them.

If you want a list of credentials, this man has them by the fistful. He has won top honors in over 14 games, including the likes of Vampire Savior, Capcom vs. SNK, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Guilty Gear XX #Reload, Ultra Street Fighter IV, and the current flagship title of Street Fighter V. For those keeping score at home, he has major wins in 14 different titles. Many people haven’t even played that many fighting games in their lives.

The man has wandered from series to series, learning the mechanics, perfecting his strategy, and winning. He has already done so in Street Fighter V, and it would be foolish to discount the possibility of him doing so again.

He is Still Smart

If people start to discount Daigo, it is to their detriment. Umehara is a smart man who has dedicated his life to playing fighting games. He is an expert at reading situations, and can judge player tendencies better than anyone. People will often say that Daigo cannot win against the top players, but when he plays the highest-level players in Japan, he still wins and can trade matches back and forth with them. Based off spacial intelligence alone in the realm of fighting games, it’s very hard to top Daigo in his understanding of player psychology and mind games.

He Makes it Count When it Matters

Many will say Daigo cannot win anymore. That he was out of his prime after Evo 2010. A lot of people were saying that last year, too. And they said it about him going into Capcom Cup.

Then at Capcom Cup, he proved naysayers wrong by finishing second to Kazunoko. No, he didn’t win the whole thing, but there were a lot of dissenters saying that Umehara would be hard pressed to make top 8. It was a safe bet to make, given that he couldn’t do so at Evolution that same year in Ultra Street Fighter IV, but he went on to prove them wrong. Granted, he still finished within top 12 of Evolution in a veritable minefield, so his loss there is not the end of the world either.

Any doubts that people had about Daigo should immediately be quelled by his ability to show up and do what naysayers believe to be improbable in in whatever circumstance he faces. Further, many people were saying that Daigo would not win a major in Street Fighter V this year, which he has succeeded in doing. Daigo can still win. The world still knows this, even if they want to deny it.

Is He Still on Everyone’s Level?

With Street Fighter V, we know he can still win–but where is he winning, and against whom? At Lockdown, he defeated Ryan Hart in grand finals. At OzHadou Nationals, it was ZOWIE|GamerBee. At Esports Festival Hong Kong, HM|Eita. And at the European Regional Finals, he beat BX3.TP-Link|Phenom. So as of now, two of the four players he has bested in grand finals are on the roster at Capcom Cup. Is this a good thing? This can actually be a toss up, since he has won to players equally who have qualified and not.

But here’s the thing, the players he’s bested in grand finals have run it back. Phenom had the pleasure of doing so in the losers bracket at Canada Cup. Ryan Hart did so at EGX. Daigo can be figured out. And there are players doing it.

Daigo is Human

There was always this worldwide belief that Daigo was beyond human when it comes to Street Fighter. The West had this massive skill gap that put Daigo on a pedestal that they only dreamed of reaching.

The skill gap is not so wide anymore. People started seeing the humanity of Daigo at Season’s Beatings in 2010, when Marn began reading his tendencies with Ryu and punishing them. And the gap has only further become smaller. Daigo is no longer a god of the game, but a mortal like everyone else on the circuit. The name Daigo no longer illicits the same fear and intimidation that it used to. People are more prepared and confident in playing him. It does not mean that they will always beat him, but they are more capable of standing toe-to-toe with him because the fear of his reputation alone has worn off.

His Learning Curve

Street Fighter V has done nothing to reinstall that fear of Daigo into the hearts of players. Daigo struggled early in the process of learning the game. He has not done much to show that he has gotten the game down perfectly. Whereas Daigo is usually the bastion of creative, gutsy plays, he is playing a more textbook approach to his Ryu this time around. He has relied on footsies, and capitalizing on big mistakes to get to wins. This is not a bad thing in itself. But when you are trying to play at the highest level, and you have a Ryu like Tokido to compare yourself to, your style is not always going to get the job done.

Also noticeably absent are his keen hard reads in situations. If you have watched videos of his glory days in Super Turbo, or even Street Fighter IV, Daigo excelled at making hard reads against players that work. This is a man so proficient at landing random dragon punches that they became known as Ume-Shoryukens. This is not what he is doing in this game, and he is getting eaten alive for it. When Phenom can go to Canada Cup and catch Daigo with four straight command grabs to put him into stun without Daigo not reading the situation correctly, something is just simply not right in the Daigo camp.

It is not for lack of practice or effort. It just seems like Daigo is not learning this game on the same pace that everyone else is. He was dominant in Street Fighter IV at the start, but how much longer did Japan have it before the west?  Further, he was one of few Japanese players traveling at the time he was winning, so who knows if Daigo was even the best in Japan’s early Street Fighter IV era? It could just be that Umehara, like he mentions in his book, is truly a slow learner, and we’re only now coming to grips with that truth.

Final Thoughts

Daigo is so hard to judge right now. In December, he has the ability to gas it up to high octane, or just dial it in. I just simply don’t know.

I would not count him out of exceeding expectations, but my gut instinct says that he makes top 8, and finishes in 7th place. He has the ability to do it, but I just don’t think with the players he’s going up against being well ahead in the metagame, that he will be able to use a slow-and steady-style to make it to the top.

Capcom has made it clear that option selects and kara throws were something they were trying to keep out of Street Fighter V. Sometimes, these things slip through the cracks–and yet again, another one has been found.

Raf El has discovered an instance where Ibuki can increase her throw range via kara canceling various kicks, including standing roundhouse into her throw. While on the surface, the range increase doesn’t look like a lot, it actually moves her throw range into high-mid tier on the list of throws in the game.

What’s more is that Raf discovered that the standing roundhouse kara throw moves Ibuki slightly backward initially before moving her forward, allowing her to escape some throw attempts, before she unleashes her own grab.

Whether this tech will remain in the game on subsequent updates remains to be seen, but Raf also gives a nifty little bonus combo at the end that shouldn’t be lost if they decide to patch this kara throw out.

Source: Raf El

Joe “MOV” Egami is a legend. Considered one of the best Chun-Li players in Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, he abstained from playing Street Fighter IV, and the next competitive game we saw him in was Street Fighter X Tekken. Strong in that game, he is now bringing himself to his next modern title of choice: Street Fighter V.

Chun-Li is again strong in this title, thus MOV playing Street Fighter V is a match made in heaven. Now, with him being one of three Chun-Li players making his way to Capcom Cup–all by way of points–will he be the one to bring it home for the Fellowship of the Thigh?

“Now That’s Good Kung Fu.”

MOV is known for one thing, and one thing only–his Chun-Li. If you see him playing a game, it’s going to have Chun-Li on the roster and he will be using her. And by all intents and purposes, I would easily start an argument that–as he has been claimed to be in 3rd Strike–he is currently the best Chun-Li out there.

I know what you guys are thinking. There’s Go1, Ludovic, and Nuki all eyeing that title. If you argued any of these to me while reading this, I agree that it’s a tough argument to make. But just watching MOV’s Chun-Li brings back flashbacks of the strength he showed with the character in Street Fighter III.

There’s the Chun-Li that focuses solely on good footsies and spacing. There’s the Chun-Li that relies on pressure. There’s the Chun-Li that relies on proper execution and attaining maximum punishes. I think that MOV is the penultimate form of all these characteristics of Chun-Li. He and Nuki are the two that have been playing her throughout the course of multiple series. But my belief is that the game that MOV was forced to play, to be considered one of the strongest players in 3rd Strike, allows him to think more abstractly about his play than someone who is more known for their Chun-Li in Super Street Fighter II Turbo.

Despite losing this match, MOV shows what he is capable of. He is using the full capacity of Chun’s arsenal, and everything he is capable of is on display.

World’s Strongest Woman

MOV doesn’t rely on this alone, but Chun herself is really strong in this game. She is one of the most complained-about characters; with her impeccable spacing game, and really strong pressure game. While her damage potential is weaker than most of the top tier characters, she still is able to capitalize on her punishes with proper execution into really damaging combos.

On top that, her V-Trigger is one of the best in the game, allowing her even more damage potential off of her anti-airs and her hit confirms. Bar none, when a perennially strong player meshes with such a top tier character, magic is bound to happen. MOV is showing that he can take the World’s Strongest Woman to the highest of heights.

Never Put Baby in a Corner

One thing that MOV seems to thrive on his playing when his back is to the wall. Egami, from what I have witnessed, tends to start sets in the hole. When he is at a deficit in the set, that’s when the fire lights underneath him. For some, playing in do-or-die situations makes them perform with more sense of urgency, and their sense of awareness heightens. MOV seems to be that type of player.

In the video posted above, while MOV never seemed out of the match at any point, he wasn’t playing at his full potential early on. It was once ImStillDaDaddy was up two games to none that Egami began to pull out every stop. While others tend to buckle in this situation, feeling as though their opponent is in their head, MOV seems to take that moment to evict his opponent from his head and begins to go harder to the paint.

Breathing Room

While that tends to be the case, the more intense the moment, or the more important the event, MOV tends to let nerves get to him. It was duly noted that at Evolution 2016 in the top 8 of Street Fighter V that Egami was huffing canned oxygen to calm his nerves. Those nerves ultimately got the better of him, as he lost to both Fuudo in Winners Semi-Finals and was then subsequently eliminated by Go1 in the 5th place mirror.

If this was the first instance of his nerves getting the better him, it would be something that could be overlooked. However, this is not the only time he has done this. at Evolution 2013, MOV was also huffing canned oxygen during the top 8 for Street Fighter X Tekken. The same fate awaited him there. While some events, such as regional events and even Co-operation Cup for 3rd Strike do not phase him, high pressure events such as Evolution get the better of this player, and thus affect his performance and execution.

The Overpowered Principle

When something is regarded as overpowered in fighting games, I often scoff. Chun-Li has been regarded as that. However, it is not often that you see her win tournaments. This same thing was said of Sagat in vanilla Street Fighter IV. Yet you can barely find any example of Sagat winning events in the game. Does this make them truly overpowered?

I say: not really. We can all attest that Super Turbo Akuma is overpowered, and thus banned. People tend to exaggerate characters as overpowered where they are just simply strong. When players view these characters as strong, they tend to focus more on learning how to counter the match-up. When everyone is dissecting the match, it becomes harder for mains of these characters to succeed in the tournament setting. For this reason, Chun-Li players always face a harder battle in tournaments.

Final Thoughts

MOV is my favorite Chun to watch. When he is on, he is scary to everyone he plays against. The way he closes out matches is jaw-dropping, and shows a mastery of a character that simply leaves me spellbound.

When he is not on, he is shaky. Not even metaphorically shaky–literally shaky to the point that he needs oxygen to calm himself. He has done this at Evo, but now he’s en route to a bigger stage in Anaheim. Can he hold it together?

Maybe until he reaches top 8, but I’m afraid he will lose his nerve there, and that will be all she wrote.

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 Echo Fox’s Julio Fuentes has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the change to Street Fighter V. A relative afterthought in Street Fighter IV, he was never an immediate threat to the major tournament field, seeing only moderate success. In Street Fighter V, however, if Fuentes is in the pack, it’s a pretty safe bet that he will be going deep.

With him reaching Capcom Cup by way of points, how does this member of the Ken Trinity stack up?

The Kenhead, Three in One

Julio has been well-served from collaboration with the Trinity, a team of three Ken players consisting of himself, Chris Tatarian, and Brent “brenttiscool” Franks, who have helped each other build up their play. While all three of the Trinity are always a threat, Fuentes has done the most with the knowledge bestowed upon him.

Juilo Fuentes has double the first place tournament finishes–eight–than the other two parts of the Trinity combined. Each of the other two have participated in eight less tournaments than Fuentes–18 as opposed to Fuentes’ 26. But when combined–36 opportunities from Tatarian and Franks–and they still fall short of Fuentes’ level, it just goes to show how much work Julio has been putting in.

The World Warrior

I don’t think that the difference in performance is down to the amount of events Fuentes has played in. The amount is, realistically, negligible between himself, Tatarian, and Franks. Where we see the main difference is location, Fuentes has traveled, where the rest of the Trinity hasn’t.

Chris Tatarian only really began traveling outside of the West Coast in the approach to Evo 2016. His first tournament outside of that region was Final Round, but he waited until CEO to get outside of the area again. Brenttiscool has only five tournaments outside of the same region.

Had they had the same sponsorship and travel opportunities that Julio has had this season, the standings could have looked different this year. The fact here however, is that Fuentes has had more chances to travel outside of California, and this has helped elevate his game by playing against competitors that Chris Tatarian and brenttiscool simply have not had as much access to. Once you reach a certain plateau in your region, you simply need that access to get any better. Echo Fox’s sponsorship granted Fuentes that opportunity and he is capitalizing on it.

The Japan Factor

The biggest issue with a tournament like Capcom Cup, and any international event to be honest, is keeping up with Asia–and Japan in particular. Can X player from the West beat Y player from Asia?

Usually, the answer has unequivocally been “no.” But with sponsorship opportunities growing for fighting game players in the West, the chances to play high-level players from Asia has been growing, and Julio is no exception.

Although he placed 25th at Japan Cup, Fuentes went to Japan with the intention of staying after the event to train. But how has he done since getting this training?

It’s hard to speculate, as at Red Bull Battlegrounds Fuentes lost to RB from Taiwan to miss the top 8 of the event. He also found himself out of ESL’s Brooklyn Beatdown when he fell to Haitani. SoCal Regionals didn’t even see him make it far enough to face any Japanese or Asian talent, but Julio was eliminated from The Fall Classic by John Takeuchi.

He is on the right track by training against high-level players. He is on the right track by traveling and getting experience against the rest of the field. But it does not seem that he is at the level where he is going to be running through a field populated by Asia’s best just yet.

Final Thoughts

Julio is on the ride of his life this year. He is definitely the best Ken in North America by a long shot. But is he best Ken in the world? Sadly, probably not–that title would likely go to Momochi at this point.

He is working hard and is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the coming years, if he continues to improve. But I look for him to go 1-2 at Capcom Cup at best, two and out at worst.