Author: Lance "Tarnot" Hood

Frame data is one of the more difficult concepts to grasp when first entering the world of fighting games. All of those numbers can be (understandably) daunting when early goals often surround chucking fireballs. Even so, learning the numbers behind everything can change the way you look at the game for the better. In an effort to help ease new players into the digits ticking behind the scenes, LaSwagga put together a tutorial discussing some of the most important situations where frame data comes into play.

A slew of moves in Street Fighter V place their users in either a +2 or -2 situation. These situations never last long, so being able to recognize when you control this slight advantage can allow you to continue pressing said advantage. This gets into the idea of taking turns, a topic Floe discussed at length not long ago.

Additionally, the video covers how V-Reversals play into these situations and also offers a brief look at some okizeme options.

Source: LaSwagga, with a tip from MrAnnual

The safe application of pressure is a common tactic in every fighting game, but sometimes it’s fun–and productive–to toss in some unsafe moves to mix things up, perhaps resulting in a hit, perhaps resulting in an opponent so confused that they don’t bother attempting a punish.

Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- is loaded with unsafe blockstrings as well as other unsafe pressure situations, and Sway, along with a contingent of top Guilty Gear players, combined their efforts to construct a video demonstrating twenty of these situations that often go unpunished. Since this footage comes from REVELATOR, you’ll get to see a handful of examples from newcomers like Johnny and Jam Kuradoberi, as well as returning cast members.

Source: Sway

On the same day as her release, Sajam prepared a complete breakdown of Mira’s basics to get everyone started. As with previous videos of this style, Sajam offers a look at Mira’s notable normals, her special moves, how she goes about constructing combos, and, unique to Mira, he discusses how to recover the health lost from performing her strong attacks and mobility options.

Since Mira’s tools favor mixing up opponents, we’ve also included a short clip to offer some ideas on how she may go about cracking tough defenses. Mira’s Mist Form resets her ability to air dash–allowing her to air dash, Mist Form, air dash again without using Instinct Mode–but it can also be used directly following any connected button to provide her with mobility for mixups or escaping.

In this clip, Mira uses a mixture Mist Form and air dashing to create ambiguous cross-ups. She can pick the side of her strike by instantly air dashing at the apex of Mist Form to cross her opponent up, or by slightly delaying the dash to stay on the same side. This is far from the only way to combine these abilities; try canceling aerial normals into Mist Form to go for a second jump-in attempt, or to cross through opponents and go for a low. Add in Blood Seekers or Instinct Mode, and things can get out of hand pretty quickly.

Source: Sajam

Wednesday Night Fights returns to the eSports Arena in Santa Ana, California tonight for the third in their current run of off-season events. Tonight, Street Fighter V and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 serve as the main sources of competition. Attendees can also expect competition in a variety of other titles.

You can catch all the action by tuning into the live streams below or heading on over to their respective Twitch channels.

Watch live video from leveluplive on www.twitch.tv
Watch live video from NickTanella on www.twitch.tv
Watch live video from Kevin_Ha on www.twitch.tv

Sources: Level|Up Series, Level|Up Live, Nick Tanella, Kevin Ha

This year’s Red Bull Kumite brought together some of the most talented Street Fighter V players on the planet, but top-level fighting of the standard variety wasn’t the only battle that went down, as the France-based event also hosted a combo contest.

This contest consisted of players competing to wow judges with their chosen characters by stringing together hits in the flashiest way possible. The combos fell under the judgment of a panel of four players–EG|Justin Wong, RZR|Infiltration, RZR|Xian, RB|Bonchan–and one Yoshinori Ono. F.A.N.G, Laura, Chun-Li, and Alex all made a showing, and some of the combos (resets included) did more than impress the judges and commentators, often drawing explosive reactions from audience members as well.

Perhaps this excitement comes from seeing folks perform combos that would never appear in a proper match while under pressure; perhaps this excitement also hints at interest in similar events moving forward.

What do you think? Would you like to see more side events like this, or would you rather tournaments remain strictly business, sticking only to brackets? Let us know in the comments.

Source: Versus FightingTV with a tip from OnoFighta

This week’s installment of Next Level Battle Circuit is now streaming live courtesy of Team Spooky. As usual, the event is being broadcast from its namesake, Next Level Arcade, in New York City. Tonight, they’ll be showcasing competition in Street Fighter V.

If you would like to check out these weekly tournaments, you can head on over to Next Level Arcade and take part every Wednesday. The address has been included below.

4013 8th Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11232

The stream is currently live below, but you can also visit Twitch to join the chat. Full brackets will be made available through Challonge.

Watch live video from TeamSp00ky on www.twitch.tv

Sources: Team Spooky

The folks over at VGBootCamp recently went live with another installment of Smash @ Xanadu from Xanadu Games in Baltimore, Maryland. These weekly broadcasts provide a great look at the region’s Smash community, and tonight’s installment will feature competition in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

If you’re interested in some Smash Bros. action, be sure to tune in. The stream is live below, but you can also head on over to Twitch to join the chat.

Watch live video from VGBootCamp on www.twitch.tv

Source: VGBootCamp

It seems that Momochi of Evil Geniuses has increased the pace at which he spreads his Street Fighter V character knowledge. It was just yesterday that we featured his tips for improved Vega play, and he has already uploaded his next guide, this time focusing on Rainbow Mika.

A discussion about Mika just wouldn’t be complete without a nod to how decidedly weak (most of) her buttons are. Sure, she can create favorable situations with a charged roundhouse, and can cover some ground using toward in conjunction with her medium kick, but her options when she’s not within grab range aren’t exactly extensive.

Momochi spends plenty of time talking about how to use the tools the wrestler does have to cover for those she doesn’t. Of course, this means he dedicates a good chunk of the video to mixups both in and out of the corner.

With Karin standing in as Mika’s punching bag, we can likely expect to see the heiress featured in Momochi’s next tutorial.

Source: Momochi & ChocoBlanka TV