Author: Sam "Trilby" Foxall

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Get an extended look at Firestorm in this introductory Injustice 2 trailer

While we got a brief glimpse of the fiery hero Firestorm during his reveal over on UpUpDownDown, NetherRealm Studios have now released a proper introductory trailer for this atom-smashing fighter. While first impressions made it seem like this Firestorm was Jax Jefferson, he is actually based off the second Firestorm from the comics: Jason Rusch, fused with the scientist Martin Stein.

This trailer gives us a better look at Firestorm’s long range fighting style, using various flame blasts and fireballs to keep his opponent at range. One of his moves binds opponents to the floor with red hot magma, where Firestorm can then pop them up in the air for a lengthened juggle, or teleport behind to start a grounded combo. NetherRealm seem to have been taking some inspiration from Killer Instinct, as Firestorm’s aerial dash is similar to Cinder’s Trailblazer, while his triple flame beam functions a lot like Kilgore’s Chain Gun Barrage.

We also get a glimpse of a new Batcave stage in the trailer, with one of the screen transitions having players knocked into a Gotham City sewer where they are set upon by one angry Killer Croc (I guess that rules him out as a playable character). Green Arrow also makes a brief appearance at the very beginning of the trailer, before being quickly lit on fire.

Source: Injustice

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HitBox Dustin runs through how to perform a myriad of Super Smash Bros. Melee tech with the Smash Box

With the Smash Box currently in its crowdfunding phase, HitBox Dustin has prepared a series of videos showing players how to perform everything from short hops to Shino stalls with the new Smash Box controller. As there is quite a difference to controlling Melee with the Smash Box compared to the GameCube controller, these 30 second guides should get you up to speed if you’re thinking of trying a Smash Box.

The guides start off simple, walking through basic techniques like walking, shielding and wavedashing before building up to more technical maneuvers like pivot up-tilts, shield dropping and utilizing simultaneous cardinal directions (SOCDs). You can find all the videos compiled in the playlist below and you may want to keep it to hand–should the Smash Box be successful on Kickstarter.

Source: HitBox Dustin

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Ryuji Yamazaki throws down as the second DLC character for The King of Fighters XIV

Following the announcement of Whip earlier this month, Atlus and SNK have now revealed that psychopathic gangster Ryuji Yamazaki will be joining The King of Fighters XIV as its second DLC character. First introduced in Fatal Fury 3, Yamazaki fights like a man possessed: using his self-taught fighting style, elongated arms, and explosive headbutts to dominate his opponent.

As someone with no restraint, Yamazaki’s supers are quite unhinged to say the least. One of them has him picking up random objects from the stage scenery–including giant fake sharks–and belting his opponent over the head with them. Combine that with his blood-based projectiles, and you have one crazy fighter. With Whip becoming available April 5th, Yamazaki shouldn’t be that far behind–along with the next DLC fighter for SNK’s fighting franchise.

Source: AtlusUSA

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The Umebura TO team release details on the upcoming Umebura Japan Major for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

With Japan’s Smash 4 skill level growing ever higher, the TO team behind the Umebura series have just announced the Umebura Japan Major, running from May 6th-7th. Based in Ota City in Tokyo, this Smash 4 major will have both doubles and singles events, with a participant cap of around 670 people.

Do not fret English-speaking Smash 4 fans, as Umebura Major will be streamed in English by the crew over at MVG League. With the recent release of the Smash 4 Japan Rankings which placed Kanto at the top of the table, expect players from rival regions descending on Tokyo to strike back against the top dogs.

Sources: Umebura; MVG|Vayseth

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Street Fighter V returns to SXSW Gaming with Fighters Underground from March 16th-18th

Repeating the tradition of fighting games having pride of place at SXSW, SXSW Gaming has announced that Street Fighter V will be taking center stage with Fighters Underground. This invitational will see some of the top threats in Street Fighter V battling it out for a stake in a giant $20,000 prize pot. The players invited to compete at Fighters Underground are:

  • Echo Fox|Momochi
  • ZOWIE|Gamerbee
  • Splyce|Filipino Champ
  • Echo Fox|Justin Wong
  • EG|Ricki Ortiz
  • Liquid|NuckleDu
  • RB.CYG BST|Snake Eyez
  • Red Bull|Luffy
  • EG|K-Brad
  • BX3|Phenom
  • PG|Punk
  • Smug
  • DNL|Chris Tatarian
  • Danke
  • RB
  • FourWude

To commentate all of these top matches, Fighters Underground will have the likes of F-Word, Logan Sama, IFC Yipes, James Chen, and Ultradavid on the mic throughout the weekend. It’s set to be quite the invitational, so make sure to tune in via the SXSWGaming Twitch channel if you cannot make it to Austin, Texas this weekend.

Source: SXSWGaming

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Firestorm lights it up in Injustice 2

Revealed by Xavier Woods and his buddies over on his YouTube channel UpUpDownDown, the hothead atomic manipulator Firestorm will be joining the Injustice 2 roster. NetherRealm have chosen the second Firestorm, Jax Jackson, to hold the torch for this iteration–which is no doubt building off the character’s appearance in the DC TV shows The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow.

As a long-range fighter, Firestorm uses fireballs and other flaming projectiles to keep opponents out while he jets around the screen using his flame powers. His character trait is his nuclear level, where Firestorm can augment his powers, turning the fires on his body bright blue. It is uncertain if these blue flames are just a damage buff, or whether they drastically change his specials.

The gameplay footage is fairly short, but you can find it timestamped in the video below. Make sure to watch the full studio tour, as Woods has a brief chat with Ed Boon before showing off the flaming superhero.

Source: UpUpDownDown

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Japan experiences quite the shake-up, as a new version of its Super Smash Bros. for Wii U Ranking releases

A year has passed since the country’s last rankings came out and it’s fair to say the ranks have shuffled about a bit. With more Japanese players traveling overseas, character specialists further innovating with their mains and the overall standard of Japanese play going up, this year’s ranking has changed significantly.

This new king is now KEN, with his Sonic racking up wins at tournaments like SGC, Umebura 22 and Umebura S.A.T, while turning up as the highest placing Japanese player at events like Tokaigi 2017 and Umebura Tokaigi Qualifier. He takes the crown off of fellow Sonic player 2GG|komorikiri, who has dropped down to second place.

Other players who have seen a rise up the leaderboards are Bayonetta main ikep, the Lucario wonder Tsu and Falcon main Pichi, while member of the Duck Hunt triumvirate You3 has leapt up a whopping 23 places on this ranking. The only brand new entry on this ranking is Kirihara, who got upgraded from hidden boss status, to eighth on this year’s ranking.

Just looking at the regional breakdown, Japan’s two main warring states are Kansai and Kanto who have a bitter rivalry that extends way past Smash. Kanto is currently up in the ranking, with 10 players as opposed to Kansai’s eight, so expect fierce clashes at future tournaments, both home and away. You can check out the entire top 200 player breakdown over on the official SSB4 Player Rankings site.

Source: harukisb

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Iron Galaxy release notes for patch 3.7 of Killer Instinct

As promised during last night’s Killer Instinct presentation at the Killer Instinct World Cup, we finally have the balance notes for the upcoming 3.7 patch for KI. The biggest recipient of changes in this patch is Jago, who has been thoroughly hit with the nerf bat, with Glacius getting frame data improvements, General RAAM getting a well-needed buff, Ultratech debugging Kilgore’s programming among other changes.

Jago is considered by many to be the best character in Killer Instinct, with the patch notes even conceding that he “doesn’t really struggle at any range or with any matchup.” While having a powerful defensive kit, Jago could close gaps and deal damage up close without any real trouble, making him a jack of all trades and a master of many.

As such, the balance team have set about rebalancing Jago to preserve his defensive options, while making his close combat and gap closing tools that bit worse. This has involved making all of his Windkicks worse on block, reducing the range on Neck Cutter and lowering his standard Endokuken damage by 20% and his charged Endokuken damage by 10%. Jago will probably still be top five following this patch, but he should be less ridiculous both far away and up close.

Looking at the rest of the cast, Glacius received frame data improvements on Ice Lance, both standing heavy kick and heavy punch, alongside crouching heavy kick. General RAAM’s Kryll Cancel now only takes a half a meter, meaning he can deal with some offensive matchups and Kilgore’s potential damage output has been reduced by roughly 60%. There are a ton of other changes to characters like Kan-Ra and Maya, along with a whole host of bug fixes which can be found over on Ultra Combo.

Source: Ultra Combo

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Avoid KOing your hands and wrists with these special stretches from Dr Levi Harrison

With many people starting to make a career out of competition, an often overlooked aspect is a player’s hand and wrist health. Especially for Super Smash Bros. Melee players, many at the top level complain about chronic wrist and hand pain, brought on by years of competition by playing with the Gamecube controller. This problem has become so acute, that you have products like the Hitbox and the recently announced B0XX which are being partially marketed as controllers to alleviate this health issues.

Well, in order to stop the problem at its source, the self styled espots and gaming doctor Dr Levi Harrison has collected some stretches that players can do to help stop any potential hand or wrist pain. Whether you are a professional fighting game player, a casual tournament goer or someone who just plays games a lot, these stretches are worth trying if you are experiencing any discomfort while playing for extended periods.

Source: Dr Levi Harrison

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ZeRo puts forward his case for why Lucas is stronger than Ness in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

For the longest time, many have rated Ness as better than Lucas in the Super Smash Bros. for Wii U tier list. With top representatives like FOW, the best back throw in the game and great combos off of grab, many considered the original psychic child to be the better Earthbound character.

However, with the steady decline of Ness mains and the growing number of Lucas mains, opinion is starting to shift in Lucas’ favor. In his latest character analysis video, TSM|ZeRo seems to agree with this, stating that Lucas has better recovery options compared to Ness, a better grab game due to his footstool combos off of down throw and a better neutral game, thanks to his zair and PK Fire.

ZeRo also feels that Lucas has more potential to grow as a fighter–thanks to his amazing grab game–while Ness’ simplicity will ultimately limit his further development as a viable character

Source: ZeRo