Dead or Alive 5 Last Round’s cast has grown yet again with the release of Samurai Warriors representative Naotora Ii, who is now available for download on consoles.
To help celebrate her launch, Team NINJA shared a couple of new videos. The first is a debut trailer showing quick clips of the newcomer in action.
The second video, however, is a little more interesting, as it highlights a number combos at Naotora’s disposal, complete with notation. While damage isn’t shown, most of the combos in the video demonstrate a decent ability to carry her opponents to the wall.
In addition to another character, this update also adds a new stage (Azuchi from Dead or Alive 3) and a batch of costumes based on the Samurai Warriors franchise. Naotora herself has five costumes available for purchase.
Naotora Ii is up for purchase on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and will arrive on PC via Steam on March 29.
In their most recent trailer, SNK Playmore revealed a King of Fighters XIV newcomer named Sylvie, and now we have some new details on her unique style, background, and more.
The first thing most people noticed about Sylvie is her eclectic look, drawing comparisons to Japanese pop idol Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, herself known for a similarly outrageous style inspired by fashions from Tokyo’s Harajuku neighborhood. Even her full name, Sylvie Paula Paula, seems to be an homage to Kyary.
As for her backstory, Sylvie was actually former member of the now defunct NESTS cartel, who acted as the main antagonists for the second story arc told in the period between King of Fighters ’99 and 2001. The reason we never saw her is because, apparently, her powers developed only after the organization fell. She’s been invited to participate in the King of Fighters XIV tournament after being noticed in underground fights.
But it’s not all about Sylvie. Kim Kaphwan’s motivations now revolve around simply proving the strength of his Taekwondo instead of the whole “reforming criminals” beat from previous games. As for Vice, her exact reasons for once again manifesting in the world of the living have not been explained.
Finally, two more stages were also unveiled. The first, Navajoland, is set near a highway truck stop, and was designed to resemble something out of a 1980s road trip movie. It also serves as the home stage of the Fatal Fury team, a fitting tribute to a similar stage from Real Bout Fatal Fury 2.
The second new stage is called Masquerade and represents the underground fighting ring Sylvie continues to call home.
Larry “ShinBlanka” Dixon and the Final Round crew are putting on another show in one of the biggest and longest-running tournament series in the US. The 19th edition of Final Round will be going down this weekend in Atlanta, Georgia at the Hilton Atlanta Airport hotel. Of note, FR19 is the first premier event of the 2016 Street Fighter V Capcom Pro Tour, with over 900 entrants at the time of pre-registration. In addition to SFV are a healthy helping of other fighting game titles:
Official Tournament Line-up
Dead or Alive 5 Last Round
Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-
Killer Instinct
Mortal Kombat X
SoulCalibur V
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
Street Fighter V
Tekken Tag Tournament 2
Tekken 7
Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
Ultra Street Fighter IV
Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late
In addition are a number of set-ups and side events for others titles like Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code, and the spanking new Wii U release of Pokkén Tournament.
A number of streams will be covering the action live from the Hilton. Thanks to Capcom Fighters, Team Spooky, FunkyP, Kombat Network, Smash Studios, Sixfortyfive and Arturo Sanchez.
UltraChen TV is back with a special Thursday night edition of First attaack, and James Chen is ready to drop some knowledge on those who tune in to the broadcast. Tonight’s episode will focus on figuring out good buttons for the various situations fighting games throw at you.
The stream will be live in this article if you want to learn more about this topic, but you can also visit Twitch to join the chat.
If you’re fiending for a Street Fight V tech fix, we’ve got just the thing you need in today’s community roundup!
We get things started with the first two parts of the newest episode of Shadowloo Bootcamp. Today’s footage is a little different than what we’re used to seeing from the series, as F.A.N.G has become the point of focus rather than M. Bison. Of course, if the Lair of the Four Kings has taught us anything, it’s that a sole king can’t run an organization as massive as Shadowloo, so the bootcamp was bound to have more than one star.
Host Ricardo “Mono” Roman spends these videos discussing the intricacies of spreading F.A.N.G’s poisonous influence through a vast array of combo options. And yes, Mono is totally rocking an appropriate Spy vs. Spy-style hat in the video, just like F.A.N.G.
But Mono didn’t stop there. In this next video, which highlights M. Bison’s frame trap potential, Mono reminds viewers why Bison is the man in charge.
With Chun-Li tiding me over until Ibuki makes her way on to the scene later this year (I told myself I could work that in), it pains me to present the following video from KSabot. Instant air Lighting Legs are a potent offensive tool, but they aren’t a perfect offensive tool. In this footage, you’ll learn how every character can use their own abilities to put a stop to this popular tactic. Be sure to check out the video’s annotations and description as well, as they’re loaded with relevant information.
This next clip, from HeyTaaj, demonstrates an ambiguous cross-under option R. Mika’s s.HP can afford her against cornered opponents. It’s not that R. Mika needs more options in the corner, it’s just that folks keep finding new ways to bully those who step into the ring against her. I’m frankly terrified.
What is gravity, anyway? Whatever it is, F.A.N.G sure doesn’t seem to be bothered by it. Check out this next quick clip from primou for a demonstration of the glitch that has shown us the second in command’s refusal to follow the laws of physics.
If you’re a Zangief player looking for some ways to apply your V-Skill and V-Trigger in a match, you’re certain to enjoy this first video from THE COOL KID93. That isn’t their only new bit of footage, though, as they’ve also sent in a reel filled with aerial Spinning Pile Drivers. We’ve included it below, too; these are just satisfying to watch.
We’ve all had plenty of time to fight Birdie, so we know the sorts of things to expect when facing the gluttonous punk rocker, but have we had a chance to fight a Birdie like Nutrient? In this next reel–a fairly long collection of footage, honestly–Nutrient highlights some of the matches they’ve fought near the top of the ladder.
We close things out today with a collection of new combo videos from evilhoshi. These videos are aimed at those looking to get started on the path to mastering a new character, so you’ll not find anything overly technical. What you will find is a great starting point for Rashid, Vega and Dhalsim.
Got some Street Fighter V tactics you’d like to share? Send them our way! They could be included in our next Street Fighter V community roundup!
In a new article for Ars Technica UK, Ryan Hart of Falcon Arena spends time discussing the topic on everyone’s tongues: the good Street Fighter V is doing–and will continue to do–for the community, in spite of the game’s shortcomings. As a long-time competitive player, Hart has a real stake in the success of Street Fighter V, and has more than enough experience with the series to discuss this topic at length.
He begins with a breakdown of the Street Fighter franchise’s evolution since it first hit arcades equipped with pressure-sensing pads up through Capcom’s current offering. On top of discussing why Street Fighter V’s vast differences from its predecessor are a good thing, Hart also brings up the fact that this new game offers an excellent opportunity for those looking to take an active role in the fighting game community outside of direct tournament participation. Hart notes that “[t]here are the YouTubers, website creators, moderators, book publishers, cosplayers, and mobile app creators who all also contribute to the Street Fighter community.”
This line of thought resonates when bumped up against something like our Street Fighter V roundups. The goals of any given roundup are fairly simple: provide veteran players with high-level tricks they may not have seen, help new players ease into the game with some basics, and draw in as many new content makers as possible to share their work with the wider community.
The first two goals beg little explanation. We want to provide our readers with the best, most current information to help the community grow as a whole, but consider that content creators, as Hart mentions, have been given a time to shine in this early period of the game’s existence as well.
Back in 2012, directly following Street Fighter x Tekken’s release, I set up a five foot pile of books, grabbed a roll of scotch tape, dangled my cell phone from the stack with its camera facing the TV, and used it to record some hilariously low-quality footage of what I thought at the time to be completely and totally revolutionary Ibuki anti-air combos. To my surprise, that footage made its way into an EventHubs roundup. Looking back at the video now, I see that anyone with any experience with the genre could have figured out those tactics in about five grueling minutes. My video didn’t save any experienced players any time, nor did it revolutionize the protection of Japanese skies. Did it help some Ibuki players less experienced than myself? Maybe. But it being featured in a roundup did something for me personally that the video itself couldn’t have done for anyone: made me feel like a part of the fighting game community, small though my role obviously was.
With that in mind, those creating today’s basic Street Fighter V combo videos may need little more than the acknowledgement that, yes, we do want more content creators to get them to make that second video. The next UltraChen TV, Maximilian, Cross Counter, or something new altogether could get its start from something so simple as footage revealing the secrets behind landing Ryu’s Critical Art.
And it’s not that we need to get rid of those mainstays–far from it–but, if things go to plan, Street Fighter V will continue to expand the fighting game community’s spotlight for years to come, and such an expansion leaves plenty of room for new folks to come in and show us their talent, be it in tournament rankings or YouTube channel views.
If you’d like to check out Ryan Hart’s opinions in full, be sure to head over to Ars Technica UK by following the link below.
Plenty of modern games sporting robust online functionality incorporate seasonal themes, but such themes rarely draw inspiration from the holiday celebrating Ireland’s most beloved patron saint. The folks at NetherRealm Studios have decided to pay their homage to that holiday with their new Look Out Leprechauns tower.
All the cliches are here. It’s got green beer. It’s got a shaky camera to represent the effects of imbibing too many spirits. It’s got damaging green rain, and leprechauns that assault the stage, exploding into rainbows and golden coins. Beautiful.
Upon completing the tower, players will be rewarded with special emblems, banners, and a four-leaf clover icon. Fortunately, those looking to complete their collections need not forego their own green alcohol consumption tonight, nor worry about tomorrow’s hangover, as the tower will be available all weekend.
The folks at Arc System Works just announced that BlazBlue: Central Fiction will be receiving an ‘Act3’ update later this month. This reveal comes in the form of a new trailer, which you’ll find below.
Back in January, Act2 expanded on Central Fiction’s story mode while also providing access to a new character, Hades Izanami.
Based on the trailer above, it appears as though Act3 delves solely into the further development of single-player content, and does not, sadly, add access to any new fighters. This new content comes in the form of updated arcade mode story as well as the implementation of Alliance Mode, which sees players lead a team of four characters. Players pit their team against other four-character teams, and can then trade their own team members with those of teams they’ve defeated in an effort to increase their own team’s strength moving forward.
BlazBlue: Central Fiction ‘Act3’ will launch on March 31.
After holding qualifying tournaments across the country, Nintendo has gathered together a great collection of players to take part in the early access Pokkén Tournament finals. These competitors have been trained by some of the best in the business (including Evil Geniuses’ Justin Wong, Panda Global’s Rip, NYC Fab, and Tasty Steve), but will that be enough to earn them a victory?
Apart from the glory of winning, first-place finishers will also earn travel to Nationals to continue their journey through in the Pokkén Tournament Championship Series.
The official stream has been included below; be sure to tune in and root for these early competitors!
The Daily Dot’s Best of III has returned once again with another episode of their fighting game community talk show. This time around, they invited two special guests from different ends of the scene.
First up is Larry “Shin Blanka” Dixon, who most will know as the organizer behind Final Round. Naturally, they discuss this weekend’s installment, but they also touch on the event’s status as the first Capcom Pro Tour premier event, issues that tournament organizers face, and more.
On the opposite end, Best of III talks to one of the community’s most dominant competitors, Razer’s Seon-woo “Infiltration” Lee. Here, Infiltration talks about his fighting game career and how it changed after being picked up by a major sponsors, as well as his thoughts on Street Fighter V when compared to previous beta builds.
