Killer Instinct Devs Share Details on Shadow Jago’s Continued Development

Ever since being released as an alternate skin for Jago, Killer Instinct fans have clamored to see Shadow Jago become his own unique character. They were satiated for a bit thanks to the season two appearance of Omen, the spirit who haunts the series protagonist, but the question still remained: what’s going on with Shadow Jago?

Things got interesting with the start of the Killer Instinct Community Fund earlier this year. While it proved an excellent way for folks to help support major fighting game tournaments and get a little something in return, the final reward was what they had all been waiting for. The developers promised to officially add Shadow Jago to the playable cast should the campaign reach its $100,000 goal, and the community responded by hitting that mark in just three days.

After informing players of their progress on Shadow Jago back at Evo 2015, Iron Galaxy Studios’ lead combat designer Adam “Keits” Heart took to Ultra-Combo to provide even more details on this upcoming character.

From the looks of things, Shadow Jago is shaping up to be a quicker version of his regular counterpart, with a higher walkspeed to complement the commitment of his lengthy forward and back dashes. His slowest fireball is the same speed as the regular Jago’s fastest, and the Shadow version fires a barrage of plasma instead of a single, large projectile.

One of the main ways the developers seem to be setting these two characters apart is sword usage. While Jago utilizes the weapon in a number of attacks, Shadow Jago takes that to another level. His crouching heavy punch, for example, has had its reach increased to make it a more reliable poking tool, and his normal throw automatically transitions to the Laser Blade ender for more juggle opportunities. Even his uppercut has been changed from a simple dragon punch to a deadly blade swipe, as seen in the comparison images below.

ki-xb1-shadowjago-uppercut

The most unique aspect of Shadow Jago’s gameplay, however, is definitely his Instinct mode. Shadow Symbiosis grants the dark character additional frame advantage on his moves like Jago’s Tiger Fury, but the similarities end there. While in Instinct mode, hitting the opponent with an Endokuken or dashing through them will attach the Dark Tether, which comes with its own set of upgrades.

When the Dark Tether is active, Shadow Jago fuels his Shadow and Surge moves with the opponent’s meter, using only half of his own and stealing the rest. He will also gain access to a unique taunt that instantly grants both players a full bar of meter. A risky proposition, sure, but when you have two resource pools to work from instead of one, why not?

Oh, and before the cries of, “Overpowered!” ring out, know that a single hit will detach the Dark Tether, so smack Shadow Jago up quickly before he turns the tides.

All in all, Shadow Jago sounds like an incredibly fun addition to the Killer Instinct roster. He will be available sometime before the end of the year. For more gameplay details, be sure to check out Heart’s full write-up by following the link below.

Source: Ultra-Combo

Unleash Your Lightning Legs with These Tips for the Chun-Li vs. El Fuerte Matchup in Ultra Street Fighter IV

Battling El Fuerte can be one of the more frustrating things in Ultra Street Fighter IV. Thanks to his speed, ambiguous angles of attack, mix-up options, and that goofy chef hat that he occasionally decides to wear to the fight, he’s usually got just the right tool to knock you off your guard.

If you happen to be a Chun-Li player, Spab Rog’s latest guide to putting a stop to Fuerte offers the insight you’ll need to make the matchup much less of a struggle. Spad offers punish options for some of the suplexing chef’s more common attacks, ways to apply the Kikosho Ultra, and some creative opportunities for Chun-Li’s normals, specials, and focus attack to favorably alter her hurtbox and avoid damage.

Source: Spab Rog

Escape Lucario’s Shieldlock in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

If you’ve had the distinct displeasure of stepping up against an in-the-know Lucario player since yesterday’s update to Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, you’ve probably suffered some frustrating shieldlock situations. Thanks to the increase in shield stun generated by all attacks, the Pokémon can trap shielded opponents at the edge of a stage (or any platform) with his neutral special until their shield shatters.

Veterans of the Smash series likely figured out the best way around this tactic after falling for it once, assuming they fell for it at all. But for those with less experience, the Beefy Smash Doods put together a quick video detailing how to deal with this unique situation.

By using Smash Directional Influence to first ease Lucario away from the stage, then performing SDI in the opposite direction to actually remove themselves from the attack’s hitbox, players are free to live another day, and possibly get the drop on that dastardly Lucario.

Source: Beefy Smash Doods

D-Link Sponsors Steve “LordKnight” Barthelemy

If there’s one name that tends to stand out in the United States’ airdasher scene, it’s Team Spooky’s Steve Barthelemy, more commonly known as LordKnight. Barthelemy has been at the forefront of many of these “anime” games for some time, proving himself as one of the best American players in Melty Blood, BlazBlue, Persona, and Guilty Gear.

It’s no surprise then that Barthelemy has found himself a sponsor in D-Link, a Taiwan-based corporation that focuses on the production of networking equipment. While the details of his signing haven’t been made public, they will be providing him with hardware for online gaming and broadcasting.

This sponsorship represents the first time that D-Link has supported a competitive gamer, though they have made themselves available as event sponsors in the past.

Our community typically only sees these kinds of signings happen in the world of Street Fighter and Smash, so it’s great that things are starting to spread to the realm of airdashers. Let’s hope this relationship proves fruitful and leads to more like it in the future.

Source: D-Link via IPLAYWINNER, image courtesy of FGC: Rise of the Fighting Game Community

[UPDATE] Zangief Returns in Street Fighter V

UPDATE (8:01 PM PDT) – Well, there you have it; Zangief is back. Check out his official reveal below.

Though all eyes have been on Electronic Game Show due to Capcom’s Yoshinori Ono current trip to Mexico, it appears as if we should actually be paying more attention to goings-on in Russia instead.

According to IgroMir Expo 2015’s official schedule, an exclusive Street Fighter V character reveal is coming tomorrow courtesy of PlayStation, who will have a presence in Moscow during the large-scale convention.

As we’ve seen with Capcom’s recent reveals of Rashid and Karin, and their upcoming visit to Brazil Game Show, the developers have been saving certain characters for conventions in their respective homelands. Pairing this knowledge with the possible nods to Zangief in Ono’s latest teasers, it’s entirely possible we’ll see the veteran grappler join the Street Fighter V cast.

The presentation in question is scheduled for Friday, October 2, at 12 PM MSK (2 AM PDT, 5 AM EDT). It’s unclear whether an official broadcast will be provided or not, so stay tuned for more details.

Source: IgroMir via NeoGAF

Move Aside, Diddy! Smashified Brings Dixie Kong to Life

It may not be common knowledge, but Donkey Kong Country 2 protagonist Dixie Kong was apparently slated to appear in Super Smash Bros. Brawl alongside her significant other Diddy Kong. Instead of separate characters, they would work as a pair, similar to the way Pokémon Trainer was able to switch between three fighters during battle.

Unfortunately, the young chimpanzee was scrapped, relegated to a Smash career as a trophy and alternate color.

Similar to past videos, the Smashified crew has taken it upon themselves to imagine what she may look like in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Taking cues from her previous appearances and Diddy’s own transition to the latest iteration, they ended up with a pretty good representation for the fan favorite.

If you’re not a fan of the commentary, you’ll find a conversation-free version of the above video here.

Source: Artsy Omni

Churning the Butter #50 feat. Ultra Street Fighter IV Streaming Live from San Francisco, California

The folks behind Churning the Butter have just gone live with a special Wednesday installment of their weekly tournament series, once again taking over Folsom Street Foundry in San Francisco, California to host Ultra Street Fighter IV for local players.

Some of the competitors you can expect to see tonight include EG|Ricki Ortiz, pH|LPN, Julio, DM|El Cubano Loco, and more.

If you’re interested in seeing what the NorCal cats have up their sleeves, be sure to check out the stream below and show your support. You can also head on over to Twitch if you prefer to chat.

Watch live video from showdowngg on www.twitch.tv

Want to check these tournaments out for yourself? Well, you’re in luck, because even if you missed out this week, Churning the Butter is held every Thursday at 8:30 PM PDT during ShowDown’s game night at Folsom Street Foundry.

Source: ShowDown

Expand Your Xbox Library with These NetherRealm Sales

While fighting games are always going on sale on platforms like PlayStation Network and Steam, folks who stick to Xbox Live have been getting the short end of the stick as of late. To remedy that, they are currently running a promotion for a variety of Warner Bros. titles, which of course means you should be ready for a ton of Mortal Kombat with a little DC Comics on the side.

As usual, you’ll save a tiny bit more if you have an active Xbox Live Gold subscription. We’ve gone ahead and compiled all the sales in the table below, so check it out and see if there’s anything you’re interested in.

Title Platform Gold Price Sale Price Regular Price
Mortal Kombat X Premium Edition XB1 $62.99  $71.99  $89.99
Mortal Kombat X Kombat Pack XB1 $20.99  $23.99  $29.99
Injustice: Gods Among Us 360 $6.59  $7.99  $19.99
Mortal Kombat 360 $6.59  $7.99  $14.99
Mortal Kombat Season Pass 360 $7.49  $8.99  $19.99
Mortal Kombat Arcade Kollection 360 $4.99  $5.99  $9.99
Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe 360 $6.59  $7.99  $19.99

This promotion is scheduled to last until October 5, so take advantage soon.

Sources: Major Nelson, xbldb

Next Level Battle Circuit #140 feat. Ultra Street Fighter IV Streaming Live

This week’s installment of Next Level Battle Circuit is now streaming live courtesy of Team Spooky’s Arturo Sanchez. As usual, the event is being broadcast from its namesake, Next Level Arcade, in New York City. Tonight, they’ll be running Ultra Street Fighter IV and Mortal Kombat X, featuring some of the best players on the east coast.

If you would like to check out these weekly tournaments, be sure to 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 nycfurby on www.twitch.tv

Sources: Arturo Sanchez

Make Use of Overdrive Startup Properties for Half the Meter in Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-

Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-‘s Yellow Roman Cancel system has been the source of more than a few useful strategies in the game. Previously, players were able to use it to set up an option select against Dead Angle attacks as long as they had 25-49% tension. Now, another trick has been discovered that lets players use it to gain invulnerable frames.

According to eSports Runner and GREATFERNMAN, all characters in Guilty Gear Xrd can YRC the startup frames of their Overdrive moves. In doing so, they cancel the Overdrive before it consumes their tension gauge while at the same time retaining whatever properties the startup of the Overdrive had, such as first frame invulnerability, before the YRC activates. This allows players new options in certain situations and only costs 25% meter.

This technique exists in both Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- as well as in the newly released Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-. In the latter, it also allows players to YRC out of Burst Overdrives without consuming their Burst meter.

Sources: eSports Runner, GREATFERNMAN via IPLAYWINNER