WMS3 (IA Monthly), Cedar Rapids, IA, 2/20/11-Full Results

Tekken 6 Singles


1. jannakazama (Drag)
2. O.M.A.C. (Feng, Yoshi)
3. Keela - (Hei)
4. sukkafoo
5. spam guy 
5. mystic bill
7. xiang 
7. olli 


SSF4 Singles


1. NGamer3k (Sakura, Rose)
2. Keela (Chun-Li)
3. figgy (Honda, Guile)
4. Kemps
5. Billy
5. mulder
7. Travis

UPDATED: Full Results from Aura's Monthly 2/19/11, Omaha, NE

Even though yours truly is not at the event, Stock Tank has the scoop on some unofficial results. Apparently due to low turnout, Brawl singles was round robin.

Brawl Singles

1. Joker (Snake) (7-1, loss to Trent)
2. MegaRobMan (Wolf) (7-1, loss to Joker)
3. Trent (Sonic) (6-2, loss to BPow, Rob)
4. BPow
5. DarkYosh
6. GameGenie
7. Wang
8. Aura
9. Nom

Brawl Doubles


1. Joker & BPow
2. DarkYosh & Aura
3. Wang & Nom

Project M Singles


1. Joker (Link)
2. Sm3esh (C. Falcon)
3. MegaRobMan (Link)
4. JBM
5. KyloWinter
5. MK Mike
7. DarkYosh
7. GameGenie
9. Wang
9. Aura
9. ShermanTheTank
9. BPow

Impressions on MvC3 after 4 Days

The short answer is, I'm enjoying the game. Having something new to play has been refreshing, and it's always satisfying beating down scrubs online. However, overall I think the game suffers from a few fundamental problems, which I'll get into below and more detailed posts. Since my thoughts are all too scattered and since they are only days old with plenty of time to evolve I have compiled them in a list in no real particular order.

1. Much like TvC, it feels like every character has a chance and does decent damage.

2. Sentinel is the best character in the game. The most health, the most benefit from x-factor, a great assist, and great DHC options.

3. Dante is the second best character in the game. Very safe and annoying to fight, plus good and easy combos, long range for his speed, a good assist, and good DHC options.

4. X-factor level 3 is too powerful.

5. Projectile assists rule the day.

6. Ryu is the worst character in the game. Assist is ok, but could be better. No air dash, mediocre projectiles, clearly gets outclassed by similar characters in style like Akuma and Morrigan.

7. I'm not sure why tag out attacks are overheads. It wasn't like this in TvC, honestly I'm unsure how they worked in Marvel 2. Even so, it's way easier to randomly tag out, the fact they are overheads makes it even easier.

8. I don't like the air exchange system. I've never liked it since it was announced. The reward a player gets for a correct guess is not equal to the ease of the situation and the risk involved in executing it.

9. Like TvC, there is whiff canceling. I don't like this. It makes virtually any move safe.

10. The variability available to the player in combos is astounding. Creative minds have already made some neat stuff unlike what I've seen in other fighters.

11. Killing characters takes top priority. No matter what it takes, make sure you kill them. Any surviving member makes it very hard to win. Red life regen speed and the ease of the random tag makes it that much harder to kill characters. Do your damage to kill.

12. From the last two points, execution is a very key aspect of success.

Sakura Week Over, SSF4's Time is Up For Now

I had other ideas for articles and videos but ran into other things I had to take care and was unable to produce them. These will have to wait for another time, but it might be a while. MvC3 is going to be here and it's going to take over this blog indefinitely. Like I mentioned in my Predictions post, I don't think Marvel will trump Super Street Fighter 4 in terms of numbers, purse, and popularity. We shall see.

UPDATE: Sakura Guide

I updated the Sakura guide with the videos I made showing her essential combos and resets. I also added information about her Ultras and Super which I had actually forgotten to write the first time. There's only a few more days of Sakura week left.

Texts from Jayford- Lucky Bastard's Impressions of MvC3

A week until the official release and some people already have a copy of the game. Several friends of friends of mine have it apparently, and I know all you people are dying to hear any more information as I am.

"Playing mvc3 right now. Raaaape."

"It's pretty good. Sentinel is disappointing. Storm is op. DP does so much damage. Haggar lariat assist is broken."

"Haven't played (Viper) yet, lol. She seems pretty good."

UPDATE: From Facebook, more from Justin B.. I mean Jayford.

MvC 3 Impressions
1.) Storm is top tier and lightning attack is broken.
2.) Sentinel isn't mvc2 Sentinel. He is good, just different :(
3.) Haggar Lariat is god tier.
4.) Chun Li is broken on point and has a broken assist.
5.) Dark Phoenix is super powerful, but I am still having doubts about her being viable in tournament. Her tri jump is a teleport tho o_0
6.) Using X Factor makes you feel like the man.

Sakura's Matchups According to NGamer3k

For reference, this is what Arcadia thinks as of October 2010.

Honda- 4
M. Bison (Dictator) - 4
Guile- 3.5
Chun-Li- 3.5
Balrog (Boxer)- 4
Cammy- 4
Ryu- 4.5
Abel- 5
Dhalsim- 4
Rufus- 4
Sagat- 4
Seth- 4
Akuma- 4
Fei-Long- 4
Ken- 4
Rose- 4
Blanka- 4
Zangief- 3.5
Dee Jay- 5
Adon- 4
Ibuki- 5
Vega (Claw)- 4.5
Cody- 5
C. Viper- 4
Fuerte- 6
Dudley- 5
Gouken- 6
Juri- 5
T. Hawk- 5
Guy- 5.5
Gen- 5
Dan- 5
Hakan- 5
Makato- 6

Thoughts on Sakura Changes in SSF4 AE

A week or so ago, the SSF4 Developer's Blog released some detailed notes on the changes to Sakura in SSF4 Arcade Edition. Now that everything that Capcom will officially disclose is known, I'm ready to give my impressions on her changes and try my best to explain what they will mean for Sakura players. I'll start by quoting the initial translation of the broader changes that were made:

- Close strong (medium punch) has less recovery, crouch strong and crouch forward (medium kick) can combo from hit confirm. Far strong can be cancelled same as Ryu. Vulnerable hitbox on far forward reduced, making it harder to hit her out of it.

- Air Tatsu can get more airborne hits. Other various adjustments on making hitboxes bigger, damage, and recovery done to make her stronger.

- Less recovery on each level of Hadouken

If you couldn't tell, those are all buffs! Capcom did this sort of thing with all of the characters considered "low tier," giving them buffs across the board with no nerfs in a deliberate effort to narrow the gap between the relative strength of each character. However, one thing that is not mentioned officially, but I'm pretty sure is true is that Sakura can no longer Tatsu escape from the corner. This was removed from all the shotos (Ryu, Ken, Akuma), so it can only be assumed that it was removed for her as well-- which is technically a nerf. But since this change happened across the board, it doesn't really impact things too much.

The biggest buff here is the recovery of the fireball. Making her recover even two frames faster would improve her game significantly. Making her fireball-anti-air game a terror to deal with because of the slowness of the fireball combined with the forward movement of anti-air Shouokens. Opponents will be forced to block, walk back towards the corner or get closer to Sakura-- all good things. Recovery was also reduced for the other two levels of charge of the Hadouken. This may create even more interesting zoning and meaty setups.

To summarize the rest of her changes, I like to say they are making her more like better characters, thus making her better. Air Tatsu will get multiple hits, much like Ken's. Far standing strong is special cancelable, a change mirrored by Ryu in AE. This will help her pressure game and if anything else, give her that one extra option she can go to. Close strong will be able to be followed up with a combo now, similar to Cammy's close strong. Not only will this give her more ways to land her devastating combos, she may be able to use it as a way to punish crouch tech attempts.

I'm not sure what the line pertaining to hitbox adjustments and damage, this may only apply to the air Tatsu. Maybe the juggle potential is higher? Or perhaps cross-up Tatsu is more viable? (It's already possible in SSF4, but it is not a reliable tool)

Now, the detailed explanations (quoted translation from Neogaf):

-st.MK hurtbox from the shin to tip is cut, making it easier to use as a check
-Depending on the situation, it can be used as a front anti-air

st.MK in AE


- No changes to cr.HP, but because the move is 4F and forces stand, it's a good move to include in combos
-In the last two active fames, the hitbox becomes bigger, and there's no hurtbox from the wrist to tip, making it an unusually strong anti-air

cr.HP



We get more insight to the specific change to the hitbox of s.MK. The hurtbox has been reduced on the leg, making it a more useful anti-air. I believe this is how the move was initially intended to be used. It's a welcome change, because in both Vanilla and Super, this is one move from Sakura that is rarely seen. The change will help Sakura against opponents who abuse empty jumps, the sworn enemy of c.HP-- her normal anti-air option.

Speaking of, I'm not sure why they felt the need to comment on c.HP given that there was no change to it all. It's nice to finally see the hitbox though.

Finally, here is the opinion of three of Japan's best and most visible players-- Daigo, Mago, and Tokido. In an extensive interview about AE with VersusCity, they briefly discussed Sakura. Additionally, they each compiled their own tier list.

Recently Sakura seems a bit dangerous, doesn’t she?

Mago: I’ve been thinking that really, Sakura is strong as hell, isn’t she?

Daigo: Yeah her attack power has been buffed a bit.

Tokido: Her ability to buffer Shouoken off of Crouching MK is definitely strong.

Mago: Crouching HP as an anti-air is crazy good too, even if you use it only once, most, if not all characters will eat it. Sorry to change subjects, but I feel that Adon is a really tough match for Fei.

There's not much to really take from this other than the fact that they think she is definitely stronger and Mago can't discuss Sakura without thinking about non-Sakura things, this is reflected in their tier lists.

Daigo Umehara

S: Fei Long

A+: Yun, Yang

A: C. Viper, Akuma, Ken

B: Makoto, M. Bison (Dictator), Dhalsim, Balrog (Boxer), Ryu, Cammy, Dee Jay, Zangief, Sagat, Sakura, Adon, E. Honda, Rufus, Vega (Claw)

C: Abel, Blanka, Chun-Li, Cody, Dan, Dudley, El Fuerte, Gen, Gouken, Guile, Guy, Hakan, Ibuki, Juri, Rose, Seth, T. Hawk 

Mago

S: Fei Long

A+: Yun

A: Yang, Balrog (Boxer), Chun-Li, C. Viper, Akuma, Cammy, Sagat

B+: Ken, Adon, Zangief, Sakura, M. Bison (Dictator), E. Honda, Makoto

B: Rufus, Abel, Vega (Claw), Dhalsim, Guile, Dee Jay, Ryu

C: Blanka, Cody, Dan, Dudley, El Fuerte, Gen, Gouken, Guy, Hakan, Ibuki, Juri, Rose, Seth, T. Hawk 

Tokido

S: Fei Long

A+: Yun

A: Yang, Akuma, C. Viper, Makoto, Ken

B: Ryu, Chun-Li, E. Honda, Zangief, Dhalsim, Balrog (Boxer), Sagat, M. Bison (Dictator), Vega (Claw), Rufus, Abel, Seth, Cammy, Sakura, Adon

C: Blanka, Cody, Dan, Dee Jay, Dudley, El Fuerte, Gen, Gouken, Guile, Guy, Hakan, Ibuki, Juri, Rose, T. Hawk

If we do the math here, they think Sakura is the about the 16th or 17th best character. Right smack dab in the middle. The definition of solid-- way more tournament viable than she was. Also interesting, they all have Fei as top followed by Yun and Yang. T. Hawk is likewise unanimously agreed to be the worst.

I'm very happy with her changes. I was not expecting that she would receive a buff as big as the recovery of her fireball. That combined with all the other changes will significantly improve the chances of winning any given match and helps matches like Guile and Honda. I would have really liked an improvement to either her walk speed or dash lengths, but given the other changes-- I can't really complain. See you on top in AE!

Sakura: SSF4 Guide - UPDATED FOR ULTRA - Updated 12/3/15

Played at an optimum level, Sakura is a scary character that can do in excess of 350 damage with any combo. Her main problem being that getting in to do that damage can be a challenge. She has strong jab pressure complimented with light hurricane kicks and frame traps at close range to make her supremely scary up close. She can be zoned out but once she's inside, the match can turn quickly. She is never out of it.

Sakura (SSF4) Week at Stock Tank!

I've only got your attention to SSF4 for another week until MAHVEL comes out, so I decided to get as much content that I know about pertaining to SSF4 as possible. There's not a character I know better than Sakura. Stay tuned all week for a character guide, tricks, match vids, and other stuff-- all having to deal with SSF4's version of everyone's favorite Japanese schoolgirl.

Post Mortem: HPiLC- Interview with Kurares

Last week, Iowa's up and coming Brawl Fox, Gary "Kuares" aka OG Melee Roy, "Zyroqwa" made his Brawl tournament organizing debut with Highest Point in Linn County. It featured a stage picking system that was described by several Iowa players beforehand as "interesting." Essentially, it gave each player an equal chance to counterpick a stage during the first two games, putting more emphasis on the third and final game. I sat down with Kuares to obtain his perspective about the rule set. And I didn't forget that while making sure the tournament was running smoothly, he also managed to place 2nd (even beating yours truly). We talked about his ability to adapt during matches and the future of the Eastern Iowa scene. Read on, after the break.

Never Give Up (on Me)!

I haven't been able to update all week, because I've had some computer problems and overall been a bit busy. I'm still aiming to please all 10 of you (maybe) that read this, so don't worry and keep fighting the good fight.