Thoughts on SFxT ver 2013

This game is good-- really good and really fun.

Take note fighting game makers. This is how you update a game. There isn't a single system wide change that is not beneficial to the gameplay. Where the original version was a broken monstrosity, 2013 is like a finely tuned classic instrument. This combined with the DLC characters (that were already available) and the balance changes across the entire cast make for a extremely satisfying fighter to play.

We all know how bad the original was. Broken jab pressure, free tech rolls, stupidly safe gimmicks, and absurd jump ins. Now all these things have been either fixed or reworked as to actually having thought put into them. Frame advantage has generally been toned down across the board, tech rolls are now punishable by throws and it is impossible to reversal after them. Tactics like tag cancel DP are now more unsafe and jump tatsu is no longer flowchart brain dead. Along with these, there are even more system changes that equally benefit the game that I haven't even mentioned.

All this culminates into a fighter with a vast amount of depth. The game focuses more on what it should have in the first place, a solid ground game, hit confirming, and execution. You must be good at hit confirming and you must make your hits count by hitting your combos. Sure, you could make this argument in any fighter, but it especially important in this game. As one hit can potentially lead into so much damage-- you do not want to leave that damage on the floor by dropping your combo.

The team aspect of controlling two characters and all that goes into that of course still holds true here and was a main reason I liked the original as much as I did. What combos and juggles are possible? How can I configure my team to maximize damage? How can I tweak combos to ensure the proper character stays in? The layers of team composition go on and on.

I'm having a lot of fun with this game and right now I'm maining a completely different team from my Vanilla team of Ryu/Juri. It is all about Sakura/Nina now. I can hit confirm Sakura's st. RH into launch for big damage and I have solid anti airs and footsies. In the first tournament in the new version I entered, Maxout in KC last month, I took 1st with Sakura/Ryu (I didn't know Nina at the time) over Omaha's Jamarrvelous and his Heihachi/Hugo team. I'll have thoughts on different aspects of game (particularly Sakura) coming up soon and hopefully have some videos too.