Dromstruction & Canada Cup

Just a heads up on which events we will be attending. I will be there at Dromstruction. But more importantly, we will be at Canada Cup! My buddy Javier and I decided that since we had gone to Season's Beatings last year that it would be more adventurous to go out of the state and attend another tournament. I completely agreed since Canada Cup has not been part of our experience.

With that being said, I personally will be using Dromstruction as a training ground for Canada Cup. I will take it seriously but it is to ensure I am comfortable for Canada Cup. Aside from that, come support the event and support us as well! がんばります。(I will do my best!)

-Miky

P.S. I still have the posts that I promised. I'm still saving them. If anything, I will publish the posts all at the same time. Stay tuned! :)

Q&A: Ryu's jump-in jab

Muttonhead said...

After a untechable knockdown, why do some Ryus jump in with jab sometimes? I see Air doing this sometimes. Is it just for a quicker tick throw or is there some other trick to it?

Usually after an untechable knockdown, Ryu's will do a jumping heavy or medium attack (and option-selecting at the same time when it applies). The opponent will be: 1) looking to block the safe jump and 2) dealing with the mix-up afterward (frame-trap, throw and so forth). However, since the opponent is comfortable with the amount of block stun a heavy or medium attack creates their timing will change. Jumping jab, having little block stun, will change their timing and momentum in their crouch techs. The block stun will let your opponent recover much quicker leading to a faster timed mix-up. The jumping jab is also a visual mix-up. Most players are used to seeing a jumping heavy or medium. Therefore, your opponent is given less time to anticipate your mix-up. I hope this helps! :)

-Miky

Q&A: Ryu 2012

hard_cock said...

What are your thoughts on the balance changes of AE 2012 and where do you see Ryu in the tier list after a patch?

Well, first off I'd like to say that Ryu got his low forward back! That will definitely help. As for now I can't say anything is for sure. It will help with his match-ups and the extra damage buffs will help as well. Although, ever since I've watched Filipino Champ and Mike Ross in Japan I believe that (in my opinion) my Ryu is not completely unlocked. For what they said in their experience in Japan, they expressed how each player had unlocked just about as much as they could from their character. It literally meant that they knew every situation, every max punish, and almost every match-up details for their character. I've known this since day one. I knew that if I went to Japan and played Ryu I would struggle. Players there have unlocked their characters to the maximum potential. After that, it is about how you think about the game.

I recently spoke with Air (Kenny) and he said that going to Japan will help you learn match-ups. Afterward, it is how you think about the game. I'm assuming he meant positioning, game plan, and overall fundamentals and footsies. There is also a mix of reactions and predictions, but you get the idea. As for now I really can't tell you where Ryu stands until I go to Japan. As for now, I'm sure he will do better.

A player makes the character who they are, not the character. :)

-Miky

Q&A!

Hey readers! Here's a chance for you to ask me any questions you'd like me to answer (in detail or in short). It can be any question and it may be about anything. For example, "What do you consider footsies?" Hope to hear from you guys soon!

-Miky

P.S. There are no dumb questions. Ask away! Don't be shy. :)

P.S.S. I haven't gotten time to work on the new posts I had for you guys. I don't want to half-ass them and want to put in good detail and time into them. Stay tuned! :)

Sorry!

Sorry for the lack of updates. I have a couple posts that I've been wanting to post but I haven't had time. Stay tuned! :)

-Miky

Sanford(Sagat)

This is my first time playing against Sanford. I always knew Sanford was good, but from playing him I feel he is really strong.

We ended up playing first to four. His fireball game was very good. His placement, spacing, and everything about his fireball game with Sagat was impressive. I had a hard time dealing with it. As for my fireballs they were mediocre. Each set was close but I lost 1-4. In the rounds that were close, Sanford had this keen ability to jump over my fireballs from max range and hit me with a jumping fierce(jumping fierce having a lower hit box invulnerability if spaced correctly). With the jumping fierce hitting, he'd kara his dp and kill me for the round. He did this about four times. I just figured my fireballs were really weak at the time. There was no excuse for him jumping over my fireballs like he did and killing me four times for the win.

One sequence I had blocked while I was in the corner: Sanford threw me in the corner, dashed up and did four shorts. I blocked it and he did it again. I blocked it and he went for an overhead. I blocked that and he dashed up and grabbed me. I teched the throw. My buddy Farouk asked after the matches, "How the hell did you block all of that?" I just told him, "I've watched videos of Sanford's Sagat." It's okay to watch other people play their characters. You may never know, but when the time comes it can come in handy. For me to main Ryu and watch other Sagat players might seem weird, but it's not. I'm looking for their habits, setups and more. Don't just watch other Ryu's if you main Ryu and so on. Expand your knowledge of the game by watching others. You may learn something new. :)

-Miky

P.S. Alex Valle comes into the room.

Alex: Who'd you play?
me: Sanford... He killed me 1-4
Alex*with a smirk on his face*: He knows how to play Sagat.

Sg.Xian(Yun), Sg.Gackt(Fei Long) and Sg.Leslie(Sagat)

The Singapore players were good. They were a bit better than I had expected. As for playing Xian(Yun), I won't go into much detail. I felt he seemed a bit nervous. I ended up beating him 3-0 and kept him out all rounds except one(in which he won).

I played Leslie(Sagat) to a best out of three. His fireball game was very good. He has exceptional execution, spacing and overall fundamentals. I really enjoyed the sets. First game I tested his play-style. I don't play much against Sagat and only studied videos. A lot of the muscle memory necessary through match-play were from playing John Choi's Sagat. His fireballs were relentless. At first, I felt he was auto-piloting his fireballs in his attempt to keep me away. Once I jumped in and punished him, he made the adjustments in his fireball game. I lost the first game convincingly. The next game I played more safe. I tested his fireball game and tiger knee pressure. I ended up winning in a time-out. The last set was a mess up on my part. It came down to the last round and he had meter to fadc. I opted to block in order to avoid the ultra setup. He decided to throw, and then it happened. The first thing I see was Sagat doing a forward dash. Next, I see him doing a back dash. Right away, in my head, thinking, "This is a setup to do a safe jump on me." He jumps, does a jumping cross-up light kick and combos into crouching short, crouching jab, dp, and ultra. I had lost the match 1-2. Now here's what I did wrong. I had seen that setup before. However, it was Chun-Li vs Sagat(it's a safe jump against Chun-Li's wake-up spinning bird kick)! In the case where Sagat would try to safe jump me as Ryu, I am able to dp. The only thing he can do is cross me up or do a fake cross up(given the Ryu player has knowledge of this setup). As soon as I saw him hit me I completely thought to myself, "I'm not playing Chun-Li. Why did I block that way?" Afterward, I wasn't too worried. I really enjoyed the match against Leslie.

I also got to play against Gackt(Fei Long). His Fei Long was also relentless. He kept pressuring me whenever he had the opportunity. He didn't give me room to space out and soon enough I was in the corner. He played really aggressive and made a stand with Fei Long footsies wise. But I felt he knew the range where I can space out and shut me down. It was an uphill battle most of the sets but I lost convincingly 0-3. He later told me, "It's okay to use standing jab to stop the rekka's. Not all the time though. This is what Daigo uses." I had been using sweep to punish two blocked rekka's, but I'd get hit or trade sometimes if they time it correctly over my normal. Taking his advice and looking at it in perspective, it is much safer to use jab. It can also be hit confirm into a sweep or even low forward into a bigger combo(leading to an untechable knockdown).

Looking back at these two players they seemed to have a certain common attribute. I felt that it was their aggressive play-style. I didn't get to play them afterward, but if I did I would be able to tell you why they played so offensive. If I could guess it would probably be them hiding a certain weakness in their game-play. Another thing would be their confidence level. They are so confident in their play-style that they don't need to change gears. These are just my assumptions. As for me, I am still looking to adapt and read my opponent as fast as possible(my goal: be able to adapt the next round). It still is taking me some time, but I'm sure I'm working in the right direction. :)

-Miky