Crush Counters in SF5

My favorite part of the Street Fighter 5 beta so far has been Crush Counters. They’re specific normal attacks that cause severe hitstun to the opponent on counter hit. SF5 is more simplified overall and has a greater focus on neutral, and Crush Counters fit perfectly with that design. Each character has 2 or 3 of them. Check out the video below for a demonstration.

As you can see from the video, you can potentially get huge damage off of this mechanic. Each character’s ability to land Crush Counters depends on their normals and spacing, and the follow up combos are just as unique to each character.

Crush Counters put a huge emphasis on proper spacing and knowing when to hit buttons (and when not to!) during the footsie game. The more I play SF5, the more I wish it was released now and not just in a weekend beta test!

Hit Confirming in Street Fighter 5 vs SF4

The second Street Fighter 5 beta is upon us, and PC players get to join the party for the first time. I’ve been having a lot of fun with it! Though I have to admit that, at first, I was really thrown off by the game’s hit confirming. Compared to SF4, there seemed to be almost no ability to do so.

For starters, most characters can hit with a maximum of only two light normal attacks before the opponent is pushed out of range, and light normals don’t link into medium or heavy normals. That’s pretty crazy, considering that in SF4 many characters could do 3-5 light attacks and still be able to confirm into a normal or special for a “finisher”.

The Top 5 Gateway Characters for New Players in Street Fighter 4

One of the hardest parts about picking up a fighting game is the beginning.  Many players linger in the beginning stages of their competitive understanding of a game for months, even years.  Some players spend their entire competitive gaming experiences jumping from title to title looking for a game that fits them, while never truly transitioning beyond a beginner’s level of understanding in any of the games that they try out.  A lack of intelligence or comprehension isn’t what holds these players back, but rather, direction.