Give it a rest already!
You shouldn't hit your stick, Aya-san.
Shut yer mouth. I'll beat ya black 'n blue, White Lily.
Aya-chin, it's four in the morning.
I told you to think about when to parry and Denjin Charge.
Most Ryu streamers use Denjin Charge after a knockdown with a heavy Blade Kick.
It's not a move you do in neutral.
Focus.
Listen to me!
Stop shouting, okay?
You'll wake up Tamateya.
YOUNG LADIES DON'T PLAY FIGHTING GAMES
Exams!
OD Uppercut Drive! That stops the rush!
A mid rush!
He blocked it!
Thinking about it...
There's an OD Departure!
And he slips through!
A tackle! Blocked!
And he keeps going!
Chained into an SA! Nice!
Whoa.
How can anyone perfect parry so consistently?
One of the real pros said they can do it if they know the attack is coming.
But how would they know that?
I guess you can narrow down what the last hit of a given string will be.
That player just parried a bunch of random lights, though.
Psychic, maybe?
Perhaps you need that sort of skill if you're serious about winning.
Combos, anti-airs, and ideally, whiff punishes come first.
Practice the things you know you can do.
All right. Let's see if the download finished.
Updating
Not quite, huh?
You know, I was so focused on exams, I forgot all about it.
Do patches usually come so soon before a major tournament?
I'm pretty sure the devs normally avoid it.
This one kept getting pushed back for bug fixes and whatever, right?
Still, a patch right before EVO will cause a riot online.
Patch notes just dropped.
Lemme see! Lemme see!
Me, too!
And me!
Adjustment Summary
Standing Heavy Kick
Adjustment
1. Disadvantage on block changed from -4 to -3.
2. Pushback on block reduced.
Overdrive Fatal Leg Twister
Punch x2
Light Punch
Light Kick
Adjustment
Initial scaling changed from 20% to 30%.
F***!
Balance changes.
As long as a fighting game features many characters, each of them unique,
advantages and disadvantages will inevitably emerge between them.
Heavy Jinrai Kick
Two Kicks
Adjustment
1. Hurtbox around the front body from frames 11 - 27 reduced. 2. Attack hitbox expanded forward. 3. Horizontal blowback reduced on hit. 4. Drive gauge reduction on block changed from -3000 to -4000. 5. Proximity block trigger startup changed from frame 18 to frame 13.
With that in mind, updates bring periodic balance changes
1. Added initial scaling of 20% and combo scaling of 20%.
2. Changed advantage on hit from +3 to +5.
3. Increased pushback.
Overdrive Go Ohsatsu
Medium Kick
Heavy Kick
Adjustment
When canceling from a normal attack or special move into this attack, the transition timing from the third attack into Overdrive Saihasho/Ankensatsu is now 1 frame earlier. Note: This change is made to give this technique the same properties as
to at least prevent the most extreme of one-sided matchups.
Crouching Medium Punch
Universal Adjustment
1. Changed recovery when the attack misses from 14 to 17 frames.
2. Expanded the hurtbox forward from frames 10 - 26 only when the attack misses.
Crouching Heavy Kick
Universal Adjustment
Reduced pushback on block.
Overdrive Cannon Spike
This attack will no longer switch sides on hit. The heavy version featured the same properties
as the Overdrive version when you held down the button, but compared to the heavy held version
which is only used in limited situations, the quick startup on the Overdrive Cannon Spike
meant that its value as a side switch tool was too high.
Additionally, side switching with an invincible Overdrive attack made the fight less enjoyable
for the opponent, and also had the additional disadvantage of being difficult
to use for Cammy when she's chasing down the opponent, hence the change.
However...
Game balance is an incredibly delicate thing.
Changing the frame data of just one move can dramatically weaken a character.
While some top-tier characters go untouched for years on end,
it's not unheard of for a balance patch to undo years of players' hard work.
Trash!
This is my reward for praying in the direction of the dev studio every morning, noon, and night
They just took their time breaking every bone in my body
maybe balance matters to "pros" or whatever, but I wish they wouldn't kill player motivation like
learning to work with limitations counts for a lot more, imo. Not that it's any of my business, since I'm quitting
Those moves look laaaaame
They could have designed this patch by throwing darts
Social media seethes with resentment after every update.
I'm quitting SF6
Just plain crap
I filed 100,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 complaints through the contact form
Here we go again
They crossed a line
Man, I wish they wouldn't lights so easi
What a "great
Adjustment Summary
immediately after activation.
Denjin Charge Hadoken
Denjin Charge Hashogeki
Adjustment
Adjusted so that when Ryu has a Denjin Charge stocked, the Denjin Charge version will only be performed when using the Heavy or Overdrive versions of the techniques. Pressing Light or Medium buttons will perform the normal version and not use the Denjin Charge stocked.
Light/Medium Hashogeki
Adjustment
So close!
Not even a little.
White Lily, is it me, or have all your losses today gone more or less the same way?
Going for another charge right after a charged fireball seems like a bad idea.
And it's obvious you're trying to parry when we jump in.
I do understand wanting to aim for perfect parries...
But you end up parrying late and eating the hit most times.
You have to watch out for a lot more these days than in older games,
so even skilled players can't deal with it all consistently, and that's by design.
What ya tryin' to do?
Just doing the same thing over and over is nonsense.
Still, nerfing parries could have a bigger impact than I thought.
The longer recovery is huge.
Predicting a parry leaves time to dash in and land a throw now.
And it'll be a punish counter, so it'll do huge damage.
Parrying wasn't a bad option to start with.
Even with the Denjin Charge,
getting to choose whether you spend the charge now is definitely a buff.
So maybe stop getting hung up on perfect parries
and think of it as good luck if you get one.
I...
I'm still going for them.
I mean...
Perfect parries look so cool. And they might annoy my opponent.
Plus, if I have a Denjin Charge and I spend meter for a big comeback,
it'd feel super-duper ultra amazing.
Give it a rest already!
You shouldn't hit your—
We're playing in a tournament tomorrow, so at least try to practice seriously.
If you're dead set on using Denjin, look through Ryu main threads for—
Hold it right there.
Watching people's reactions online
is as ridiculous as using a walk-through on your first playthrough of an RPG.
Thinking for myself is what makes it fun.
"Thinking for yourself" my ass. You're just making yourself glow and dying!
Okay, okay. That's enough.
An all-nighter before the tournament will blow up in both your faces.
We've gotta sleep before...
I... I'm just borrowing the washroom for a bit.
Here I am, racking my brains and giving my all to beat you every single day.
I don't think I'd be able to take you down otherwise.
And I consider myself lucky to have a rival like that.
Huh? Is it me, or does your hair seem straighter today?
Well, last night, a lot happened, and I, uh, forgot to braid it.
So that gentle wave takes a whole night of prep?
Oh, this looks like it.
So this is the venue, huh?
A woman?
It's a woman.
A girl.
A high school girl?
Now...
Let's see how this goes.
White Lily
Mio.
Hey, White Lily! Look!
Check out these buttons. They're super hard!
What do you mean, the buttons are hard?
I don't under— So hard!
They say the switches have extra-strong springs in them. Neat, huh?
Hang on.
I set my Impact button to the top right,
but my pinky sometimes hits it and messes up my inputs.
Which means...
Maybe I can prevent that if I put these extra-firm buttons just on the right edge.
But won't you end up with a super jacked pinky?
That'd be so cool.
No, it'd be freaky.
Oh, hey. There's Inuyu-senpai and Mio.
What are you looking at?
Buttons that make you jacked.
Huh?
Don't listen to her.
Hey, guys. Cecil here.
Hi!
Hi
Hello
Matches haven't started yet
Here we go
What's up?
I've been waiting
Let's see...
Guilty Gear pools are taking up about half the venue.
We SF6 players just got in, replacing the Tekken 8 guys.
Tekken was on fire
Local here
This is getting good
Pretty face
Cecil's so nice to look at, I went blind
CecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecil
He's just a pretty face, a sexy voice, and a great neutral game
Been here since Tekken
Stream every second
CecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecilCecil
I'm a guy, but I'd go gay for Ceci-kyun
He's smart, too
There he is
Don't forget his personality
Is it me, or is his throat in top form?
Ho... Cecil
I bought that thing Cecil-kun mentioned the other day
Cafeore around?
Same old, same old
Here he comes...
Gekido-san, have any competitors caught your eye?
It's Gekido!
The OG
What's up, Geki?
Hey, man
Jump scare face
lololol
lmfao
Hey, Geki, bro
Hey, man
He freaks me out
Whoa...
Thanks for streaming the tournament
Too scary for me
Who's got Cecil's attention?
Hey there!
Whoa...
Talk about pressure
Thanks for streaming the tournament
Too scary for me
Whoa...
Slash, the US champ.
There ain't any punks I wanna play more.
I see. I figured you'd put Slash at number one.
Chat
His face always freaks me out He did dominate the championship last year He's so scary, my kid actually stopped crying I wanna see Gekido vs Slash Last year was Slash's year for sure Come to think of it, Gekido has never played Slash in a tournament, has he? You'd think it would have happened at least once. He's scary as hell lmfao Gekido-san risks losing sponsors every time he smiles I like bro's murder face Could they play each other at this EVO? He's so scary, my phone screen cracked Add Gekido and Cecil's faces and divide by 2 It's bugged so you always get bro's face Gekido's the GOAT
How about the rest?
Huh?
Hazy from the US. Insomnia from Korea.
Hideyoshi-san, Meshi, and Tomoenage from Japan. That's about it.
What's the big idea leavin' me off that list? Well, Gekido-senpai?
C-Cafeore-san.
Kobushi Gaming Team
Pro Gamer
Cafeore
(Written: disaster rot prey evil spirit)
You've got bigger problems, Cafe.
Does your anti-air game still go to shit when you're feeling the pressure?
What?
H-Hey, look!
Aren't those two with Kobushi?
Yeah, think so.
Hear the news?
You and me got matched in pools.
I'm gonna grind you into the dirt, Gekido.
Cafe, I'm gonna help you remember...
just who the hell you're mouthing off to.
I mean, I do wanna see Geki v Cafe Viewer count just exploded lol I'd give the edge to Gekido Live-action SF6 We know Gekido's gonna win. Cafeore's anti-air game sucks. That's all Gekido needs to beat him Cecil-kun, who do you think will win? Is it as close as people make it sound? What's bro's record vs Cafe? Just bring out Slash already Cafe's counterattack GekidoGekidoGekidoGekidoGekidoGekidoGekidoGekidoGekido Their name does mean "fist" Build a ring for it here The original will never lose to a copy You mean crime-action Real-life street fighters Settle your beef right here Help, police! Look at those sparks fly
No wonder they're top pros. They know how to make an impression.
They both look scary as hell, though.
Whoa! He just went on the offensive!
He won't let him out of the corner!
Looks like it's about to start.
By the way, Tamateya, didn't you say you were climbing the ranks
because you wanted to get results at this tournament?
Yes, I did say that.
But I wonder what "getting results" means.
I've been thinking about it.
Is it me winning the tournament? Finishing in the top 16?
I know I'm not at that level right now.
But I'm still here.
So I wonder what my goal in this tournament should be.
You're always so serious.
By the way, what do you hope to achieve?
I'm just here to enjoy the tournament as a big fighting game festival.
This sounds more like a question for Aya-chin.
Me?
Well...
Suppose you're on ranked and get matched with a bunch of people you can beat,
or you land a bunch of risky moves raw that day.
So you rack up the easy points, but pretty soon, you end up stuck.
The numbers aren't the point. They're just a result of you improving.
At least, people say stuff like that on social media.
Ya sure spend a lot of time online.
I think tournaments are a lot like that.
Take an extreme case.
If two really good players get matched in the first round,
one of them is going to lose.
You've got a point.
Like it or not, luck does play a role.
Of course, I do think a tournament is a special opportunity.
But in the end, you play fighting games every day,
enter a tournament, get something out normal life won't give you,
then go back to playing like normal.
Isn't that what it boils down to?
Oh, excuse me. It's just...
Hearing such a weak-looking player spout fighting game philosophy,
I couldn't help myself.
This little brat just picked a fight with us.
I wonder where her parents are.
I suppose it's the bad influence of importing the term "esports."
Japan's become a hotbed for these complacent, lazy, idiotic ideas
that only sound nice.
What... What's this little brat's problem?
Fighting games are a noble duel.
Two minds punching it out through a monitor.
Entering that duel with a premade excuse for losing is the height of disrespect.
I will massacre everyone in this hall.
Unless you go in with that attitude, you'll never gain anything from battle.
I wonder why.
I could go, "Oh, hello. Did you get separated from your mommy?"
and lean on my age to brush her off.
So why do I feel like she scored a point on me?
Aya-san is strong.
She's not "weak-looking," and she isn't "lazy."
And...
Huh?
I forgot what I was going to say. Um...
Stupid-head.
SF6 players, the hall is ready for you,
so please stand by near your assigned pools.
Let's go.
What about you, White Lily?
What we were just talking about. What's your goal for this tournament?
My goal? Well...
To be honest, I didn't listen to a word you said, so I don't really get it,
but what would I aim for except winning it all?
Mio managed to make it sound so natural.
But she was also the first of us
to lose that day.
Hi, there. Guess who has the honor of commentating on this official stream?
It's the fighting game VTuber, Satan Magamori.
Fighting game
Satan Magamori
And with the blow-by-blow...
That'll be me, Flamberge. You should all be used to seeing me by now.
Commentator
Flamberge
Excuse me???? Bye now. Take care on your way home. Excuse me? Excuse me, Management? I just threw my phone Some things never change Excuse me? Excuse me??? GO HOME Good devil to you Good devil to you Shut your face Excuse me? I'd rather have just Satan-chan Why does everybody hate Flamberge? Give back my Satan-chan Good berge to you What's with that pose? I'm out Yup, nothing's changed lololol Excuse me? Who needs his commentary? People sure do hate him Satan-chan Where's Satan-chan?
I'm told we have about 4,000 SF6 players at EVO Japan this year,
and they'll be competing in an open-bracket tournament over three days.
Beginners who just started playing,
champs who flew in from overseas to compete,
and our own Japanese pro players
will all get shoved into these qualifying pools together.
Players in pool 162, please prepare for your matches.
Player 1 side: Teya-senpai.
P-Present!
Player 2 side: Osogami.
Hey.
He looks tough.
What should I do?
I believed I was less tense than I thought I'd be,
but my hands won't stop shaking.
Your match is first to two. Please start when you're both ready.
This first day pits those 4,000 players against each other.
And only those left standing will go on to days two and three.
Sounds like we're in this for the long haul.
Yup.
I hope all of you watching will cheer us on while chugging Power Energy.
Start already Can anyone hear Berge? He seems kinda quiet No, he's loud Not sure, but he might be on the quiet side Has Berge gotten all quiet already? He turned down the volume Hard to call it too soft or too loud No, it's too soft for sure Huh? Flamberge-san's reiatsu just... Just leave him quiet Oh, if only Berge would speak up a little C'mon! It's quiet time!
Hey.
You think I'm being too quiet?
Oh?
Listen harder.
If you scrubs want to hear me that bad,
I'll give you a taste of what it's like...
when I get loud!
EVO Japan! Street Fighter 6!
Here we go...
you dumbasses!
Now, this is a double-elimination tournament.
Put simply, that means once a player loses twice, they're out.
Everyone starts out in the winners bracket.
After one loss, they move to the losers bracket,
Winner of (7) advances to the next pool
Losers' next pool is in the losers bracket
Loser of (5)
Loser of (1)
Loser of (2)
Loser of (6)
Loser of (3)
Loser of (4)
and if they lose there, they're done.
Exactly.
Winner of (8) advances to the next pool, still in the losers bracket
We keep going until the last player with no losses,
or only one loss, becomes champion.
White Lily! How'd your first match go?
Oh. Guess I don't even have to ask.
It's so weird. My mind got all jumbled right before my match started.
Sounds like nerves.
I walked forward, and a jump came out.
Standard tournament stuff. Sounds like nerves.
I did a Hadoken and got a Shoryu.
Sounds like nerves.
The next thing I knew, I did a Denjin on wakeup and died.
Sounds like business as usual.
Ow! Ow, ow, ow.
The heck ya doin'?
Oh, just wondering where your oversized ego went.
I hear your first match is the most stressful part of any tournament.
It's double elimination, so you're not out yet.
Even if you go down in flames, you'll have more fun if you go all out first.
Come on.
I'll give you this thingy I just bought, so cheer up.
Okay. It looks like the next competitors we'll be streaming are ready.
There he is. The emperor of fighting games who needs no introduction:
Gekido of Kobushi Gaming!
And he's up against a newer member on the same team, Cafeore!
It's the calm before the storm.
You can feel the mood in the hall changing.
We don't need words.
We're heading into the world on the other side of the screen.
And there's only one thing we can bring with us.
Our souls!
Now, the moment you've been waiting for.
One of the most anticipated matches in pools.
Here we go!
Die, Gekido!
Cafe, I've got no clue how you feel about me.
So...
Why don't you tell me?
Through that screen!
Translation: William Varteresian Timing: Edgar Cruz Editing: SMR Quality Check: Geoff Mazzolini Translation Check: David Saylor
Illustration
(Arc System Works)