Street Fighter II

[NiteFox]

Ryu is "Boring Man", since he:

1) NEVER CHANGES HIS OUTFIT. ==NEVER== It's been what, 12 years? Still the same smelly gi.(This applies to Ken too.)

2) NEVER CHANGED HIS MOVES. Gained some command attacks(but so did practically everyone else in SSF2T/X), and supers(as above), but still the same old boring Hadoken/Shoryuken/Tatsumaki-senpuu-kyaku.

3) NEVER CHANGED HIS MOTIVES. "The fight is all" "I hope to fight with you again some day" "You must beat Sheng Long(actually, I think he's referring to the Shoryuken, which, in Japanese, means Rising Dragon, which is 'Sheng Long' in Chinese) to defeat me." There is something seriously messed up about a guy whose only mission in life is to fight.

1: First of all, Ryu doesn't change his clothes due to:

i) Continuity
ii) The fact that he is a wanderer. Most martial artists old enough never to grow out of their gi never change it except when theirs becomes so badly damaged they need a new suit. See anyone with an artificially black gi? Charlatan. Seen anyone with a naturally black gi? Respect them. The whole ideoligy of the wandering martial artist is that you wear your gi for so long that it turns black with age. Would explain Akuma. Same with the obi (Belt), given that most true forms of martial arts only have two belt colours: White, and black. Everyone starts off with a white belt, which with age becomes black.

'course, this doesn't happen with modern organised martial arts, as well as quality gi/obi production, but that's how it was.

Also, Ryu has had more sprite changes than anyone (while ignoring Street Fighter 1) in the SF series.

1) Alpha Ryu: Gi, long white headband
2) Street Fighter Ryu: Same gi, short red headband (Ken's)
3) Crossover Ryu (Vs. Series): Alpha Ryu, but with long red headband (Somehow Ken's)

... Of course the Crossover games aren't canon :)

2) Very few characters really gained moves during the SF2/CE/T/SSF2/SSF2X series. Ryu actually did gain his Shakenetsu Hadouken, as well as tweaks to his Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku in order to further distinguish him from Ken.

3) So what if he never changed his motives? Neither does Balrog, or Charlie, or E Honda, or anyone really. At least Ryu is in on the whole "self-improvement" thing, unlike Gen (Who wanted to die in battle), or Akuma (Who basically wanted to improve his killing abilities), or Bison (Who basically wanted to rule the world).

I generally avoid the Shoto-clones like the plague. Fireball-Fireball-Fireball, if they jump, Uppercut. YAWN!

I once fought a guy who was simply fantastic with Ken. Always fought up close, mastered cross-overs, corner trapping, ticking, pretty much everything that you don't associate the Ryu & Ken Club with.

A "MAN'S MAN" is Zangief. None of that sissy 1/2 circle and an opposite horizontal crap from KoF. Anyone who can master his 360 on the SNES' blocky direction button has my respect. I only barely mastered it on the Sega Genesis control(but at least theirs is rounded) Plus his SF2 ending was the funniest. :D

As I mentioned, the control method with Zangief has always been broke with SNES versions. Arcades and the Genesis used 360 degree turns, the SNES always used an odd 315 degree turn. Once you keep this in mind, using Zangief is a breeze.

I agree with you on the ending, but it does take a whole new meaning when you learn of Zangief's... er... sexual preferences. ("You dance very well, Mr. Ex-president.")

Sagat is tricky. He can be the best zoner or the biggest sitting duck in the game. High-low tigers can keep your opponent guessing, especially if your version requires you to crouch-block for the low tiger shots. His old one-hit Tiger Uppercut was probably the most LETHAL anti-air you could get, compared to it from SSF2 onwards, when they made it a weak-ass 7-hit scraper.

I've always thought of Sagat as a one-trick pony. Always at range spamming Tiger Shots more than Ryu does with Hadokens. He keeps you at range, and when you move in close the only thing he has to punish you with is either the Tiger Knee (Block, counter) or Tiger Uppercut (Block, counter for massive damage). I don't really like playing as Sagat because of this. He's not... as versatile as many of the other characters.

Still, the original Tiger Uppercut was agreeably the most powerfile anti-air you could get, I agree with you there. It really lost its power in the Alpha series when they:

1) Made it a 7-hit wonder
2) Included air-blocking

If you're not used to him, Honda can be a little "odd" to fight, to say the least. At least, if you're not cheesing people with the Hundred Hands. The Earthquake torpedo has decent priority, and can at least trade hits with almost anything in the game. I have yet to see a decent Honda player.

My sister was actually quite a good Honda player. True, she did often resort to spamming Hundred-Hand Slaps, but she was able to cover ground quite quickly and lay in with quite a few heavy hits. His fierce punch is the best non-special anti-air move, covers from some region behind him to all the way out front. His swan dive also covers a large area, and his butt-slam hurts while also keeping them close enough for a fierce Hundred-hander or a bear hug.

Don't look for skill in Honda with his special moves. Look to see what he can do with his perfectly ordinary moves.