Y O U C A N ' T E S C A P E !
An Alex FAQ for Street Fighter Three
Version 2.00
Written by BBH
This FAQ is copyright 1997 Matt Hall. This FAQ under no circumstances
should be used as a source of profit. All information given is free
to use, but please give credit where credit is due.
If you have any additions, feedback, or questions please e-mail:
[email protected]
REVISION HISTORY
2.00 (6-6-97) - Yow, it's been a while between updates. Added a LOT more
strategy all around, and a couple win quotes.
1.50 (4-14-97) - A correction or two, more on normal/special moves, more
combos, more strategy, more win quotes. (more more more!)
1.00 (4-6-97) - First version.
WHERE CAN THIS FAQ BE FOUND?
Currently, you can find it at the following sites: (e-mail me if you have
one that it's up on).
ftp://users.aol.com/kensou/alex.txt
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Alley/1975
http://www.gamefaqs.com
http://vortex.simplenet.com
http://student-www.uchicago.edu/users/spmcissa/SF3.html
http://www.ucalgary.ca/~mgkkwok
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Castle/3009
Also, Anthony Festino has written an Alex FAQ of his own. Check it out
at:
http://www.jayalen.com/fester/sf3/alex
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the unofficial Alex FAQ for SF3! When SF3 was released, Alex
was the first character I selected and I immediately liked him, because
I've always been playing the grappler characters. While I'm somewhat
disappointed with the character, he remains my favorite. With all the
FAQs that I've seen circulating on a.g.sf2 (Dudley, Sean, Necro, Ibuki,
and a supposed Yun/Yang FAQ that I haven't seen), I decided to jump in
and write one for Alex.
Being that I've only been playing for a few weeks, I'm most certainly
missing a lot in here. If there's something you want in the FAQ, please
email me and let me know about it!
TERMINOLOGY
-Buttons-
P = Punch K = Kick
Jab = Weak Punch (1). Short = Weak Kick (4).
Strong = Medium Punch (2). Forward = Medium Kick (5).
Fierce = Hard Punch (3). Roundhouse = Hard Kick (6).
-Directions-
F = Toward UF = Up-Toward QCF = D, DF, F DP = F, D, DF
B = Back UB = Up-Back QCB = D, DB, B
D = Down DF = Down-Toward HCF = B, DB, D, DF, F
U = Up DB = Back HCB = F, DF, D, DB, B
BACKGROUND INFO
"A retired soldier living in Manhattan with his father's old friend Tom
and Tom's daughter Patricia. He has not seen his parents since he moved
out as a teenager. Brusque, straightforward in manner, his taciturnity
often gets him into trouble, but essentially, he's not the sort of a
person that earns lasting hatred. Despite his size, this brawler can move
with amazing speed to get in close and pummel the opponent with punches
and execute powerful throws."
NORMAL MOVES
-Standing Far-
Jab: Your typical jab. Can be done rapidly, and the range is rather
weak. More or less sucks.
Strong: A weird attack - Alex does an elbow swipe that hits high
(around the head area). This is pretty good air-defense and will
work well at knocking your opponents out of the air as long as
they're kinda close to you. Against close ducking opponents, it
whiffs.
Fierce: A rather slow attack in which Alex punches downwards. It's
rather short-ranged too. Hmm, slow and short-ranged, guess what
it is... an overhead! :) Does a good chunk of damage and can
sometimes hit low attacks. Don't use it exclusively for that
purpose though. If you hit an airborne opponent with this, they
get SLAMMED back down to the ground. Looks kewl.
Short: A kick that hits around the ankle region. Not that long-ranged,
but you can do it repeatedly to a blocking opponent and force
them into the corner, if that's where you want them. (You can't
escape!) Also a great attack for Alex's ground game, counters a lot
of sweep-type moves. Plus ticking a Jab Power Bomb after a Standing
Short is great, the only way to escape is to jump away immediately
(or DP)
Forward: A good pokey kick with decent speed and range. It hits rather
high, I'm not sure if characters like Oro and Ibuki can duck under
it somehow (that would suck!). It tends to snuff low attacks, so
use it as a poking weapon.
Roundhouse: At first this looked like a REALLY long-ranged attack, but
it's not. It has slightly less range than the Standing Forward, and
of course it's got that start-up lag, which makes it easy to block/
parry. So what's it good for? It nails jumpers from a distance pretty
well, and also counters sweeps and other miscellaneous attacks.
-Standing Close-
Jab: A jab to the stomach. Interruptable.
Strong: Slightly-different looking elbow. Interruptable.
Fierce: Same.
Short: Same. Interruptable.
Forward: A knee attack. Interruptable.
Roundhouse: Same.
-Crouching-
Jab: An ok-ranged low chop, that has pretty good priority. Can be blocked
high.
Strong: Same animation as above, but slower and more damaging. Use it
as a poke when you're in range, priority is great. Can be blocked
high.
Fierce: Alex hops into the air with his shoulder, and delivers two hits.
Very odd attack, as it is great for countering some air attacks,
but loses out to others. Against Ryu/Ken players, you'll want to
do this attack early, it may only land one hit but their #%^%$@#
jumping attacks outprioritize the first hit. If both hits are
landed on a regular jumping opponent, the opponent lands on his
feet. If it's done on an opponent doing some special move, they
fall to the ground and you can gain positioning. Now, if the
opponent lands on their feet, they usually are not aware of this
and will fail to block or attack afterwards. Stick a Standing
Roundhouse in there for some possible damage! Crouching Roundhouse
works great too if you're close enough. This works even better
when the Crouching Fierce sort of "crosses up" the opponent and
causes them to land on the other side.
If you trade hits with the Crouching Fierce and you're still
standing, immediately do the Knee Strike with Roundhouse to nab
them out of the air! There seems to be other juggling abilites
with the Crouching Fierce, but I can't get much to work. I think
a Standing Roundhouse will work.
Short: Ground kick with less range than the Jab. I never use it, since
the Crouching Forward comes out at practically the same speed and
does more damage. Must be blocked low.
Forward: Same animation as the Short Kick, but a LOT more useful. It
counters foot sweeps as well as many other low attacks, so use it
occasionally when you get close. Must be blocked low. (use this
if your opponent is blocking all your "pokes" high.)
Roundhouse: Typical sweep, has pretty good range but it has a tiny bit
of lag before it comes out and of course quite a bit if blocked.
-Jumping-
Jab: A downward palm attack with the same animation as his overhead.
Not sure on the priority.
Strong: Same, except more damaging. Seems to have fairly good priority.
Fierce: A hand chop that makes for great air-to-air defense. It's also
a good jump-in when done very close, it often trades with DP's.
Short: High knee attack, good air-to-air. Same animation as his Knee
Strike. An effective tactic to use with this is to do the Short
as soon as he jumps, it seems to lessen the amount of time Alex
spends in the air. You can use it as a tick, a way to get in close,
or the attack that takes off their last bit of life. Go on, try it!
Forward: A horizontal double kick, looks a bit like Zangief's old
jumping Roundhouse.
Roundhouse: Same as Forward, but more damage of course. Alex's best
jumping attack all-around as it makes good air-to-air defense
and serves as his best jump-in attack.
MISCELLANEOUS MOVES
-Ground-
Standard Overhead (D, D+P): Same palm attack animation as Jumping
Jab/Strong. Not all that effective or damaging, but at least you
can hop over sweeps with it!
F+Strong: I thought this move was an overhead, but it's not. Alex does a
downward chop. This is an EXCELLENT move to use, as it counters low
attacks extremely well. Abuse it for all it's worth.
Headbutt/Chokehold (B+Fierce): Alex extends his hand, and if the
opponent doesn't block, Alex delivers a headbutt. The range is
kinda bad and it has a tiny bit of lag, but it does a good chunk
of damage and raises the dizzy bar a bit. If you turn your opponent
around with a Flash Chop (see Flash Chop section), and then
connect with the B+Fierce, it becomes a chokehold and you can do
more damage by banging the joystick and pounding the buttons.
(wheeeee, act like a scrub!)
-Jumping-
Flying Cross Chop (D+Fierce): Sort of like Alex's version of Zangief's
Body Splash... well, not really. It's quite dissimilar, and can't be
used all day long like the Body Splash. Alex does a dive attack
with both of his hands, and afterwards Alex rolls forward on the
ground (which leaves him vulnerable). The unique thing about this
move is that D+Fierce can be hit any time in the air, and the jump
will immediately be interrupted by the attack. This is a great
attack for countering fireballs, and if you use it after a Super
Jump (D, U) you can pretty much counter any other air attack with
it, unless their attack hits upward. If you connect against an
airborne opponent, they are slammed to the ground pretty hard.
Overall though, it's a high-risk move without high-reward, I don't
recommend using it much.
-Throws-
Body Slam (B/F+Strong/Fierce): Alex picks them up and slams their
butt back down. Not all that damaging, but leaves you very close
to the opponent, a nice opportunity to play the Wake-Up Game or
you can do a Stun Gun Headbutt right after the throw... it's
very difficult for the opponent to jump away in time when they
get up, but they can still wake-up DP, etc...
SPECIAL MOVES
-Flash Chop: QCF + P-
The Flash Chop is a move with a few uses. Alex swipes the air with
his hand, creating a "flash" that connects when close enough (and of
course, it is blockable). When you connect with a Flash Chop, the
opponent gets "turned around" and is vulnerable. Flash Chops also
neutralize projectiles (but I'd rather use parrying), and if the
opponent blocks a Flash Chop, you're pretty much safe. The Flash Chop can
also be used to neutralize projectiles, but you have to do it EXTREMELY
early. But why bother when you have parrying? :)
The Jab Flash Chop is relatively quick and combos, but the damage is
rather low and the opponent is turned around only for a very brief
period of time. It's possible to tack on a Powerbomb but it's not
unescapable.
Strong Flash Chop doesn't combo, but leaves the opponent turned around
long enough to connect with a Back Drop, Chokehold, or Hyper Bomb.
The Strong version can be Super Cancelled.
Fierce Flash Chop has the most start-up lag, but does the most damage
and leaves the opponent vulnerable for quite a while (you should have
no problems tacking an extra hit on). It can be Super Cancelled as
well. I recommend using this version should the opponent miss an
uppercut-type move, if they're dizzy, or any other situation where
they're a sitting duck.
-Power Bomb/Back Drop: HCB+P-
Alex's special throw. He grabs the opponent, takes them up into the
air and with a cry of "You can't escape!", slams them down pretty
hard into the ground. If this move is done when the opponent's back
is turned (like after a Flash Chop), this move becomes a Back Drop
where Alex kinda tosses his opponents backwards, doesn't really "slam"
too much. The problem with this move is that it isn't instant. There's
a small lag between when you do the move and when Alex actually grabs
the guy. Furthermore, the range is pretty bad, you have to pretty much
be right in their face to get one off.
The Jab version does the least damage, but comes out the quickest. Use
it when you're not totally sure the Fierce version will connect.
Strong version is in-between Jab and Fierce when it come to damage and
speed. I hardly use it.
Fierce is the only one that gets the "You can't escape!" quote, as well
as does a cool 25% or so of damage. Great for when you block a move
that doesn't have enough lag to do a Fierce Flash Chop, and leaves the
opponent close enough.
-Knee Strike: DP+K-
Not an overly useful move. Alex leaps into the air with a knee, and
if it makes contact with the opponent, he grabs them with the same
animation as his Jumping Short, and then he takes them for a ride down
to the ground. Priority on this move is rather low, I suggest another
form of air defense most of the time.
Short has barely any height, damage (?), and horizontal range on it.
Forward goes up a little higher, does more damage (?), and goes out
farther.
Roundhouse... well, you guessed it, has the most height, damage, and
horizontal range.
-Air Stampede: Charge D, U+K-
Now this is a move that, when connected, usually makes the spectators
say "Ouch". Alex hops into the air, and when he lands stomps with both
feet. If they're not blocking [high?], they're instantly flat on the
ground. Great move for hopping over FB's, IF you're close enough.
Otherwise, it's not that useful due to the short range. I think someone
said that you can use it as an OTG (Off-The-Ground) attack, but I've
never been able to. I don't use this move much, who has time to charge
when you play a grappler? :) Now that I think about it, this move is
probably GREAT for annhiliating the Ryu/Ken scrubs that rely on footsie
attacks too much. Hee hee hee... something to try...
Short makes Alex barely even leap forward.
Forward makes him leap out slightly further.
Roundhouse goes the furthest, maybe 2/5 of the screen length.
SUPER ARTS
-I: Hyper Bomb: 360+P-
THIS IS *THE* SUPER ART TO PICK IF YOU WANT TO WIN OFTEN. Alex does two
Back Drops and then a REALLY high Power Bomb to finish it off. (plus he
says "You can't escape!" when he does it, just like the Power Bomb) The
Hyper Bomb does about 55% damage (at least on the machine I play on),
making it the most powerful Super in the game (even better than Ryu's Shin
Shoryuken). Even better, the range on this sucker is good, it's about a
character width or so! (well, maybe not Alex's width, someone more like
Ryu/Ken)
However, the Super bar for this is REALLY long. The Hyper Bomb usually
isn't charged until the beginning of the 2nd round, or the end of the
1st if you got a lot of attacks in. The nice thing about the Hyper Bomb
is that it's more or less INSTANT, it comes out immediately after you
push the button and it eats up so many attacks! While it won't counter
every move, I've countered many a normal attack with it. DP's are
notorious for knocking you out of it and wasting it. Use it wisely, because
if you whiff, you probably won't get to use this again until the 3rd round
(if there IS a 3rd round).
If you're having trouble doing a 360, it can be done as a "270"
instead. I always spin the joystick from F to U clockwise no matter
which side I'm on, and it comes out. F, DF, D, DB, B, UB, U works, and
B, DB, D, DF, F, UF, U works well too. You can do a complete 360 if you
want too. Old-school Zangief players will have no problems adapting.
-II: Boomerang Raid: QCF, QCF+P-
Undoubtedly Alex's weakest Super Art. If you want to give your opponent
a chance, I suggest this super. Alex says "You can't escape!" again,
and does four punches and then ends it with a Back Drop. The Back Drop
whiffs if the last punch is blocked, and sometimes the opponent will be
too far away for the Back Drop to connect, since Alex doesn't move forward
at all at the beginning of the super. However, if the fourth punch misses,
there's a chance that the Back Drop may register. Overall though, a very
unreliable super that may counter moves ok (it has a tiny bit of
invinciblity at the start), but it just isn't worth it considering his
other two Supers.
The Super bar for this Super Art is very short, plus you can store up
to two. But who cares?
-III: Stun Gun Headbutt: QCF, QCF+P-
If you've ever seen a good Birdie player in SFA2, you'll probably
recognize this Super Art. Alex cries "You can't escape!" (AGAIN! Does
this guy have a limited vocabulary or what?), jumps into the air,
and grabs the opponent when he hits the ground. He delivers a few
headbutts that dizzy them instantly, setting them up for more punishment
and a free combo!
This should be the Super of choice if you can't do 360's, or you wanna
have some fun with old-school Ryu/Ken players. Once they throw a fireball,
they're as good as dead. Keep in mind that the button pressed for the
Super determines the distance Alex leaps. Jab is for close-range, Strong
is for mid-range, and Fierce is if they're all the way across the screen.
This Super isn't as bad as I originally thought it was. It's more or less
invincible ON THE WAY UP, coming down you're vulnerable. Try using it
when someone jumps in on you - chances are their attack will whiff, and
then they won't be able to jump away in time! Also, it's sometimes
possible to land it RIGHT when they're getting up, but they can still
Jab/DP/Super/whatever out of it. However, anyone trying to jump out won't
escape...
The Super Bar is quite a bit shorter than Hyper Bomb, but longer than
Boomerang Raid, and only one can be stored.
COMBOS
Alex is more about brute strength and damage then combos, but Alex has
some pretty damaging combos that aren't overly difficult to do.
*Jumping Roundhouse, Standing Strong/Forward, Jab Flash Chop
I consider this Alex's "bread and butter" combo, since it could be
considered as his "main" combo. It's easily done after jumping over
a fireball, but you must be close enough or the Strong/Forward will be
a long-range attack, and the Chop won't come out. If you're on the
ground, you can do Strong/Forward into Jab Chop as a way of "pressuring"
the opponent. It leaves you safe, ticks off a little bit of life, and
raises your Super.
*Jumping Roundhouse, Standing Strong/Forward, Boomerang Raid
Again, you must be as close as possible, or else all the hits of the
Boomerang Raid are going to whiff. And trust me, you do NOT want that
to happen.
*Strong/Fierce Flash Chop, Back Drop/Chokehold/Hyper Bomb
A good combo to do when they're dizzy, or when they miss a DP. The Back
Drop does more damage, but the Chokehold raises the dizzy bar higher,
is easier to do, and if you finish them off with it you get to see them
slump to the ground. :) The Hyper Bomb is of course a damaging way
to guarantee it connects. You can Super Cancel into the Hyper Bomb too.
*Fierce Flash Chop, Strong Flash Chop, Jab Flash Chop/Back Drop/
Chokehold/Hyper Bomb
A Strong Flash Chop can be "linked" after a Fierce Flash Chop, but
timing is very critical. And then you can do combos afterward... sounds
sick, but it'll take some practice to get the timing down.
*Fierce Flash Chop, Stun Gun Headbutt, Fierce Flash Chop, Back Drop/
Chokehold
One of the Stun Gun Headbutt's best uses, but you shouldn't be using
it unless you're playing the CPU ;) Do the Stun Gun AFTER the Flash
Chop, don't super cancel since if they block the Chop, the Stun Gun
will whiff.
*Fierce Flash Chop, Stun Gun Headbutt, Fierce Flash Chop, Strong Flash
Chop, Jab Flash Chop/Back Drop/Chokehold
I hope you didn't need that 70-75% or so of life...
*Strong/Fierce Flash Chop, Standing Strong/Forward, Jab Flash Chop/
Boomerang Raid
A neat three-part combo done entirely from the ground! The Back Drop/
Chokehold/Hyper Bomb is less risky though.
*Jumping Roundhouse, Headbutt
Do this if you think you landed too far away to connect with the close
Standing Strong/Forward. Fairly damaging too for only two hits, and man
does it raise the dizzy bar.
*Jumping Roundhouse, Crouching Fierce
Three easy hits, must be close though. Sets the opponent up for a
possible Roundhouse or Sweep afterwards.
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
-Alex's Outfit Colors-
Jab: Green pants/gloves, Red headband (default)
Strong: Orange pants/gloves, Green headband (yuck)
Fierce: Black pants/gloves, Blue headband (my favorite!)
Short: Light Blue pants/gloves, Red headband (neat)
Forward: Yellow pants/gloves, Green headband (Banana Alex!)
Roundhouse: White pants/gloves, blue headband, dark skin (kewl)
-Win Poses-
* Clenches his fists and says "Weak".
* Takes off his headband and says "Weak".
* Turns his back to the camera, raising a fist and says "At Ease, Loser".
-Win Quotes-
Wow! Remember the old SF2 days when everyone only had one win quote?
SF3 has gone overboard on the quotes! There seems to be around 10 win
quotes that are said against any challenger, and one per character
that is used... well, I don't know when. It just kinda pops up
semi-randomly. Anyone know if there's a way to pick the vs. Character
one?
GENERAL WIN QUOTES
"Damn, I can't believe how sorry I fought. Next time I will really beat
the crap out of you!"
"Bluffing will get you nowhere against me. Talk's cheap!"
"Don't even try to stand up, you look pale."
"I don't know where you trained yourself, but you didn't train hard
enough. Those moves suck!"
"You hit the ground right as I was about to go berzerk. Lucky!"
"Damn, even my sparring partner lasts longer than that!"
"I always give my all no matter who I face."
"You arrogant imbecile. You slacked off right at the end."
"You thought you could win? C'mon, everyone knows you're no good!"
"You say you were out of form? Your excuses are out of control!"
VS. CHARACTER WIN QUOTES
"You... you seem to live for the fight." - vs. Ryu
"You may be fast, but not fast enough to elude my fists." - vs. Ken
"You're a pathetic excuse for a ninja." - vs. Ibuki
"Your moves are almost as freakin weird as you!" - vs. Necro
"You may have mighty body blows, but you can't hit my vital organs." -
vs. Dudley
"You're tough, but you can't outlast the best." - vs. Sean
"You brothers sure are hot blooded! But you're both still lamers!" -
vs. Yun/Yang (LMAO! He calls them LAMERS?)
"Control your temper old man. I will ignore your piddly ass next time." -
vs. Oro
Don't know what he says against Alex or Elena.
-"Fatalities"-
No, not THOSE fatalities. I just thought it was the best word to describe
one of the minor additions to SF3 - being able to "juggle" a K.O.'ed
opponent. This does, of course, work best in the corner. What's also neat
is when you finish your opponent with a Jab or Short, the Headbutt, or
the Stun Gun Headbutt (NOTE: It's hard to connect with attacks after the
Headbutt or Stun Gun... if you want to be beating them up some more I
suggest trying to win with Jab or Short). They crumple to the ground
slowly, so you can still attack them and give them some more punishment.
Most of these don't apply to Necro, as he's only vulnerable for a VERY
short period of time. While we're on the subject though, if Alex loses to
a Jab or Short (or loses by a hit trade), he says "Jesus!". Funny. :)
Here's some "fatalities" (anybody got a better word for these?) that I
like doing.
Jab/Short (killing attack), Standing Fierce (ouch!)
Jab/Short (killing attack), Crouching Fierce
Jab/Short (killing attack), Standing Roundhouse
(in corner) Jab/Short (killing attack), F+Strong, Forward (neat, a
juggle combo)
(in corner) Deep Jumping Fierce/Roundhouse (killing attack), Jumping
Roundhouse, Jumping Roundhouse
Headbutt/Stun Gun Headbutt, Crouching Short, Crouching Short (repeated
weak attacks usually doesn't knock them down)
STRATEGY
-General Tips-
ALWAYS PICK HYPER BOMB. Stun Gun Headbutt and Boomerang Raid are fun
against the CPU, but when it comes to head-to-head competition, the
Hyper Bomb will help you out the most. Master the 360 on an older SF
if you haven't done so yet.
Get parrying down! Practice parrying fireballs, they're the easiest to
parry. Then work on parrying the sweeps that everyone seems to live and
die by. Air parrying is probably the difficult, since you can never be
too sure when the opponent is going to do their attack. Whenever you
parry, try to follow up with a Standing Forward since it has good range
and ok speed, or do a Power Bomb if you're close enough. Oh yes,
remember that you can wake-up parry if someone throws a FB at you while
you're getting up...
"The Wake-Up Game" Very simple. This is more or less switching between
sweeps and overheads when the opponent gets up. How do you fool them?
One way is to crouch down fairly close, and then right as they're getting
up let go and push Fierce for Alex's overhead. And vice versa, just stand
there and sweep at the last minute. The important thing to remember is
not to be standing TOO close to the opponent, or else you will get thrown.
If they never do anything when they get up though, give them a Jab Power
Bomb. One important thing to watch out for is high-priority wake up Supers,
and DP's. If your opponent is fond of doing this, walk up like you're
going to attack and then just let them do their thing. Then punish them.
The Crouching Fierce, Standing/Crouching Roundhouse trick works great as
long as you don't overuse it. One player saw me do it too much and then
DP'ed my outstretched leg... ack. Once this happens, follow the Crouching
Fierce with things like a Standing Fierce, or a Jab Power Bomb. If they
catch on and start DP/Supering you, just walk forward and let them do
what they please. Basically, the Crouching Fierce can become the Wake-Up
Game very easily.
TICKING! Yep, Alex can tick with his Power Bomb and Hyper Bomb... it's
somewhat difficult, though. At point-blank range, do a Standing Short,
let the animation finish, then do a Jab Power Bomb or the Hyper Bomb. I
think this works with the close Standing Jab too. This tick is difficult
to escape, it can be jumped out of but they must be expecting it, almost
all players won't be able to jump out on reaction. This can also be done
with a Jumping Short, but beware the throw priority of the person on
the ground.
Opponent turtling too much? Dash forward, do a Jab Power Bomb. For some
reason I've caught so many people with this lately. Once people catch on
to this, bang the joystick real fast and sorta hard ONCE in their
direction. I tried this out a few times, and half the time they stuck out
a sweep. I then walked in and countered with my own sweep. Funny!
Turtlers pissing you off? I'm still developing a strategy for beating
them, but here's the basic plan behind it. Basically, get in and do
some damage, somehow (easy, huh?). Once you're about 25% or so ahead on
life, just hang back and let them come to you. Really throws them for a
loop since they're used to trying to counter all the time, and now
they'll actually have to *gasp* GO ON THE OFFENSIVE! And if they actually
attempt to throw fireballs, just parry. Eventually they'll either try
to jump or just keep twitching while they try to get in range to play
footsie. If they jump, do an EARLY Knee Strike with Roundhouse, or the
good ol' Crouching Fierce. If they're still staying a distance away but
closing the gap, dash forward and do a Jab Power Bomb. May take them by
surprise and then they won't be able to sweep/DP in time. If you don't
want to try that, keep sticking out Crouching Strongs and Forwards to
attempt to outprioritize their attacks. Any time that they're just
sitting in the corner though, keep doing Standing Strong to fill your
meter. An Alex with Super meter should always be feared. :)
Important fact to remember - AFTER A JUMP-IN, THE CHARACTER ON THE GROUND
HAS THROW PRIORITY. A couple players have always tried to do a jump-in
attack, but I always block and counterthrow. And vice versa, they can
always throw me if they block my jump-in. Always hold back on the
stick to throw instead of forward if you're going to attempt it, but
watch out for low attacks...
Alex has no real useful wake-up special attacks... well, the Air Stampede
might be useful, but I haven't really tried. The Hyper Bomb is one HELL
of a wake-up super, because if they're anywhere near you, chances are
they're going for a ride. Boomerang Raid might be useful too, but it's
not worth trying. Of course, you can always wake-up parry if they try to
hit you while you're getting up, and then go into a Standing Forward/
Power Bomb...
If you nail someone with a Chokehold, you may notice them struggling to
get out by tapping the buttons and banging the joystick. Once Alex lets go,
try giving them a Standing/Crouching Roundhouse if they're still pushing
buttons.
After a Jab Flash Chop, you can sometimes nail a person with a Jab Power
Bomb right as they're recovering. This only works if they don't try to
do jump away or attack (they'll probably be pushing Back). The second time
though, chances are they'll be watching out for it, so throw it in every
now and then, don't abuse it.
Always follow in Power Bombs and Hyper Bombs. You can sometimes nail your
opponent with a sweep as they get up.
Simple tactic, but if you nail them with a Jumping Fierce/Roundhouse on
the jump-in and are too far away to land the close Standing Strong/Forward,
then follow with either a Standing or Crouching Forward to get another
hit, or even the Headbutt if you're close enough. (if it whiffs though,
watch out)
-Ryu/Ken-
Read above, the general strategies help a lot.
Old strategy, but it still works - against DP-happy opponents, jump
in just out of range and let them DP. Many times they DP, miss, and
they'll be vulnerable as they come down.
Against players that abuse Ryuken's Hurricane Kick, try either a
Crouching Strong or a Jab Power Bomb when they're landing. Be careful not
to get hit if they go over your head. Oh yeah, the Stun Gun Headbutt
catches the Hurricane Kick, but I don't recommend using it... ;)
Another excellent weapon is the Headbutt/Chokehold, which works well if
they pass over your head.
-Sean-
Fairly similar to fighting Ryuken, since they have the same normals and
a similar HK. Should any Sean use the "butt check", just parry and Power
Bomb. Beware of Sean's who will fake with the Sean Tackle, and then
throw you. Always block low just in case, and stick out a Crouching
Forward when his time on the ground is up. Sean isn't really too hard a
fight, but maybe I haven't played enough Sean's...
-Ibuki-
One of Alex's toughest fights, but he still has a chance.
The air knife is annoying, but it's a cinch to parry and if it hits you,
it does minimal damage. Keep parrying and gaining ground against an Ibuki
who jumps towards the corner all day and throws knives.
If you're not attacking, be sure to be in a low block. This way you can
block Ibuki's quick sweep and her neck breaker slide. (don't know the
name of it and am too lazy to look it up) A crafty Ibuki may try to nail
you with the neck breaker if you land out of range, so don't jump for no
reason (but that should be a given). Dash if you need to gain ground.
After a Headstomp, Ibuki's like to do an air knife immediately after. Try
dashing forward immediately after, at which point you'll be right under
a very vulnerable Ibuki. This should get them to stop, or change the
timing of the knife - which makes it easy to jump over.
After blocking the Yoroi-Doushi, dash forward as fast as you can. You
might be able to get to her in time to feed her a Fierce Power Bomb.
-Oro-
Oro = Turtle. There are very few aggresive Oro's, most will sit back,
throwing fireballs at you and waiting for you to jump in, at which point
they'll use the uppercut, which is fairly easy to air parry.
An Oro using Kishin-Riki must be kept away (obviously), and an Oro using
Yagyou-Dama can be dangerous if you get pinned down in the corner, be sure
to block the correct way if Oro follows it in.
Tengu-Stone is the true Super to fear though... one mess-up and you're
stuck in an infinite. Since Oro becomes more aggressive once he's got
the Stone activated, sweep him if he gets anywhere near you and Crouching
Fierce if he jumps.
-Dudley-
This can be a hard fight for Alex, due to the effectiveness of his
Standing Fierce. Other than that, there aren't too many other effective
ground attacks of Dudley's, but he's got some great anti-air.
If you're looking out for it, you can parry the Machine Gun Blow.
However, you'll have to parry each hit slowly, the rhythm to parrying that
is different than most other attacks.
Watch out for wake-up Rocket Uppercuts if the Dudley is using that Super.
Don't try to retaliate against a Corkscrew Blow, since it recovers quick
enough to allow the Dudley to do another one and snuff your counter.
As for Rolling Thunder... well, it's fairly easy to see coming, and
once blocked he's Power Bomb bait.
-Yun/Yang-
Poking terror! Don't even think of trying to counter a blocked Crouching
Roundhouse, because it can't be done. Parry is a viable solution, but it
comes out so quick that you better guess right. Heck, parrying comes in
handy against the Standing Fierce and Roundhouse pokes as well. Beware
the quick air dive of theirs, it's easy to throw after blocking though.
Don't jump too often at them, because it's very easy to get knocked out
by their Standing Forward, and then get juggled with their Hop Punch, or
even worse, several Hop Punches if they activate Genei-Jin. But any
Yun/Yang who's worth their salt will use Tenshin Senkyutai, and you
cannot afford to mess up. It also makes for one hell of a wake-up super,
so don't be so quick to stick out sweeps and overheads when they get up.
-Elena-
Elena's most effective tactic is switching between her sweep and quick
overhead when you're knocked down, so always be prepared to block...
Elena tends to be played as a turtlepoke character, so throw a dash-in
Jab Powerbomb in there whenever you can. Parry low a lot when you get
close, as her slide and sweep are two of her more effective ground
attacks.
-Necro-
Wish I could say, but I've barely played against any Necro's at all...
BEATING GILL
The CPU is relatively easy until you reach Gill. Follow these
guidelines and you shouldn't have too much trouble...
PLAY DEFENSIVE. I can not stress this enough. If you go crazy on the
offense he'll slaughter you. I hate turtling, but unfortunately you must
play this way to give Gill what he deserves. Block his fireballs (or
double parry, but the timing is tricky). If Gill does a normal jump-in at
you, don't try to counter since his air attacks have monstrous priority.
If Gill does the air dive, and only one hit connects, do nothing. If
both hits connect, dash forward and do a Jab Powerbomb.
When Gill does his clothesline, this is your opportunity to do big
damage! Do his normal throw, and then when he's getting up do Standing
Strong/Forward into Jab Flash Chop, sometimes he doesn't block it.
If you don't want to risk that, do a "meaty" low forward instead, it's
safe to do. If you're using Hyper Bomb, you can nail him with it after
blocking the clothesline. If you're using Stun Gun Headbutt, throw him
normally, then do the Stun Gun as he's getting up. He won't do anything
about it. If you have Boomerang Raid, use it at pretty much any time he's
close since the CPU never seems to block it.
If Gill's super bar is full when you beat him, he's going to Ressurrect
himself. Dash forward to his body as quickly as you can, and when he
starts the Resurrection, wait about a second, then do either a Standing
Roundhouse or the Roundhouse Knee Strike to knock him out. If timed
right, he'll only have 25-35% of his life back. Finish him off!
ENDING
<I hope to get this word-for-word sooner or later>
A flashback is shown in which Alex and Patricia are standing over the
wounded Tom. Tom got beaten badly by Gill, and Tom can see that Alex
is heading out for revenge, and while he doesn't want Alex doing that,
there is nothing in his power to stop him. Tom closes his eyes, and
Patricia cries out for him.
The next scene shows Tom and Patricia finding Alex on the street. Tom
is feeling much better and has recovered from most of his wounds. Tom
states that Alex has a new look about him, that he has the face of a
man. Alex states that his quest has only begun, and he'll continue to
seek challenges over the world (kinda like *ack!* Ryu)
FUTURE VERSIONS...
Clarification on anything in question
More win quotes
More combos (if there are any)
More strategy
Better summary of the ending
Anything else that needs adding
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Various people contributed to make this FAQ what it is. In no particular
order, I'd like to thank the following (and an apology if I somehow
forget you): Darklancer, Erik Cohen, Guke, Jeff Jarlett, Jason Malone
Eric Johnson, Shaun Patrick Mcisaac, Chad Takahashi, Onaje Everett,
Kenichiro Tanaka, and the whole alt.games.sf2 crowd!
Any Alex players out there with something worth mentioning in the FAQ,
please e-mail me! Also, give me an e-mail if you're an SF player in the
Rio Grande Valley! (not too many of those) I usually play at the #1 Fun
at Sunrise Mall in Brownsville, if that makes any difference. Just look
for the guy in the Jaguars cap. Til' next time...
[email protected]
-=END FAQ=-
