Title: Joe Higashi KOF99 FAQ v1.21
Author: Boo Boo
Last Updated: 1-26-00
email:
[email protected]
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Legal stuff: This document is intended for public use. Do not use for
profit in any manner, unless you have first received permission from
me. If you wish to post this elsewhere or use material from this faq,
please notify me first; I would like to know where this faq is going.
------------------
Table of Contents:
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1. Version Updates
2. Who is Joe Higashi
3. Why This Faq, and Why Play Joe Higashi
4. FAQ Notation
5. Joe's Attacks
6. Joe's Combos
7. General Strategy (Lengthy)
8. Vs. Advice
9. Fun Stuff
10. Stuff Needed
11. Credits and KOF Links
12. Comments, Suggestions, Corrections?
-------------------
1. Version Updates:
-------------------
v1.21: Added a Ryo-Striker combo (section 6.5). Upgraded my thoughts
on his Jump B, Jump C, and his Golden Heel Hurter. Added speech
and translation for SDM Screw Happa. Made a couple other tiny
changes, can't remember what they are...
v1.2: Downgraded my opinion on Joe's dnfwd B and Slash Kick. I
replaced Jump B with Jump A in all the combos (it seems easier to
combo off Jump A). Added a couple new Leona-Striker combos
(section 6.5). Added some useless thoughts in the Armor Mode area
(section 6.7).
v1.1: Modified some Vs. Advice. Changed thoughts on his Jump A.
Changed thoughts on Slash Kick. Added a warning about TNT
Finisher when fighting against grapplers. Finally remembered to
add the Golden Heel Hurter as an air-defense option. Added speech
for Joe's B win pose.
v1.05: Correction about his Rush SDM's comboability. Separated DM and
SDM combos into two sections, and revised them a little.
v1.0 : Here we go! The first draft of my Joe FAQ.
----------------------
2. Who is Joe Higashi:
----------------------
Joe Higashi is the world Muy Thai champion, and he is also
a close friend of the Bogard brothers (Terry and Andy). He is really
noisy and somewhat arrogant (he is extremely confident in his
fighting abilities), but he generally seems to be a good guy, even if
he does annoy you now and then.
BTW, here is his profile, thanks to Gunsmith's KOF99 FAQ:
Place of Birth : Japan
Fighting Style : Muetai Kickboxing
Age : 23
DOB : 29th March
Blood Type : AB
Height : 180 cm
Weight : 71 kg
Hobby : Fighting
Favourite Food : Fried Wani (Fried Alligator meat)
Important Thing: His Hachimaki (headband)
Best Sport : Any kind of fighting
Hated Thing : Dressing up formally
------------------------------------------
3. Why This Faq, and Why Play Joe Higashi:
------------------------------------------
Well, I wrote this FAQ largely because I am a big-time Joe fan. But
also, not many people out there play with Joe, or even give him a
chance. A lot of players think Joe sucks now in KOF'99, and while Joe
certainly isn't among the best of the best in KOF'99, he can be a
competitive and capable fighter if played correctly. He's been
toned down from '98, but that doesn't hurt him too much, because a lot
of people got toned down. Anyway, hopefully this FAQ will help you
play Joe to his full potential.
Why would you want to fight as Joe Higashi? Well, Joe may not be among
the best characters in KOF'99, but he can still hit quite hard, since
his combos are powerful and easy to do. He is a bit on the slow side,
however. You can hop with him sometimes, but in general, he is more of
a pressure character that mixes it up from both the air and the
ground. With Joe, a bit more emphasis should be placed on offense than
defense. If you like this style of play, like to think during a
fight (i.e. no pattern-fighting), and you are a big fan of Joe (like I
am), you should try Joe out sometime.
----------------
4. FAQ Notation:
----------------
A = light punch
B = light kick
C = heavy punch
D = heavy kick
dn = down joystick motion
u = up joystick motion
b = hold joystick in blocking direction
fwd = joystick forward motion
db = hold joystick down and back
df = hold joystick down and forward
qcb = quarter circle back joystick motion (d, db, b)
qcf = quarter circle forward joystick motion (d, df, f)
hcb = half circle back joystick motion (f, df, d, db, b)
hcf = half circle forward joystick motion (b, db, d, df, f)
dp = uppercut joystick motion (f, d, df)
rdp = reverse uppercut joystick motion (b, d, db)
CM = Counter Mode
AM = Armor Mode
---------------
5. His Attacks:
---------------
Note: Joe's moves will be rated from * to *****, where * = sucky,
*** = so and so, and ***** = awesome.
-----------
5.1 Throws:
-----------
When close, b/f + C (*****): This throw can really irritate your
opponent. Joe grabs the opponent and starts to knee him in
the gut. Mash on the buttons and wiggle your joystick, and
Joe will knee the opponent LOTS of times for good damage. This
throw is his best throw, unless time is a factor. It is good for
keeping cornered opponents cornered. Seems to have good range for
a normal throw.
When close, b/f + D (****): Joe grabs his opponent with his legs,
flips over, and slams him on the ground behind Joe. This throw
ends quickly, so if time is running out and you are losing, use
this throw instead of the other one. That way, you have more time
left to catch up with the opponent. This throw reverses positions
between Joe and the opponent.
-------------------
5.2 Normal Attacks:
-------------------
Far Standing A (***) (not cancellable)
A quick jab at chest-level. It misses crouchers, but it does okay
against other standing pokes. Better poke than you'd think.
Far AND Near Standing B (***) (cancellable) :
Joe sticks out his front foot with a push kick (it's called a
teep kick in Muy Thai). It has okay range, pretty good speed, and
pretty good priority. At close range, this will help you pressure
your opponent.
Far Standing C (**) (not cancellable):
Joe throws a straight heavy punch at chest-level. Okay reach and
speed. Small characters can duck under it. Don't use it much, his
Standing D is better.
Far Standing D (****) (not cancellable):
He does a roundhouse kick at waist-level. Comes out fast for a
D, has good range, & great priority. Unfortunately, it seems to
hit higher than it did in '98, and a lot of long-ranged sweeps
will now trip Joe while he's doing it. And it still misses small
crouching characters. But still, this is useful when used
correctly.
Near Standing A (***) (cancellable):
A quick elbow at about chest-level. It hits higher than it did in
'98, and it whiffs against small ducking characters. You won't be
using this too much outside of combos.
Near Standing C (****) (cancellable):
Joe does a heavy elbow to his opponent's gut. This is his best
combo starter. Use it a lot. However, it's not as fast as the
really good Close C's out there (i.e. Shin Kyo's).
Near Standing D (***) (cancellable):
Joe thrusts up his knee towards his opponent's chin. Although
this is a new feature for him in '99 (in '98, he had no Near D
animation), it isn't all that useful. It serves the same purpose
as his Near Standing C, although it seems to come out a little
faster (still not as fast as Kyo's Close C, though). But this
will miss against small ducking people and people who are doing
low-to-the-ground moves (i.e. Beni's Dwn C). Joe's Near Stnd C
is better overall.
Standing CD (*) (cancellable):
Joe does a slow, high, funky kick. It misses most crouchers.
Don't use it much, it will usually get you into trouble.
CD counter (****) (not cancellable):
Joe does his Standing B animation, which comes out MUCH faster
than his regular CD. It is a very good CD counter. Joe doesn't
have any use for counter or armor mode, and he can still do
decent damage without DMs; so you may want to use this a lot.
Crouching A (*****) (cancellable):
Joe does a quick knee-level jab. Comes out very quick and has
good range for a Crouching A. It is good for combos. Use this a
lot to bother your opponent up close, and link to his TNT
punches or Rush DM.
Crouching B (****) (not cancellable):
Joe sticks out his foot low and kicks the opponent's ankle. Comes
out fast and has very good range. Useful in-close poke.
Make sure to hold the joystick down, and not down-forward, or
Joe's slide attack will come out.
Crouching C (no stars):
Argh, what did SNK DO to this move?! In '98, this was his best
combo starter! In '99, this thing SUCKS! Joe pops up and does
some weird elbow to the opponent's head. There is nothing good
about this move. Do not use.
Crouching D (***) (cancellable):
Joe does a low roundhouse sweep. This has good reach, but comes
out very slow. A lot of other sweeps will beat it. I usually use
it at maximum range against opponents who are getting up, or
against opponents who have no long-range poke (i.e. Bao) or worse
sweeps (i.e. Maxima).
Jumping A (****):
Joe does some sort of leaning elbow in the air. Okay range for a
Jump A. It aims higher than the Jump B does. In air battles, this
is Joe's quick attack of choice. Can use as jump-in, also.
Jumping B (****):
Joe sticks out a kick that is aimed a bit downwards. This kick
has GREAT range for a Jump B. It is basically a slightly
quicker version of his Hop D.
Hopping C (****):
Joe's new Hopping C has him doing a funky downward punch. It has
very bad horizontal range, but it has GREAT downward reach. It is
good for jump-in attacks. It's not good for air battles, though.
Vertical High Jump C (**):
Joe does his old Jump C animation from '98. Not really all that
useful compared to his other air attacks.
Hopping D (****):
Joe sticks out his leg at roughly the same angle as his Jumping
B. It is probably his best jump-in for combos, and is pretty good
for air battles, too. It used to have a LOT more priority in '98,
but it is still okay in '99. It's pretty quick and strong.
Vertical High Jumping D (***):
Joe stabs down with his foot at a downward angle, an angle
similar to that of his Hopping C's punch. It's somewhat special
in that it can be used as an instant overhead.
Jump CD (*****):
Joe's new air CD is GREAT. He does this horizontal kick that
has great range and comes out FAST. I think this comes out faster
than his Jump D or C, amazingly enough! Very useful for high-jump
air battles or defense. It is kinda bad for jump-ins.
-------------------
5.3 Striker Attack:
-------------------
Rating: (***)
Joe jumps in and briefly does his old TNT Punch animation from KOF'95.
If he completely misses the opponent, he then jumps back off screen.
If he touches the opponent, he does more TNT punches, finishes with a
leaping uppercut animation that was grabbed from his SDM Screw Happa
animation, then moons the opponent. ^_^
Joe's striker attack is actually pretty good, IMHO. When your fighter
first calls out Joe, your fighter is invincibile for a moment, which
certainly does not suck. And if the opponent gets caught inside Joe's
punches, you can do almost anything you want while Joe's punching
out the opponent (you can do even grab DMs like Clark's Running
Threeya!) If your opponent blocks Joe, you still have plenty of time
to move around and set up your next attack.
The only problem with Joe's striker attack is that it has BAD range.
And boy, when I say bad, I mean BAD. It's bad enough to knock down
Joe's Striker Attack from good to only average.
-----------------
5.4 Slide Attack: (hit A, B, C, or D during AB forward slide)
-----------------
Rating: (****)
Joe's Slide Attack is a high back-kick with good range and speed.
It misses against small crouching characters, though. Useful against
fireballers. Also, in Counter Mode, slide attacks become cancellable,
although I wouldn't recommend using Joe in Counter Mode.
--------------------
5.5 Command Attacks:
--------------------
f + B (****) (cancellable) :
Joe steps forward and delivers a low sweeping kick, using his
hardened Muy-Thai-trained shin to club the opponent's shin. When
done outside of a chain, this attack must be blocked low. It is
always cancellable, whether it is used in a chain combo or used
alone. It should be used only in chains, since it is too slow to
be used as a poke by itself.
df + B (**) (not cancellable):
Joe slides low for about 1/2 screen, sticking out his foot. This
hits low, but does not knock down. It has much better range than
it did in '98, but it does NOT go under fireballs anymore (except
against Kryzalid-1's and Maxima's Vapor Cannon). The recovery
isn't too great, either, so do not use it at close range. It is
okay as an occasional surprise poke, but that's about it.
--------------------
5.6 Special Attacks:
--------------------
Hurricane Upper -> hcf + P (****):
Ah, Joe's trademark move. If you use the A button, Joe throws a
single hurricane wave that is about as tall as him, and the
hurricane travels about halfway across the screen. If you use
the C button, Joe throws two hurricanes.
Some characters can hop over the hurricane if they time it
well, all high jumps will also jump over it (Chin still has a
tough time, though, heh heh).
Use mostly his A version, since it comes out faster and recovers
faster. This is a good move for safe chip damage after a blocked
combo. It is probably his most important weapon, but not
necessarily the weapon that Joe should use most.
Outside of combos, you should use it quite a bit, but do not use
it as your sole offensive attack; it's not that good a fireball.
Especially do not use it at CLOSE range; it takes a while for Joe
to summon his hurricane, and he can be hit before it comes out. I
like to use it when the opponent is at its maximum range, around
1/2 a screen away. At this range, if the opponent hops from
there, it has time to come out and hit the opponent in mid-hop.
Use it at this range to discourage hopping, then see if your
opponent starts to recklessly slide or high-jump.
Don't use this at long-range either. There's no point in throwing
it out from long-range.
Tiger Knee -> dp + K (****):
Joe's uppercut attack. He leaps high into the air with his knee
thrust upwards. The D version goes higher than the B version.
The B version has better horizontal range than the D version.
If Joe misses his opponent or the opponent blocks the knee, Joe
is left WIDE open for punishment.
Use the D version of his Tiger Knee most of the time. It has
much better anti-air priority than the B version. But still,
neither one is invincible, and they will often trade hits with
well-timed high-priority jump ins.
Slash Kick -> hcf + K (***):
Joe's main combo move, outside of DM combos. Joe sort of flies
forward towards his opponent, leg outstretched. The B version
travels a little more than 1/2 screen, while the D version goes
about 3/4's of the screen.
This move comes out pretty fast, has pretty good priority once
the kick comes out, and has okay recovery so long as Joe doesn't
land RIGHT in front of the opponent. It is good for punishing
mistakes from a distance.
Use the B version most of the time. The D version does a tiny
bit more damage, but it hits higher than the B version and will
miss most crouching characters, even during a combo.
The B version is pretty good as an occasional surprise poke, but
you should be using this mostly in combos.
TNT Punches -> Mash on A/C repeatedly (***):
If you mash on the punch buttons a lot, Joe will start doing all
these crazy short-ranged punches and elbows. If you mash on
Crouching A a lot, it will usually combo off the Crouching A's.
It does okay damage, but it has bad range. And it has bad
priority against low attacks. Only use it when you are close to
your opponent. Don't mash on the punch buttons for too long, or
the opponent will get pushed out of Joe's range while Joe is
still punching; and Joe will be left open for punishment. This
move has terrible recovery if you do not use the TNT Finisher
afterwards, so always do the TNT Finisher after you execute this
move.
TNT Finisher -> during TNT punches, qcf + A/C (A = **** , C = **):
If you use the A version, Joe does an overhead elbow that must be
blocked high. If you use the C version, Joe does a flying high
kick that can be crouched under. The A version does not knock
down, while the C version does. The A version has much better
recovery than the C version, and it does about the same damage.
Always use the A version, whether the TNT punches are blocked or
not. After Joe does his overhead elbow, Joe and his opponent are
usually pushed away from each other, leaving Joe safe from most
counter attacks.
If the TNT punches are blocked, it's best to do this move as soon
as you can, which is right after executing the TNT punches. I
have gotten the timing down where I always have Joe do his
overhead elbow after only one or two hits with his TNT punches.
If blocked, this still leaves him pretty safe.
Using the TNT Finisher (and TNT Punches) against grapplers can be
dangerous. When Joe rushes forward with his overhead elbow, I
think grapplers can grab him as he's rushing forward. I'm not
sure if this theory is correct or not. But once, an opponent
grabbed me out of this move with Maxima. He had been spazzing on
the joystick with hcf + D while I was attacking with Joe, and I
think that is what happened.
Golden Heel Hurter -> qcb + K (****):
Joe flips in the air, lashing out with his foot in an overhead
arc. The B version travels about 1/4 of the screen, and reaches
up to about 2/3's of the screen's height. The D version travels
about 1/2 of the screen, and reaches up almost to the top of the
screen.
You can sort of poke with this move, since it has pretty good
priority and recovery. It is also good for pressuring if the
opponent is blocking your combo, since it pushes the opponent
to the corner and keeps Joe close to the opponent.
Don't throw this out TOO much as a stand-alone poke move, because
Joe can be easily hit out of it during its rather slow start-up.
As for anti-air, I have mixed feelings about this move. It has
good air-to-air priority. And you can also set up a juggle with
this move. But it has a slow start-up, so to use it as anti-air,
you have to practically anticipate your opponent's jump. Use only
the B version, since it does essentially the same thing, and is a
bit safer than the D version if you miss with it. But still, I
would not advise relying too much on this move as anti-air. Joe
has better alternatives for air defense, I think.
----------------------
5.7 Desperation Moves:
----------------------
Screw Happa -> qcfx2 + P (****):
Wait, did I say that Joe's trademark move was Hurricane Upper?
My bad, his Screw Happa is his trademark move! For the DM
version, Joe first creates a purple tornado in front of him that
is as tall as him; then the tornado grows taller and slowly
travels forward for about a 1/4 of the screen. For the SDM
version, Joe does the same thing, except the tornado is now
bright orange, and the tornado travels full-screen. The DM has
pretty good recovery, but the SDM has bad recovery. C versions
of the S/DM travel a little faster than the A versions.
For the DM, the A version comes out so slow, it doesn't even
combo anymore. Only the C version combos now, off a close C or
D. Never use the A version, only use the C version. The DM
also does a lot of block damage, BTW.
Both versions of the SDM, on the other hand, are quick enough to
combo after a Crouching A or Near Standing A. I've noticed that
the A version of the SDM does more damage in combos. The C
version travels faster, so you can use it as a full-screen
projectile against an idiot who keeps throwing fireballs against
a Joe player who has a red life bar. If blocked, the SDM does
a LOT of block damage.
If the opponent does a high or slow jump, the Screw Happa is
great anti-air. Once Joe has summoned his hurricane, almost
nothing can penetrate it. Keep in mind, however, that when the
hurricane is first summoned, it is only as tall as Joe; an
opponent can jump over it rather easily, so make sure the
opponent is jumping INTO it, not OVER it. Also, do not use this
against hops. It comes out too slow to counter hops.
One final note on Screw Happa: It beats practically EVERY other
projectile attack out there. It snuffs out HaohShoKokens, Chin's
Firebreath DM, Bao's Fireball Supers, etc. The only thing it does
not beat is Kasumi's Wave DM. Against Kasumi's Wave DM, the DMs
will just go right through each other, and both Joe and Kasumi
will be hit (assuming Kasumi is within range of the Screw Happa).
Exploding Hurricane Tiger Heel -> qcf, hcb + P (****):
For this DM, Joe quickly rushes forward doing his TNT punches.
Then he throws a couple Hurricane Uppers, a Tiger Knee, then
a Golden Heel Hurter. For the SDM, Joe does a lot more TNT
punches, a few orange-colored Hurricane Uppers, then a really
high Tiger Knee into a Golden Heel Hurter. It is his most
damaging DM, I believe.
For the DM, only use the C version, since it has better range
than the A version. Practice comboing this DM, because it
does good damage. It combos off A attacks, Close Stnd C/D, or the
fwd B command attack.
The SDM stinks. He pauses before rushing forward, thus making it
tough to combo. So far, I find that it only combos off a Standing
C/D. I advise you to use his Screw Happa for SDM combos.
Keep in mind, Joe's rush DM is not like Ryo's or Kim's rush DMs.
Joe's rush DM does not suck in his opponent, and if it is done on
airborne opponents, it only juggles them for a couple hits before
they fall to the ground. Joe will still be doing his crazy
punching and kicking when they get up, and this is a bad thing.
Strongest Low Kick in History -> qcfx2 + K (***) (chargeable):
I love this move, because it is so Joe! Joe coils as he turns his
back to the opponent, then he lunges forward with a very painful-
looking shin kick. It has better reach than it seems, about 1/2
screen. It also has a higher hit area than you'd think. This DM
must be blocked low.
You can hold the kick button after doing the qcfx2, and Joe will
not lash out with his kick until you let go of the button. If you
keep holding onto the kick button, Joe will automatically do the
kick after a few seconds. Unfortunately, charging the DM doesn't
make it unblockable or increase the damage. The SDM is the
exact same thing as the DM, except it does more damage.
The DM & SDM come out too slow to use in normal combos. But this
DM is not useless, because it is Joe's only DM that juggles after
a juggling striker attack (i.e. Kim or Yuri). It is easy to time
the juggle with this DM, too. Just do the DM as soon as possible,
then hold down the button until the opponent falls down to
striking range; then simply let go of the button for easy damage.
----------
6. Combos:
----------
If you know of any combos that are not listed here, I would greatly
appreciate it if you sent them to me, so I can put them in and give
credit to you...
-----------------
6.1 Chain Combos:
-----------------
These are some of the more useful chain combos that Joe can do.
## = can be chained, but will not combo
1) dn A, dn A, dn A
2) dn B, dn B, dn B
3) dn B, dn A
4) dn A, Stnd B
5) dn A, Near Stnd A
6) Stnd C, fwd + B
7) Stnd C, dn fwd + B
8) Far Stnd A, Far Stnd A
9) Far Stnd A, dn A
10) Far Stand A, dn B
11) ## dn B, Stnd B
12) ## dn B, Stnd B, fwd + B
13) ## dn A, Stnd B, fwd + B
14) ## dn B, dn A, fwd + B
15) ## dn A, dn A, fwd + B
16) ## Far Stand A, dn A, fwd + B
17) ## Dn D, fwd + B
18) ## Dn D, dn fwd + B
------------------
6.2 Non-DM combos:
------------------
1) Jump A/B/C/D, Stnd C/D, fwd + B, hcf + B
*(This is Joe's bread-and-butter combo. It does good damage
for such an easy combo. It does the most damage out of all his
non-DM combos.)
2) Stnd C/D, fwd + B, qcb + B
*(Even if blocked, this is a good pressure tactic, since Joe is
pretty safe after the qcb + B... except against grapplers.)
3) Jump A/B/C/D, Dn A, press A/C rapidly (TNT Punches), qcf + A (TNT
finisher)
4) Dn A, Dn A, dp + B
5) Stnd B, dp + B
6) (corner) Stnd C/D, fwd + B, dp + B
7) (corner) Stnd C/D, fwd + B, press A/C rapidly (TNT Punches),
qcf + C (TNT Finisher), A
*(You can skip the fwd + B if you want. If you use the fwd + B,
the 1st punch of the TNT Punches will not connect, it will be the
2nd or 3rd punch; you must do the finisher right after this 2nd
or 3rd punch. The A afterwards is a juggle. Showoff combo.)
8) (opponent in air) qcb + B/D, hcf + B
9) (opponent in air) qcb + B/D, Stnd D
10) (opponent in air and near corner) qcb + B/D, dp + B/D
11) (opponent in air and near corner) qcb + B/D, press A/C rapidly
12) fwd + B, qcb + B
13) fwd + B, hcf + B
14) fwd + B, dp + B
15) (very close to opponent) fwd + B, hcf + A
16) Jump A/D, Stnd C/D, hcf + A
17) Jump A/D, Stnd C/D, dp + B/D
18) Jump A/D, Stnd C/D, hcf + B/D
--------------------------
6.3 Normal Mode DM Combos:
--------------------------
1) Stnd C/D, fwd + B, qcf hcb + C (DM only)
*(Joe's bread-and-butter DM combo. You can NOT do this off a
jump-in, because Joe will be pushed too far away from his
opponent, even if Joe has the opponent in the corner. Also,
the DM sometimes doesn't connect against small opponents,
especially Bao.)
2) Jump A/B/C/D, Dn A or Near Stnd A, qcf hcb + C (DM)
*(His easiest jump-in DM combo, IMO)
3) Jump A, Dn B or Dn A, Dn A, qcf hcb + C (DM)
*(Joe's Dn B, Dn A chain has pretty strict timing in KOF'99, as
opposed to what it was in KOF'98. Sometimes the Dn A will not
combo if your timing is a tiny bit off, so doing the DM off a dn
B, dn A chain can be risky. Dn A, Dn A is much easier to time.
BTW, the jump-in must be deep, or the DM might not connect.)
4) Jump A/B/C/D, Stnd C/D, qcf hcb + C (DM)
*(Joe has to jump in pretty deep against the opponent for the
DM to connect. Otherwise, the opponent gets pushed too far away.)
5) Jump A/D, Stnd C/D, qcfx2 + C (DM)
*(The comments for combo #4 apply here also.)
---------------------------
6.4 Normal Mode SDM Combos:
---------------------------
1) Dn B or Dn A, Dn A or Near Stnd A, qcfx2 + A (SDM)
*(Both the A and C versions of the SDM can combo, but A version
does more damage.)
2) Jump A/B/C/D, Dn A or Near Stnd A, qcfx2 + A (SDM)
3) Jump A/B/C/D, Stnd C/D, qcfx2 + A (SDM)
4) Stnd C/D, qcf hcb + C (SDM)
-------------------
6.5 Striker Combos:
-------------------
1) Juggling Striker (i.e. Kim, Yuri, Leona) -> qcfx2 + B/D (DM/SDM)
*(The most practical striker combo, by far. If you don't have a
DM charged up, use Joe's hcf + D instead. It does the most damage
out of all his non-DM moves.)
2) Leona Striker -> qcb + B/D -> hcb + B
*(You must do the qcb + B/D as soon as Leona blows up the
opponent and the opponent starts flying upwards.)
3) Leona Striker -> qcfX2 + P (DM/SDM)
*(If you're bored of juggling with Joe's Strongest Low Kick,
you can try this combo out. It does about the same damage,
too. You must pull out the DM as soon as Joe stops doing his
Striker-Call animation.)
4) (Opponent in corner) Jump A -> Stnd C -> qcfX2 + C (DM only) ->
Ryo Striker -> C/D Throw
*(This is a pretty nifty combo to do if you land a jump-in attack
on a cornered opponent. You can do a shortcut for the DM by doing
Jump A, qcf + C, qcf + C. Just make sure you do qcf + C, not
HCF + C.)
5) King striker -> qcb + B -> qcb + B -> dp + B/D
*(This does a lot of damage for a non-DM combo.)
6) (Opponent near corner) King striker -> qcfx2 + C -> qcfx2 + B/D
*(Needless to say, this does a lot of damage, too. This is
pretty tough to do, I've only done it twice so far.)
------------------------
6.6 Counter Mode Combos:
------------------------
Note: Joe is utterly WORTHLESS in Counter Mode. In Counter Mode, both
his Screw Happa and Rush DM have start-up pauses that make them
uncomboable. His Strongest Low Kick In History stays the same, but
that doesn't help any because it is uncomboable in the first place.
Therefore, since none of his DMs are comboable in CM, there is no
point in using CM with Joe.
But still, if you accidentally press ABC while using Joe, here are
some counter mode combos you might want to try.
1) AB slide attack, fwd + B, hcf + B
2) AB slide attack, hcf + B
3) AB slide attack, dp + K
I don't even know why I'm bothering to tell you this, but the special
attacks that Joe can cancel in Counter Mode are:
1) 1st hit of the Tiger Knee
2) The second hit of his C version H-upper
3) The A TNT Finisher (not so sure about this one)
----------------------
6.7 Armor Mode Combos:
----------------------
Hmm, Joe doesn't really have any use for Armor Mode, IMHO. Once, CPU
Joe activated Armor Mode against me, and he did all these qcb + B's.
I tried this strategy out later, wondering if it was anything like
AM Chang and his Spinning Ball; but the block damage of the qcb + B's
was only about 1/8 of a lifebar.
--------------------
7. General Strategy:
--------------------
Here are some abbreviations I may use in the following discussion,
since I am too lazy to type long words over and over again.
H-Upper => The A version of Hurricane Upper (never use C version)
S-Happa => Screw Happa
Rush DM => Exploding Hurricane Tiger Heel
--------------------------------------
7.1 Thoughts on how to fight with Joe:
--------------------------------------
First things first, Joe is not a pattern fighter! He doesn't have
any weapon that is easily abusable, therefore being predictable with
him is a sure way to lose. King can do Jump CD all day and still do
fairly well, but Joe can't do anything like that. Joe has to play
smart.
Joe has some decent combos, but he is not really a combo-oriented
character. He is more of a poking and zoning fighter that can
occasionally go on offensive tirades.
Joe is probably at his best when he has his opponent trapped in a
corner. So try to move your opponent towards a corner in any way you
can, be it attacking, throwing, CD-countering, whatever. If you
really start mauling your opponent in the corner, I find that Joe can
guard crush his opponent quite easily. Keep that in mind when doing
blocked combos.
If you're new to Joe, the first thing you'll notice is that Joe is
pretty darned slow. His strikes are kinda slow, and his jumps and
hops are DAMNED slow. He is not ideal for hop-fests, but you still
have to jump with him sometimes, since his ground poking isn't
the best.
If you want to offensively hop with Joe, I'd advise using his Hop A or
B most of the time. But in general, I would advise you to not
repeatedly hop-attack with Joe. His hop is just too slow.
Joe has mediocre defense, so he is better off acting first, rather
than reacting second. You don't have to go beserk with Joe, but you
want Joe to be controlling the flow of the fight. If Joe is not on the
attack, it is best to keep his opponent near the maximum range of
his H-Upper. Joe controls the fight pretty well at that range.
One thing you probably want to do is let your opponent know that you
WILL randomly throw out the H-Upper. If an opponent jumps into Joe's
H-Upper a couple times, he will most likely be wary of the H-Upper,
and he won't be so hop-crazy. Even if he blocks the H-Uppers, at least
he still knows that an H-Upper might come out at any moment. Not-so-
smart players will begin to recklessly slide and high-jump to avoid
any possible H-Uppers, and you can easily deal with those guys.
Unfortunately, smart players know that Joe can't win a round solely on
his H-Upper alone, and they'll be more patient. You will actually have
to think against these opponents...
BTW, don't throw the H-Upper ALL the time. If you get predictable with
it, the opponent can get around it and hurt Joe badly. Instead, just
throw a couple, and watch to see if your opponent is wary of the H-
Upper or not. If your opponent is wary, that usually means he's not
attacking. Then, that is your cue for you to start moving in with Joe.
On to specific stuff...
-------------------------
7.1 Close-Range Fighting:
-------------------------
Once you get used to Joe's moves, you'll find out that Joe can really
go on offensive rampages when he's up close. Joe's Crouching A and
Standing B are effective pokes at this range, and both are
cancellable, so if the opponent is blocking, you can cancel either of
the above with: an H-Upper; fwd + B -> H-Upper; or fwd + B -> qcb + B
for rather safe block damage. Using the qcb + B is recommended when
Joe doesn't have his opponent in the corner; the qcb + B is very good
for pushing the opponent towards the corner and keeping Joe close to
his opponent, letting Joe continue his offensive tirade. Once Joe has
his opponent in the corner, use H-Upper instead; in the corner, a
blocked qcb + B will leave Joe TOO close to the opponent. Oh, and BTW,
don't use the qcb + B much against grapplers like Ralf/Clark, unless
you become very familiar with the qcb + B's range.
Don't forget Joe's Crouching B, either. It has better reach than his
Crouching A, and better speed than his Standing B. If the opponent is
outside the Crouching A's range, you can do a Crouching B -> Standing
B, then build off the cancellable Standing B. Sometimes I do a
Crouching D right after the Crouching B, then do a fwd B -> qcb + B.
You can do these or other variations to keep the pressure on.
If an opponent blocks an H-Upper up close, watch for what he
usually does afterwards. Some opponents like to jump after blocking
Joe's H-Upper; for them, do Joe's Standing D after an H-Upper, and the
Standing D will smack the opponent before his feet even leave the
ground. If the opponent likes to slide after blocking an H-Upper,
catch him in mid-slide with a Stnd C, fwd B, DM combo. Some
opponents are absolutely unpredictable. With them, just wait and react
to whatever they do after they block an H-Upper.
Joe doesn't have anything that can compete with stuff like Kyo's Close
C or Clark's Close C. Don't try to beat the priority of those moves.
Instead, try to keep the opponent at around Joe's Crouching A/B range.
If things get hot and you don't have time to think, you can mash on
Crouching A, do the TNT Punches, then quickly cancel into the A TNT
Finisher. Whether the TNT Punches are blocked or unblocked, the A
TNT Finisher has good recovery and gives Joe some breathing room.
Hop C is pretty good here. It has great downward range, so if you hop
and then immediately hit C (that is, Joe does his punch while he is
still rising from his hop), you will still hit anyone who is
crouching. People who are slow or confused may fall for this
pseudo-overhead tactic. Even if they block, it still gives them
something to think about, it takes off a bit of the opponent's guard
crush meter, and Joe stays rather close to his opponent.
If the opponent turtles, throw him with the C button. People hate
Joe's C throw and usually get flustered (which is a good thing,
unless your opponent is much larger than you, or carrying a loaded
firearm).
Bottom line: Joe is good at this range. Try to take the offensive and
push opponent into the corner. Keep the opponent at around Joe's
Crouching A/B range, if you can. Once Joe gets them in the corner,
wait for the opponent to do something reckless, keep attacking until a
guard crush happens, or throw the opponent if he's turtling.
-----------------------
7.2 Mid-Range Fighting:
-----------------------
Joe's H-Upper is really important here. Like I said, throw it once in
a while, but don't get predictable. See if you can bait someone into
sliding or high-jumping right into your lap.
Joe's Standing D is pretty good here, too, except against tiny dudes
like Bao, Choi, and Xiangfei. It has great priority and good speed,
and beats a lot of stuff, including special moves. However, it has a
major problem in that Joe can be swept out of it. If your opponent
anticipates your Stnd D and starts to sweep a lot, don't do Stnd D
and switch to H-Upper; let them eat hurricane as they stick their
foot out. Or hop attack over their sweep, and see if you can get in
a punishing Hop A/D, Stnd C, fwd B, hcf + B combo.
Joe's qcb + B/D is a good mid-range poke at this range. Use it
periodically, but don't abuse it too much. It ain't that good.
Use the B/D Slash Kick to punish mistakes at a distance, like
a blocked Power Geyser or Bao-reflector.
Joe's dn fwd + B slide is a decent surprise poke here, if used
from a distance. But still, it's not very good. Use it, at most,
twice per round.
Joe's Crouching D is not recommended as a stand-alone poke, unless
you're fighting guys with slower sweeps (i.e. Maxima, Shingo/Kyo) or
guys who have no range (i.e. Choi). Rememember that Joe's Crouching D
is cancellable, so you can follow it up with other stuff after you
throw it out.
If you're not throwing out any of the above, you can do several
things. You can just wait, walk back and forth, or hop-attack. If you
want to hop, I recommend using Joe's Hop A or B. His Hop B has great
reach, so use it if you're far away from your opponent. His Hop A is
better if you are hopping closer to the opponent. And make sure
to HOP, not jump. Joe's hop is slow enough as it is, and Joe's jump
is incredibly slow.
Opponents also like to hop at this range. To fight this, Joe's Tiger
Knee does nicely. However, if you're not confident in your reactions,
try anticipating the opponent's hop by hopping upward or backwards and
sticking out Joe's quick Hop A/B. If you're close enough, Joe's
Standing D snuffs hoppers who are just starting to jump, and for
really-close hops, his Standing A is okay for snuffing, too.
Bottom line: Wisely use the H-Upper, Standing D, and qcb + K. Sometimes
do a hop A/B. Be ready to pull out anti-hop defenses. Try to get closer,
if you want to.
------------------------
7.3 Long-Range Fighting:
------------------------
NEVER throw out an H-Upper in this range. It's pointless.
This is a bad situation for Joe if time is running out & Joe has to go
on the offensive. His jumps are too slow, so don't ever long-jump
towards your opponent, unless you're going over a fireball. If you
need to get closer to the opponent, just walk towards him, or dash a
little distance and stop.
If time is running out and the opponent has to come to Joe, Joe is in
a good situation. If you see your opponent long-jump towards you, pull
out a S-Happa; once the S-Happa is formed, it is great anti-air. If
your opponent dashes towards you, be wary of a dash into a slide. If
your opponent just walks towards you, wait for him. Time is on your
side.
Long-range fighting is not ideal for Joe, and I also find it boring.
I don't want to talk about it anymore.
----------------
7.4 Air Defense:
----------------
Joe has decent air-defense options, I think, after considering the
fact that many characters in KOF'99 don't have solid anti-air:
1) Joe's D Tiger Knee is a pretty good uppercut, although it's not
invincible. There's no point in using the B Tiger Knee instead
of the D Tiger Knee. The B Tiger Knee is not much safer, since both
Tiger Knees have terrible recovery. And the B Tiger Knee has bad
anti-air priority, compared to the D Tiger Knee.
2) His Jump CD can be really good as air-defense, especially against
high jumpers. Jumping backwards with Jump D works well, too.
3) If an opponent uses quick air attacks to beat Joe's Jump CD, use
Joe's Jump A to out-quick him.
4) Against jumping opponents who are landing a bit in front of you,
Joe's Stnd D works very well. You can set this up by quickly
dashing back and letting a jumping opponent land where you used to
be.
5) If you are periodically poking with the Golden Heel Hurter (qcb + K),
chances are pretty good that you will hit a jumping opponent with
this move. Remember to try to juggle with hcf + B afterwards.
6) Against long, high, or slow jumps, Screw Happa works quite well as
anti-air. It's not good against quick jumps or hops, though.
7) Block and CD counter. Joe can afford to use up stocks, because he
has no use for Counter Mode, and he can still do good damage
without DM combos.
8) Block and look for an opening. Watch out for faked-jump-in throws.
-------------
7.5 Jump-Ins:
-------------
1) All of Joe's jump-attacks are pretty good jump-ins, except for the
Jump CD. Jump A is probably the best for hops. Jump C is probably
the best for higher jumps.
----------------------------------
7.6 Possible Wakeup Moves for Joe:
----------------------------------
1) If you know the opponent is going to attack when you get up, do
Joe's D-version Tiger Knee. It's not invincible, but it's still
pretty strong.
2) The range of Joe's C throw is better than you would think. Use it
if your opponent is within its range.
That's it. Joe doesn't have any really high-priority wake-up moves.
------------------------------------
7.7 When the opponent is getting up:
------------------------------------
There isn't anything special here I can really add. However, I'd
like to point out a couple things that you might not have noticed:
1) If the opponent has no stocks and is almost dead, do a S-Happa just
before he gets up. The block damage done by a S-Happa is amazing
(especially the SDM version), and it will usually guarantee
your opponent's death. Don't do this if your opponent has stocks,
since he will block and AB-slide-counter.
2) Joe's Vertical High Jump D has one use: it is an instant overhead
if it is done IMMEDIATELY after starting a vertical high jump with
Joe. You should do this only if the kick will finish off a nearly-
dead opponent, though. Joe will not be able to do anything else as
he finishes his high jump, and the opponent will recover in time to
punish Joe.
3) Stand right in front of the opponent. Then, as he gets up, hop over
to his back while doing a Hop C. That's pretty much the only
situation that Joe's Jump C will EVER cross-up. You have to do the
Hop C pretty early to crossup, so comboing afterwards is
impossible, I think; and it leaves Joe open to a throw. But if your
opponent is almost dead and not expecting a crossup attack, this
will connect and kill him off.
------------------------------------------
7.8 What to do when an opponent AB-slides:
------------------------------------------
Opponents are more likely to AB-slide against Joe, due to Joe's
annoying H-Upper. So keep an eye out for AB-slides, and snuff them out
with a couple tactics like these:
1) Stnd C/D -> fwd + B -> qcf hcb + C (DM only)
*(This situation is the most likely situation for Joe to pull
out this DM combo, other than punishing mistakes. Keep the
joystick neutral when doing the Stnd C/D, or you might throw them
instead, which does much less damage.)
2) Dn A, Dn A, press A/C rapidly (TNT Punches), qcf + A (TNT finisher)
*(This requires no skill. Just mash on Dn A if the opponent
slides.)
3) If he's a grappler, he may attempt a command throw at the end of
his slide. Anticipate this, hop up to avoid his throw, then combo
him on the way down.
-----------------------------------------------
7.9 What Joe can do to quickly punish mistakes:
-----------------------------------------------
1) Standing D is good for quickly punishing minor mistakes. However,
it will miss people who recover in a low crouching animation, so
keep that in mind (for example, in '98, Joe's D always missed Yuri
after he blocked her Rush DM.)
2) Joe's Rush DM is quite fast and covers ground quickly. Use the C
version. Don't use the Rush SDM, since it has a start-up pause.
2) Joe's B Slash Kick (hcf + B) is fast and does not miss crouchers.
It only reaches 1/2 screen, though. The D Slash Kick reaches almost
full-screen, but it will miss crouchers. Keep that in mind.
3) Joe's DP + B has pretty good range, and is faster than Slash Kick.
Use it if the opponent is close enough, and Slash Kick will not be
fast enough to punish his mistake.
3) Joe's dnfwd + B slide is pretty quick, but make sure you do it
from a distance. If done too close, the opponent can hit him before
Joe recovers from the slide.
--------------
8. Vs. Advice:
--------------
Ok, I'm just going to give tips here, because I can't predict what
your human opponent is going to do. Keep in mind, I am not the best
Joe player out there, so these are not foolproof methods to victory.
If you have any helpful strategies or corrections, I would appreciate
it if you sent them to me. I am very open-minded when it comes to
improving my skills with Joe.
K' - It's easy to slide through K's qcf + P crap. Don't use H-Upper
much, since K' will like to jump. Anticipate K's jump and Tiger
Knee his ass. If you can beat his Jump D and his qcf + P attacks,
K' is toast.
Maxima - As with all grapplers, be careful with using H-Upper,
because most grapplers will slide and attempt command throws.
Joe's dnfwd B slide goes under the Vapor Cannon, so use it if
you're in the correct range. Max has a trick where he does qcf A,
qcf A, pause, command throw; to beat this, just block and mash on
A. Whenever Max stops doing his multipart move, Joe will
immediately pop out with his TNT punches and hit Max (then end it
with A version of TNT finisher, of course). Joe's Crouching D
is actually moderately effective in this battle.
Benimaru - Eh, tough fight. Joe's Dn A/B always beats Beni's Far Stnd
B. Air battles are very tough against Beni, but Beni has a high
hop, so a quick Tiger Knee is okay here as anti-air. Joe's Stnd D
is not good against Beni if Beni likes to sweep. Try to stay on
attack, don't let Beni push Joe around.
Shingo - I don't have much experience against human Shingos. But Joe's
Stnd D seems to work better against Shingo than other characters
(it usually beats his qcf + A). H-Upper is pretty useful here, I
think. Crouching D is okay here, too.
Terry - Nothing special to say here, except don't try to compete with
Terry's Close C. Joe should be on offensive, don't let Terry maul
Joe.
Andy - Nothing much to say, no one really plays Andy here except me,
and even then, I don't use him much. In close, use Crouching B to
duck under Andy's Close Stnd C, then chain off Crouching B.
Joe - Heh, just be smarter and beat him to the punch.
Mai - Her Stnd A is quick, but once you're just outside its range,
your Stnd B or A beats it all the time. If Mai does a lot of
Flame Tail or Fan Toss, use Joe's Stnd D if you're close enough;
it stuffs those moves before they come out. Jump more, since her
only good air-D is her jump attacks. H-Upper is okay here, but
she has a good jump to go over it, so be careful.
Ryo - No one plays Ryo here except me, so I have no tips on how to fight
him. Beware, his counter-hit Punch DM goes through fireballs.
Robert - Ugh. His kicks and overhead are really damned good, and will
beat most of your pokes. Learn how to block them. Good H-Upper
usage is important here. You must not give him time to breathe.
Once you get on his ass, don't let him get away. Hop more
against Rob, since his anti-air is a charge move. You really want
to force Rob into a corner.
Yuri - Yuri's Crouching D can give you headaches. H-Upper is needed
here. Try to get close and maul her. Be ready with the Tiger Knee
and air defense, she has good jumps. Hop more against her, but
time your hop-attacks well; her A Chou Uppa has mediocre priority,
but it can duck under ill-timed jump attacks.
Takuma - Use slide attack whenever he throws fireball. Use Stnd D
often in this battle. Air battles will be interesting here. Tiger
Knee is okay against jumping Takuma. Watch for crossover
attack. H-Upper is pretty good here.
Shin Kyo - H-Upper is good here to keep Kyo from hopping and
doing lots of firefists. Don't try Tiger Knee too much as anti-
air; Kyo's hops are so fast, your reactions may fail you. Stnd
D can snuff Kyo as he just starts to hop. If he does RED kick,
duck under it and do Dn A into a combo like TNT punches -> TNT
Finisher or Rush DM. Kyo has good defense, but try to attack
anyway. Kyo's qcf + A is no longer safe if you block it VERY
close, remember that.
Kyo-1 - He has bad defense, so attack and hop more against him.
Use H-Upper, but focus more on hand-to-hand combat. Be prepared
for a lot of hops from Kyo-1. Block all those low chains. Joe
should really go on offensive here.
Kyo-2 - Same as Shin Kyo, pretty much, except easier. Kyo-2 has that
cool Jump B, Dwn C air chain, but it's easy to crouch under the
Jump B. Poor Kyo-2.
Iori - H-Upper is okay here, but be wary of Iori's jumps/hops/
crossover kick; get that Tiger Knee and Jump A/CD ready. Stnd D
works pretty well here. If you have Iori pinned in a corner, do
not throw out an H-Upper. If Iori blocks the H-Upper, Iori's
qcb + P attack is fast enough to hit Joe before Joe recovers.
Leona - H-Upper is good against her. She has good air priority, but
you should do okay in air-battles here, and you have Tiger
Knee. Her Crouching D is annoying, don't use Stnd D against her.
If you see her Crouching D a lot, hop over it and combo her.
Careful, though, her Moon Slasher and Dn C are pretty good anti-
air. Her Crouching A and B aren't what they used to be, you can
pester her up close. When she dashes towards you with her Ground
Sabre, you can hit her out of her dash with a well-timed attack.
Ralf/Clark - Joe's Stnd D beats their Standing C/D's all the time.
Wisely use H-Upper, but don't use much. They can't hurt you
unless they get close to you, and since your Stnd D won't let
them walk towards you, they must slide or jump. Keep your Jump
A/CD ready against these guys. Note about Ralf: if he's
trying to hit you with GPhantom, your Tiger Knee will cleanly
hit him out of it as he rushes forward. Screw Happa will also
shield Joe from GPhantom.
Whip - Get close to her and beat the crap out of her. Watch out for
DM, though. She will be jumping a lot, so H-Upper isn't very
useful against her. Jump CD works well against her. Tiger Knee
isn't so good against her Jump CD. If she goes into one of her
high-low-mind-game moves (hcb + A/B/C), immediately pull out a D
Slash Kick or high-jump over it. Be patient against Whip.
Athena - Get close to her and beat the crap out of her. Slide-attack
through her fireballs. If you are just outside of her Stnd C
range, Stnd D works well against her, since her sweep has crap
range. Don't underestimate her, she is better than people think
she is (not THAT much better, though). BTW, when she has her
Crystal Bit DM floating about her, S-Happa will not hurt her.
Damn it. Use H-Upper a bit here, see if you can bait her into
using one of her stupid reflectors.
Kensou - If Kensou likes to cheese/chip you, C-throw Kensou whenever
you can and piss off the Kensou player. H-Upper is needed for
mid-range fighting against Kensou's Crouching D. Joe does well up
close against Kensou, though, so try to get close. Use dnfwd B
slide a little more here. Kensou's DP + P attack has pretty bad
priority, so if you see that he's doing it from a little distance
away, hit him immediately with a Stnd D.
Chin - Chin's Far C is very good, but if he's within your Stnd D
range, your Stnd D does quite well against his Far C. Chin has an
extremely difficult time jumping over Joe's H-Upper; abuse H-
Upper against Chin. Chin will probably then try his AB-slide, his
Firebreath DM, or his qcb + C 2-hit jug toss. If he slides, combo
him. If he does DM, block it, of course. If he does 2-hit jug
toss, jump over the second one and combo him. If both of you have
red life, time is running out, and Chin does his Firebreath SDM
to keep you away, do Joe's S-Happa SDM and laugh as S-Happa blows
right through Chin and his SDM.
Bao - Ugh. Tough and annoying fight. Be careful with DM combos, the
DM sometimes misses Bao. Jump-ins are tough against Bao, too.
Be patient, just look for opening. If Bao is doing his CM
fireball/DM cheese within S-Happa range, nail him with a
C version S-Happa if you can.
King - Ugh. Her Jump CD is incredible, you have to time your jump
attacks well to just compete with it. Don't use Tiger Knee much
against her Jump CD. Use H-Upper carefully, since she will
usually be jumping whether you use H-Upper or not. If she likes
to do hcb + B a lot, then use H-Upper and hope she flies into it.
Use Stnd D a lot if you're just outside her sweep range, it does
quite well against her Stnd C/D. Don't let King get you into
corner. Time your hop attacks well, or you'll never beat her
Dn C. Tough fight.
Mary - Ugh. H-Upper is very important here, since her hop is too
low to clear it. Keep her at H-Upper's max range if you
can, unless you are in close and on the offensive; once you are
on her ass, don't let up. In a poking war, her Stnd B beats
almost anything you have, so don't try to compete with it.
C-Throw a lot against her, and discourage her from using her
counters/dodge throw. If she is on top of you and hopping a lot,
don't panic. You can try a Stnd A to jab her away, or hop away
doing Hop A/B; her Hop D will still hit you, but you will have
created some breathing room, hopefully.
Kasumi - C-Throw her a LOT, and discourage her from doing counters.
She has terrible pokes, so fight her from mid to close range.
Her Kasanete (that Wave fireball) can be bothersome; it wipes out
Joe's H-Upper, and it has good recovery. Try hopping over it or
slide-attacking through it. If she does her Wave DM, AB-slide
through and combo her. Her non-DM counter can catch Joe's dnfwd B
slide.
Xiang Fei - Her Stomp Ball is annoying, but she can be hit out of it
before it comes out. H-Upper is needed here, because it can
cancel/beat her Stomp Ball and get in the way of her Crouching D,
which will beat almost any other long-ranged poke Joe has. Use
well-timed hop and jump attacks against her; her Crouching C is
beatable, but still good. Her A/B pokes stink, so if she is
within your Crouching A/B range, you can kick her butt. Stay on
offensive, her defense isn't very good. BTW, don't use Stand D
against her.
Kim - Watch out for those low-chains->DM combos. Be careful when
attacking Kim, cuz Kim's ever-reliable Hienzan is waiting to
pop you in the face...
Chang - A well-timed jump CD does okay against a jumping Chang; don't
use Tiger Knee much on air Chang. If Chang does his Spinning Ball
from a distance, dnfwd B or Crouching D is good to hit him low.
Chang is slow, so do anything you can to get him into corner and
pummel him into submission. Don't use H-Upper much. Use Stnd D
more against Chang.
Choi - Ugh. Be patient against Choi. He usually jumps too high for
your Tiger Knee to be effective. Your Jump CD does okay against
him. If he high-jumps to aim for a cross-over, jumping backwards
with Jump A or CD works okay. Don't stay still on the ground
while Choi jumps. Don't use Joe's Stnd D much against Choi. If
Choi does his Dive Kick, you can jab him out of it. C-Throw Choi
a lot, since Choi will try to throw you. Don't use H-Upper much
unless you have him pinned on the ground. Once again, be patient.
Jhun - I haven't faced many Jhun users, so I can't say much here. If
he gets into stance and you have time to attack, throw an H-Upper
or B Slash Kick; they are quick and rather safe, in case he
dodges or stops stance to block incoming attacks. His crossover
Stomp is annoying, I'm not sure how to fight it if he's right
over your head.
-------------
9. Fun Stuff:
-------------
Joe's speech during his moves (he sure does say "Ora ora!" a lot):
Hurricane Upper = (not too sure)
Tiger Knee = "Tiger Kick!"
Slash Kick = "Slash Kick!"
Golden Heel Hurter = "Ora ora!" (Hey hey!)
Screw Happa = (DM) "Screw Happa!"
(SDM) "Ototoi Kieyare" (Take this!)
Rush DM = (S/DM) "Ora ora... yosha!" (Hey hey... all right!)
Strongest Low Kick in History = (S/DM) "Ora ora!" (Hey hey!)
Joe's Costume Colors:
Select with A: Red boxer trunks with gold trim, light-colored
skin, red dot on his headband
Select with B: Blue boxer trunks with dark orange trim, dark-
tanned skin, blue dot on his headband
I call A-button Joe "Pasty-faced Joe", while B-button Joe is
"Tanning-Salon Joe" or "Sunburnt Joe".
Joe's Win Quote:
"You bring a song to mind. Heard of 'The Loser Blues?'"
Joe's Taunt (hit Start button):
Joe stands on one foot and brings up a knee, then winds his
arm around with this big grin on his face as he yells, "Ora
Ora!" Kind of a dumb taunt, and NOWHERE near as good as his
classic "moon" taunt. Hey SNK, bring his "moon" taunt back!
Joe's First Round Intro:
He has on a fancy tiger-striped robe, then he tosses it away
as he yells. If you are using A-button Joe, the robe is
golden with black stripes. If you are using B-button Joe, the
robe is white-silver with black stripes.
Joe's Second and Third Round Intro:
Joe jumps in, does a couple punches, then clenches his fists at
his sides as he yells. Sweat drops or something fly from his body
when he yells. He looks really pumped up for this fight.
Joe's Special Intros:
vs. Terry or Andy:
Joe grins as he puts his hand on his chin; then he taps his
fists together in front of him. When he has his hand on his
chin, he looks like he is thinking really hard about
something. But, since this IS Joe we're talking about here,
he's probably thinking about hamburgers, girls, or something
else not too intellectual.
Joe's Striker Call Animation (press BC):
When Joe calls out his striker, he places one hand on his hip,
lunges forward, and points with the other hand towards his
opponent. I've never seen this animation before in previous
KOF's. Joe also says something that sounds like "Kurae!", but I'm
not sure.
Joe's Counter Mode Activation Animation (press ABC):
Joe stands up straight and points a defiant finger at his
opponent. I've never seen this animation before in previous
KOF's.
Joe's Armor Mode Activation Animation (press BCD):
Joe does his charge animation from when Extra Mode was still
around. He puts his fists down by his side, or something like
that.
Joe's Win Poses:
A button: Joe gets down on his knees and raises his arms in
victory as he yells "Yosha!" (All right!) Note his ferocious
face.
B button: Joe puts his hand on his hip, and points down at the
opponent with his other hand. He grins and says "Mou ikkai
yattemiruka~?" (Want to try once more?)
C button: Joe jumps up and yells "Yosha!", then falls on his butt
and starts to loudly laugh as he holds his hand over his
forehead. He seems amused by the fact that he has just
kicked his opponent's butt.
D button: Randomly selects from his A, B, or C win poses.
Joe's Dizzy Pose:
Joe bends a little to the side, holding the side of his leg and
breathing hard. It looks like his leg has just cramped up.
Joe's Time-Out Loss Pose (Heaven forbid you lose with Joe):
Joe sits down and scratches his head in confusion. He is probably
wondering why he didn't win the round.
Top 5 Reasons Why Joe Is Cooler Than Sagat:
5) Joe is not an old fart, unlike Sagat.
4) Girls usually find Joe more attractive than Sagat (I would
hope so, at least).
3) Joe is a good guy who has friends. Sagat is a mean ornery guy
who wants to kill Ryu.
2) Joe has a cool hairstyle, while Baldy has no hair whatsoever.
1) Sagat doesn't have anything that can beat Joe's Screw Happa!
-----------------
10. Stuff needed:
-----------------
Any new combos would be welcomed, of course.
Tips on how to beat certain characters would be welcomed, too. Joe
needs all the help he can get in KOF'99.
Any help with speech translations would be wonderful, esecially his
SDM Screw Happa.
--------------------------
11. Credits and KOF Links:
--------------------------
Thanks go out to:
- SNK for creating such a fun game in KOF99.
http://neogeo.co.jp
http://www.snkusa.com
- Gunsmith for his very nice KOF99 faq, which has much info on Joe.
http://i.am/wu-tech
- Action Mask for his nifty combo video on Joe. I'd list his website
address here, but the site is always going up and down. His
videos have a bad effect on me, in that whenever I pull off a
difficult combo, I now have the urge to taunt my opponent.
- the KOF mailing list,
[email protected]. I absorb all sorts of KOF info
from there.
- the BBS on the Kof4ever website, a.k.a. the wacky side of KOF.
http://kofforever.hypermart.net
- you, for actually reading this FAQ. Now go out and kick some butt
with Joe! Yoshaaaa!
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12. Comments, Suggestions, Corrections?
---------------------------------------
Please send comments, suggestions, corrections, etc. to this address:
[email protected]
Any input would be highly appreciated, believe me.
