JOYSTICK LAYOUT AND MOVEMENT
Street Fighter 4 has the traditional joystick layout of previous games. You move, jump and crouch with the corresponding direction on the joystick, and there are 6 total buttons that you use to attack. Top row is your punches, the bottom row is your kicks.
* Light / *** Punch
* Light / Short Kick
* Medium / Strong Punch
* Medium / Forward Kick
* Hard / Fierce Punch
* Hard / Round House Kick
You can also dash in this game by tapping the joystick forward or back twice. Back dashing will avoid throws and attacks when timed and spaced correctly.
THROWS - LIGHT PUNCH + LIGHT KICK
Throws are an essential part of any street fighter game, Street Fighter 4 is no exception. Outside of performing a normal neutral throw, you can hold the joystick either forward and input the command to execute another variation of throw for your character.
To tech (break) a throw, press the throw command at the same time your opponent goes for a throw and you will see a blue flash that indicates you have successfully teched the throw.
FOCUS ATTACK - MEDIUM PUNCH + MEDIUM KICK
Also known as Saving Attack
The Focus Attack is a system introduced in Street Fighter 4 that allows you to absorb a hit and counter attack which can lead to multiple out comes such as a stagger hit or a crumple state. It can also be used to absorb fireballs and other hits (much like a Street Fighter III Parry), as well as "Dash Cancel" within combo sequences to increase hits and damage.
You can execute the Focus Attack by pressing medium punch and medium kick at the same time. You can hold it down for a set time to obtain three different levels. You can dash forward or back at anytime to cancel this charge.
The three level properties are as follows:
1. The Focus Attack must be a counter hit to crumple otherwise it will just stagger the opponent on hit.
2. The Focus Attack will cause a crumple state on normal hit where one can follow up with a combo.
3. The Focus Attack becomes unblockable and leads to a crumple state on hit.
To absorb a non-armor breaking attack, simply hold the Focus Attack and you will absorb one hit. This will take away a portion of your life bar which is recoverable over time, unless you are hit in which you will lose it permanently. You can also dash back or forward upon impact of the attack to either back away from your opponent or dash through the attack to pressure your opponent. This method is useful for dashing through projectiles to lessen the distance between you and your opponent.
To Focus Attack Dash Cancel (FADC) a special move of your own, upon impact of the special move, hold the Focus Attack down and dash forward or backwards. Doing this will use up two stocks of your Super Meter but will allow you to cancel out of your special move and recover much quicker than your opponent. This can lead to some devastating combos if used correctly and also allow you safely dash out of your special moves if the other player ends up blocking it.
Below is a video that demonstrates the different uses of the Focus Attack.
ARMOR & ARMOR BREAKING MOVES
In Street Fighter 4, the Focus Attack and certain EX moves (such as El Fuerte's EX run and Balrogs EX Dash Straight) have an armor property that will allow you to absorb one hit from your opponent. A portion of your life will be greyed out in relation to the strength of the move that you absorbed, but is recoverable over time. If you are hit before the life recovers, you will lose it permanently. This armor property is essential in certain situations when trying to move in on your opponent.
All characters also have an Amor Breaking move that will not only shatter armor on a Focus Attack that is being charged but will also destroy armor on an EX move and hit the other player. Examples are Ryu's Hurricane kick, Sagat's Tiger Knee for example and Balrog has multiple Armor Breaking moves associated with his different dash punches. Any multi-hit move will also double as an Amor Breaking move since Armor only absorbs on hit.
EX MOVES - SPECIAL MOVE + TWO KICK OR PUNCH BUTTONS
Although not new to the Street Fighter series, the EX Moves are new to most characters in this game. To perform an EX move, you simply execute a special move but instead of pressing just one kick or punch button, you press two. Most ex moves have special properties and/or multiple hits. Using an EX move will use up one stock of your Super Meter.
SUPERS - SUPER MOTION + ONE PUNCH OR KICK BUTTON
Super moves are available to you after you have built up your Super Meter from attacking and taking damage through out the round. The Super Meter carries over to each round as well. This will allow you to unleash a multi-hit move on your opponent that inflicts much more damage than a normal, special or EX move. Most special moves can be comboed into and are also super cancelable.
ULTRA - SUPER MOTION + ALL THREE PUNCH OR KICK BUTTONS
Think of Ultras as "EX Super Moves" in that they inflict a lot more damage than a Super and are typically a lot more flashy with the camera cutting to a stylized cinematic view of your character when you perform one.
You obtain Ultras after filling your Revenge Meter through out the round. Ultras do not carry over to each round like Supers do so it is best to use them when you have the chance.
There are two levels, level 2 obviously does more damage than level 1 but you wont obtain level 2 until you are nearly out of life. In regards to landing and Ultra, Most Ultras only connect after you have juggled your opponent and in general cannot be comboed into like you would Super moves. Keep in mind that you can connect an Ultra after a successful Focus Attack that leads to a crumple state with all characters in the game, but this is generally the only way to connect an Ultra on the ground without juggling the other player.
REVENGE METER
The Revenge Meter builds as you take damage through out the round. Once the revenge meter reaches a certain point, you are able to do an Ultra. The Revenge Meter resets at the beginning of each round.
QUICK RISE
You can quick rise by pressing all three punch buttons as you hit the ground or simply tapping down on the joystick. This allows you to roll and get up much quicker. Mix this up without quick rising to fool your opponent and mess with their okizeme (wake-up game).
(as written on iplaywinner.com)
(<-- no joke).
