Street Fighter 5: 10 Essential Tips All New Players Need To Know

2. Master Blocking Techniques

Blocking is an art form in any fighting game. Use it constantly, and your opponent will easily break down your walls and pummel you. Don't use it enough, and you're missing out on an essential strategy which could cost you fights. Blocking is the safest thing to do when you are being attacked. Hold down-back on the controller to block low attacks, and back to block high attacks and jump attacks. Blocking will keep you alive longer than recklessly attacking. However, it will leave you vulnerable to being thrown, and throws are unblockable. It sounds ridiculous, but there will be times in battle where you won't want to block at all. If an opponent is coming at you with a jumping kick, instead of blocking it, there are other attacks that will counter the kick. Again, use the training and survival modes to work out what attacks trump others, and when to block effectively. Instead of blocking, you can backdash by quickly tapping twice away from your opponent. While this doesn't render you invincible, if your opponent is going for a basic combo or attack, it leaves them wide open for a counter, such as a special move or a critical art attack. By the time you've back-dashed, their animation most likely won't have ended, leaving you just a fraction of a second to hit your attack. Being quick and accurate is the best method of success here. As with the other tips so far, this can be refined in Training Mode. Once you've master all of the tips so far, it's time to master the number one tip I can give you in Street Fighter V...