I didn’t know Kens EX Fireball pushed him back. That sounds really cool. 
And yes, I have been hit by a fireball where I swear that my cr.MK would hit. Gonna go look at the hit-box data!
I’ve played ken since vanilla and observed top players since then … more than happy to share …I’m sure You know it all too … but if u Have other questions on matchups let me know … I might be of help … altho I have to disagree with u thinking ken is top character in 2012 … he is decent full stop :P… cheers
What’re your opinions on Ken’s worst match-ups?
worst match-ups would be dhalsim , cammy , rose , guile and adon being the least worst of em … oww I also think gief gives ken a hard time …
ryu, sagat ,akuma are 5.5 in their favor ( altho kichijojiken thinks the sagat match-up is a 5-5 and Michael tan says its 7-3 in kens favor ! )
people in the threads say that complaining about the ae sweep removed is scruby … i think its not … I think ken is an oki set up character and he needs
a knock down … if you really think about it … ken now has no real way of knocking down … standing mp counter hit into sweep is not very reliable since it wiffs on
lots of characters in the game(cammy, sakura , ibuki , rose , guy and alot more that dont cross my mind right now ) … and close standing mk is a bit slow to be used in frame traps … getting a conter hit into a knockdown is very very difficult with 2012 ken … I started using kara srk after landing a counter hit crouching mp but because its not an easy task I tend to fadc the srk even on hit … just to make sure I am safe …making me waste 2 meters…
the best matchups for ken tho imo are all match ups that ken can abuse st jab in … I think if the character against ken has to block standing jab even if he crouches its automatically ken’s match ( fie(corner unblockable) , boxer(corner unblockable) ,gouken(very hard to get close to buthes dead once ur in) , thawk .dudley ,sakura ,cody) … +5 on block !! 
lots of characters that are considered to be 5-5 I think they are 5-5 cos ken gives them a hard time after he knocks them down… but again … ken can’t really knock down effectively in this game …and can’t get close too… any character that can zone ken out whether using better normals or firballs has the match in his favor … untill I get in
I agree with some things you’re saying dooki. This thoughts about knockdown is true. For me, Ken’s game is all about get a knockdown and take the right decisions after that. Hard knockdowns is hard to get indeed, his sweep is slow and his counter hit set ups with s.MP as you said before is not that useful against all the cast. I think Ken, to get hard knockdowns need to rely a lot in kara throws, the problem is that good players know when kara throw is coming. But I would say that combos finished with fierce DP gives Ken a good advantage too. You get a free jump in after that against a lot of characters. Finishing combos with fierce DP automatic boosts Ken’s game. But to do that you need to get close, and get close to good pokers is very hard.
About the match ups, I dont think Sagat wins. I never play top Sagats but I cant see how Sagat win this. He doest have that good pokes, you can punish bad tiger knees easyly, you can slowly walk under fireballs to get close, or do air tatsus, apply safe jumps against his DPs is not that hard, he doesnt have good backdash and walk speed to run, his hitbox is big so all combos you do can connect, and once Ken is close, Ken is on advantage. The only thing a can thing that gives Ken trouble is his focus, that comes out very fast.
Other thing I found these days is that late fierce DP beats Sagat’s tiger uppercut on wake up. Its a trick timing but possible, good if you want to keep the pressure after a big serie. When you smell the fear and that desperate uppercut coming on wake up do a late fierce DP, if your opponent dont know frame data he will start to think that Ken’s DP is more invincible. And having Sagat afraid of doing wake up uppercut is damn good.
The other tough matches I think are winnable, but you have to play solid. I really only see disadvantage against Dhalsim. In my opinion, the Dhalsim match is hard until you get close, once you get close and Dhalsim is almost in the corner the match up is in Ken’s favor if you dont miss your combos and set ups.
Peace.
well it is a five five with sagat … but in my opinion its a tiny bit in his favor cos its really hard to get in . I have written my thoughts on the match-up thread earlier today check it out bro n let me know what you think .
and about the fierce dp, you do get a free jump in after that but their are loads of ways to escape it and its not free on every character in the game , some people dash forward to avoid it and even if you option select that jump in with a low rh they can block the low rh . and what if they don’t quick rise ?
fierce dp is good really good , but their are ways around it . which is why Ken needs a little more …just a little more 
i think its at least a 6-4 for ken vs sagat.
i agree with this. i think this is one of kens easier match up. there’s so much for ken to abuse here, stand jab, kara jab dp safe jumps, etc. ken only have a little trouble at the beginning when you’re trying to get in, but when you do, it should be lights out for sure. also, i thought stand jab was +4 on block.
yes ! lol my bad … it is a +4
I’ve read you post about the match against sagat dooki. Good tips. But I still think this is in Ken’s favor. I would agree with D_Dollars, its one of the easiest matches for Ken. I dont see Ken having trouble to get in. Maybe a situation when Ken is full screen far from Sagat, with no meter and life, that’s tough. But if this doesnt happen I dont see advantage for Sagat.
you guys are prolly right … cos even top players from japan think its in kens favor if not 5-5 … i guess its just harder for me … cos good sagats theoretically can shut down ken from getting in even with if ken has meter… altho I know hes practically dead when I am in !
I dont know if You guys seen dragon boy at sbo … he lost from a sagat … the game was fucking epic … ill post it in the video thread soon … make sure u guys check it out .
Dhalsim is not a bad match up. You can usually trade St.HK with his HP and the result is he takes 130 dmg you take 75 he has 900 vitality you have 1000…
Use U2 for this match up always and keep it for yoga catastrophe or to OS punish his teleports.
Meter is the only thing that will determine how well you will do. Time EX tatsu to punish his yoga fires and you will end up next to him.
I will write up more later and post videos. The person I practice with the most mains Dhalsim. This match up is not in Sims favor at all.
Dhalsim’s main goal is to keep characters away from him, zoning Ken is very hard because he has a great Step Kick and his focus parry dash forward is better than Ryu’s. He can escape with ex tatsu and go through projectiles with U2
So, tried Ken today. Being able to break armor easily is heaven after scrubbing out with Akuma for so long. But dear god, is this guy a snail. Might it be possible that he moves faster by spamming Thunder Kick feints than actually walking?
Kara Focus Attack dash torwards is Kens fastest way of moving forward.
F+MK~MP
I really hate the match up against Sim, I really don’t know what to do against him so I end getting hit by all his limbs and without knowing how to get in. Also, when I’m near him, his jump + fast hp after back+mk (i think it’s mk) that is like an instant overhead always hit me cause I cant react quickly enough.
You think it’s not a bad match up so, can you please explain it with details?
how many frames is my opponent grounded for after a f.Throw, b.Throw, sweep, ultra? Does it vary by character?
Conversely, how many frames is Ken grounded for after the above, or does it vary by character?
how many frames is Ken in the air after his pre-jump frames?
I’d like to know the answer to that too !
[INDENT=1]Wake up animation timings:[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1] [/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]Enterbrain SSF4AE[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]Faceup[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]31F all other characters (Gen 1F invincibility)[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]32F Sagat, Cammy[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]33F Blanka[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1] [/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]Facedown[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]20F Adon (1F invincibility)[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]21F All other characters (Gen 1F invincibility, Yang 18F invincibility)[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]22F Blanka, Dhalsim, Balrog, Sagat[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1]26F Hakan[/INDENT]
[INDENT=1] [/INDENT]
Is it possible to apply these to Ken:
Yo, interested in picking up Ken as an alt, I play sagat and often have more fun playing rushdown/mixup than tigershot x infinity, thought I might pick up a character actually built for that.
Looked at the OP, and its a ton of info, but im looking for more applications for someone new to the character. Sorry, got spoiled by the 'gat forums, they explain it super clear.
What are the first combos to learn (hit confirm and punish)? First mix ups to learn? Basic game plan? Best tools? (i know step kick and kara throw, but id love to know more info on how to use them/set ups)? Best ways to land ultra?
If theres a post I’m missing, please link it up, thanks!!!