Well, I always use Ryu because I am his bitch and thats it. I want to know what the pro players think.
Akuma
Eh, in ST, probably Ryu. But Ken, New and Old, is still really good.
The inverted fireball funky foot is annoying.
Depends on version, some quick stuff (besides teching/super)-
OG Ken: Slow fireballs, great lp shoryu, hp shoryu hits everything (for no damage, but whatever), jhk crosses up
ST Ken: Worse fireballs, axe kick dizzies, knee bash throw crossup tick tricks
OG Ryu: Faster fireball recovery/better trapping
New Ryu: Juggles, overhead, more fb recovery
It depends on your comfortable range and how you use/want to use fireballs. Both Kens can set up decent FB traps, but they can’t and shouldn’t dictate your playstyle… Ryu (either version) gives you a better scrub-killer imo.
Apart from the info above, I believe that N.Ken is better than N.Ryu. I don’t use OG Ken or Ryu so I can’t comment on those. N. Ken is an aggressive players answer. He’s probably the flashiest and fastest character in the game IMO. Balancing the offense with a strong counter ability (lighting fast reflexes), and quick defense. Being able to lock down opp. is essential in some situations, however, some matches require you to take a slower defensive approach.
As for moves N. Ken has a much larger combo ability, and has great priority, anti-air, and reversal ability. Knee bash is an essential part of my game plan as it is devestating to the opp. health and leaves a perfect tick opportunity.
I don’t even think it is debatable. N.Ryu is much better than N.Ken. N.Ken’s game is strong, but has a lot of random factors to it. You have to rely on your mind games working and your tricks working. Ken will kill you 10x faster than Ryu if they work, admittedly. But against a really mentally solid opponent, if they can out-do your mind games and tricks, you are left with very little. Ken doesn’t have a solid-enough base game to be top tier in ST. That’s why the best Kens are random Kens. Ryu can outright defeat you whether you successfully pull off your mind games or not because his base game is very strong.
Most match ups for Ken are easier with Ryu. Ryu beats Honda easier. He beats O.Sagat easier. He beats Cammy easier. He beats Chun easier. He beats Guile easier. He beats Dhalsim easier. He has the advantage in a straight-up Ryu vs. Ken match up. There are only a few match ups that I think Ken does better than Ryu in, like Zangief. But pound for pound, Ryu is better or equal in most of the match ups. It might not be a significant advantage, but it still makes Ryu a more solidly better character than Ken.
Just though this might help.
As taken from the SRK wiki:
http://www.shoryuken.com/wiki/index.php/Super_Street_Fighter_2_Turbo#Tiers
Tiers
This list is a combination of tier lists provided by Kyokuji and Ouroborus on the ST forums.
Top:
O.Sagat
Dhalsim
Boxer
Claw
Upper:
Dictator
Chun’
Ryu
Middle:
Deejay
Guile
Ken
Lower-Mid:
Fei-Long
Honda (Gets killed by fireballs, but does OK against 'Sim, and owns everyone without one)
Blanka
Bottom:
Zangief
Cammy
T. Hawk
Agreed! You took the words right out of my mouth. By one minute no less.
If you’re asking me? Ryu. Ken is more flashy. Ryu is more solid.
Ryu, j. mp x2 into super.
Does anyone care to breakdown some of those versus Ryu matchups that Chen mentioned? I believe one of the deciding factors in those matches that make Ryu a better choice than Ken is his super, which is more versatile allround, that a slighty superior fireball game.
in my opinion; if you want a character more advanced, then pick ken. he may host the “same qualities” as ryu, but it comes out counter-like( very slow but fast). if you want a starter char without a variety of the flashy kicks, then go for ryu. i mean kicks are stronger than punches but they come slower than a punch. that’s what makes ryu more quicker than ken, but on the bad side of this is that ken can do stage comebacks if your not a supreme button masher “with smarts” (yes, there’s difference).
what the fuck are you even talking about
LOL… :lol:
sloxer
kicks are stronger than punches lewl
To be honest, almost every match up I stated is due to faster fireball. Ken’s slow-ass Fireball is a huge disadvantage in many of those fights. Chun Li and Cammy can pressure so much from the front, and both are adept at punishing whiffed Jab DPs. Ryu can zone them a lot easier with Fireballs. For Guile, Ryu’s faster Fireball helps against Guile as well, as well as his HK Kick beating Sonic Booms. Again O.Sagat, again, the faster fireball helps him keep up with Sagat’s, and Short HK Kick over Low Tiger Shots is a great way for him to advance. Vs. Honda, the faster fireball recovery lets him follow up and Sweep Honda easier after Honda tries his myriad of ways past the Jab fireball. For Dhalsim, you are correct: it’s all about the Super Fireball. Both chaaracters have a hard time fighting Dhalsim, but Ryu’s Super Fireball, once charged up, can cause Dhalsim to play more carefully. Otherwise, Dhalsim can just zone you with Fireballs easily. Ken has to win that fight by landing a lucky DP and going for crazy mix-ups. But once Ryu gets the Super Fireball, he has more options for getting in close (which is why it’s almost important not to blow the Super Fireball for no reason against Dhalsim… hold onto it until the right moment).
jchensor knows his shit. I was just about to reply to the thread before I saw his responses that mimicked exactly what I was gonna say. :tup: Tit for tat, Ryu is a stronger character than Ken, as is evident if you watch all the serious ST tournaments.
^^
You are a GAF mod. When you go back to gaf, tell Dragona I love her so much. She will always be my love.
That’s not to say Ryu is better in every matchup. Ken is better against Claw, Zangief, and Boxer, for example. But yeah, Ryu is better overall.