Taekwon-Do (SFC)
Cool sports fighter by Human. Very minimalist on the surfaceâto win, you either knock the opponent down five times, K.O. them, or score more points by the end of the 2-minute time limit (1 point for body blow, 2 for head, 3 for aerials, 5 for ringout/knockdown/warning). Every character is essentially a head/pallette swap of the same sprite, but itâs compensated by fluid animation, varied statlines, and a large cast for 1994 (22, counting the hidden bosses).
Where it gets complicated is in the details. Every character has one of two stances, you can lane-switch not unlike Fatal Fury, and certain attacks make you switch footingâand certain attacks hit on different lanes. Itâs almost like a 3D fighter in this way. Itâs pretty involved, so Iâm going to split this into two dissertations: one on the game system, and the other on the characters themselves.
System
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Attacks
First off: the button scheme in this game defies typical conventions, so for ease of use Iâm going to use stock SNES notation instead of ABCD or whatever.
There are roughly 15 far normals, 9 close normals, and 6 aerials, all in a shared pool. Each fighter is given some combination of these attacks to form their movelist, so similar attacks are found regularly between characters.
Every character follows a rough outline for their moveset, some more loosely than others:
-Y is an autocombo. The attack sequence is character-specific, but is never an actual âcomboâ. The upshot is that you can cancel it at any time, making the first attack in the sequence viable as an extra normal. The first attack in the sequence changes when youâre close or far.
-X is typically a high strike.
-B is generally a power attack, often involving a jump.
-A is commonly a mid strike.
-L makes you perform your characterâs stance.
Attacks each deal varying damage and such under the hood, alongside a âstaggerâ value, which Iâll get to. Attacks are either high or low (per TKD rules, âlowâ means âbodyâ), and are blocked by pressing 4/2, respectively. Alongside all these, there are also 4 universal attacks for each character:
-236B: a high anti-air kick. Very fast, with a high stagger rating. This can lead to true combos on hit. The downside: itâs blockable at either elevation, and has shit range.
-cl.6B: a high hook kick. Slow, but unblockable, and the only attack with a guaranteed stagger. Doesnât grant much advantage, but characters with punches can link them after this. Tracks to your back.
-guard-cancel 6A. Looks like a sidekick, but has a different stagger chance and knockback on hit. Practically guaranteed to punish anything in close range.
-2364B: ranbu. Only works when in critical condition, but awards something ridiculous like 25 points and deals a shitload of damage. Easy to interrupt and linear, but itâs possible to combo into this from a stagger.
Jump attacks follow a similar premise. Uniquely, one air ânormalâ is an air block. Aerials score well and are some of the only plus-on-block attacks, but carry risks of their own, which Iâll also get to.
Finally, Counter-Hits are in this game, but require stricter timing than usual (I think you need to hit just before, or during, their attackâs first active frame?).
Stances
There are two stances: Flamingo, and Taunt (in reality a âpunchâ stance). Each stance has three attacks (high/mid/power). Flamingo is arguably inferiorâthe startup is way longer at far range, making it only really useful for its feint step. Taunt is better for two reasons: one, itâs fast enough to link after 6B, which makes it more flexible. Two, it imitates the animation for your next level of fatigue while in use, allowing for baits.
Stats
Every character has some arrangement of six stats, in addition to their movelist. Hereâs what they do (based on my research):
AT: Attack. Determines how much HP you drain when you hit the enemy. Arguably unimportant, since scoring is probably faster than winning by K.O.
DF: Defense. Acts as HP. Every character reaches the first level of fatigue at roughly the same damage, so this doesnât stave off exhaustion as much as it gives you more time to bounce back.
SP: Speed. Indicates attack, move, and sidestep speed. When characters share attacks, the higher-SP characterâs version is in fact faster.
ST: Stamina. Appears to be a DF regeneration value. Attacking and taking damage lowers your HP, so high ST lets you attack more regularly and bounce back from big dammy sooner.
BL: Balance. A very important stat; backdashing, landing from the air, and certain attacks will cause you to stagger and leave you vulnerable (or sometimes simply knock you down). Higher BL reduces the odds of a stagger. This value decays as your HP drains, so characters with low BL are unreliable and easier to combo or KD.
TC: Technique. Attacks have a chance to register as a Critical Hit, which knocks down. This stat increases that chance. A very useful stat for characters interested in maximizing pokes and winning by KDs.
Fatigue
As you attack and take damage, your character goes through two phases. The first is just âtiredââthey lower their guard, head down. The second is hands-on-knees, bent over, totally exhausted. When youâre this far, youâre either inches from a K.O. or ready to turn the tables with 2364B. As you get tired, your SP and BL lower in tandem, and worsens when criticalâhigh ST is a must to avoid snowballing into constant staggers and KDs. Taunt stance imitates the appearance of fatigue, including the change in speed.
Sidesteps
Pressing R makes you swap footing. While held, you can freely sidewalk and change lanes, but canât block. You can also press it like 8+R to swap lanes instantly, without changing footing. High SP makes this even more valuable, as you can weave around attacks and play lame more easily. Only a select set of normals can track towards a separate lane (whether your back or stomach), so having access to these is a big upside in deterring opponents from relying on this too heavily.[/details]
Characters
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This includes the bosses. Theyâre easy to unlock (hold up+L+R during the opening text crawl before starting), so why not.
Kyoji
Speed Type
Nimble and hard to catch. Has a fast set of close normals, so for players who like frame traps he works well for that. Suffers from weak tracking options, and Flamingo isnât terribly useful.
Yerong
Jump Type
Forcibly a very honest characterâmiserable TC means he canât rely on Critical Hit pokes. Otherwise very solid, and good for scoring strats.
Wong
Jump Type
A bit lacking in tracking, but has a strong, reliable statline. Another character good for scoring, and has better TC than Yerong.
Arbeght
Defense Type
Brick shithouse. Has a movelist and statline built to secure a lead and sit on it. Low-end BL leaves him vulnerable in some scenarios.
Renny
Speed Type
Decent enough. Flamingo stinks, but he has a punch on Y, so heâs not hurting for combo and counterpoke options. Nice and fast like Kyoji.
Edge
Skill Type
Top-shelf TC and a versatile movelist makes this character ideal for one-off poking and KD strats. Lower SP and BL make in-close heavy-hitters troublesome.
Flay
Power Type
Powerful, with okay tracking. A very âswingyâ characterâhis low DF and horrid BL leaves him demolishing you flat or suffering from constant KDs and staggers.
Babbelle
Skill Type
Awful, awful statline. His great TC is offset by his mixed-bag movelist. Slow and pithy, easily overwhelmed by high damage or fast aggression.
Yuhjing
Defense Type
Despite the claims, his defense is rather lousy. Mediocre statline, nearly-nonexistent tracking, and slow enough to gain ground on easily. Low damage, to boot.
Mike
Speed Type
Excellent statline for campingâhigh DF/SPâbut his movelist is unfocused and lacks enough tracking for him to establish notable offense or defense.
Kart
Allround Type
Very even-handed statline, but his speed his shitty and he lacks any tracking beyond cl.6B. If not for his Taunt stance heâd be largely outclassed by Lee.
Blade
Power Type
The gameâs resident lightning bruiser. Good speed, high damage, and solid defense gives him excellent strategic flexibility. Sadly, his tracking is ass.
Duyile
Defense Type
Outclassed statline and a slow, linear moveset. Yet another character with poor defensive optionsâI suspect heâd struggle against high-SP characters.
Yagami
Skill Type
Where Edge deals in offense, Yagami does defense. Unparalleled tracking and high TC makes him hard to get in on, and a Critical Hit resets the situation.
Lee
Allround Type
Good statline, decent as a low-end heavy hitter. Flamingo and very slim tracking holds him back.
Kai
Power Type
Beastly damage, and very slow. Decent defensive stats, but mediocre tracking. If he can get in heâs very strong for a K.O. strategy.
Shun
Allround Type
Killer statline, but bar-none worst ST. Pick your fights carefully and his decent tracking and overall movelist can go much farther, otherwise he loses fast.
Ichijyo
Allround Type
Tracking options are limited by rangeâhe has to stay at far range. Heâs otherwise unremarkable, to be frank.
Sho
Jump Type
Not a very good pick. Fragile, no tracking, and an awkward jump-heavy moveset makes him slower than youâd think. His high BL is better done elsewhere.
Yuh
Allround Type
The final boss. Great stats, but has middling BL and poor tracking. High SP/AT character can wear him down easily enough, despite his strength on paper.
Luey
Speed Type
Boss. If not for his damage heâd be godlike. Great stats and killer tracking up-close, so he can rush you down well (for whatever itâs worth in this game).
Ray
Power Type
Boss. Strong and tough, but like Yuh, he suffers from lightweight tracking and average BL. Heâs also very slow, so wearing him down pays dearly.[/details]
Without further ado, my tierlist for the time being. Characters are listed in no particular order:
S - Luey, Shun, Yagami, Arbeght
A - Edge, Yerong, Renny, Wong
B - Kyoji, Yuh, Ray, Blade
C - Mike, Flay, Kai, Lee, Ichijyo
D - Sho, Kart, Duyile, Yuhjing, Babbelle