Gods Garden x 4Gamer Interview: AE First Impressions (1/2)

Update: Added information and captions about embedded footage.  And ran spell check (laughs).

Picked this up through GodsGarden tweet.

KSK, Mago, Nemo, Hiropon, Itabashi, and maybe Tokido give their impressions so far on AE.
Original here. Follow the link to also see embedded footage of them playing AE.

Unfortunately, I didn’t notice that the interview was three pages long when I started.  I tried finishing it in one sitting, but it’s impossible.  Here’s the first half.  I’ll try to get the rest up tomorrow ASAP.

Translation notes are in brackets as usual.  I apologize for there being a lot of uncertain parts.

Gods Garden x 4Gamer SSFIV AE Release Commemoration, First Impressions

Capcom’s popular fighting game Super Street Fighter IV AE was released December 16th.  It adds Yun and Yang to the console version’s roster, as well various balance modifications.

So with the cooperation of Gods Garden, we were able to set up a discussion with their famous players.  And despite the short notice, we were able to have Mago, Nemo, Hiropon, Itabashi Zangief, Tokido, and the sponsor of Gods Garden, Soushihan KSK himself.  Anyone who’s a fighting game fan has seen these names before. And because they are top players, the contents of the discussion tend to be a bit high level.  Thus the article may end up alienating some of the more casual readers, but I decided to be bold and print the entire thing anyway.  I wanted to convey as much of their passion as possible so I transferred their tone, words, and tempo as faithfully as possible.

For those players thinking about going from console and making their arcade debut, I suggest reading this leisurely through January and visiting an arcade when you can.

*All of the opinions expressed in the discussion are first impressions of the players, and the frame data and hit box information are not necessarily accurate.

The 6 players

Thanks for being with us today.  To commemorate the release of Arcade Edition, we’ll have some of our players talk about their first impressions of the game.  It’s been less than two weeks since the release so there’s still a lot to learn, so we’ll just start with general feelings on the game.  Soushihan KSK, the face of Gods Garden, will be leading the procession.

KSK:  OK, then let’s get started.  How about we start off with everyone’s main character and self introduction?  First, Mago.

Mago:  Hi I’m Mago. I mained Sagat in Vanilla, and now I’m using Fei Long.

KSK:  Hm, why did you go with Fei?  Is Sagat no good?

Mago:  Sagat’s probably gotten a lot better in AE, but I think Fei is more….

KSK:  ..Fun to use?

Mago:  No, actually Sagat’s more fun, but Fei has better match ups.  Plus I put a lot of time into him in SSFIV.

KSK:  What changes does Fei have in AE?

Mago:  First of all his roundhouse Chicken Wing lost invincibility, so it’s harder to abuse it as the low risk, high return move it used to be.  You now have to be more prudent in his overall gameplay.

KSK:  How does he feel overall?

Mago:  He really hasn’t changed much at all.  I just have to avoid using roundhouse Chicken Wing.  That’s about it.  And EX Rekkas.

KSK:  Did he lose some advantage frames on EX Rekkas?

Mago:  Yeah.  So I’m still trying to figure out how to use it.

KSK:  I see.  Next, Nemo.  You use Chun Li, right?

Nemo:  I haven’t touched her so I dunno (laughs).

KSK:  Really?  Then who are you using?

Nemo:  Right now, Yang.

KSK:  So are you not going to use Chun this time?

Nemo:  Yeah, not going to use her.  I think she was done for after SSFIV.

KSK:  You think she can’t make top-tier in AE?

Nemo:  More than that, she’s just lost all of the things she could do in Super, so it’s disappointing I guess.

KSK:  So you weren’t happy with her changes.  Why did you choose Yang?

Nemo:  I simply wanted to try him out from before, and he turned out to be fun.

KSK:  Why Yang and not Yun?

Nemo:  Just looks.  And it looked like there were going to be a lot Yun users, so I wasn’t drawn to him.

KSK:  OK next, Hiropon.

Hiropon:  Hi, I’m Hiropon and I play Seth.  I used Blanka in Vanilla, but I couldn’t win much with him.  Then when Super came out I added Seth to my arsenal, and since then I’ve been consumed by him.

KSK:  How has Seth changed in AE?

Hiropon:  He’s changed a lot.  His jumping fierce had that really great reach, but now that’s gone.  And his head stomps have lost a lot of active frames.  So it’s much more difficult now to be tricky with him.

KSK:  Ah, so he’s lost a lot of his gimmicks.

Hiropon:  You really have to think about your 50/50s and rushdowns now.  But since they detailed the changes before the release, I did some work beforehand by playing Super as if it was AE.  So it didn’t feel that strange when I actually got to play AE.

KSK:  OK let’s see, last we have Itabashi Zangief.

Itabashi:  Huh?  What about Tokido?

KSK:  Tokido’s going to be late today.

Itabashi:  Oh I see.  Um, I’m Itabashi Zangief and I main Zangief.  I basically only use Zangief, but this time around I’m also playing around with Hakan, another grappler.

KSK:  Do you use Zangief in other games, too?

Itabashi:  No I actually started using him in SFIV.  I know it’s confusing that a player named “Itabashi Zangief” didn’t use Zangief (laughs).  But I really started using him in SFIV.

KSK:  What changes have they made to Zangief in AE?

Itabashi:  They made a lot of small changes here and there.  His jab SPD has more range now, and I’m really curious how that will change his game.

KSK:  It has more range and does more damage, right?

Itabashi:  Yeah.  Which was surprising because it was already pretty powerful before.  It’s really a central part of his game, too.  And then his Ultra 2 is now controllable, so that’s gotten more fun.

KSK:  The one where he grabs the opponent in the air.

Itabashi:  It can catch backdashes and dragon punches so it’s a great way to set up opponents trying to avoid SPD.

[Embedded footage of Mago (Sagat) vs Nemo (Yang) casuals]

New Characters, Yun and Yang

KSK:  I think everyone is wondering about the new characters.  What are your impressions on Yun and Yang?  Do you think they’re good?

Mago:  I think Yun is definitely good.

Hiropon:  I also think Yun is good.

KSK:  What makes Yun so dangerous?

Mago:  His dive kicks are just too good.  It’s even different compared to Yang’s.  Then there’s his Up Kicks (Nishoukyaku).  Yang’s Up Kicks (Senkyuutai) are a good anti-air, but it’s weak against back dashes, has little invincibility, and does little damage.  Plus, it can’t really deal with crossups, while Yun’s can.

Nemo:  Really?  No way.

Mago:  Yeah, you can beat crossups with Nishoukyaku.

Itabashi:  Do you mean they just both whiff [trade?] on each other?

Mago:  Well, that happens too, but it seems to have a pretty good hit box straight above, too.

Nemo:  Is that right?  It seemed like Yang would be better at beating crossups.

Hiropon:  How fast is the start up?

Mago:  I think about 4 frames.

Nemo:  Well Yun is definitely fast.  And it’s dangerous that roundhouse Up Kicks hit crouching opponents too.

Mago:  Only roundhouse version?  Doesn’t EX hit crouching opponents, too?

Nemo:  EX might, too.  In any case, since it can hit crouching opponents, if you dive kick on Ryu’s crouching MK, you can knockdown with MP -> MP -> MP -> HK Up Kicks, then go for wakeup games.  And it does a ton of damage. [I'm assuming crouching MP?].

KSK:  I see.  So even if you jump in on a crouching opponent, you can still finish them off with the full combo.

Hiropon:  He can combo from anywhere.

Mago:  Also the difference between Yun and Yang’s command grabs is pretty huge.  Yun’s comes out faster and has a longer reach.

KSK:  How about frame advantage afterwards?

Mago:  That might be the same, but the start up and reach are definitely different.  For example after c.MP on block, you can time a command grab right after so that you don’t get mashed out.  But Yang doesn’t have any moves that puts him at that much advantage, and you don’t have many opportunities to do it, while Yun has them right off the bat.

Hiropon:  It feels like Yun can keep pressuring nonstop, whereas Yang feels like he loses momentum if you just block right.

Mago:  I don’t think so, he has ways of getting in.  I think it might actually be the other way around.  Yeah, Yun can continue to rush down if you use Shoulder (Testuzankou), but there’s risk involved.

Nemo:  Yun’s MP into Shoulder is really good.  You can sneak in a Focus in between, but he can also mix it up with MP into fierce Palm.

KSK:  So if you try to Focus a Shoulder, you eat a Palm.  Then what can you do after?

Mago:  Probably Genei Jin.

Itabashi:  I wonder if you can’t react to it?  Press Focus first, get out of there if you see a Palm coming.

Nemo:  You can’t react to it.  You’ll just end up blocking the Shoulder before you can react [?].

Mago:  Can’t you just Focus, then back dash?  I feel like some characters might be able to.

Nemo:  I think if you’re mid-screen, you can block MP xx Shoulder, then back dash safely.

Mago:  Block then back dash… But there should be some characters with guaranteed punishes.  I think I heard it was -3 frames on block.  Stuff like SPD should be able to punish it.

Itabashi:  Even if you block the Shoulder, you don’t know which strength they used.  You couldn’t tell in Third Strike.

KSK:  I thought you could tell pretty easily in Third Strike (laughs).  I think we just haven’t gotten used to AE Yun.

Nemo:  Also, I think it’s scary that Yun can cancel from MP.

Mago:  His MP -> HP -> b.HP target combo is really good.  You can do it from MP’s full distance, and you can combo all the way into Genei Jin.

KSK:  Wow, all the way into Genei Jin?  Isn’t it better to stop at MP -> HP, rather than do the whole target combo?

Mago:  Even if MP -> HP is blocked, you’re pushed back and at -3 or -4 frames.  You can hit confirm so it seems pretty low risk.

Itabashi:  KSK, it looks like you’re interested in Yun (laughs).

KSK:  Yeah, I want to use him (laughs).

Mago:  No no, he doesn’t have any interest in Yun.  He’s just asking (laughs).

KSK:  So Genei Jin is definitely something to look out for.

Nemo:  Genei Jin is really good.

Mago:  You can do Genei Jin in a lot of situations.  But you can’t use it like in Third Strike where you just activate first then go for a set ups.

Itabashi:  Oh, it’s no good to just activate?

Nemo:  Nope.  It feels different in AE.  In Third Strike the hit box got bigger.

KSK:  And it somehow feels more wasteful to just activate outside of a sure fire situation.  It takes more work to get meter.  Oh, but how is his meter efficiency?

Nemo:  It’s good, but he doesn’t feel like that kind of character .  In any case, if you activate it inside a combo, that fact that you can take your opponent to the corner is the strong point.  Then in the corner, you launch them with close MK then go in for an ambiguous front/back mixup.

Mago:  Then you combo into c.MP -> MP -> HK Up Kicks.  Really effective.

Nemo:  Or you can even c.MP, command grab.  It’s going to be really tough on wakeup for characters without uppercuts or invincible EX moves.

KSK:  Command grab reaches after c.MP there?

Nemo:  Yeah, if blocked.

Catching up with Yun — Looking for Yang’s potential

Hiropon:  Where does Yang outshine Yun?

Mago:  First off, his Ultra 1 is way too cool.  You can’t beat that.

KSK:  That’s not what I mean (laughs).

Mago:  You can Focus Cancel his Up Kicks (Senkyuutai), and you can cross up with MK.  Yun can’t do that.

Itabashi:  But Yun can cross up with dive kicks, no?

KSK:  Can’t both cross up with dive kicks?

Mago:  No, it doesn’t look like you can cross up very well with Yang’s dive kicks.

Itabashi:  So is that really all that Yang has?

Nemo:  You can Focus Cancel Mantis Slash.

Itabashi:  You really love Mantis Slash xx FADC, don’t you (laughs)?

Nemo:  You can do a 50/50 after Mantis Slash xx FADC.  And I think Sei Enbu is gonna get better with time.

Mago:  I think if you can find a way to break down the opponent’s defense while keeping them in continuous block stun, you have an opportunity to do a lot of damage after you activate.

Nemo:  Another good thing about Sei Enbu is that it continues stun damage.  I’ve dizzied my opponent during Sei Enbu.  So if we find more and more ways to reset mid-combo, I think it’ll be really easy to cause dizzy.

Mago:  That would be really dangerous.  You’d definitely get dizzied on the next wake up mixup.

[Embedded footage of Sei Enbu combo.  Hiropon says: Wow, is it OK for it to take that much damage?]

Hiropon:  How is his Kaihou?  That teleport move.

KSK:  It looks like there’s a much bigger recovery than Abel’s command roll.  I couldn’t do ambiguous front/back mixups on wake up because I couldn’t attack fast enough after the teleport.

Nemo:  People probably won’t use it like that.  It’s more effective doing a cross up MK or dive kick considering the recovery on the teleport.  There doesn’t seem to be a good way to use it.

Mago:  Yeah, there doesn’t appear to be any good situations for it.

The Anti-Yun/Yang?

KSK:  What about characters that beat Yun/Yang.

Mago:  Definitely Zangief.  I don’t think either of the twins are effective against him.  It’s already gotten to a point where if I use Yang, I just don’t want to play versus Zangief (laughs).

KSK:  Because there’s a lot of chances to land SPD?

Mago:  He’s guaranteed SPD after blocking Mantis Slash, after both first and second slash.  And without that, there’s no way to really get in on him.  You can of course do dive kicks, but after that, you’re getting 50/50′d, and you end up getting SPD’d a lot of the time.  So you have no choice but to poke at him bit by bit with normals, but even then Zangief’s pokes are better.  You’ll get stuffed, etc.

Itabashi:  It was really easy when I played that match up [as Zangief].  It was like I could be having a conversation with someone while playing (laughs).

KSK:  Do you really feel a big gap there?

Itabashi:  You can see it right away.  Although I don’t know how else I might bury [?] him from here on.

Hiropon:  How about T. Hawk?  How do their normals compare?

Itabashi:  Can’t you just use the same strategy?  For example, there’s T. Hawk’s standing fierce.  Everyone considers Yun and Yang strong, but don’t they seem to eat weird combos?

Mago:  They seem to have big vulnerable hit boxes.

Itabashi:  Yeah they’re fatties, especially horizontally.  Fei Long is too, right?

Mago:  Fei Long is actually really slim.  In SFIV, it’s almost to the point that it’s broken.

Itabashi:  Ah, he’s slim.  Maybe I’m thinking of Super Turbo.

Hiropon:  Does Fei seem pretty good against the twins?

Mago:  Umm… I think it might be in Fei Long’s favor, although the game just came out so I can’t say for sure.

Hiropon:  Ah, I think Boxer might be pretty good against the twins.

Nemo:  Boxer is a really tough match up.

Mago:  Boxer might be pretty strong against them.  His [turtle game?] is really good.

Hiropon:  How about Rufus.  It seems like it would be a real brawl.

Nemo:  I think it’s in Yang’s favor.  He has mix ups after knockdown, and he can EX Teleport to avoid the 3 mix ups of the last hit of EX Messiah.

Mago:  No he can’t.  There’s stop and throw.

Nemo:  Oh is that right?  But he’ll be fine with a bit of Yomi.

Mago:  Yes, he can do some Yomi, but things become more risky, so it gets difficult.

[Embedded footage of Itabashi (Zangief) vs Nemo (Yang) casuals]

[End of page 1.]

How did Juri and Hakan change?

KSK:  Now how about the newer characters?  Juri and Hakan.  He’s not your main character, but what do think, Itabashi?

Itabashi:  There were a lot of hopeless aspects to Hakan before, but now he’s gotten all of what I think he needed this time.  Like crouching jab xx Oil Slide, or oil stacking.  So he’s simply gotten more fun to use.

KSK:  It appears they thought him through well.

Itabashi:  Right.  So I feel a lot more motivated this time to try and use him.

Mago:  I think Hakan did get a lot more fun, having gotten stronger and all.  Though it’s a delicate line on how strong he’s gotten, he’s definitely more fun.

Hiropon:  I don’t really know how much better he is when Hakan’s oiled.

Itabashi:  There’s actually a lot that changes and he becomes a lot better.  He’s the only one that can move while holding Focus, for example.

KSK:  Does he become one of the best characters when he’s oiled?  Or are bad match ups still bad regardless of oil?

Nemo:  I don’t think it goes that far.  Especially against projectile characters.

Itabashi:  But you can Oil Slide on reaction to projectiles and go right under them.

Mago:  I think Hakan was already pretty decent against projectile characters.

Nemo:  Oh really?  But isn’t Sagat just too strong?

Mago:  Sagat?  Sagat vs Hakan?  That was always hopeless for Hakan.

(Everyone laughs)

Itabashi:  Well in any case (laughs) he has that.  It’s heavyweight stuff, but I think there are masochists out there who are up to the challenge.

KSK:  How is Hakan against Yun and Yang?

Itabashi:  His standing fierce has really long reach, and it’s pretty good as an anti-air.  But once they get in on him, it’s pretty rough.  His crouching height is pretty tall so they can lock him down with standing jabs.  But the initial match up seems pretty solid [?].  But if you ask me if he is actually good against them… it’s probably hopeless (laughs).

KSK:  Hopeless, huh (laughs)?  So he’s not that strong of a character.

Itabashi:  It might be misinterpreted if I say “hopeless,” but if you ask me if he’s upper tier, I don’t think he is.

Mago:  But he’s fun, so it’s OK.

Itabashi:  Yeah.  Even if he has some bad match ups, I can still see Hakan clutching out a win against like Yun in a tournament and everyone getting really hype.

KSK:  And there was not even a little hope for that in Super (laughs).

Itabashi:  It was really depressing (laughs).

Hiropon:  I don’t really know Juri’s wake up games yet, so it’s hard to say anything at the moment.  She had a lot of set ups in Super, but it looks like you can’t use those anymore, so it’s back to the drawing board for the time being.

Mago:  Juri seems pretty fun, too, although I don’t really know how to use her.

KSK:  Can you still do mid Fuzzy Guard setups? [It took me forever to find out what F-shiki (fuzzy guard) is.]  Instant neutral jump MP xx dive kick…

Hiropon:  You should still be able to do that.  She does more damage, too, so I think she’s gotten pretty good.

Makoto’s big buffs?  How are the 3s characters?

KSK:  Next, SSFIV characters.  How is the Third Strike cast?

Nemo:  I’d like to recommend this character:  Makoto.

KSK:  Ah, Makoto.  She seemed very weak in Super.  How about this time?

Mago:  I haven’t been paying attention so I dunno (laughs).

Nemo:  She’s scary.  You’ll probably get deflowered by her (laughs). [He actually says "baptized," but I think deflowered works better, if I'm understanding him correctly.  My second guess is "you'll get completely overwhelmed."]

KSK:  Deflowered (laughs).

Mago:  It’s scary getting combo’d after Fukiage.

Nemo:  Fukiage -> Fukiage -> EX Axe Kick works.  Also, you can Ultra 1 if Axe Kick connects on the ground.  It beats grabs, links into Ultra, and it does a tone of damage [?].

[Embedded footage of Fukiage combo and of low Axe Kick into Ultra]

Mago: Also her command grab (Karakusa) has changed too.  Before she only had armor [on EX, I'm assuming], but now she has armor and throw invincibility.

Itabashi:  Huh?  Armor and throw invincibility?  What the hell (laughs).

Nemo:  And Fukiage is now upper body invincible, and also beats cross ups.

Itabashi:  Right, right.  When I tried to do wake up games on her, I got hit by Fukiage.

Nemo:  You can cover both sides if you throw it out there on wake up.

KSK:  So Makoto is really good.  Is she upper tier material?

Mago:  Hmm, but she doesn’t have much maneuverability, so doesn’t she seem more like a wait-character?  She waits for her one chance, then throws everything out there in a flury.

Nemo:  No, I think she can cut it.  She’s just does so much damage…

Mago:  The opponent can’t get in on her, and she does so much damage.  And when things stiffen up, she can dash in command grab, or throw out an Axe Kick.  That’s how it seems to me.

KSK:  EX Hayate now breaks armor.  Can’t you just throw it out there to get in?

Itabashi:  Like Boxer’s Dash Straights.  And it’s super fast.  How is it on block?

Nemo:  Maybe -4 frames?  And plus she has 1000 health…

Mago:  1000?  That’s messed up.

KSK:  Her dash and back dash have gotten faster, too.

Mago:  Wow, that’s too much.

Nemo:  I told you she’s good.

Mago:  Wow, this Makoto is really something, huh?

(Everyone laughs)

Itabashi:  But on the whole isn’t her walking speed really slow, and doesn’t she have poor reach?

Mago:  A one dimensional[?] character.

Nemo:  Yeah but she can come after you regardless.

Mago:  OK, I get that you really like Makoto (laughs), but she’s not a well rounded character, right?

Nemo:  I think she’ll become well rounded.  If you play her once, you’ll see.

Itabashi:  If you confuse the opponent with her speed, they could become helpless, get dizzied and die.

Mago:  No way she’ll be stable.  Not in this game.

Nemo:  OK, so you’re just mad at Makoto, aren’t you?

Mago: Yeah, probably (laughs).

Hiropon:  How about Ibuki and Dudley?

KSK:  Acqua said that all her setups have changed.  Her Neckbreaker puts you further away than before.

Nemo:  She hasn’t changed much.  She’s still very solid.

KSK:  Her Kunai was definitely a mid-tier [player] killer.  And… Dudley?

Hiropon:  Dudley’s overall game was pretty weak in Super, so if that hasn’t changed, he hasn’t changed either.

Itabashi:  Yeah he was considered weak in Super.

Mago:  His weakness was his difficulty in getting close, so if that hasn’t been adjusted, he’s still weak.  So they said, “How about we add EX Ducking?” but that didn’t really change much.  So in the end he’s just whatevers.

KSK:  So after all that he’s still just whatevers (laughs)?

[Embedded footage of Nemo (Yang) vs KSK (Abel)]

Eyes on Adon’s jump from low to broken tier, and other Super characters

KSK:  And then there’s the other Super characters… Guy, Cody, Adon, T. Hawk, and Deejay.

Nemo:  Adon seems pretty good.

Mago:  Adon is good.  He was already strong in SuperIV.  I played with GamerBee, and it was really something.  Instant air Jaguar Kick is so good.

Itabashi:  Can’t you Focus air Jaguar Kicks?  And if so, doesn’t it have a lot of recovery?

Mago:  You can, but it’s hard to tell the difference between air and grounded Jaguar Kicks.  And the normal ones break armor.

Hiropon:  You can’t really throw out Focus against Adon.

Nemo:  Oh and EX Jaguar Tooth got longer projectile invincibility.  That’s important.

Mago:  Yeah, I think his match up against Guile got a lot better.

Nemo:  He can get in now.  And it’s only -1 or -2 frames on block.

KSK:  Ah, and the fact that his wake up got slower makes me glad as an Abel player.

Hiropon:  It was pretty hard for Abel with Adon mashing c.LP, huh?

KSK:  I recorded Adon mashing c.LP in training mode and tried all kinds of wake up options on him, but all of them got stuffed.  I didn’t know what to do (laughs).

Nemo:  Deejay is pretty formidable too.

Mago:  His Air Slashes have gotten buffed.  They recover 3 frames faster.

Itabashi:  3 frames is a bit much, don’t you think?

Mago:  I think Guile’s are still better, though.

Nemo:  Guile is good.  He’s good, and before, there was no reason to use Deejay over Guile, but now there is.

Itabashi:  Deejay can beat cross ups.  Isn’t Guile weak there?

Mago:  Yeah, there is a difference there.  Before there really wasn’t a reason to use him, he was basically a worse Guile.  And his Knee Shots are buffed too, now.

Hiropon:  The timing for it was pretty strict before, but now it comes out even if you accidentally input diagnals, so I don’t mess up anymore.

Nemo:  I saw a bit of Guy yesterday, and his close MK is great for frame traps, and you can do a lot of damage with his target combo from there, so I think his normals are going to be an important asset for him.

Hiropon:  Also his c.LK being 3 frames is huge.  But MP shoulder no longer connecting from mid strength moves seems have been a hit for Guy users.

Itabashi:  Did they change the air Izuna Drop?  That did so much damage!

KSK:  They did.  From 200 to 180.

Hiropon:  Seth dies if he gets hit by that 4 times.

Itabashi:  You can duck it, right?  But somehow you still end up standing up when you see it coming.  Also, I heard Command Run -> Hop Kick (MK) is now one hit.

Nemo:  I guess you can Focus it now.

Mago:  T. Hawk is supposed to have gotten stronger, but I can’t tell at all.

Hiropon:  You can EX Condor Dive by itself, and from back jump, too.

Itabashi:  Is that right?  That’s nasty (laughs).

Mago:  I think Cody’s pretty good this time around.

Nemo:  His crouching LK is now 3 frames.

Hiropon:  And you can even cancel into Ruffian Kick.

Itabashi:  Wow, you can connect Ruffian Kick from LK?

KSK:  Does Cody have a chance at upper tier?

Mago:  Umm, he has the firepower, but bad mobility.  Only if he can get in.

KSK:  You can pick up the knife from further away now, which can’t be bad, although I’ve yet to see anyone use the knife well.

Mago:  I think the knife can be ignored.

Itabashi:  I was playing Zangief vs Cody, and the Cody picked up the knife.  He created like a force field with it (laughs).

KSK:  Was it hard to deal with?

Itabashi:  Actually, I don’t really know (laughs).  But I guess he was pretty good with it (laughs).

Second half here.