Fighting games have always been one of the most basic and well received of all multiplayer games. Given the chance between building a city with your friends or beating the crap out of each other, vicious beatings win out nearly every time. What leads to a great gotcha moment in fighting games? Why the start of a great air juggle. Nothing emphasizes your opponent’s helplessness more than becoming trapped into bone crushing aerial combo. Here are 7 of the most damaging and outrageous juggles in 7 fighters.
Jump Ultimate Stars (Nintendo DS)
Sometimes simple is the best. Jump Ultimate Stars plays host to one of the largest cast of characters in any fighter. Being a 4 player brawl fest it is often hard to pull off a long satisfying air combo without being rudely interrupted by someone looking for a cheap hit. In the air you need to move erratically but still bring the pain against your foe. Tsuna from Hitman Reborn brings such a combo to the table. With the simple press of the X button he launches his enemy into a 5 hit deadly combo. Built within this combo is a large attack which tends to draw in those idiots looking for a cheap hit. His movement takes him from left to right multiple times helping to keep him out of trouble. The combo even ends in the air allow quick escape with a well-timed double jump.
Bleach: The Blade of Fate (Nintendo DS)
Corner beats are a staple of a true fighter. Those on the receiving end will take any argument to the jury they can think of as to why corner beats are unjust and immoral. A corner beat takes your enemy to one side of the screen and deals with them properly. In a game with high vertical span such as Bleach: The Blade of Fate for the Nintendo DS a corner beat can also take them to the top of the screen. Yoruichi is simply the best combatant to dish out this sort of punishment. One of her specials (activated by a simple press of the red A touch button or double quarter circle forward plus attack) has her sliding her way forward throwing out a myriad of kicks and punches before landing that one fateful launcher. It is a heavy kick, which sends the enemy flying upwards on their path to receive more damage. If you carry them high enough you can say literally say “I beat you from one corner to the next”.
Guardian Heroes (Sega Saturn)
This game is the champion of multi man brawlers. While the previous two allow you to drag up to 3 enemies with you while you pound them upwards into the air, Guardian Heroes takes that total to 5. The absolute biggest and bad lifter of all time is Randy’s. A wizard of small statue, his devastating Tornado spell rips the area around him to shreds. There are few air juggles that shoot your victim off screen but a deeply executed Tornado will push their hang time well into the 4 second mark. Difficult to execute but awesome to behold, Randy’s Tornado drags opponents kicking and screaming into its range.
Super Smash Bros Brawl (Nintendo Wii)
Brawl has brought back the aerial antics of its grandfather, Super Smash Bros, in a most pleasing way. It seems every character is teaming with terrific air combos. Some are short and brutal while others can almost be considering works of gaming art. The most eye popping one is surprisingly one of the quickest. With good positioning, Luigi’s up special uppercut is a jaw dropping launcher. It may seem his uppercut is a clone of Mario’s when you see those coins pop up but with the proper placement Luigi’s uppercut blasts the opponent upwards at the same time scorching him in flame. Visions of Ken’s flaming dragon uppercut come to mind when seeing Luigi’s 20 plus percent damaging fist smashing into Mario’s face.
Tekken 5 (Playstation 2)
In a sea of realistic fighters it is hard to claim any as the best. A vocal community claims Virtua Fighter to be the better technical fighter but it is Tekken that holds the brightest candle when it comes to aerial combos. Xiaoyu is the epitome of air finesse. What makes air juggling such an integral part to fighting games is that you can use them to punish your opponent, racking up basically free damage. The pendulum also swings to the opposite end where air juggling can be used to wow the players around you. Even Xiaoyu’s simplest combos display form and substance. With her back turned a slicing high kick will position any character within the perfect area to start a long running juggle.
Street Fighter III: Third Strike (Playstation 2)
Certain things in life are classics. A Wendy’s double with cheese. Microsoft Windows blue screen of death. Flashy air combos scream out one name: Ken. The antithesis to Ryu’s somber and defensive fighting style, Ken’s reputation is built around burning his opponents. This flaming disposition of his occurs more often than not in the air. Street Fighter III was not the first Street Fighter to introduce special to super canceling but never have I seen it used more than with Ken in Third Strike. Given one bar of super a normal dragon uppercut will almost always be cancelled into a Shoryu-Reppa. Why burn and lift your victim when you can burn and lift them twice as hard? Uppercuts are the most common animation leading to or ending a juggle and Ken’s Shoryu-Reppa is the most recognizable of all.
Guilty Gear XX (Playstation 2)
The most outrageous air juggling cannot be pinned to one character. The entire series of Guilty Gear prizes itself on being the premier 2D juggle fighter. Once you mix in the game’s Dust attack (a slow upward attack usable by all characters), the game’s background fades away leaving an anime style motion slide. Upward you can carry your victim dishing out all sort of nasty blows. Provided you land ahead of your opponent even more violence can be wrought with a sweet finishing blow.
