Smash 4 Ryu Guide

Smash 4 Ryu Guide by AetherIke

Hello everyone, I will cut right to the nitty gritty. Ryu has some of THE BEST options in the game, and is considered already to be top 5.

PROS: Tons of power, Pretty decent speed, Pretty good recovery, AERIAL DASHING!?, Can down throw combo, A projectile with 2 variants, A kill move (Shoryuken inputted) that true combos from his down tilt, on hit cancelling ability (will be explained). The ability to parry up to 1 attack (any smash attack for example that is 1 hit) using his down B (Focus Attack) and counter attack with an attack which causes Crumple status (a status from Street Fighter 4 which causes opponents to fall to their knees, and then down on their face, you can combo off of this),

CONS: Not easy to pick up and play at all, Requires learning to use his inputs, Crucial to LEARN TO USE HIS INPUTS, I cannot stress this enough, Slow smash attacks, Not the best recovery, Really difficult to learn to utilize his light and heavy system (pressing down tilt makes you do a simple foot slide, holding it makes you do a heavy foot trip which knocks people into the air and lets you On Hit Cancel).

OKAY, so, now that that’s out of the way…

Ryu has a system from Street Fighter called “OHC” or “On Hit Cancel” which basically lets him cancel his up tilt or down tilt (heavy and light down tilt, light up tilt only) into any of his B special attacks, or inputted attacks. This system is REALLY unique, and lets him have some of the best kill options in the game if you master using his inputs. (Down tilt (LIGHT) to inputted Shoryuken can kill at earliest of 80%) for example.

This is a good system to learn to use if you wish to use Ryu properly.

His next system, which hails from Street Fighter 4, is his Focus Attack and Focus Attack Dash Cancel (or FADC as we call it in the SF4 community.)

Basically, his down B is a Focus Attack, he takes a stance, and charges up to 3 levels of Focus. Level 1 has a small window for you to combo off of, and is only good for getting someone off of you or a quick punish for a smash attack someone did (if it is 1 hit.) The Focus Attack can parry up to [1] attack (After that, you’ll be knocked out of Focus) and it’s REALLY good for punishing people who use lots of dash attacks or projectiles or smashes. Level 2 of Focus is pretty good, has a decent amount of hit stun, but still not a lot of time for you to combo off of. Level 3 Focus has the best hitstun amount possible, and tons of combo potential off of it, even kill set ups!

Now, FADC (Focus Attack Dash Cancelling) is when you use Down B, and IMMEDIATELY dash (left, left or right, right) during the Focus. It can be done while airborne to get a sort of “air evade” or “air glide” or even “air dash” effect. You can act out of a FADC when airborne REALLY quickly, allowing you to FADC, avoid an attack while air borne, and go into an inputted Shoryuken or Tatsumaki or Hadouken (Shakunetsu Hadouken, Red Fireball). You can also go into any of his other aerials, the possibilities of using FADC is ENDLESS. You should also be using FADC when landing a Focus Attack level 2 or higher. When you land the punch (ONLY when landing it), Ryu can FADC out of the animation toward the opponent into any attack you please. I recommend an inputted Shoryuken or an up smash fully charged if it’s a level 3 Focus.

Well, that is all I wanted to give in this guide, and if you have any more questions, please ask me. I used to be an avid SF4 player!

Another Guide by x_Super_Nova_x

Ryu’s Gimmicks

Ryu has a mechanic that proves to be extremely helpful in battle.

You can use the original Street Fighter inputs to unleash stronger versions of his specials!

Not only that, but if you hold the A button when you’re doing tilts or jabs, you do a different attack than when you briefly tap the button, and if you hold the B button, the attack becomes stronger.

Ryu also has two Final Smashes! If you use the Smash Ball up close, you perform the powerful Shin Shoryuken! Do it from afar and perform the devastating Shinku Hadouken!

Input Tutorial

If you use the original Street Fighter inputs to use your specials, they will do 1-3 more damage than when you use the regular inputs (Up B, Side B, etc) to use them.

Now, that may not seem like much, but it also adds more kill power! For example, a regular Shoryuken won’t kill Yoshi at 80%, but an input Shoryuken will!

Here’s how to do the inputs. (When facing right)

You can use both the A and B button for the input attacks.

Down, down left, left, A/B – Tatsumaki

Down, down right, right, A/B – Hadouken

Left, down left, down, down right, right, A/B – Hadouken (It’s red and hits multiple times)

Right, down, down right, right – Shoryuken

Playstyle

His attacks do a bunch of damage, so he can be used for both offensive and defensive play. His FAir alone does 15%!

Kill Moves

Dair, Strong Jab, FSmash, USmash, Shoryuken, Tatsumaki, Fair, Uair

Specials

His Tatsumaki (Side B) is good for rushing into battle.

When used in midair, it has a similar effect to DK’s Up B.

His Focus Punch (Down B) is good for reads and punishes. When you use it, he can tank any single hit while he is charging.

Not only that, but at mid-full charge, it puts the opponent into a “crumple” state, where they are forced to fall on the ground (like when you miss a tech). You can follow up while they are falling.

Also, you can dash cancel the attack, even while it’s charging!

Dash cancelling the attack helps for mixups (when you’re in the middle of charging the attack) or giving you extra time to charge a Smash attack (to cancel the end lag). There is so much potential in that move alone.

You can also reverse the attack in the other direction, like a reverse Falcon Punch.

Hadouken (Neutral B) is a projectile move that comes out quick. Good for spacing and frame traps. It can also stall when used in the air, like Mario’s Cape.

Shoryuken (Up B) is a good kill move, and is decent for recovery.

Combos

His weak Utilt can combo into itself and his strong UTilt. Same with Dtilt.

A good combo is Weak Dtilt > Strong Dtilt > Hadouken.

Or Weak Utilt x3 > Shoryuken.

Ryu has so much combo potential. Feel free to experiment!

Also, Strong Ftilt is a good shield breaking move.

Miscellaneous Tips

  • Ryu’s aerials are strong and are very reliable.
  • Ryu’s Dair can spike. It spikes at an angle, so don’t be afraid to use it at the edge of the stage!
  • It’s easy to screw up your inputs and end up using Tatsumaki off the edge. Be careful!
  • Be prepared to accept defeat. It takes a while to master Ryu, and every loss is an advantage to learn from your mistakes.
  • And of course, practice! Ryu is a very complicated character. Don’t be afraid to go to Training mode and practice his inputs and combos!

Well, that about wraps it up! Tell me if I missed anything!

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