Chun-Li has been a staple of the Street Fighter series right alongside Ryu and Ken. It wasn’t much of a surprise when she was one of the first two characters announced for Capcom’s upcoming fighting game. The first lady of Street Fighter hasn’t changed all that much from Street Fighter 4 to Street Fighter 5, but she does seem to have a more focused rush down game and some of her special moves have easier inputs.
So far, Chun-Li has been the least represented character every time Street Fighter 5 has been playable, but that’s mainly because she just hasn’t changed that much and people want to explore newer characters. Still, Chun-Li seems to be better than she was in Street Fighter 4 and should be a capable character in the hands of a Chun veteran. Let’s take a closer look at what Chun-Li has to offer in Street Fighter 5.
Special Moves
Chun-Li retains most of her Street Fighter 4 special moves. Her Kikouken projectile attack remains about the same as it was before, and the Spinning Bird Kick is relatively unchanged as well. What has changed is the input for her Hyakuretsukyaku Lightning Legs special move. In most previous Street Fighter games, you had to rapidly press any kick button in order to execute the attack. In Street Fighter 5 all you have to do is input a quarter-circle forward motion with a kick attack. It’s basically perform with a fireball motion now. If that weren’t enough, she can perform the attack in the air just like in the Vs. series of games.
While at first glance it may not seem as though much has changed with Chun-Li, making Lightning Legs an easier input and giving Chun-Li an air version of the special move adds quite a bit to her arsenal. Players will now be able to buffer Lightning Legs into Chun-Li’s normal attacks, just like you would a fireball with Ken or Ryu. This makes it much easier to easily punish whiffed attacks or just start chipping away at your opponent’s life.
V-Trigger
Chun-Li’s V-Skill is a jump that allows her to close in on opponents rather quickly. Her normal jump is floaty and doesn’t allow her to really advance on an opponent very well. This V-Skill gives her that ability by spinning into the air at a 45-degree angle.
Her V-Trigger, Renkiko, buffs many of her special moves and normal attacks to give them two hits instead of one. That means most of her attacks inflict more damage and block stun. With her V-Trigger active, Chun-Li can really start to dish out the damage and it’s much easier to stun an opponent, especially with the new stun system mechanics in Street Fighter 5.
When you activate Renkiko you should be focused on rushing down the opponent. Chun-Li is a character that can provide constant offensive pressure in Street Fighter 5, and her V-Trigger is one of the big components of that strategy. While you should always try to activate V-Trigger at least once per round, because Chun-Li’s is based on a timer, you still want to make sure you can make the most out of it when you activate the Renkiko. Generally speaking, it’s not a good idea to activate it across the screen because you’ll waste time trying to close in on an opponent. Wait until you’re in close, then activate Renkiko, preferably following a hard knockdown.
Critical Art
Chun-Li’s critical art in Street Fighter 5 is her famous Hoyokusen from Street Fighter 3: Third Strike. It can be used in much the same way as it was in that game, hit-confirming into a combo for big damage. However, Chun-Li’s EX special moves are quick effective in Street Fighter 5, so you may find that you don’t have a full super meter very often. Still, Chin-Li has some fairly easy hit-confirms in Street Fighter 5, making her Hoyokusen a powerful tool when her super meter is full.
We’ll have more on Street Fighter 5 as we head into Evo 2015 this weekend. In the meantime, be sure to check out our articles on Birdie and Cammy!
