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'''Toki'''<br> | '''Toki'''<br> | ||
If you are even a little familiar with Hokuto no Ken, Toki probably needs no introduction. His ability to teleport around with no recovery allows for over-the-top mixups and pressure, and he has an answer to any situation, being fully equipped with ''two'' of the best reversal supers in the game, zero-startup low/high/air 'catch' moves, a projectile, and a projectile reflector move. Even one of his few weaknesses - the relatively low damage of his no-gauge combos from normal hits - also works in his favor in a way, as it simply means the opponent will have no stars at the start of the next round. As his 2B has a long startup and he possesses no other low moves, Toki's mixup is centered more on confusing the opponent into guarding the wrong way than the usual high/low or low/throw styles. | If you are even a little familiar with Hokuto no Ken, Toki probably needs no introduction. His ability to teleport around with no recovery allows for over-the-top mixups and pressure, and he has an answer to any situation, being fully equipped with ''two'' of the best reversal supers in the game, zero-startup low/high/air 'catch' moves, a projectile, and a projectile reflector move. Even one of his few weaknesses - the relatively low damage of his no-gauge combos from normal hits - also works in his favor in a way, as it simply means the opponent will have no stars at the start of the next round. As his 2B has a long startup and he possesses no other low moves, Toki's mixup is centered more on confusing the opponent into guarding the wrong way than the usual high/low or low/throw styles. Toki has a fairly unique play-style, and is perhaps not a very good beginner character. However if you are playing to win and are willing to put in the effort, he might be the best pick for you. | ||
'''Shin'''<br> | '''Shin'''<br> | ||
Revision as of 13:00, 2 March 2012
This page contains the answers to some frequently asked questions about Hokuto no Ken.
Isn't this game all about Toki?
Not at all! While Toki is still regarded as the strongest character with the most favorable matches, much has changed since the early days of the game's release, and it is possible to win with any character.
Alright, so what are the tiers then?
Tier lists usually fail to accurately display character strength and everyone has their own opinion which spawns tons of lists with minor variations, but if you really want to break the game down into general tiers, they looks something like this:
Top Tier: Toki, Rei > Yuda > Raoh
Mid Tier: Everyone else
Jagi Tier: Jagi
For a more accurate assessment of each character, the below matchup chart does a far better job of summing things up.
| → | T O |
R E |
J U |
R A |
K E |
T |
M A |
S H |
H |
J A |
Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toki | ＼ | 5.5 | 5.5 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 65(+20) |
| Rei | 4.5 | ＼ | 5.5 | 7 | 5.5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5.5 | 8 | 57(+12) |
| Juda | 4.5 | 4.5 | ＼ | 4 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
56(+11) |
| Raoh | 3 | 3 | 6 | ＼ | 6 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 50(+5) |
| Kenshiro | 3 | 4.5 | 3 | 4 | ＼ | 7 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 44.5(-0.5) |
| Thouther | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | ＼ | 6 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 41(-4) |
| Mamiya | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | ＼ | 4 | 7 | 6 | 41(-4) |
| Shin | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 6 | ＼ | 7 | 6 | 41(-4) |
| Mr. Heart | 3 | 4.5 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ＼ | 6 | 30.5(-14.5) |
| Jagi | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | ＼ | 24(-21) |
Heart is assumed 2P side. (Source: Hokuto Wiki)
As you can, the top 3 characters have very good matchups all around. Raoh, often considered to be somewhere between the top tier and mid tier, has good matchups against the lower ranked characters, but bad matchups against the top 2, Toki and Rei. The rest of the mid-ranked characters have very balanced matchups except against the top 4 characters. Mr. Heart ranks quite low but has very high potential(which is pretty common for 'grappler' characters in almost all fighting games), and in the hands of a skilled player he can easily overcome his bad matchups. As for Jagi, he is more of a comedy option character, having two 9:1 matchups, with even his best matchups being 4:6.
Which character should I use?
Do you want to use the easiest-to-learn character for a beginner? The strongest character? The most unique character? Only you can decide the best character for you! Below a quick description of each character and their play-style is provided to help you make the decision.
Kenshiro
Kenshiro's play-style is quite standard, as one might expect from the main character of a fighting game. He has good normals, well-balanced specials, and his bread and butter combos are very easy to master, making him a good beginner character. His mixup abilities are very decent as well thanks to his extremely fast instant air dash B, and he is capable of applying a lot of pressure in the corner. On the defense he is not lacking either, having both and invincible uppercut and Musou Tensei that he can use to get out of bad spots. Kenshiro's only real weaknesses are his big hitbox(seriously, it's huge), and bad matchups against Toki and Juda - overall he is a great character for players of any level.
Raoh
Raoh is slow, powerful, and more than anything else, a combo character. He is likely the hardest character to learn in the game - he has no 'basic' combos, his bread and butters all being 100%'s. Theoretically he could perhaps be the strongest character in the game, as he is capable of doing 100% combos from any hit with no gauge. However, realistically, getting a 100% off every hit is simply not possible, and due to the length and difficulty of his combos even top Raoh users will often make mistakes. This, along with his very poor defense(no backstep, no reliable reversal, guard lag), is why he is considered in the bottom end of the 'top tier' characters. He is fairly good at applying pressure but his mixup is lacking due to his slow speed. All in all, Raoh is a very strong character despite his weakness, but is not one that can be recommended to beginners.
Toki
If you are even a little familiar with Hokuto no Ken, Toki probably needs no introduction. His ability to teleport around with no recovery allows for over-the-top mixups and pressure, and he has an answer to any situation, being fully equipped with two of the best reversal supers in the game, zero-startup low/high/air 'catch' moves, a projectile, and a projectile reflector move. Even one of his few weaknesses - the relatively low damage of his no-gauge combos from normal hits - also works in his favor in a way, as it simply means the opponent will have no stars at the start of the next round. As his 2B has a long startup and he possesses no other low moves, Toki's mixup is centered more on confusing the opponent into guarding the wrong way than the usual high/low or low/throw styles. Toki has a fairly unique play-style, and is perhaps not a very good beginner character. However if you are playing to win and are willing to put in the effort, he might be the best pick for you.
Shin
Shin is a hard-hitting power type character, being one of the only characters with the ability to guard crush any opponent. He can easily net a 60% or more Banishing Strike combo from a crossup or low attack - between his command grab, 2B, and instant air dash B he has a very good wakeup game, especially in the corner. However, his ability to apply continued pressure is lacking in comparison to other characters. The simplicity and high damage of his combos and his general ease of use make him a very good starter character, much like Kenshiro, but unfortunately he lacks the same potential - of all characters, Shin has the hardest and least practical 100% combos.
Rei
Juda
Thouther
Jagi
Mr. Heart
Mamiya
How do I do <insert technique here>?
I am in/going to Japan. Where can I play this game?
Hokuto no Ken has strong communities centered in Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka. For the total Hokuto no Ken experience Nakano TRF is recommended, and is probably the only arcade you will find anywhere carrying more than one Hokuto machine(let alone four). With multiple tournaments per week, you can't go wrong with TRF. Also in the Tokyo area, the new Takadanobaba Mikado is a great spot to check out as well. Port 24 Yagoto in Nagoya also holds tournaments regularly and is your best bet in central Japan.
An up-to-date listing of arcades carrying the game can be found on the Arcade Listing page on the Hokuto Wiki, or in the individual area threads on the Hokuto BBS(A small amount of Japanese knowledge/Google Translate is required for these pages).
Where can I find match videos?
The best place to find Hokuto no Ken match videos is without a doubt Niconico. An account is needed to watch videos, but signing up is free. To get started, making a search for Hokuto no Ken or Nakano TRF(the main Hokuto arcade in Japan) should come up with plenty of high-level matches.