A US Air Force pilot who fights for his country, Guile succeeded in dismantling Shadaloo and avenging his friend Charlie. He enjoys living the family man life, but new battlefields await him.
Ever since his debut in 1991, Guile has been defined by his incredible projectile zoning and strong midrange presence. As the archetypal projectile zoner, Guile specializes in pestering the opponent with a barrage of projectiles before analyzing their next move and punishing accordingly.
The defining move for Guile is Sonic Boom. Easily the best projectile in the game, Sonic Boom does everything a fireball should do and more. It can be fired at variable speeds, can be used as a shield to protect Guile as he moves forward, has incredibly fast recovery, and even comes with a unique just frame version for better advantage on hit and damage. Guile's gameplan revolves entirely around throwing out Sonic Boom and observing what the opponent does in response. If they eat it, throw another one. If they block it, throw another one to chip away at their Drive Gauge. Opponents who begin using system mechanics like jumping or Drive Impact to get around Sonic Boom are where the games begin for Guile, as his strategy evolves into a classic fireball/uppercut gameplan.
Opponents who leap over Sonic Boom can be met with Flash Kick, a massive ascending uppercut with a huge hitbox. Opponents who choose to be patient and come close to Guile must contend with his incredible 5MK, 2MK, and 5HP. Guile also has a huge selection of excellent command normals, such as 4HP, 4MK and 6HK, which give him great brawling potential. Guile can also use system mechanics well, with a fast overhead and good throw reward making his Drive Rush quite strong. Opponents who try to counterzone Guile with their own fireballs give him the ability to use Sonic Blade to enhance Sonic Boom and turn it into a fireball-eating machine. Simply put, there is no real situation where Guile is at explicit disadvantage, and his strong kit makes him very scary at fullscreen and midscreen. Guile is the undisputed master of fireball wars and punishing jumpins, making him a complete wall to overcome for any opponent.
Guile has no major weaknesses that affect his gameplan, but instead must deal with several important quirks. First, Guile is a charge character, meaning he must always commit to certain actions if he wants to perform them. Flash Kick is an incredible anti-air for sure, but it requires charge and thus is impossible to be performed on reaction akin to Ryu's Shoryuken. However, Guile's 2HP gets the job done just as well, with far less reward as a tradeoff. Similarly, Guile's gameplan is highly consistent and variable, but lacks any major gimmicks to challenge wary opponents. While at low levels Guile is capable of steamrolling impatient opponents who don't understand him, high level Guiles must be very patient and equipped with nerves of steel. Lastly, Guile has some of the longest and highest execution (though rarely necessary) optimal combos in the game. Still, none of these quirks dramatically affect Guile in any negative way, making him into a very strong character overall. If you love projectile zoning, value versatility, and want a character who can punish risky plays without peer, sharpen your mind to a sonic edge with Guile.
Pick if you like:
Avoid if you dislike:
The best fireball zoning in the entire game, coupled with one of the best anti-air specials in the game
Strong pokes to enforce yourself with alongside incredible anti-air buttons
Good pressure and brawling potential with an emphasis on draining Drive Gauge
A simple, clean, and no-frills playstyle that rewards meticulous decision making
Being a full on charge character, restricting your playstyle and inputs if you aren't holding down back
Pokes that aren't cancelable into Drive Rush or specials
Playing patient, sometimes extremely so
Classic & Modern Versions Comparison
List of differences with Modern Guile
Missing Normals
Standing Light Kick (5LK)
Standing Heavy Punch (5HP)
Jumping Light Punch (j.LP)
Jumping Medium Punch (j.MP)
Jumping Heavy Punch (j.HP)
Missing Command Normals
Full Bullet Magnum (6MP)
Reverse Spin Kick (6HK)
Guile High Kick (3HK)
Shortcut-Only Specials
N/A
Assist Combos
A[L~L~L~L]: 2LK ~ 2LP ~ 5LK ~ H Somersault (Perfect)
On Block: stops at 2LP
A[M~M~M~M]: 2MP~2MP ~ SA1(H) ~ OD Somersault
No SA1: 2MP~2MP ~ H Somersault (Perfect)
Burnout: 2MP~2MP ~ SA1(H)
On Block: stops at 2MP~2MP
A[H~H~H~H]: 5MP~4HP ~ OD Sonic Boom ~ SA3
In the corner, can easily build down charge for a manual H Somersault instead of SA3
Burnout: 5MP~4HP ~ L Sonic Boom (Perfect) ~ SA3
On Block: stops at OD/L Sonic Boom
Miscellaneous Changes
Using the Modern shortcut for Sonic Boom and Somersault produces the weaker non-Perfect version
Using the perfect Classic input with the Special button works, but still results in 20% scaled damage
Sonic Hurricane SA1 changes angle based on input
Shortcut input [4]HS = LP/MP version, horizontal
[4]646L = HP version, diagonally upward
The only character whose SA1/SA2 shortcuts are swapped ([4]HS for SA1, 5HS / 6HS for SA2)
Guile
Vitals
Life Points
10000
Ground Movement
Forward Walk Speed
0.043
Backward Walk Speed
0.032
Forward Dash Speed
21
Backward Dash Speed
23
Forward Dash Distance
1.567
Backward Dash Distance
0.74
Drive Rush Min. Distance (Throw)
0.805
Drive Rush Min. Distance (Block)
1.898
Drive Rush Max Distance
3.461
Jumping
Jump Speed
4+38+3
Jump Apex
2.115
Forward Jump Distance
1.90
Backward Jump Distance
1.52
Throws
Throw Range
0.8
Throw Hurtbox
0.33
Normals
Standing Normals
5LP
5LP
Standing Light Punch
5LP
Standing Light Punch
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
3
7
Chn Sp SA
300
LH
+4
-2
5MP
5MP
Standing Medium Punch
5MP
Standing Medium Punch
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
7
3
15
Sp SA TC
600
LH
+6
0
5HP
5HP
Standing Heavy Punch
5HP
Standing Heavy Punch
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
7
3
23
Sp SA
900
LH
-1
-6
5LK
5LK
Standing Light Kick
5LK
Standing Light Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
2
12
Sp SA
300
LH
+3
-1
5MK
5MK
Standing Medium Kick
5MK
Standing Medium Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
7
5
18
-
700
LH
+1
-4
5HK
5HK
Standing Heavy Kick
5HK
Standing Heavy Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
13
3
21
SA
800
LH
+3
-4
Crouching Normals
2LP
2LP
Crouching Light Punch
2LP
Crouching Light Punch
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
4
3
8
Chn Sp SA
300
LH
+5
-2
2MP
2MP
Crouching Medium Punch
2MP
Crouching Medium Punch
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
6
3
13(16)
Sp SA TC
600
LH
+4
-2
2HP
2HP
Crouching Heavy Punch
2HP
Crouching Heavy Punch
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
9
5
20
-
900
LH
0
-9
2LK
2LK
Crouching Light Kick
2LK
Crouching Light Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
2
13
Chn
200
L
+1
-5
2MK
2MK
Crouching Medium Kick
2MK
Crouching Medium Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
8
3
18
TC
500
L
+4
-5
2HK
2HK
Crouching Heavy Kick
2HK
Crouching Heavy Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
9
2(16)3
21
TC
450x2
L,L
HKD +34
-12
Jumping Normals
jlp
Jump LP
j.LP
j.LP
Jump LP
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
4
10
3 land
-
300
H
+4(+9)
0(+5)
jmp
Jump MP
j.MP
j.MP
Jump MP
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
7
3
3 land
-
700
H
+9(+11)
+5(+7)
jhp
Jump HP
j.HP
j.HP
Jump HP
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
9
4
3 land
-
800
H
+7(+15)
+3(+11)
jlk
Jump LK
j.LK
j.LK
Jump LK
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
6
10
3 land
-
300
H
+5(+10)
+1(+6)
jmk
Jump MK
j.MK
j.MK
Jump MK
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
7
7
3 land
-
600
H
+11(+13)
+7(+9)
jhk
Jump HK
j.HK
j.HK
Jump HK
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
10
5
3 land
-
800
H
+10(+15)
+6(+11)
Command Normals
6mp
Full Bullet Magnum
6MP
6MP
Full Bullet Magnum
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
20
3
19
-
800
H
+2
-3
6hp
Spinning Back Knuckle
6HP
6HP
Spinning Back Knuckle
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
16
3
20
-
800
LH
+5
+3
4hp
Burning Straight
4HP
4HP
Burning Straight
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
9
3
21
Sp SA
800
LH
+1
-4
4lk
Knee Bazooka
4LK
4LK
Knee Bazooka
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
8
5
15
-
500
LH
0(+4)
-4(0)
4 or 6+mk
Rolling Sobat
4 or 6+MK
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No results
6hk
Reverse Spin Kick
6HK
6HK
Reverse Spin Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
17
3
26
-
1000
LH
-1
-8
3hk
Guile High Kick
3HK
3HK
Guile High Kick
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
10
3
23
Sp SA
1000
LH
0
-9
Target Combos
5mp_4hp
Recoil Cannon
5MP > 4HP
5MP~4HP
Recoil Cannon
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
16
3
26
Sp SA kara
600
LH
KD +35
-9
2mp_2mp
Double Shot
2MP > 2MP
2MP~2MP
Double Shot
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
12
3
16
Sp SA
360
LH
KD +44
-6
2mk_6mp
Drake Fang
2MK > 6MP
2MK~6MP
Drake Fang
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
20
3
21
-
800(640)
H
+1
-5
2hk_3hk
Phantom Cutter
2HK > 3HK
2HK~3HK
Phantom Cutter
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
10
3
25
Sp SA
600(480)
LH
KD +33
-10(-30)
Universal Mechanics
Throws
lplk
Dragon Suplex
LPLK
LPLK
Dragon Suplex
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
3
23
-
1200 (2040)
T
KD +15
-
4lplk
Judo Throw
4LPLK
4LPLK
Judo Throw
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
3
23
-
1200 (2040)
T
KD +18
-
lplk_air
Flying Mare
LPLK (air)
LPLK (air)
Flying Mare
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
3
3 land
-
1200 (2040)
T
KD +21(23)
-
4lplk_air
Flying Buster Drop
4LPLK (air)
4LPLK (air)
Flying Buster Drop
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
5
3
3 land
-
1200 (2040)
T
KD +15
-
Drive Moves
hphk
Drive Impact
HPHK
HPHK
Blitz Combination
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
26
2
35
-
800
LH
KD +35 / Wall Splat KD +65
-3 / Wall Splat HKD +72
6hphk
Drive Reversal
6HPHK
6HPHK
Strike Eagle (Block)
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
20
3
26(31)
-
500 recoverable
LH
KD +23
-6
mpmk
Drive Parry
MPMK
MPMK
Drive Parry
Startup
Active
Recovery
Cancel
Damage
Guard
On Hit
On Block
1
12 or until released
33(1)(11)
-
-
-
-
-
66
Drive Rush
66
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