Introduction
RANKING
I would rank Fei Long towards the lower middle tier for the simple fact that Fei has more bad matchups than good ones. There are many people who feel that Fei "dominates" certain matchups but I don’t agree. Fei is a brawler/rushdown fighter and can end a match rather quickly if give the right opportunity. If you are looking to learn Fei be prepared to actually WORK alot harder for your wins than you would playing Sim or OG Sagat. This guide is for New Fei only. Despite what many people say I think SSF2 Fei is a waste of time trying to learn because he loses so much in favor of gaining the ability to 2 in 1 most of his normals. Not worth it IMO.
Jesse Howard was the first person to actually take Fei to a national finals tournament at the Mid-West Championships back in the early-mid 90’s VS Mike Watson. Back then I had only heard of his Fei and not seen it in action until years later. When I watched the footage I noticed that he and I had totally different play styles. With that being said, there is no right or wrong way to play Fei but I do think that Fei is a much better offensively than defensively(my opinion of course).
To win with Fei Long you have to create openings. You have to make your opponent guess which way you are going. A blitzkrieg barrage of attacks that is relentless and flawless in execution. Be prepared to face battle tank style defenses. Fei can’t hurt what he can’t touch so you have to make it all happen.
Now taking risks doesn’t mean kamikaze style attack plans. Get a feel for your opponents and see how consistent they are at doing reversals. See how bulletproof their patterns are. It is essential that you catch on to any bad habits and patterns as soon as possible because this can make the difference between winning and losing. If you opponent is uppercut crazy, bait them. If they play safe and turtle, tick throw them. If they go for the throw, make sure you got your reversals down pat! You have to play on the fly, reacting to every single thing your opponent does. It’s easy for players to stick with something that works ie fireball traps, patterns, etc but this doesn’t work very well for Fei Long. These tactics only go so far and once your opponent can predict what you are going to do next you may as well consider yourself beat.
“"When the opponent expands, I contract, When he contracts, I expand, And when there is an opportunity, I do not hit--it hits all by itself." - Bruce Lee
Take a good look at that quote above. That pretty much sums up my Fei Long strategy in a nutshell. Don't be afraid to innovate your own ways of winning with Fei Long.
Strenghts and Weaknesses
-Strengths -Speed, Speed and more Speed. Fei Long's strenght lies in his ability to deal quick damage with his rekka punches and deadly combos.
-Jumping Jab has very good priority. Almost as good as T.Hawk's Jumping Jab.
-Has one of the best supers in the game.
-Has good throw range.
-Standing fierce has crazy hit box/dizzy properties.
-Has good dizzy combos.
-Has a pretty quick and useful overhead attack that advances you forward.
-Has an airthrow that can be useful.
-his rekka kick(aka Chicken Wing)has some odd startup invincibility properties and stuff a ton of movies in mid air. You can also combo off of it for insane damage or choose to set up another scenario.
-Weaknesses -He's a mini-me version of E.Honda only he can't "float" over fireballs and doesn’t have a flying headbutt to get your out of those tight spots. Fei has all the weakness of a "fat" character meaning he has a huge hit box and can easily be crossed up. This makes Fei very vulnerable to fireball traps, keep away patterns and zone tricks. Combine this with the fact that there is no trip guard in ST you will quickly realize just how much work you have cut out for you.
-His flame kick isn't invincible.
-He's a brawler... meaning you have to make physical contact with your opponents to win. No projectiles means more risk. Playing Fei = taking calculated risks to win.
Moves List
-Anti Air Moves
Fei has maybe 4 anti-air moves that I consider to be useful and a few others that are so-so.
-Flame Kick(reverse DP with Kick)
-Jumping jab(Almost as good as T.Hawk’s Jumping Jab)
-Close standing fierce(Use it as early as possible. The earlier you use it the less chance you will trade hits).
-Rekka Kick(chicken wing)
-Walk in-last second low fierce(Making opponents land on it). This is best used on characters who have normal jump in speeds. This doesn't work well against fighters like Vega, Sagat Blanka who have quick or low jumps.
-Far standing roundhouse kick.
-Standing short kick.
His best anti-air is his Flame Kick. It's best if it's used like Sagat's tiger uppercut(late as possible)for max damage and getting a clean counter instead of a trade. This move also can be a blessing and a burden as it doesn't advance you forward like a shoto's dragon punch.
Normal Moves
Special Moves
Super Move
The Basics
Rekka Spacing
If you aren’t within striking distance of the Fierce Rekka Ken punches then you aren’t close enough. This is Fei Long’s “sweet spot” so to speak. It allows you to hit and not be hit because of the insane range that the rekka ken punches have. Being in within this range not only gives you the ability to have a menacing presence in front of your opponent but it also allows you the freedom of using faints to lure your opponent into missing a move.
- Rekka-Wreckage(Important Things To Remember)
ALWAYS use the Rekka Kens from MAX DISTANCE. This means using the fierce punch version(has the most range). The closer you are to an opponent, the weaker the punch version should be used...but always try your best to stay right within the fierce rekka ken. It's safer.
Learn the timing of the rekka punches and how they effect each opponent(blocked or hit).
Learn how to manipulate the different button combinations for using the rekka punches(Fierce-Fierce-Jab, Fierce-Strong-Stop, Fierce-Fierce-Pause-Jab, Strong-Jab-Jab, etc etc).
The beauty of this move is that it is instant. It’s like throwing a fireball that instantly hits and can be multiplied X3! It has awesome range and does great tick damage. The best part is having the advantage of option selection once you see whether or not the first hit connects or is blocked. It charges up your meter very quickly. It literally intercepts a plethora of moves before you opponents can even finish them.