Introduction

'Gief is neat.

Capcom's grappler bottoms out EX2+'s tier list and clocks in as the game's timerscam, coinfip character.

It's hard to say what exactly keeps EX2+ Zangief so weak: He's got damage, but not much else. SPD inheriting a whiff animation between EX Plus Alpha and EX2 certainly doesn't help. A massive hurtbox makes just about every combo he eats even easier, and he's one of few characters in EX2 that can be hit with instant overheads from the entire roster.

Zangief takes a beating, and spends most of his rounds blocking whatever clown car offense his higher tier opponents throw out. You'll need good reads, nerves of steel, and impressive patience to keep 'Gief alive in EX2+.

Gameplan

Once you're in, Zangief jumpstarts his time honored strike/throw mixup. 'Gief doesn't have much of a combo game, but he can confirm and loop Super Stomping (236236K) from 5MK, his best grounded poke. Stomping has a manual cancel and can tick into 720.

The problem is getting in. Zangief is slow, stubby, and predictable. He's easily zoned, and Lariat can't always dig him out. EX2+ 'Gief lost Green Hand in this version, kneecapping his combos and making bulldogging with him crazy hard. It's a little bleak. Your best options at midscreen are to counterpoke with some of the slowest normals in the game, risk a jump, or just walk forward and block.

On a knockdown and in his opponent's head, however, Zangief eats. Barring Anti Air EXCEL combos or a lucky confirm, 'Gief will sit on three bars more often than most. His command grabs are respectable damage, and the looming threat of level 3 super mean Zangief is never dead.

Meteor 720 (Cosmic Final Atomic Buster) is among the most damaging moves in the game, and it needs to be. In a typical match it'll either instantly kill the opponent, or leave them one guess away from death.

A rule of thumb for EX2+ Zangief is "The less damage you're doing, the better Oki you'll inherit." SPDs have strength dependent range and pushback. LP 360 lets 'Gief threaten a meaty normal, while HP 360 doesn't. Depending on the matchup and your opponent's tendencies, sometimes taking the less rewarding throw is ideal.