How is that different from simply viewing them here? Well, on the way to capturing every screenshot, i ended up saving 2-4 variants that didn’t quite make the cut. Now they’ll all be included as exclusive bonus materials on the DVD – in lossless native resolution.

I know it’s not a huge deal, but this is just another way of showing my appreciation for your support. I mean, nobody’s going to buy the DVD for these screenshots alone, but some of you might enjoy browsing through them.

Here are a few samples taken while working on the SF4 Dan vs Dan scene:

In other news, i’m still trying to get a handle on the day-to-day operation of ComboVid, but i’m starting to get the hang of it. Soon i’ll resume regular updates on Sonic Hurricane, and it’ll all make sense once you see both websites running side-by-side. (Of course it’s probably going to kill me in the process, but we don’t need to talk about that.)

Anyway here are those orange buttons again for anyone who wants to preorder, although i’m not any closer to having a definitive release date. In any case, it’s $15 plus $5 shipping for orders in the US or Canada, or $10 for international shipping.

USA or Canada	International Orders

Thanks to everyone for your patience and support. I’ll post another status update two weeks from today, hopefully with more progress to report.

Now here’s the problem. For every video i release, there are at least three or four really good ones that slip through the cracks. It irritates me to watch that happen because i can see how much work my friends put into their videos.

To that end, i’ve been working on a new website. Here’s what it looks like so far: ComboVid

I have a lot of ideas for it and i’m hoping it becomes a success. In fact i know it’ll be a success if it becomes what i have mind, but that’s going to take a considerable amount of time and effort. I don’t know if i’ll be able to manage that, but it’s worth a shot. Every day i’m going to make it a little better until either it becomes what i want or until i have to stop.

I hope you guys find it useful and i’d really like to hear what you think. Here goes nothing!

Ninja Masters CMV Vol 1 | Vol 2 | Vol 3 | Infinites CMV
Ninja Masters Ranmaru’s TAS | Nobunaga’s Special
Project Extra: Ragnagard CMV

I have no idea what could have possibly possessed Gen (aka Genas5) to pick out such an obscure game and devote so much time to exploring it inside out. However, what he ended up with has to be the definitive Ninja Masters combo benchmark.

That means if you’ve ever played the game, you’ll want to watch these videos. And if you decide to make a combovid for the game, you’ll have to watch these videos. I’d say that achievement deserves a mention – wouldn’t you?

By the way, the full version of the NM Kamui combo from style exhibition v.one can be found in CMV Vol 3 at 3:39. Gen also submitted the NM Raiga combo at 4:58, but that one didn’t fit the style theme quite as well. Both combos are completely awesome though.

The obvious choices are CaliPower, ChoiBoy, and watts. They’re the first names to pop into my head because they were at the top of the game when i first discovered the tournament scene. They placed 1st, 2nd, and 3rd overall at B4 – the precursor to Evolution. I’ve always admired their playstyles and i still think nobody in the world has more sophisticated Shotos.

Unfortunately, it’s been a while since the days when those three were winning literally every tournament they entered. That’s partly because in their case, the complete answer has slowly become: prepared Valle, losers bracket Choi, and angry-enough-to-practice Watson. By the way, the amazing thing about watts is how he takes everyone out of their element. Look up some matchvids of your favorite players facing him. You’ll barely recognize their play.

Across the Pacific Ocean, Daigo, Ohnuki, and Kurahashi are names that stand out instantly. Daigo’s résumé speaks for itself, but what makes him fun to watch is the way he punishes everything – he never lets anyone off the hook. Nuki’s achievements are almost as impressive, but what sets him apart is how he constantly finds ways to attack even in the most defensive settings. Kurahashi is a half-robot, half-monster cyborg powered by liquid nitrogen.

MvC2 is another game i enjoy watching, and of course that means Magneto/Storm/Psylocke. Countless great players have represented MSP over the years, but you really can’t go wrong with snapback king SooMighty or Evo2k7 champion IFC Yipes. Still, nothing comes close to seeing Clockw0rk utterly dismantle opponents with Strider/Doom while pointing at bombs.

Speaking of San Diego, i love it when Viscant arbitrarily declares some obscure character or team to be top tier. Nobody ever believes him so he ends up having to prove it by picking bad characters in a tournament. It doesn’t take long before he runs into a hopeless matchup and needs to mount a massive comeback just to even the odds. It’s very entertaining. Although it helps that he’s constantly thinking five steps ahead, because it’s fun to see his plans unfold.

But my absolute favorite player of all time has to be D44 Bas with his guard bar flashing.

Seriously, that guy’s a genius when he’s fighting at a disadvantage. I mean, sometimes he does get guard crushed like everyone else, because that’s what’s supposed to happen. But sometimes he pulls the most unbelievable fearless comebacks i’ve ever seen, almost as if he’s using the handicap as leverage to read his opponent’s mind.

He’s also one of the most technical players ever. Truthfully, i don’t even like the characters he plays – SFA3 V-Akuma and CvS2 A-Vega/Sakura/Bison/Blanka – but it’s different when he’s using them. It’s simply a joy to watch because he’s showing you how the game is supposed to be played – not a lazy caricature of it, but the honest genuine article.

It’s not easy to find people who play top tier without cutting corners. Bas has that rare combination of personality and skill set, where he’s always pushing to innovate and improve even when he’s at the peak. So that’s why he’s my favorite player overall.

CB Gawaine’s Fordy performs the third somersault of his Nebulous Dream super (Cyber EX) while Jin’s Gaits cancels his HA Shogyou Mujou teleport into his Kuuzen Zetsugo super and recovers from its first uppercut.

Whoever comes up with the best title wins an “Aura Blue” Arcade FightStick TE Keychain. As always, the rules are one entry per person and i’ll choose my favorite on Monday.

In the meantime, i’ve created a Combo DVD page which covers all the essential information concerning the project, as well as a complete archive of update posts (like this one). You can find it on the navigation bar up top.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to outline the SF4 portion of the DVD. Basically, i’m going to take the entire SF4 TACV Series and turn it into one continuous combovid. Pacing between clips will stay the same, but there won’t be intro/credits storyboards between each episode.

One of the main questions i’ve been getting is, how do i go about choosing the types of combos for each episode? The answer depends on each character’s individual strengths.

Personally, i strive to highlight the unique attributes that every character brings to the table, to make each combo as surprising and captivating as possible. Every once in a while, i’m forced to include a certain type of combo for the sake of completeness (such as Abel’s infinte), but i like to keep those to a minimum.

If you’ve been following the series thus far, i’m sure you’ve noticed certain types of combos resurfacing every few episodes. Of course there are a few basic formulas that every character can utilize, but the key is in identifying which category fits them best.

For instance, a lot of my combos include trade/interrupt setups so i always make an effort to find the best combo without an interrupt. If i can find an interesting non-interrupt combo that can’t be significantly improved with an interrupt, i include it. Not every character is capable of accomplishing that though, so i don’t force the issue.

Maximum damage is another common goal. Whenever i manage to find something worthwhile, i record that combo using a black costume color. However, some characters don’t have any notable damage combos and don’t have enough costume colors that look good against the stage chosen for them. Therefore damage always wears a black costume but a black costume doesn’t always signifiy damage. Make sense?

Needless to say, i also aim for maximum hits – but not for every character. Some characters simply don’t have anything interesting to say in that regard. It’s not really about the number, because sometimes i try with low-limit characters. It’s hard to explain the reasoning behind it, but let’s just say some characters become boring when you focus on hit count. Anyway i’m sure you guys get the picture, so i’ll sign off for now.

Here are those orange buttons again for anyone who wants to preorder, although i still don’t have a definitive release date so you might want to wait for that. In any case, it’s $15 plus $5 shipping for orders in the US or Canada, or $10 for international shipping.

USA or Canada	International Orders

Thanks to everyone for your patience and support. I’ll post another status update two weeks from today, hopefully with more concrete news.

Rule #1: Always leave a few empty frames of wait time at the beginning of your scripts.

Personally, 99% of my scripts begin with W10 as a rule. Weird input errors tend to happen if you start scripts with commands on the very first frame.

Generally you’ll want to leave at least 60 frames of idle wait time before each combo for video editing purposes. It’s a good idea to incorporate that into your script from the get-go. The last thing you want to do is spend an hour developing a combo around some random occurance only to discover that the whole thing falls apart when you move it back by 60 frames.

By the way, if a combo doesn’t work, try adjusting the wait number before the script. Sometimes random factors such as turbo speed, projectile slowdown, and superfreeze startup can disrupt a working script. If you’re starting from a fixed save state, the script will always produce the same result. After all, that’s the main advantage of using emulators.

Before you give up on a script, try increasing the wait number at the beginning to see if it changes anything. Some combos work on every frame, some work on every other frame, some on every four frames, some every twelve frames, and so on up to thousands.

Rule #2: Never use F or B. Always use L or R.

We use L/R when we’re playing on a physical controller; we should use L/R when we script combos. If you’re paying attention to what you’re scripting, you always know which way your characters are facing. Therefore F/B doesn’t save time unless you’re completely zoned out. Then that’s not about saving time, it’s about being lazy. (Don’t be lazy!)

The only time F/B gives you an advantage is during crossup situations, where it’s hard to figure out which way your character is facing. The problem is the emulator doesn’t always recognize exactly when the side switch occurs, so it’s not a precise method to begin with.

The bigger problem is that if you use F/B to execute a complicated crossup charge combo and someone asks for an explanation, you’ll have no idea what to tell them. You won’t be able to explain which way you executed the command, how many times you switched directions, or whether you had to use any tricks to pull it off. What’s the point of doing any of this if you don’t understand your own combos?

Rule #3: Always double-check your held directions for overlaps.

Just make sure that you’re never holding L and R (or D and U) at the same time. Most emulators don’t allow this anyway, but it’s better to make sure that your scripts are free of these mistakes. Obviously it’s physically impossible to hold opposite directions using a real arcade joystick, so most players would consider that cheating.

In general, always make sure to proofread every symbol of your final script one last time before you publish your work. It might take a while for those 200-hit Marvel combos, but better safe than sorry. The last thing you want to see is your combo video masterpiece ruined by one phony clip because you were too lazy to spend five minutes checking it.

Rule #4: Always make sure your combo is a real combo.

Usually all it takes is counting the hits and double-checking the combo counter. However some games (SF2CE, KoF95, etc.) don’t have combo counters while other games (SFA3, MK3, etc.) have unreliable combo counters. Air recovery, safe rolling, and other elaborate defense mechanisms are a nightmare to deal with, but you can’t simply ignore them.

Figure out everything your dummy opponent can do to prevent fake combos. Take my advice and do this as soon as you arrive at the second hit of your combo. Have your opponent start blocking before it connects. Make sure to adjust blocking directions whenever you perform overheads and crossups.

If you have to use any cheats whatsoever, it’s a good idea to keep a working version of the combo archived as a clean state/script with all cheats disabled. Even if it’s something as innocent as shutting off background music or selecting a stage, never assume that any cheat code won’t interfere with the combo unless you can prove it.

All i’m saying is to make sure you’re thorough enough so that if any skeptic requests your state/script for review, they aren’t able to discredit your combo.

Rule #5: If you utilize any form of tool-assistance, it should be noted in the video itself.

Hiding the fact that you used emulator tools is not only dishonest, but also counterproductive in that it gives naysayers more ammunition to use against tool-assisted video production. Regardless of popular opinion, you should always be striving for content so good that there’s no need to lie about how you accomplished it.

In other words, if you need to tell people that you executed everything manually in order to impress them, that’s a sign that your material is weak and you need to start over.

The Danger Room 2 | Preview 2.0 / Deleted Scenes

With a runtime over ten minutes, there’s plenty of good material to be found within. Personally i’m partial to the MvC2 Cyclops/Cable combo at 2:53, the XSF Storm/Magneto 200% damage combo at 3:53, and the MvC2 Spider-Man double Maximum Spider combo at 6:49. I also liked the Gambit portion of the MvC2 Gambit/Thanos/Felicia combo at 7:52.

The editing was done by him as well. It’s okay for the most part, although i can’t say i’m a fan of the intro. The music is nice too, although i have to admit i still don’t understand the recurring connection between Marvel combos and Nightwish songs. Anyone?

    #5: Evo2k5 ST 3on3 Grand Finals – CaliPower vs Gian
At the 5:02 mark, Gian’s Dhalsim throws out a desperation c.HK slide to escape the corner, but Valle’s Ryu sees it coming and lands c.MK xx Shinku Hadoken for 60% damage.

    #4: SoCal SSF4 Winners Finals – ComboFiend vs Shizza
At the 2:44 mark, ComboFiend’s Guy gives up a 25% lead by whiffing a mistimed c.HK slide to punish Chun Li’s whiffed c.HK sweep. Shizza happens to be standing just outside Guy’s slide range, so he responds with c.LK xx EX Lightning Legs, Kikosho to take the round.

    #3: a-cho SFA3 2on2 – Shinya vs Crusher
At the 2:40 mark, Crusher’s V-Sodom tries to apply some lazy pressure with two consecutive c.HK slides, while sitting on a comfortable 30% life lead. Except the second one barely misses Shina’s A-Guy and the round abruptly ends.

    #2: Toyko CvS2 Casuals – Shou vs Gao
At the 1:25 mark, Gao’s K-Geese taps c.LP once to break Shou’s A-Bison pressure, then gradually bullies his way out of the corner. Shou becomes visibly hesitant, then panics with a point-blank c.HK slide which costs him 60% vitality and leads to the round-ending dizzy.

    #1: SBO 2003 ST 3on3 – Daigo vs More Vega
At the 9:09 mark, More Vega’s Bison walks into a mid-range fireball, then initiates a max-range c.HK slide at Daigo’s Ryu during projectile slowdown. It’s painful to look at. This easily gets my personal vote for number one worst slide ever recorded. All others are number two or higher.

By the way, am i the only one who would enjoy watching a documentary-style compilation of the worst slides in the history of ever? Maybe someone who’s into making those types of videos will come through for us.

COTA Akuma’s invincible Gou Shoryu Reppa passes through CPU Magneto’s Hyper Gravitation while he remains untouchable within his Magnetic Bubble. COTA Akuma is based on his SSF2T appearance, which marks the only instance of an SF2 series sprite in the Marvel series.

Whoever comes up with the best title wins an “Aura Blue” Arcade FightStick TE Keychain. As always, the rules are one entry per person and i’ll choose my favorite on Monday.