The King of Fighters XIII - Basics Tutorial 

yeah but not on PC, which is all that really matters

@@Moqlnkn yeah that is a bit shit

14 isn't as ugly as SFV, but it is ugly. The main problem with 14 is MAX Mode being far too strong. It always costs one bar, and then lowers the cost of a super in your combo by one bar, so there's no reason not to do it. That much is fine - doing raw supers is easier but less damage. What isn't fine is that canceling into MAX Mode is also plus on block. There's literally never a reason to not use MAX Mode. There is no counter, except using your meter to guard cancel. If the normal you canceled into MAX Mode hit, then you're already dead, which turns the game into Third Strike except everyone is Chun-li and everyone always has SAII ready. They already fixed this in 15 by doubling the cost of MAX Mode, and letting you use EX Moves outside of MAX Mode, and adding new features that use super meter outside of MAX Mode. I also personally like the feel of drive cancel combos, which will likely never be in another fighting game aside from 13.

I only play on PC.

98 execution is very tight, combos are short and easy to memorize, but are hard to do. 2K2UM is a bit easier, but MAX Mode combos will require more memorization and muscle memory.

I think they are shorter, but most of my experience is in 13. The whole juggle system in 13 is generally more lenient - every character gets multi-hit juggles, which isn't the case in older fighting games. I do know that button holding and input shortcuts still work in older KoF games, and the window to input motions is longer compared to other games from the same time period. So do your motions slowly and early, and button hold to make them come out as early as possible. There is a very annoying feature in KoF 2002 UM where the directional inputs and button inputs are desynced. Your buttons are delayed by like two more frames than your directions are. Ironically, though, the input display in training mode is not delayed, so sometimes it looks like you did the right thing in the display, but the moves didn't come out how you input them. Another annoying feature in 02UM is that you cannot do special moves while holding another button down. If you, for example, wanted to special cancel a HP normal into a LP special move, you'd have to make sure to release HP before pressing LP, which can be pretty tight in a fast-paced cancel. Old KoF games are just hard. They got rid of a lot of the jankiness in 13.

@@Moqlnkn Ahhh, that makes sense then. Lot to get used to, but at least 2B Normal Super is somewhat consistent, even if I suck at it. Never thought a normal *not* being special cancellable would help Honestly this sounds like i might enjoy 14 combos more, but it's also 14. Here's hoping 15 is good though, it seems promising

@@Moqlnkn yeah, I noticed this button and direction desyncing, but didn’t actually know what it was after playing about 200 hours of KOF 2002 UM, I tend to press the buttons a lot earlier to compensate, is that correct? When I went into KOF XIV and tried to do Kyo’s new Rekka hcb K follow ups, and I figured out I was pressing Kick WAY too early. EDIT: Kula’s low confirm super cancel BnB is practically impossible in 2002 UM, if you DON’T buffer the first qcf into Stand B, and utilize the Button Hold trick. But if you do utilize them, both techniques, you can get it down 90% of the time.

@@chronology556 From what I remember, you have to press your buttons late. Or, more specifically, if you want to do something like a crouch attack, you have to make sure you keep holding crouch for a few more frames after the button press, otherwise it becomes a standing attack. You should still press buttons earlier than normal for special moves, and use the button hold trick, but make sure to press the buttons a couple of frames after you finish the motion. In KoF XIV, it's okay to do special moves early, if you button hold. I get the feeling from your comment that you're mixing up the button hold trick, which exists in every KoF fighting game, with something else. The button hold trick is that you can do a special move very early, and hold the button down, and the special move will come out as soon as possible. You're probably thinking of the fact that you can't do special moves while holding a different button down, which doesn't exist in modern KoF games at all.

You always build overdrive at the same rate, except when it is full or you are in HD mode. Notably, it does not build over time, like Street Fighter 6, but only as the players attack each other.

99% of the time, to cancel a move into another move, you just input the two moves normally. Time your second button press as the first attack is hitting the opponent, or a little earlier. This will "cancel" out of the rest of the first attack's animation so that your character immediately begins the second attack animation. 99% of the time, the timing to do a cancel is large, so it's not difficult to perform. Don't react to the first move hitting - you have to already be ready to input the second move as or before the first move hits. Not all moves are "cancelable" and not all moves can be canceled into. What cancels into what will depend on the game, but every good fighting game has a lot of possibilities here, and usually some sort of logical progression (normals > specials > supers, for example). Certain cancels are possible on hit/block/whiff only, or some combination of those three. The effectiveness of cancels varies greatly, too. Many game-defining mechanics are specific types of cancels, such as this game's Drive Cancel system. You can also refer to Infil's amazing glossary when asking questions of the format "What does [this word] mean?", which can be found here: glossary.infil.net/

@@Moqlnkn thanks for the explanation. I end up buying a stick yesterday after my thumb got destroyed using a pad trying to combo on this game

Thanks for that explanation. I was having a hard time figuring out the timing for when to begin the second attack.

don't sign up for Calc III then

The game's not easy, especially if you have preconceived Street Fighter notions on how you "should" be making decisions.