豪鬼
Akuma — Counter-Guide
Key Info
- Has an overhead with combo: 6MP
- Defense
- 623PP: OD invincible, startup 6F
- If you play Luke or Kimberly, avoid rushing after a throw
- 623LP: anti-air invincible, startup 5F
- 236236P: startup 14F, no projectile invincibility
- 214214P: startup 9F, projectile invincible
- 236236K: startup 8F
- 623PP: OD invincible, startup 6F
- Moves with frame advantage on block
- HK
- 236PP
- 236LP
- 236LP
- 236MP
- 236MP
- 236HP
- 236HP
Neutral Play (Mindset)
- Dealing with projectiles (236P / Gou Hadoken)
- Do not reversal-jump after guarding
- Jumping after a perfect parry is fine
- Always buffer a heavy attack when parrying to punish when a perfect parry lands
- Do not reversal-jump after guarding
- Dealing with HK
- If you block it, Akuma is +2F and his pressure begins
- It does not hit crouching opponents
- If you crouch and make it whiff, punish with a medium attack or higher, not a light
- 214P
- If you cannot tell the strength, choosing 4F light into panic counter route is a good default
- (Forward jump) 236P
- When using an anti-air special, wait until he is close before pressing
- Pressing early will get you hit by the projectile
- Seeing Akuma jump and forward-jumping in return is also effective
- This results in an aerial juggle, so find your character's optimal combo route
- When using an anti-air special, wait until he is close before pressing
- Accept throws in the midscreen
- After a midscreen LPLK, Akuma's situation is not very strong
- His rush oki does not connect either, so it's better to just accept it
- After a midscreen LPLK, Akuma's situation is not very strong
Gou Hadoken
Akuma's projectile. Startup and speed vary by strength. Holding the input changes the blockstun on guard.
- 236LP Lv1 (L Gou Hadoken Lv1)
- 236LP Lv2 (L Gou Hadoken Lv2)
- 236LP Lv3 (L Gou Hadoken Lv3)
- 236MP Lv1 (M Gou Hadoken Lv1)
- 236MP Lv2 (M Gou Hadoken Lv2)
- 236MP Lv3 (M Gou Hadoken Lv3)
- 236HP Lv1 (H Gou Hadoken Lv1)
- 236HP Lv2 (H Gou Hadoken Lv2)
- 236HP Lv3 (H Gou Hadoken Lv3)
Neutral Play (Mindset)
- 236LP Lv1 (L Gou Hadoken Lv1)
- Even if you land a perfect parry, you cannot confirm a punish, so return to neutral
- 236HP Lv1 (H Gou Hadoken Lv1)
- Buffer a cancel rush or heavy attack on parry to aim for the punish
- 236LP Lv3 (L Gou Hadoken Lv3)
- If Akuma holds from close range with 236LP Lv1, he is at advantage — read the mix-up
- 236MP Lv3 (M Gou Hadoken Lv3)
- If Akuma holds from close range with 236LP Lv3, he is at advantage — read the mix-up
- 236HP Lv3 (H Gou Hadoken Lv3)
- If Akuma holds from close range with 236LP Lv3, he is at advantage — read the mix-up
Warning
Being too focused on perfect parry will cause you to get baited by 6KKK → LPLK. Keep perfect parry attempts to a reasonable level. Understand that forward jumping or using projectile invincibility to cut through is also a valid option.
Tatsumaki Zanku-kyaku
Akuma's hurricane kick, mainly used to end combos.
- 214LK
- Only hits standing opponents
- On block: Akuma is -13F
- 214MK
- Only hits standing opponents
- On block: Akuma is -13F
- 214HK
- On block: Akuma is -59F
- 214KK
Recommended Counter
- 214LK
- Only hits standing opponents
- On hit, Akuma uses 2HK in his combo
- The resulting situation is not very good for Akuma, so well-studied players rarely use this — you don't need to memorize it
- 214MK
- Ground hit: 41F advantage
- Forward jump can be countered by a 5F Gou Shoryuken, so keep that in mind
- Only hits standing opponents
- Oki (wakeup pressure) with forward step + micro-walk shimmy is possible
- Ground hit: 41F advantage
- 214HK
- On hit, the recovery direction becomes a 50/50 — remember this
- In-place recovery
- Walking shimmy is not possible when rush is used
- Oki (wakeup pressure) applies when rush is not used
- Back-roll recovery
- No oki (wakeup pressure) when rush is not used
Demon Raid
Startup and distance vary by strength.
- 236LK
- 236MK
- 236HK
- 236KK
These can transition into the following follow-ups:
Normal version:
- 236K → [no follow-up] (Demon Low Slash)
- On block: Akuma is +4F
- 236K → P (Demon Guillotine)
- On block: Akuma is +4F
- 236K → K (Demon Blade Kick)
- Waist-height guard: Akuma is +2F
- At the feet: +3F
- 236K → 2 (Demon Swoop)
OD version:
- 236KK → 236P
- 236KK → 214K
Recommended Counter
An anti-air special would be ideal, but 236K → 2 (Demon Swoop) feint and 236LK make that unreliable.
Since chasing every feint in ranked is tiresome, a fuzzy jab (crouching LP) is recommended. This works by pressing LP at the timing you would guard 236K → K after guarding 236K → P. Very difficult to do consistently in a real match, but worth attempting when possible.
The following are recorded in the video below:
- 236K → (no input)
- 236K → P
- 236K → K
- 236K → 2
Keep in mind that ideally, the goal is to anti-air with a jump attack rather than just blocking, since even blocking leaves Akuma at advantage.
Warning
The fuzzy is possible but only works against Akuma players who do not delay the follow-up. If they delay the follow-up, the fuzzy timing shifts — in that case, the anti-air window extends so try to go for an air-to-air instead.
Gou Shoryuken
- 623LP
- 623MP
- 623HP
- 623PP
Recommended Counter
Relatively strong performance. Be careful not to jump in recklessly.
Adamant Flame
Akuma's special with almost no punish combo available. Corner damage is extremely high.
- 214LP
- On block: Akuma is -8F
- Outside throw range
- 214MP
- On block: Akuma is -4F
- Outside throw range
- 214HP
- On block: Akuma is -3F
- Within throw range
- 214PP
- On block: Akuma is -3F
- Within throw range
Recommended Counter
If you cannot identify the strength after guarding, press a 4F light.
Adding a throw attempt to the mix after guard is tempting, but 214LP and 214MP leave you outside throw range, making it very hard to connect. As you get more comfortable, consider throwing as an option against 214HP and 214PP.
Zanku Hadoken
- (Forward jump) 236LP
- (Forward jump) 236MP
- (Forward jump) 236HP
- (Neutral or forward jump) 236PP
Recommended Counter
The best response depends on your character's anti-air capabilities, so look up what works for your character. If you have an anti-air invincible special, wait until he is close before using it.
If your character has no anti-air invincible special, forward-jumping in response to Akuma's jump lets you earn return damage.
If both options are too difficult, just try to go for air-to-air.
Standing Heavy Kick
Standard normal that gives Akuma +3F frame advantage on block. Walking shimmy is not possible after this.
Recommended Counter
Keep in mind that walking shimmy is not possible after blocking and choose your options accordingly. Be aware that if Akuma backdashes, HP is a punish combo against a tech throw, so tech throw attempts are also risky.
If you are at a shorter rank range, the following is recommended:
- Parry
- Akuma's midscreen normal throw situation is not very good
- Even a panic counter throw is not great for Akuma, so go for the parry while looking for a chance
If you were crouching and made HK whiff, Akuma is -13F, so land a strong punish.
Oboro Throw
On hit, Akuma is at +20F. On hit with rush, only HP overlaps.
Recommended Counter
When you see a rush, aiming for a perfect parry has high expected value.
Oboro Throw
Akuma is at +28F. In the midscreen, back-roll recovery eliminates oki (wakeup pressure).
Recommended Counter
Take back-roll recovery.
Back Throw
Akuma is at +14F.
On in-place recovery, only HP overlaps. On back-roll recovery, no moves overlap even if rush is used.
Recommended Counter
Back-roll recovery is the stable option.