You need better Tekken defense.

[@LEWfromdaHOU]

So you thought this BUSHIN level player is beginner/intermediate strategic? Are you serious PhiDX? I know you're trying to help beginners but you can be real arrogant sometimes. If beginner/intermediate strategies include excellent fundamentals, that will take anyone pretty damn far. I'm 100% on the side of the Asuka player. He played the entire set. He didn't plug on you. That guy was nowhere near scrubby. Seems to me like he earned his rank. I think you started the intro to this video with a little tilt leftover from almost getting your ass handed to you.

[@PhiDX]

Shout outs to bro for sticking around, pretty sure I say that during the set. No shade at all

[@bonfist7277]

Who do you play

[@LEWfromdaHOU]

@@PhiDX I understand but give respect when respect is due.

[@JReyes624]

This guy didn’t have excellent fundamentals. He was just attacking and hoping and praying. He probably never considered what Steve was doing and only ran his program. He just never has to adjust because at that level people just run into his attacks.

[@AnonymityIx]

Yeah, you're wrong here. These were far from excellent fundamentals. I'm ranked higher than this Asuka and I'd be shocked if he doesn't plateau here in blue ranks

[@staycold682]

That Asuka strategy is what a lot of players have. It's the TEKKEN 8 strat. "Constantly just use moves and heat smash so much that I keep my opponent guessing, that way I never have to defend. I don't like defending. I like buttons. "

[@SlCKNESS_]

"Did not pay a $100 to block."

[@karelkantelaar1357]

So sad what they turned tekken into all these players who can barely play in blue ranks is cringe

[@Distasteful-yx6hx]

Real, nice to see ya again man (you may not recognise me but weve talked abt mk1 before)

[@staycold682]

@@Distasteful-yx6hxwe did? I forget, but thanks for remembering haha hope you're doing well :)

[@flar28]

@@karelkantelaar1357 this game got me mashing dawg

[@johndolo853]

Phi I wanna thank you so much for helping me take Steve to Shinryu, you’ve been an important part of my Tekken success and you’re so important for this community and the FGC community in general, bless up man

[@whatthehell818]

Good luck, thats where real Tekken starts

[@Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

@@whatthehell818 Im at Taryu and people literally throw the kitchen sink at you in every match 😂 red ranks are hell

[@razborkaptrsk9428]

​@@whatthehell818"real tekken" starts at blue ranks

[@dontpressbuttons8087]

⁠@@whatthehell818idk red rank kinda wild too. Players in red are highly dependent on flowchart and minimal defense to get by. I’d say real Tekken doesn’t start till blue since those are the players who will be picking through your strings with side steps and perfect crouches.

[@karelkantelaar1357]

@@razborkaptrsk9428 blue ranks are hit and miss some strong players but alot of gimmick scrubs are in blue ranks

[@cacaw_0]

I learned this lesson back in Tekken 7 from Aris. His video boiled down to this advice: Try to do less than your opponent to let them kill themselves.

[@Shade84]

If everyone is trying to do less are we even playing the game anymore? Let's not forget what the objective is in the first place; to reduce your opponent's life points to zero, no? Edited for spelling.

[@PhiDX]

@Shade84 or win on time, yes

[@cacaw_0]

@@Shade84 If both players are thinking this way, then you can start playing Tekken, meaning the neutral. But you don't need to attack if your opponent mindlessly charges and has no understanding of neutral. Your defense should be enough to win, if it isn't then it's on you to improve your defense. That's the message in short

[@Shade84]

@@cacaw_0 Tekken is not defined by neutral, neutral is an aspect of Tekken (as it is any fighting game). Pushing the offense is a strategy in itself, as demonstrated by Phi when he played against TMM. Either you give the illusion you're being reckless, or you simply roll over someone who can't adapt. Clearly the latter works because that Asuka player made it to the rank they are. I'm no expert on the matter, but I find it ridiculous that people act like there's only one way to play a game and if you play any other way you're doing it wrong.

[@cacaw_0]

@@Shade84 It's wrong when it doesn't work. A great Tekken player can utilize all these strategies you mentioned and switch between them depending on the opponent, multiple times per round even. I also insist that if Tekken is defined by anything, it is the neutral game in 3d space. Ultra offensive strategies are just gimmicks, while playing the neutral is like playing chess. You can force your opponent to play the neutral game. It's impossible to force your opponent to stop playing neutral.

[@BuBornham]

One of the biggest things I've been learning about adapting to your opponent online in ranked is that you often only have to present a counter to a scrubby gameplan once or twice and those sorts of players fold completely and start throwing out unsafe and easier to block+punish moves. I play Yoshi and sticking to this mentality has really taught me to make liberal use of df1, 4. Landing two sets of those as whiff punishes on an opponent really sets their HP bar up for failure early into a round.

[@TheTraceIrving]

So true, punishing just 2 or 3 reckless approaches with df1, 4 just leaves the opponent with a third hp missing and a foot shaped hole in their chest before the round has even gotten started

[@BuBornham]

It's funny because I've "known" this since I started playing T8 and watched a handful of Yoshi starter guides which all pointed it out as one of the main punishing tools, but then you jump in and start partying and as a newbie it's so easy to forget about it because it's not a Yoshi magic trick or flashy sword swing. For a long time I just forgot about it until a troublesome Azucena match forced me to actually peek at the replay and discover I was failing to make use of so much free damage.@@TheTraceIrving

[@KittenChaos90]

I remember I was playing a Feng once as Yoshi and he did one of his kick strings. I punished him with WR2,1 and he just never did it again. I thought it was the funniest thing in the world. The way he switched up was like "Ahhh, you know about that one." I lost that set unfortunately, but it was a nice moment of knowing that I can punish that move consistently.

[@liquidjackson7172]

Yep! Many players just do what “works” but do not understand how to set up offense.

[@Youllneverfindmezx]

Been playing for a month now and ran into this issue myself. Using Jin I’m struggling to get out of orange but I see it’s lack of match up knowledge and my character doesn’t have many spammable strings or strong gimmicky moves. I see how people get hard stuck in orange, red, purple ranks because they use cheap characters and spam strings/armour moves to win. Ranks above that actually start caring about matchup data and that’s when the game actually become smart. More to learn I guess!

[@beefyboi64]

Something I really appreciate about Phi's content is that all of it, regardless of the lesson, carries the theme that there are adjustments and improvements to pick up on by simply playing against others. Enough, in fact, to make a worthwhile and informative video on every single day.

[@finnExterminatus]

If someone mashes , while being -13 punishable and eats a steve back 1 on ch. I call that a veteran asuka player. (Just joking.. of course) for real tho, as long as he has fun and does not plug , the asuka is a valuable member of this community and i am happy they are here. 😊

[@PhiDX]

Yes, genuinely agree

[@Mackievellian]

This should be the pinned comment buddy

[@marioster2]

Ya know we talk smack on Twitter but I love the way you word and explain things in a realistic positive light

[@TheSLashera]

Man. You can't make this up! I am a Steve main who's historically struggled with this type of playstyle. It's pretty much the one thing that can really tilt me in Tekken. And now.. Literally in the middle of watching this video, I got the urge to play a set. So I hop on Steve and first game I run into Jun playing this exact same way. 😃 I applied your teachings in this vid and won the game, but what's interesting is that while I struck strictly to defense I was winning convincingly 2 rounds up. And then the moment I felt comfortable and started pressing, I ran into a rage art like a moron and this spiraled into an equalizing round for him. In the end I locked in to def again like you did and won the third, but as you mention it's really important not to give them an opening to spiral you down into some bs! Thanks PhiDx! You taught me something that has been plaguing me ever since I started playing Tekken well towards the end of it's 7th iteration. PS: I hope you read this, and since you mention Lowhigh's crazy forward dashing, can you teach us that too? Pretty please! How are they forward dashing so quickly and so safely?

[@notkirito9276]

As an Asuka with Kishin rank, she is trash against players who play defensively, side steps and knows the frames, her moves are too linear and high risk, and even if she hits her launchers, the damage is so pitiful

[@BanditTools]

@@notkirito9276 This is how I know Asuka players are delusional. My buddy does 90 damage wall carry combos off of launch punishes on the regular with Asuka. I guess 50% combos are pitiful damage to Asuka players. Meanwhile Steve can barely get 70 off a B1 counter hit.

[@notkirito9276]

@@BanditTools 90 damage normal launches? Lol. Go into practice mode and test out her combos, WITH RAGE. You will be the world's first player to discover a 90 damage Asuka combo and would get famous in the community.

[@BanditTools]

@@notkirito9276 Maybe you need to git gud. The homie does 89 damage after launch into combo -> Heat engage -> combo filler -> Heat dash -> filler -> wall splat kick sequence. Getting 85+ damage isnt even unfeasible for most of the cast lol.

[@notkirito9276]

@@BanditTools Sure, your homie found a 90 damage combo that no other asuka player managed to find. Amazing

[@LaithFGC]

7:36 “I’m not taking too much damage” - has lost half his health 😂

[@LaithFGC]

I’m not hating I’m just saying I think that was funny. Sometimes I have the same thought when playing. Oh I will not break my defense by blocking low. Oh I died.

[@ripplecutter233]

Tis only a flesh wound

[@Ryan-tc2el]

This isnt first video where he's done this. He's really dedicated to dying to unreactable lows and it throws people off@@LaithFGC

[@Adderflail]

It wasn't actually that much damage, considering he basically equalized off of 1 small counter hit. Would be even less if he knew you can low parry low sweeps on normal hit.

[@iiWyte]

This is the kind of mindset i need in my games lmao.

[@podgemurray4377]

'I'm not calling him scrubby, but their strategies were closer to beginner to intermediate level strategies as an attacker'. Tried to make it sound nice but ended up being very well worded roast XD

[@rinvalentine7108]

Id rather just be called a scrub than a beginner

[@aomafura3374]

@@rinvalentine7108I mean we all were once a beginner, and they were the best times 🥲

[@pocketoniofficial]

It's not even that he's a scrub, he's just fundamentally not good. People have got to realize their actual skill levels tbh

[@TheTyroofToriyama]

@@rinvalentine7108We sugarcoat and dance around it all we like but light blue used to be a VERY high rank and people are getting there by being scrubs Leave your opinions at home, guys… Tekken is just a mostly scrubby game now We wasted all of our time arguing against it and protecting the devs reputation because behind every Tekken review is someone who knows this series needs to survive but the devs themselves aren’t really even trynna hide this… we say “Tekken is deep” they wonder “Did we not make our intentions clear enough yet?” they probably go and add a 3rd super move and have Asuka a 8 frame raging demon just to FINALLY make it clear that Tekken IS NOT SUPPOSED to be your game anymore! Spending a lifetime learning to succeed around the scrubby stuff just makes you op… It does not fix the depth in the game. This lie is just way too popular. People say things only work at intermediate and below… and that’s a great point! Because the average experience is most representative of how the game tends to function and anything outside of that means you’re just too dumb or too cracked. The average Tekken player is very scrubby and puts a blindfold on while windmilling punches and super attacks all over, making the title look like Ninja Storm 4. If we could finally admit that Tekken is even more scrubby than we’re agreeing that it is and can teach others how to be scrubby and throw in just enough iq to throw people off at the last minute, then we might just get to have an honest debate on this I’m quite high in purple so I’m not just salty and this is off very little playing time. I just don’t have time to pretend the game is really deep and clean.

[@Freshomania]

seems like noone even knows what scrub means nowadays

[@roi-dzyl5870]

As a complete opposite gameplan Asuka player (defense, punish, counter) this video was just hilarious. Your reactions on the b+3 and snake edge spooks were gold 😂😂

[@jkdman2007]

Every Asuka plays exactly like that. They will mash that backflip whenever they feel the opponent is coming at them.

[@rinvalentine7108]

They're xiaoyu players in disguise

[@FreeMovies01]

I do fish for her counter hits when i use her

[@ProjectAlpha2023]

That backflip you're talking about is the infamous B3 move. We do it when an opponent is overstaying infront of our face. Just dont play over agressive when playing against Asuka. And you there are situations where you have to Delay your reactions or whiff punishment moves coz we will parry you.

[@alvontestewart201]

As an asuka player i didnt see 1 sabacki against a character that movelist is 99% punches hmm.....🤔

[@FreeMovies01]

@@alvontestewart201 what is a sabacki

[@tobiaseks]

please continue this style of video, really enjoy watching you play full rounds and breaking down during the match

[@fancysinigang_tk]

Highly entertaining set man. Amd props to all the pros that can play a set on stream, while reading chat, trying to learn an opponent, trying to aplly your offense and defense, while trying to teach amd educate is insanely difficult i imagine. Calling mistakes and calling yourself ass keeps it humble but while also givin the asuka player props was cool too. Great video man

[@SkarjOS]

It's telling how lacking their offence was when they used up the entire heat timer while dealing 0 actual damage. Fully dependant on gimmick defense to get to Bushin

[@carloshernandez3177]

In my experience I'm SHOCKED he got bushin with that style, Steve in this example is horrible for dealing with cheese but many other characters would steamrollcthst style of play in even purple ranks

[@SkarjOS]

@@carloshernandez3177 I'm inclined to agree, but tbh even my Raijin ass is looking at this and going "I would probably not adapt quickly enough in a ft2". But maybe that's just me

[@carloshernandez3177]

@SkarjOS naa fr, I'd get tilted quickly and throw my Brian out the window like the Oscar player an know it'd a scrub off

[@redneckedcrake7059]

Which one? Because at 4:48, the Steve goes from like 80% to around 30% from a combination of huge chip damage and a couple little lows, AND regens their health from around 15% to 30% and keeps the rage art (and they won the round). At 6:54 the Steve goes from like 90% to around 35% before going for snake edge to lose the round. They also regen all that grey health along with it. At 11:08, they spend it immediately on heat smash and are still +10 in Steve's face, but do nothing and eventually lose. I'm guessing they were hoping for a panic rage art from Steve because they just stood there, but it didn't happen. The other heat uses all led to real damage being done. The first 2 I mentioned up there still led to tonnes of damage, through blocked chip damage and a few little hits/lows.

[@uzuvibe5420]

You guys gotta stop making excuses and calling someone a less skilled player because they’re using gimmicks but if you’re losing to these gimmicks that’s your fault they would change if people give them reasons too but that doesn’t ever happen

[@j-kreed4419]

Thanks for picking up the torch for T8. Aris basically taught me how to play t7 and I was getting bummed realizing he won't be around that much for 8. But, even as an accomplished player, I really love your content. You're clear, concise, and level headed. You prioritization of a good head space is really infectious. Keep it up Phi.

[@reality3304]

This is every law player in ranked.

[@BrandurnPorchiga]

Literally about the lab the crap out of that character

[@Krackerjax]

7:36 "I dont care too much. Im not taking too much damage" - Man who has lost 50% of his hp in the first 7 seconds of a round. Love you Phi 😂

[@Oryon25]

I can't wait to see you start deep-diving Nina (when and if that happens). I feel like she gets a bad rap (often claimed to be overpowered, cheesy, or broken) when she's what seems to me to in fact be a complete character. Her strength scales with your ability in a way that feels real honest, opening different doors as you learn various fundamental mechanics (e.g. there's no sidestep canceling shenanigans without solid movement and the ability to think four moves ahead). I think she's a great character to learn on and grow as a player. She's a constant learning experience and it's really fun to discover the variety of ways in which she can be played. I've yet to see two Ninas behave in the same way. I can't see anything broken about her. She seems to have an appropriate tool for every situation, which makes her solid. But other than specializing in movement cancels, if you compare her moves to similar ones in the roster she usually doesn't come out on top. I don't want to come across as a fanboy, and i am genuinely interested if i have an accurate take. Thanks for reading my blogpost!

[@PhiDX]

She is complete and takes skill She is also insanely good right now

[@TOKYO_SLIME]

Nina is great. She’s all about conditioning. Her cancels allow for some great pressure, but your execution needs to be TIGHT.

[@Donalob]

Nina is hell to play against in high ranks.

[@Oryon25]

@@PhiDX Thanks for the reply!

[@ministry3471]

this is because she is overpowered, cheesy and broken

[@jaysonisidro7022]

Best tekken content creator out there. Been binge watching your videos. I hope there's more steve content coming! This style of play is what inspired me to pick him up as my main.

[@estark3219]

Great analysis. Working very hard to get past all the panic moves asuka has. Well done!

[@ben-arte8936]

I’d love to see content on dash block practice. I run away a lot in situations like this and I’d like to start trying to apply pressure. Good stuff as always!

[@Shitpostsulley]

Phi: "Now I'm not calling this Asuka scrubby" Also Phi 5 second later: -Proceeds to intelligently call that Asuka scrubby

[@SpyceBrain]

Asuka mains in the comments are trying to defend her lol. Nah its scrubby as hell. Its effective and easy to do. I recommend her to any new tekken player cause of it

[@pengy_]

I can't stress enough how useful this guide is. I may be playing Tekken 7 but it still applies regardless. I play with my friend who mainly plays Asuka and Noctis. And they play Asuka exactly how the Asuka in the video did. I main Heihachi which is definitely one of the factors but knowing when to whiff punish is something I really want to work on. Great video on countering this gimmicks. Would definitely use on our next match ❤

[@Zero0095]

The Asuka player changed her strategy also and still almost won. Being a good player means being able to adapt. And they both did. :)

[@bludika]

i find this the biggest problem with T8, and it's sometimes demotivating and unejoyable. You can see PhiDX is playing with way more thought and gameplan, and much more difficult to play this way with actual thought process behind it, BUT if you watch how the Asuka is playing, he's just throwing out random launchers, panic moves, and punishes nothing, and just pressing every single chance he gets. That's fine since he plays that way, but the problem is, doing that is just TOO EFFECTIVE imo given how little skills and effort it takes to just mash out those buttons. It makes you wonder, "why am i trying to play with some gameplan and thought-process, when just throwing out random shit and panic moves are just as effective?" it feels like playing defense is not rewarding enough which takes hell of a lot more skills, while just mashing out moves is just way too rewarding compared to playing good defense. Not saying the game should be all about defense of course, I want Tekken to be a good balance of BOTH offensive and defensive gameplay, but it feels de-motivating when something that takes way more skills to do is not as rewarding compared to just throwing out random shit and panic moves.

[@yellowscarlightningscream8347]

Pakistan and South Korea forced Tekken devs to adopt more aggressive gameplay and reward mashing. Tekken 8 is heavily incentived to be played by North America and Europe and nobody defends in those regions. You must have heard "I didn't pay $100 to just defend".

[@bludika]

@@yellowscarlightningscream8347 people can play however they want, and you really can't expect pro level players to just mash and throw out random shit, it's not gonna work consistently against such high level players, so of course they would be playing a bit more conservatively, i mean it's nothing new. The problem with T7 was that, because it was too much of a "1 launcher, go wall to wall carry, wall combo, 1 mix up away from death", so even 1 tiny mistake means you lose the round. If they toned down the combo damage, wall carry, and the 50/50, then players would be more willing to take risks, but why would pros take such risks when it's so punishing? T8 feels like it's just as punishing if not even more punishing if you make 1 mistake, and it can lead to players at high levels playing even more defensive, give how punishing it is.

[@blazaybla22]

@@yellowscarlightningscream8347 This makes zero sense lmao. You’re talking about who dominates the pro scene and at the same time talking about the devs wanting to cater to NA players? The pro scene is a tiny percentage of the player base and the rest are playing other players from their own region. I’m sort of speechless about how little sense this makes, only a couple hundred players at most are even slightly affected by what you’re talking about

[@Shedrick_Goldsmith]

I was getting tilted just watching this jeez

[@boolcops]

Asuka tilts all. Such a scrubby character

[@Shade84]

​@@boolcopsIs there any character in this game that isn't complained about? Lol

[@kizarugaming4829]

\lee chaolan@@Shade84

[@rinvalentine7108]

​@@kizarugaming4829nah that guy is annoying and taunts mid combo

[@rinvalentine7108]

​@@Shade84Leroy, Leo and Steve

[@reirei_tk]

Blue ranks in this game and blue ranks in T7 is soooo night and day it's crazy

[@hydra2019]

Duh. For one they took out a rank in each division.. instead of 3 like in tekken 8, tekken 7 had 4 ranks per division

[@reirei_tk]

@@hydra2019 thank you, but I knew all of that already.

[@boredomkiller99]

​@@hydra2019okay I wasn't crazy, that probably explains the weirdness in ranks

[@Macrossuu]

If this asuka used more d1+2 and 1+2 she wouldve been way more scary too

[@SlCKNESS_]

That would've required a lot more braincells than were utilized.

[@Sicknificant1]

​@@SlCKNESS_i was gonna say "what an additional two?" Then i remembered that 3 is a lot more than 1 brain cell so... yea agreed.

[@Apsandman]

@@SlCKNESS_ TBF T8 has a lot of newcomers so maybe we oughta just beat them up for playing scrubby then appreciate that they're here. Also I could swear I saw you in the Hunt: Showdown discord.

[@SlCKNESS_]

@@Apsandman That would be me. Hunt's my favorite FPS. I do appreciate all the newcomers 1000%.

[@ericsimonson8002]

You give solid advice. I like the camera on your hands. I've been on the fence about buying a box. After seeing how active your hands are I've come to the conclusion that I'm better off sticking with the pad. My hands are too old and worn to learn all over again on a new peripheral. Thanks for the video.

[@blankoctober]

Oh shit you played against Ichiron! I’ve known him for a good bit since the DOA days. He’s never changed 😂

[@DMatt343]

I haven't heard that name in a long time.

[@balto9674]

Funny I remember playing against him in that game years back.

[@drbayrd1384]

Some good ass tekken. Your analysis and punishment was spot on. The whiff punish rage art was the cap to a great set and comeback. Nice showcasing of patience and defense against Asuka.

[@theanti-hypemonitor9079]

Youre right! I do need better defense! Something i did on the weekend, after i got EXTREMELY flustered with the game, was, i decided to rank down. I couldnt handle the purples the game was throwing at me so i just said fuck it and wanted to rank down to pre red. That didnt happen though. What i did was, i only used my left hand, as in movement, during the fights. And i made an INSANE observation. Suddenly i was sidestepping, i was backdashing, i was evading and reading my opponents. It was CRAZY! I even was sidewalking Dragonovs wr2 multiple times. Could you maybe dive into that concept? Would this something be you reccommend experimenting with?

[@TheSLashera]

PhiDx actually explained this in a recent video, can't tell you which one is it. But simply put is that the less buttons you need to press and the better muscle memory you have about your character's stuff. Punishes, combos, etc. The more your mind and eyes are free to observe what's actually happening on the screen. You cannot simultaneously think about what you are doing and what the opponent is doing. So by freeing yourself of all the mental strain and just focusing on movement allowed you pay better attention to everything that's going on thus allowing you to respond better.

[@theanti-hypemonitor9079]

oh damn! thanks dude!@@TheSLashera

[@williamlindsey2744]

I haven't even watched the video and I already know that this is correct. I was struggling at Flame Ruler about a week ago and I just had a random shower thought, "What if I stopped just moving around recklessly and just block/sidestep and punish?" It's CRAZY how much this helped me. Currently a Raijin (decided to stop and play around with subs) because I decided to stop being so overly aggressive and learn how to block properly. Also, on a funny note, I now have 100 in defense lol.

[@muhammadihsan4896]

I hate this kinda player. It just forces me to be ultra defensive and really focusing on whiff and block punishing and usually they are mad like "why are you playing way too passive" and i was like duh YOU ARE THE ONE WHO FORCED ME TO PLAY LIKE THIS😂

[@phenom4630]

That's what I'm sayin lmaoo, and its crazy people get mad at that. Maybe don't play like a random crackhead so it won't come down to that 😂

[@Donalob]

I like the challenge of being defensive though. Getting a whiff punish or punishing your opponent to the extent where they start second guessing stuff is satisfying.

[@redline841]

It is funny when try their low sweep kick three times in a row and I cheese

[@ayeitsjun925]

FACTS! I use to go through this exact thing on Mortal Kombat 😂

[@darianverdon3912]

Appreciate all the good coaching Phi. You've definitely inspired me to improve at tekken and be able to grow and play at a high leave one day. Keep up the good work

[@funkrates4778]

There really is no scrubby play in my opinion unless it’s abusing a blatant flaw/bug in the game. The onus is on the other player to make the right adjustments. This Asuka player almost beat PhiDx using a style that was proving to be effective. You never change what works unless the opponent forces you to adjust. This is how it is in REAL combat sports.

[@uzuvibe5420]

What I’m saying how is the opponent trashy when you can’t defend and block? If you constantly give them a reason to adjust they will just like you will just don’t make sense

[@funkrates4778]

@@uzuvibe5420 I definitely agree.

[@samsoniteprosser591]

I really like the approach of a 1 dimensional players as a real strategy, because you're right they're beating people and almost got the better of you, but here's the way to exploit it and you demonstrated the adjustment. Such a clear roadmap for us to get learning how to play the Tekken part of the game. I feel like people get wrapped up in their way of playing being "right" and other ways of playing being "wrong" and then because people are beating them by playing "wrong" they get upset. I honestly love it when people mash strings into me or spam one type of move, even when I lose. I get more practice against that move or strategy. If you hate Victor's 2 string then start playing him and mashing 2, people will show you how exploitable that strategy is.

[@AT_BASE]

“Im not calling em scrubby, besides their entire game plan”

[@kylefields3951]

That's my 🐐 PhiDX.

[@finalfantasy1201]

Love phidx humbleness. "No I got shit on" 😂 giving props

[@_NEW3RA_]

Excellent vid bro. I’m guilty of pressing. Key is be patient. Punish whiffs.

[@SlCKNESS_]

It's not just the patience to wait for a good whiff punish, it's also proper KBDC to create that distance and the opportunity for the whiff.

[@Bullet-Tooth-Tony-]

@@SlCKNESS_ Whats the inputs for KBDC on ps5 controller ?

[@RedXStrider]

​@Bullet-Tooth-Tony- backdash, then press down back, then press back, then press down back again. Repeat

[@MNM4US]

This was amazing especially the timing of this vid because I was having trouble just brainstorming what I should do on defense because I’ve been going against offense demons

[@d.e5964]

I main her and Ranked has become so much easier because I realised ppl don't stop mashing. You can call asuka scrubby if you like but in reality you're too aggressive against a defensive character

[@PhiDX]

This is facts, she is a good defensive character

[@Soul471]

Thanks for making these “how to adapt” videos, they’re super helpful!

[@emanuelrouse7076]

That was more hype than most tourny rounds. Les go LOOL

[@MrPada143]

Now this was tense. Please understand why we love this channel! This is my new home.

[@trepurize]

i know Ichiron from DOA... he notorious for mashing LMAO

[@PhiDX]

that's fire LOL

[@deddjay]

Your approach during these vids is incredibly helpful. I've been playing tekken a long, long time, but the learning approach to play has always evaded me.

[@zoroasper9759]

Asuka mains get all the way to blue ranks thanks to the fact people simply do not stop mashing against her. I would know, that's how I got there

[@Rainaldo991]

I met an asuka in yellow ranks that i think had parkinson disease. After the matches i went to replay and she actually NEVER stopped pressing buttons for a goddamn second, not on roundstart, not while eating combos, not while being punished with guaranteed throws. Never. Must be a physical achievement and a treatment against muscle soreness, ngl.

[@zoroasper9759]

@@Rainaldo991back when the game first dropped I matched against a Jack since I still didnt know a lot of his new stuff I went and checked the replay and discovered that this crazy person ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS either used a 1+2 input or a 3+4 input. I'm not exaggerating; literally every single input was either with a 1+2 or a 3+4 some people are just built different

[@Rainaldo991]

@@zoroasper9759 just like my first Law main matches spamming bf 4, 4 and ff4 all over again. People didn t like blocking low against law, i found out. Then i reached yellow ranks and the gimmicks finished lol

[@blujay1294]

Same energy as the King mains farming casuals who don't learn the throws, then hit the bubble of "People who take the Hobby semi-seriously" versus just "gaming to game". Not a roast, I did the same shit in DBFZ, just a funny observation on how online affects people/learning a game

[@CrapsGoodxD]

Same with lili you can just keep mashing and dodge most things

[@garymichalles8383]

GOD DAMN you get anxious as shit huh 😂 I laughed when you started pacing around after the last rage art. Saw shades of tournament Phi popping off on stage right there xD

[@PhiDX]

I get immersed LOL

[@Pepsimanv2]

To be fair. Defense is a lot harder than offense. Every Character and every player is different. There are certain matchups I really avoid to defent too much because I know I can't take all the heat. Against characters like Hwoarang, Dragunov I just always try to be on the offensive side.

[@theloserwhocould]

I wish there was a vid like this for how you play against the common playstyle of each character. This is going to help me a ton against askukas! It really helps when you're mentioning what's punishable.

[@counterhit121]

Im not even playing and that asuka got *me* tilted. Thanks for walking us through it despite the costs to your own mental health

[@Oso_Thiccck]

Just as I reach purple rank! This shows up! Always looking out for me, Phi! I really appreciate it!

[@BloodRain222]

Currently Tekken Emperor with Yoshi and Tekken King with Kazuya. If finally feels like I’m facing actual humans. I’m convinced anyone under Tekken King is actually just a bot,glad you’re here to teach these new kids how to tekken

[@rammyrump2251]

Im not a bot, im just bad :(

[@BecomingYourIdeal]

I agree

[@redneckedcrake7059]

When even red ranks can do 50% damage off a random launcher into good oki, and when defence is so difficult that even this fella barely beat the Asuka when he's been playing since TTT2, you can't really be too mad that most players online are going to swing and swing and swing and swing. They only need to hit twice and you're dead.

[@Jamazed]

That Asuka was so hard to beat even for a tournament-level player like Phi, lol. I feel like this type of degenerate playstyle is super common at all levels since it's so easy to execute. And it requires you to know their character intimately, be on-the-ball with pattern recognition, and put in twice as much effort as the other player to beat it. It scares me way more than facing a strong-fundamentals player because you at least don't really mind losing to someone that isn't autopiloting.

[@mazahaka818]

This is a type of playstyle that would have gotten you stabbed back in the day

[@IlCremo]

This is the kind of playstile the developers are incentivising

[@norf-kr6od]

Sounds like there were some really fragile egos back in the day

[@roninhubbard9059]

Yup​@@IlCremo

[@RuteFernandes-qs6pc]

​@@norf-kr6od Same as today, the difference is that back in the day they actually wouldn't do shit in person, now with internet everyone talks shit and how the arcades were the wild west. People used to fucking dance to make an opponent drop a combo.

[@norf-kr6od]

@@RuteFernandes-qs6pc Yeah it’s always funny when old heads talk about the ‘golden’ arcade days and the modern fgc being soft or scrubby or whatever. For some guys bullying pre teens on the local street fighter cabinet was their peak lol.

[@llj5ll734]

Brooo that was a really good match on both ends! His Asuka was no fkin joke but the comeback was clean af!!! Great Steve play 👍🏾👌🏾😎

[@_NEW3RA_]

10:06 I seen that rage coming a mile away because the Asuka player is mashing hard.

[@hellishvalkyrie3306]

I want to say thank you for making some of the most informative Tekken content. I got to fujin with zafina with your help.

[@Tseinaava]

Every time I try to play defend and punish, I got knowledge checked so hard. This video proves that I need to get to learn more characters. I like how you explain your reasoning behind your strategy during the fight. Thank you, teacher PhiDX, an enlightening video, as always 😊

[@uzuvibe5420]

Funny thing is that all these people saying x and y is scrubby at the end of the day this is getting him results and let him beat one of the better players to play this game, it’s on YOU to adapt to the play style your opponent is playing yes it’s annoying and tilting but if you’re not giving Him a reason to stop why would he? It’s not even a scrub thing it’s common sense, if I were to RH kick you in your right leg every time and you don’t check me yeah it’s annoying but you aren’t giving me a reason to change. You said his play style is scrubby but it’s getting Him wins, he isn’t adapting because you or anyone else is barely giving him a reason to stop, just never understood that idea you’re less of a good player because you’re relying on strings the game provides that I can’t defend against? Give them a reason to stop then they’ll stop and adapt just like you

[@Crimsongz]

It’s scrubby because the moment you counter that mashing player he won’t adapt and be done lol

[@uzuvibe5420]

@@Crimsongz yeah because they don’t fight enough people for them to adapt just hate that idea that people think they’re so much better lmao they can do the samething you’re doing but nobody’s giving Then a reason to stop or barely giving them a reason to stop

[@Cherilyn_45]

Your kbd is so clean! Perfect for a defensive play. I'm kinda jealous. Need to practice more

[@IzuMido-t1m]

Man that asuka is just MASHINGGGG

[@nickhall7995]

Stop regurgitating what u hear. Those inputs were strategic, not random mashing

[@AngeloGene]

This was extremely great. Love the way you share your thought process. More of this please. 👍

[@danielprw512]

This asuka player really mashed on -13 that tells you how much skill u need for asuka...

[@MrPastige]

Yea Yea every character is broken besides your main right

[@Sicknificant1]

​@MrPastige no one said she is broken. She is easy af tho. It is why badically every "picking a main as a new tekken player" video lands on Asuka being one of the easiest characters to pick up.

[@AdrianOlsson-el8dy]

Saw ur vid when u explained how to get out from Yellow ranks. I leard very good tips about frame and How i play and What i want to change but i didnt belive it would work like magick but damn im soon out. Ps bought the game 6 days ago my first combat game ever. Great video man W ❤

[@PhiDX]

Love to hear it!!

[@Aabil11]

In a game where counter hits are nerfed across the board, Steve's back 1 really outshines

[@SlCKNESS_]

Outshines...what? Don't get me wrong, it's great. But it's about the application of it in your overall gameplan, not the raw move itself. Some characters have really outrageous moves, Steve's B1 is not one of them. Simply put - he needs the B1, other characters got their CH tools nerfed, but they have been given better and more powerful tools instead. Steve's B1 outshines nothing. To be fair Steve also got a few new good moves, I'm not trying to downplay the character or anything. I'm just trying to get rid of the "everybody lost their CH tools, but Steve still has B1, so he's insane" narrative, cause it's just not true.

[@BloodRain222]

@@SlCKNESS_counter hits are still extremely good what

[@killastar5424]

yea outshines is crazy lol steves b1 is just a normal counter hit tool in my opinion@@SlCKNESS_

[@kylefields3951]

​​@@SlCKNESS_Yeah, unless Back 1 can't be Whiff Punished again, it's not gonna outshine anything. It's a fantastic move, I won't downplay it's power either, but it's only one attack, and the power of the move is twofold-> 1. How does it come together to complement or accentuate the rest of the character's tools? 2. What is the Counterplay? Back 1's power in Tekken 7 was reliant on both of those. The rest of his kit was stronger and harder to Sidestep, so therefore made the opponent play more of a 2D game, which in turn made it easier to time, and that it was fucking IMPOSSIBLE to Whiff Punish it for real until the very last patches of T7. There is now consistent Counterplay, and it doesn't accentuate the rest of his tools meaningfully, even the new tools, because it's not like you can Back 1 out of Lionheart.

[@frekouts]

Hey Phi! In Tekken 7 I was never able to break throws but with your throw break practice routine I am currently able to break most if not all throws. I seriously want to thank you bro, your videos and the explanations are so well articulated that they have helped me become a much better player in a short amount of time. Currently grinding it out in the purple ranks, I'm gonna keep labbing stuff and get better. Love your videos bro, with the way you are currently going, I am sure you're gonna win a major tournament in no time! Love you bro, keep up the grind!!

[@boolcops]

Wi-Fi asuka masher with 3 delay frames. I wonder how they got to bushin 😂😂😂

[@vinsmokeraki]

6:00 "Don't be a scrub, PhiDX, just fuckin' win."

[@dh9462]

it’s sad that that asuka is in bushin

[@wittyag]

Because they probably do a lot of one and dones.

[@Zoular]

Those back dashes was so smooth and beautiful, well done Phi amazing set

[@hyldenchampchamp498]

The Asuka player was excellent and Asuka isn't even that great in T8 from what I understand. They used a winning strat early and slowly adapted. Was a close match. GG for both players. No one was a scrub here.

[@gamesibeat]

This is what most of my matches look like, it grates on your nerves.

[@sheepys551]

Great video I am truly impressed how polite you were during this match Phi XD

[@josephehigiator9258]

Appppppllauuuuusssseeeee.......this match made me happy. Good to see very tight defensive play

[@Malcolmthe2nd]

2:50 "Having the read isn't enough" brother if I could sum up my Tekken 8 experience into one phrase it'd be that

[@jep177]

I love this kind of content! Great video my guy

[@Pwnr145]

I've literally been stuck in spam land for the past week. This is definitely the type of video I needed

[@etrigan966]

I think beginners should also know that this type of playstyle is quite bluntly fraudulent, especially if you want to reach high high ranks. If this was Tekken7 this asuka would be in green ranks, but we’re not in T7. These type of aggressive knowledge check matchups can be really triggering but this is where you really learn the nitty gritty aspect of Tekken with its large moveset. You will overtime build an instinctive defence against such playstyle, it will be annoying for you losing but remember to learn from it instead of brushing it aside. As they say, you gotta get washed to become clean

[@matheusalcantara573]

As a new player, getting mashed like that feels awful. BUT, it feels damn awesome when you finally pick up on a string and counter it, like sidestepping Drag's ignition switch, or ducking Hwoarang's 4,4,4,4. The reward feels worth the suffering lmao

[@oxygenabuser2924]

I think expanding on this concept with diff examples in the lab would be really informative

[@benryan9525]

Man thanks Phi I NEEDED this video. I had rage quit yesterday after dealing with way too much powercrush/armor spam. Like, it worked against me so who am I too complain, right? But it just felt so dirty lol 02:52 “Having the read isn’t enough”. Thank you for saying that. I can already start to feel out what kind of player I’m up against (new to tekken and just fighting games in general) and pre-emptively call out what they’re gonna do like try to powercrush at the start of a round or try to throw after a heat engage. But even though my intuition is improving and when what I believe will happen, happens, my brain is still too puny to do anything about it.

[@karanpatel8996]

While being patient is a good idea, you basically tried to answer all of her gimmicks without having any offense at all. And see how much you made the game stressful for yourself.

[@DD-fs7pg]

This is exactly what I expect from Asukas at this rank on 4 bar wifi. While not high tier, I think she's severely downplayed and underrated and especially in low and intermediate ranks because she has such strong turn stealer and defensive tools. While her offense isn't as crazy as others, she also a good rushdown/mix once she gets started. Mainman said something crazy like Tekken King is the same Tekken God Omega or Prime or something and I think that's crazy when you really look at the big picture. What he fails to understand is that people can get to decent ranks playing just rushdown, no defense or labbing, due to the balancing and system mechanics in T8, not to mention that the influx of new players has superficially boosted these rankings. This is why, even at blue ranks, you have such a wide variety of players who know next to nothing about the game besides how to rushdown and prevent their opponent from playing or they're godlike players with insane defense and matchup knowledge (likely from older Tekken games). If you need anymore proof, just look at the recent new players and streamers that have climbed to blue. A lot of them use knowledge checks and pure offense to do so, which I think is way more of an issue in T8 than other games due to the abundance of power crushes (into heat engagers)/turn stealers, heat in general, safer rage arts, and the same, if not worse, issues with movement. PhiDX even references Boxbox here and while I think he's a good player, better at fundamentals than others like Scarra (also has a safe armor move heat engager and turn stealing moves), he relies heavily on these mechanics and you can see why with a character like Asuka and it makes sense since he was specifically trying to learn to get to higher ranks, not necessarily getting better at Tekken which takes a long time of practice (he stated this as part of his reason for not labbing/improving his defense), but the problem here is that he has he same issue as this Bushin Asuka where he starts to plateau and struggle heavily against players that understand his playstyle, not just his character. It's not that these players aren't decent, they know combos and they know some basics but again, almost all of this knowledge is in the offensive part of Tekken 8, which can take you decently far.

[@qonra]

You're totally right, aggression in this game is just so handsomely rewarded that it will carry you far even if you lack in every other area.

[@alexandersze49]

I think what Phi didn’t emphasise enough here is the ability to adapt. He understand in game 1, he adjusts in game 2, and apply it properly in game 3 EDIT: Which is the basis of creating your strategy each game, so that you not only win against mashers you also win against countless different players. Especially since infinite rematch is gone.

[@jasno_]

love your Indepth tekken explanations but shorter vids and commentary of interesting sets is great too!

[@Choopachoopapa]

My boy is nearly at that big 100k letsgoooooooo, GOATED content as always

[@jchoi9340]

I didn’t know you played Steve. Super unexpected. That was an awesome analysis and comeback.

[@KageMaru10g]

As an Asuka player, I'm surprised by some of the unsafe moves this player was using, especially at that rank. Great fight and video!

[@EternalGold9898]

I don't know, some here in the comments are kind of pro player. Was the video rather not about a flawed gameplan. PhiDX adapted and played directly defensively? Why has it now become a bashing of the player's skill? From the last data, he is about one of the best percent. I don't know, the Dude took his L. Even if he "abused" (which is what the comments said) you shouldn't expect the top one percent in the world to be able to handle it, especially if he rematches. Especially he didn't cherry pick, he didn't stop after an L. Maybe I'm older but in the past when something was like a close match or someone got good. It was praised, now it feels like good players just get blamed straight away. I'm honest, if my gameplay was published and then not a small percentage bashed the skill, I don't know how I would react. My mood would certainly be more roxic with Tekken. What I want to say is that we should treat each other with respect :).

[@_zmyymz_]

during most of the 1st match you could b3(or4), 1+2 for the grab that switches position or pushes back, resets pressure in your favour and most mashers fall for a b1 or df1 (i just wanted to point out good use for an unutilised move)

[@kevincruz7958]

This was really good. I know you have to concentrate but even during the replay you can narrate your thought process.

[@dummyroll01]

Great games dude! Wonderful advice, too. Glad I found your channel 👌👌👌

[@Eskolol]

The one good thing about this type of play on the Asuka's part is that while you adapt, you can be pretty sure that she wont. Giving you the edge in the long run. :D

[@tyrellgiddeon5284]

This dude is a prophet! Nice Steve btw!

[@FlexBlur]

Le générique de fin est incroyable hahaha ♥

[@migz101199]

Just got to Shinryu because of your content. Best Tekken 8 content creator out there!