You can do anything you want with this FAQ AS LONG AS YOU DON'T
ALTER IT
OR PUBLISH IT WITHOUT GIVING ME CREDIT!
Special Thanks: My younger brother Ferdy for beating the crap out of me
so many times I had to get good at it to keep up, my parents who force
me to play only on weekends(being time restrained forces you to make the
best of it!), Arika(for creating Kairi, which will be covered by my
brother in another FAQ, keep posted!), and Capcom(duh). Oh yeah, and
also God(the MAN!).
Version History:
0.1: FAQ created
0.2: Added lots of strategy and improved info on normal moves
Contents:
1. Glossary
1. Who's M. Bison anyway?
1. Basic Moves and Strategies
1. Special Moves and Strategies
1. Super Combos and Strategies
1. Guard Breaker and Strategies
1. Cool Strategies
1. Overall Tips
1. GLOSSARY
p: Any punch button
k: Any kick button
f: Forward(the direction, not the kick)
d/f: Down/Forward(offensive crouch)
d: Down
d/b: Down/Back(defensive crouch)
b: Back
u/b: Up/Back(jump back)
u: Up(jump up)
u/f: Up/forward(jump forward)
ch: Charge(hold a direction for 1 second)
360: A full rotation of the controller(not used, just so you know)
3p: All punch buttons
3k: All kick buttons
DP: Dragon Punch motion(f, d, d/f+x)
HK: Hadoken(d, d/f, f+x)
R: Reverse(as in R DP= Make a Dragon punch backward(b, d, d/b+x))
2. WHO'S M. BISON ANYWAY?
If you don't know the answer to this question already, you should be
dragged to your backyard and shot in the head. Anyway, M. Bison is the
all powerful leader of the criminal organization Shadoloo(or Shadowlaw,
but I prefer the other spelling). His organization does everything, from
drug dealing, to bribing military officials into its service, to
kidnapping warriors to turn them into soldiers. Members of Shadoloo
include Vega, Balrog, Cracker Jack(which is introduced in SFEX+A, by
the
way), and Birdie(at least for a while, anyway). Nobody knows Bison's
origin, where he was born, how he became the leader of Shadoloo, or
where he got his powers(although its hinted in Street Fighter Alpha 2
that Rose and Bison have a common past, maybe they studied under the
same master or something). Bison uses in battle what is called Psycho
Power. This is evident in his glowing hands and his patented Psycho
Crusher. Apparently at present time(Street Fighter 3), Bison is dead.
Many people could have done it(Chun-Li, Guile, And Akuma being the
main
suspects), but then again, maybe he's just hiding and waiting for the
best moment to resurface. Bison has fought many powerful opponents, the
most prominent which are Ryu(another character which if you don't know
you deserve to die), Guile(the Machine!), Akuma(evil incarnate),
Rose(Supah Dupah Babe), Chun-Li(the strongest woman in the world),
Dorai(Chun-Li's father, whom we sadly never see in a game),
Charlie(Guile's best friend, and the reason Guile hates Bison so much),
and many more. I'm still not sure of Bison's reasons for fighting in the
EX tournament(i.e. I haven't beaten the game with him yet) but I'll
update the FAQ as soon as I do.
3. BASIC MOVES
I won't go into detail on blocking and doing punches and kicks because
you should know this by now, and if you don't, there are more FAQs on
this game which can tell you. I'll just give a summary of the basic
punches and kicks and strategies for their use. Please note that most of
Bison's normal moves two-in-one(that is, all can be joined to a special)
and all of them Super Cancel(can be joined to a Super). That's good news!
Jab: Bison actually has a pretty fast jab in this version of the game.
It isn't very good to tick(pressure enemies with a constant barrage of
them) unless you do the crouching version. The jumping version is a
great jump-in, with very good priority. Against Ryu, it hits his
standing strong about half the time, and the other half it trades.
Strong: The standing version is your average straight punch. It isn't
worth squat as an anti-air move, but the crouching version is the best
move to join to a special or Super. As a jump-in, it has great priority.
Fierce: This is probably the punch you'll be using the most. It's very
fast for a fierce punch, it's his best anti-air(next to the Psycho
Cannon, but we'll get to that later), his best jump-in(looks just like
the strong, but has amazing priority), and can be joined to a special or
Super(cancel the standing fierce into a Knee Press Nightmare for a nasty
looking combo which will make your opponent cry!).
Short: A pretty decent kick which is primarily used to hit your
opponents' limbs. The crouching version is a good two-in-one/cancel, but
you'll probably only two-in-one with it, since you want the move to
cancel with a little slower than a short(so you have a little more to do
the combination for the super). It's a very poor jump-in, so don't use
it as such.
Forward: A straight kick with very good range. It's great to tick with
because of its long range, and the crouching version is almost as good
as the crouching strong to two-in-one/cancel. It's a very poor jump in
too(in fact, all of Bison's kicks are poor jump-ins).
Roundhouse: A good ranged, pretty fast kick. The crouching version is
Bison's slide, which in this game has great speed and short recovery
time. Still don't abuse it. The standing version is a great two-in-
one/cancel, as well as a great anti-air move from far away. In my first
version of this FAQ, I said that the canceling
ability of the roundhouse slide was worthless,
but it isn't so. Do a roundhouse slide at
maximum slide range from the opponent. As
soon as you touch your opponent, and if you
expect them to sweep your "mistimed" slide,
quickly cancel into a Knee Press Nightmare.
If they tried to hit you out of your slide, they
will eat Super!
Punch Grab(f+Strong/Fierce): Bison flips the opponent over his shoulder.
It's a good move
to do to a blocking opponent, but I personally like the kick grab
better.
Kick Grab(f+Forward/Roundhouse): Bison kicks his opponent, raises him
with one leg, and slams
him against the ground. This grab does good damage, looks nasty, and if
timed correctly can be joined to a roundhouse for a two-hit combo! Even
better, if you are insanely good, you can cancel the roundhouse to a
Psycho Cannon for huge damage!
4. SPECIAL MOVES AND STRATEGIES
This will focus on Bison's special moves. Bison's moves are all done by
charging(except his warp), so he's a very defensive character. Yet his
defense is what makes him so formidable! Also, you can use him
offensively, and his powerful moves are great for combos and always
leave you back on defense. Sadly, Bison's specials are extremely hard to
Super Cancel, but you don't need to. His overall game is enough. But I'm
getting ahead of myself. Let's take a look at the specials, shall we?
Psycho Crusher
Ch b, f+p.
Bison propels himself forward engulfed in flames, with his hands
pointing ahead. This is mostly used in combos or to hit ground moves
which miss. Another use is when the opponent tries to jump in. As soon
as you see your opponent start his jump, and if he is between close and
half-screen range, do the Psycho Crusher and Bison will fly underneath
the opponent, changing sides. This is great when you are cornered or
when the opponent is getting very aggressive. This will also make the
opponent confused for a moment, and
possibly make him feel stupid.
Double Knee-Press
Ch b, f+k.
Bison does a forward flip ending with a kick which hits the opponent two
times. This is a move which should only be used in combos, since missing
with it leaves you wide open for retaliation. Not Bison's best move.
Besides, every time you can use a Double Knee Press, you can do a
Psycho
Crusher instead.
Head-Press
Ch d, u+k.
Bison flies toward the opponent and smacks him/her on the head with a
stomp. If your opponent is not an Uppercut Brother(i.e. not a Ryu/Ken
clone) you can do this move almost with impunity. After doing a Head-
Press you can press p to do the Somersault Skull Diver, in which
Bison flips backward and hits his opponent with a punch before landing.
I don't recommend doing it a lot, because you can easily get hit out of
the Skull Diver. A better alternative to the Skull Diver is, after doing
the Head-Press, redirecting your flight. Doing a Head-Press and holding
back will make Bison fly back, placing you far away from the opponent
and in a charging position. If the opponent tries to jump in afterward,
you're charged, so you can easily punish his jump in with a Psycho
Cannon! Another strategy is directing your flight back, but at the last
minute flying forward with the Skull Diver. This catches a lot of people
by surprise.
Bison Warp
DP or R DP+3p/3k.
Bison teleports away from danger. The direction you do the combination
in controls(duh!) the direction Bison warps to. Pressing punch or kick
controls the distance. This is Bison's best and most annoying defensive
move. It really ticks of people when they go for a jump in and as soon
as they are gonna hit you vanish into thin air! Doing many warps in a
row and in different directions is a great confusion tactic, and makes
the opponent anxious to jump in, which gives you a chance to(you guessed
it!) punish him with the Psycho Cannon.
5. SUPER COMBOS AND STRATEGIES
Finally, the part of the FAQ you've been waiting for! This is where I
describe the wondrous properties of the Psycho Cannon and the usefulness
of the Knee-Press Nightmare. Welcome to the jungle, baby, you're going
to DIIIIIEEEE!
Psycho Cannon
Ch b, f, b, f+. Hold p to increase the size and number of hits.
As you can already tell, this is Bison's best move. Bison shouts "PSYCHO
CANNON!", charges an energy ball, and all hell breaks loose. Use this to
counter fireballs from close range and Super Fireballs from mid range.
The best use for this Super is as an air counter. Wait till your
opponent jumps in, and as soon as his/her jump-in its about to hit start
the move and hold the punch button. If done correctly, the opponent will
be bounced back by the first hit/s of the Psycho Cannon. Now just wait
for him/her to start falling an let go the punch button. Bison will let
the Cannon go and it will hit the opponent as he/she's coming down for
HUGE AND NASTY DAMAGE! I've
gotten up to SIXTEEN HITS with this
tactic! Be aware that it is NOT a good idea
to do a Psycho Cannon offensively(unless it
is in a Super Cancel combo, which is HARD
to do), because just doing it with no charge
does puny damage, and if you're charging,
anyone can just sweep you and make you
feel like a dork for wasting a whole super
energy block(and trust me, in this Street
Fighter more than any other Street Fighter,
this is something you just can't risk).
Knee-Press Nightmare
Ch b, f, b, f+k.
Bison laughs as he flips forward two times, kicks the opponent into the
air, and starts hitting the poor bastard in mid-air. Although the weaker
of Bison's Supers, this move is still quite powerful and is great to hit
an opponent while he/she is stuck in a ground move. Nasty combo: Do a
jump-in fierce, followed by a standing fierce, canceled into a Knee-
Press Nightmare. I've had people let go of the controller in frustration
after this combo! If you want a Super to use
offensively, this is the Super of choice. If you
hit it, good for you! If you don't, you won't be
left open, so it's pretty safe either way. You
may be asking yourself "This guy says not to
waste an Energy Block if you're gonna miss
the Psycho Cannon, but that it's OK to do it
with the Knee Press Nightmare. What's with
that?", right? Well, the Psycho Cannon, if
missed, can endanger you with a COMBO. A
missed Knee Press Nightmare does not. Got it?
6. GUARD BREAKER AND STRATEGIES
Bison's Guard Breaker(press any punch and kick of the same strength and
at the same time) is a pretty useless technique, and a waste of one
Super Energy block. Still, it has its use: making people look bad! Try
this NASTY looking combo as an example: do a Guard Breaker as the
opponent is in the air. If you are able to land it, the opponent will be
bounced high into the air. As he/she's coming down, jump toward him/her
with a jump-in fierce. Quickly after landing, and before he/she has
landed, do a crouching fierce two-in-oned into a Head-Press. It may not
do a lot of damage, but it's a crowd pleaser! If by some miracle you do
land the Guard Breaker on the ground, do a Guard Breaker if the opponent
is a Turtle or if you are absolutely sure you're gonna hit.
7. COOL STRATEGIES
These are tried-and-true strategies I have developed to make Bison the best
he can be. Use them well and don't teach them(keep all the good ass-
kicking moves for yourself! Bwahahahaha!).
-Warp a lot. I mean A LOT. This will piss off your opponent like no other
strategy can. Pissed off players can not concentrate, and they go way
offensive. Since Bison's moves are all defensive, Bison is luring the
enemy into a trap.
-Bison has a good throw range, so throw often. Don't try this against
certain characters, though. This is a stupid strategy to follow if your
opponent is Zangief or Darun, since they rely on close range. You'll be
eating the Final Atomic Buster in no time if you play ` Gief. Also, don't
try it against Dhalsim. He has a huge throw range, and in a battle he will
always beat you to the throw.
-If you're out of the opponent's range, and he's not charged up, do a few
Double Knee Presses to charge your Super Meter.
-Any missed ground move should be punished with the Psycho Crusher. If
you know how to, however, do the Double Knee Press canceled into a
Knee Press Nightmare instead. No THAT'S a counter!
-Laugh when Bison laughs. No, really. This will freak out your opponent
sometimes, since you show extreme confidence this way.
-Stick out a standing Short from time to time at close range. This snuffs a
lot of ground attacks with its high priority. Also try it with the low jab(this
is great on opponents who like to sweep).
-I bet you have heard this one a million times, but here it goes again. If you
knock down the opponent down, walk near him and suddenly walk back. If
the opponent was going for a wake-up Special or Super, you'll block it.
Retaliate appropriately.
-Try not to jump a lot, one of Bison's only weaknesses is his jump is very
short.
-If you know you're out of it's range, jump forward so that
Ryu/Ken/Akuma/Allen/Kairi's Shoryuken misses. Punish them hard when
they come back down! Watch out for Akuma and Kairi, though, they have
mid-air Supers!
-Final and most important: Have fun! It's only a game! If you let a defeat
get to you, you'll never become better. Just sigh, walk away, train a little,
come back, and KICK ASS!
8. OVERALL TIPS
Bison is one of(if not THE) most powerful characters in SFEX+A. His
basic moves are well balanced and excel on defense, he has great
specials for offensive and defensive purposes, and his Supers are
brutally effective and can utterly destroy his opponent. Bison is best
played on defense, countering any missed attacks and punishing jump-ins
with his normal moves and Psycho Cannon. He can easily escape pressure
with his Head-Press an Bison Warp. He can confidently jump in with his
great punches, and two-in-one and cancel his way into brutal combos.
Bottom line, defense until you have at least one Super Bar filled, then
it's your call.
Well, that's it for my FAQ. I don't have an e-mail address anymore, so
you'll have to be patient until I get a new one. See ya soon!
