We all know why you’re here, you want to know what the best character in Street Fighter 6 is. That’s a much harder question now than it’s ever been. The glut of new players flooding into the game is going to complicate matters. In the old days, you could easily say a certain character had the most damage, or the fastest moveset, and be done with it. Now, some of you old-timers might just say “pick a top tier,” and be done with it. But despite the meme, there’s a few problems with that approach. Trying to find the best character in Street Fighter 6 relies on a combination of game knowledge and mechanical depth that new players just don’t have. Even though Capcom has spent a ton of time revamping the game and its tutorials to be friendly to newbies, there’s still a ton to learn.
For one thing, a lot of new players have never touched fighting games at all before Street Fighter 6, so they’re relying on Modern controls and a heaping helping of the tutorial systems to acclimate them to the game. That means they need a bit more help, and this guide is going to give them that. You may also want to check out our guide on Drive Impacts for a bit more help with mechanics.
Best Easy Characters in Street Fighter 6
First thing, we need to explain some terms. Modern controls is something we need to talk about, as are Motion/Classic controls. In the old days of fighting games, arcade sticks were the norm. You had to move the stick in a series of circular directions, then combine that motion with certain button presses to complete a move. A combo is a string of these inputs chained together in rapid succession. Classic is the complete moveset of a character, with all the challenge and versatility that offers. Modern is a much more streamlined version of controls that sacrifices damage output and move versatility for the sake of much easier inputs. Most brand-new players will be using Modern. The simpler a character’s moveset, the more likely a new player is to be effective with them in battle.
Frame data is something you might also hear a lot of in your time with Street Fighter 6. Every move in fighting games has frames of animation that it takes to startup, and additional frames it takes to complete. Some moves finish in 27 frames, others can take 40 or more. In very basic terms, whoever finishes their moves “ahead” of their opponent will be able to get the next move out faster. You might hear a move being “plus on block” a lot, for example. What this means is that move will put your character ahead of your opponent, even if they manage to block.
That’s the couple of things we really needed to cover, if there’s anything else, we’ll include it in the relevant section. With the necessary terms out of the way, let’s dig in.
Cammy – The Rushdown
If you’re looking for the lightning-quick nightmare with blonde hair and, ahem-assets, look no further than Cammy. She’s the most distilled “Rushdown” character that has ever graced SF. The term Rushdown describes her playstyle. Though she’s not doing a ton of damage per hit, she’s going to bury her opponent under a torrent of fast moves.
Cammy is a very straightforward character with little to complicate her play style. No special systems like Judo MEdals to worry about here, just a blitz of fast moves with incredible range. For all intents and purposes, Cammy may be one of the best characters in the game. Add in the simplicity of her inputs and her versatility, and you’ve got a potent mix of power. Cammy has incredible frame data as well, which for you new people means that many of her moves are faster than those of other characters. Most of her moves are plus on block by a couple of frames at minimum. This makes her ideal to apply pressure in combat. Much like Juri, Cammy is at her strongest when she is using her kicks to put a rapid series of light knocks on her target.
The biggest problem with Cammy is her lack of damage and need to get in close to deal with most fighters. She’s vulnerable to being outpaced in damage by the likes of Zangief, so you need to focus on patient play and careful use of pokes, then use your speed to get out of range, in order to win that matchup.
Luke – The All-Rounder
Luke debuted at the end of Street Fighter 5 as the final DLC character, but he makes his main roster debut here. He’s also clearly being setup by Capcom to be the new face of the franchise, so expect the time you put into learning his moves to pay off over the years. So why is he so good? Simplicity.
The simplicity of a fireball-throwing character like Luke is his strength. He has a variety of moves that allow him to control the match at any range. His standing punches allow him to both close distance while threatening, and also allow him to chip away at his opponent. Though some of his moves aren’t the fastest, he has a solid mix of fast-paced Light attacks to thread into his arsenal as well. His inputs even on Classic controls are nothing to be concerned about either. Combos with this character can easily be learned in a few hours.
Luke’s biggest challenge, and the thing that may hold him back from being the best character in Street Fighter 6, is that he doesn’t quite excel at anything. His defense is probably his biggest weakness. Where Cammy has multiple aerial attacks to hit opponents from several angles, Luke is lacking in a few key defensive areas. Sure, he has some anti-airs and other tools, but he’s not the most tanky character able to play a true “turtle” game.
Marisa – The Tanky Powerhouse
Marisa is one of those characters that seems intimidating, but once you learn how she works, you’ll love her. What Marisa lacks in speed, she makes up for with a very potent combo of easy inputs and MASSIVE damage. She rivals some of the best characters in the game like Zangief in terms of damage output. And her Armor mechanics are a huge boon for blowing through your opponent’s offense. Once you’ve masted the use of her combo strings, you can easily overpower most fighters in the game by simply ignoring their attacks and blasting them in the face with her huge fists.
And if you can combine her moveset with effective use of the Drive Impact and Drive Rush systems, her simple combos are positively lethal. The trick is getting the timing down with the use of her Armor, but even that’s not too hard.
Her biggest issue is that she lacks many long-range options, making closing in and dealing damage vital to winning. New players will have a tougher time against the likes of Dhalsim and JP due to their heavy focus on zoning, or keeping their opponent at a set distance.
