It's Ash! Officially! I feel like I've been prepping for this day for the entire year, like-we knew he'd be back, but seeing him back, and then seeing his trailer, finally cinched it all into place. It's been ages since Chris' trailer, and for awhile I was starting to get some serious fatigue on getting only XIV returns, and craved a pre XIV return. And we got him. Boy, did we.
ANYWAY, it already welcomed him back, now let's break down his trailer!
Just look at this glorious bastard.
So while it might be far, far too early to tell anything concrete, of course, we can at least take a look-see onto maybe what this new system could potentially do for the guy.
Just for a quick sidetrack: Lets first take a look at the stage: it's pretty gorgeous. I admit I'm kinda biased here, living in Northern Europe and usually getting crap in regards to fighting game stages in games(we got the Santa Village stage in TTT2), and while you CAN see Northern Lights in more places than just the far north(You can see them at the northern borders of Central Europe as well), I'm pretty happy we're getting...something that resembles kind of close to where I live. (I have no idea what country this is. It could just as well be the northern edge of Germany or the Netherlands as it can one of the Northern European countries.) So this could be interesting at least given that it looks like his team is tied to it(whoever that is, will discuss at the end.)
As for his moves, it runs down a fair few standard Ash moves which are still intact from previous versions; he does have a new teleport move which looks pretty damn fast at a glance, and I almost thought his j. CD was a new move at first glance, but it feels like they ever so slightly revamped the animation to look more like a kick than the arm swipe. Which I kinda like better to be honest?
His EX Pluviose (Level 2) super has an added hit at the end with the extra kick for a nice flair. It also feels like it ends with the opponent being close enough that something else can be added to it? Like it doesn't look like Iori drops all that far away at all. That said it may be too much recovery, BUT this could mean a lot of meaty setup potential(that can get really ugly with Blue Max increased damage and guard crush.)
Nivose itself as we see is still going to AA you and this time he'll have access to an EX Nivose at any given time for only half a bar, rather than a full bar, so that's more added fun. And whatever's up with that climax hitbox? I'm pretty sure the rule vs. Ash is just going to be ''Don't Jump.''
...The last time a hitbox was seen this big was some 90s nonsense and this is bigger than that. (I'd be praying for Adel's God Press I-frames right now.)
They DID cut off the end of that climax though-I kinda hope it ends with a big Nivose or something at the end to give it a big impact, or at least something that gives it more impact since a couple of the climaxes have ended a little lightly(like Shun'ei's.)
I think a few of his animations do lean on the stiff side, but I'm not too concerned at the moment since they have improved things on other animations so far, and still a WIP, etc. I don't seem to see as much stiffness as some, but I do see some? I'm just not registering it as heavily somehow.
Ash *himself* looks freaking amazing. The detail on his jeans(jeans, I know), the boots, the leather and the fur. He still looks like he does not care at all about you when fighting, knowing he's probably more powerful than you anyway(yeah guys like it or not this prettyboy can probably take apart half the KOF cast, deal with it.) They even went as far as to detail his specific nails with different designs, which is a fantastic, and very extra/Ash-like, level of detail:
In the end we're getting Ash, but I feel like he may be able to drop into this new system rather nicely. While we haven't gotten to see matches, and only have the website and some of the initial trailer to go on, there's some things I feel that lean toward positive with him.
So what I have on my mind is first this blue max mode:
This mode, on anchor, lasts a long time. It's description on the site reads how you can activate for two bars, and for the duration, a characters attack and Guard Crush strength increases. Now I'm imagining Sans-Culotte in this mode and it's actually pretty terrifying. In XIII it was kept in check by doing piddly damage. I do not think it's going to be doing as piddly damage in this. While it's hard to say I'm wondering if Ash can activate Blue Max, activate a lower-cost S-C, go into his shenanigans with a damage boost, and activate it again in that time period? Will he have enough time? Supers don't end that Blue Max mode, only Climaxes do, so that will certainly be interesting.
Can S-C interact with Red Max mode? That seems to end on super in Clark's trailer(we don't know enough there yet, either), but here I think it might depend on how long S-C lasts. Can he pop S-C, get a quick max hit and then start going into shenanigans? I feel like S-C would be stronger the other way due to the damage boost but it's worth considering how it can interact.
I also feel that he's just going to have strong specials with being able to fire them off cheaper with half-bar EX's. Having access to a half dozen easy EX Nivose's will probably highly deter jumping in(even the non-EX ones do that), and we know what can happen in a KOF game when someone gets very good AA's at their disposal. With his damage likely better this time around(just a gut feeling), this could be a rather intense version of our sneering troll.
In any case, at the end of the month at TGS we're going to have a 50 minute rundown, in which I have no idea what we're going to get. The rest of the roster? A Beta announcement? The rest of Ash's team? Some live matches? I have no idea, I hope it's at least some of the above.
Ash's team?
Ash's team, IMHO, has the most variance of any other team right now. I'm going to sorta go over each possibility, and then the ''But...'' along with it as a counterpoint, since all the apparent members have that, too. Also keep in mind his stage: this stage is not a stage that fits just everyone. Also, he returned in the Carpathian Mountains, which are not typically places that you see the Northern Lights in, unless they took some geographical liberties(which they very well may have.) But still, see above-I feel like we're looking at a stage somewhere in the north part of Europe(Northern Germany), or further up, possibly.
Keep in mind for these guesses, I am assuming memories are going to be jogged. He has the Treasure powers, and as such I feel like they are going to be handwaving away any memory loss for ease of storytelling, so they don't have like, a couple people running around with knowledge, and a bunch of people not, and one with partial knowledge in terms of Heidern since he saw his name on the list, and so on.
Elisabeth Blanctorche: Betty is, without a doubt, a most likely 2nd teammate. After the ending, in the manga, it's her best childhood friend, those heartrending pictures in XIII endings that made everyone shed Kenshiro levels of tears. She's most likely, IMO, going to be with him. She's also the rival of Ash Saga, and they seem keen on building up Protags and Rivals on teams in this game(in the case of XIV, on other teams, but the XIV rivals haven't, erm, 'de-rivaled' yet.) It is hard to picture a scenario without her being on his team right now, admittedly.
But...
There is a scenario where Ash may not want to expose Betty to potential dangers, and ends up teaming with two different people. This could be Heidern and Adel, it could be Duo Lon and Shen, but there's a chance that he goes off on his own, even if it's less likely.
Kukri: An oft picked 3rd member of his team thanks to XIV's ending, I could see this happening if they go directly *from* XIV's ending. That being said, we don't quite know exactly how long it's been since XIV, how tied to Ash or Betty Kukri truly is(was it just a job? Was there more?), or what. He just seemed to, at the time, be an easy guess.
But...
As said, I'm really not sure how much connection he truly has. Plus, the rival team had changed my mind. His decorations are similar to Glasses Lady's decorations, and the fact in XIV he was set up as Shun'eis first rival-they had a theme and everything-lets me think that he may well be on the Rival Team as a 3rd instead, if they don't get a newcomer and he's in. But right now, I feel like hints are pointing further away from this one. Also, with TGS coming up this month, I feel like he's not going to really be hype enough to put there-and if he's 2nd, then Betty's guess would probably come too easy(and if Kukri is with Ash, I can't see anyone other than Betty there.) Plus, he's not from the Ash Saga, and I *almost* feel like they want to place three Ash Saga characters on this team(unless Heidern does not have his own team.)
Oswald: Oswald is another common pick, since he was with Ash in XI(More of an alliance of convenience), and he has a XIV model. Which are decent enough reasons. It would get Oswald back in to maybe get some story, and he'd probably get on alright with Elisabeth. Not really much to say here that's too deep, all in all? He'd make a pretty easy slot in for this, plus he's liked enough to bring back, I'd say, even if he falls behind some of the heavier hitters of Ash Saga like Shen, Duo Lon, or Adel.
But...
Well, exactly that. There's nothing much here. Again, his XI appearance seemed to be a thing of convenience(he needed the Dragon Pills so he needed money), but his appearance in XIV wasn't actually canon, so he's sort of on flimsy ground. Arguably flimsier ground than Kukri in ways. He'd basically need a reason to come back after XI's mess, which they could write, but I feel like his spot is far from guaranteed, and I feel like people are picking him on basis of ''Has a Model'' instead of ''Actually has a solid story with the characters.'' Which I'll be honest-I'm not sure if they're going to do this time. It's definitely a 'But.' He also, finally, barely knows Elisabeth. Ash would have little reason to contact him, I think, and I'm not sure why Elisabeth would contact him over someone more tied to the plot.
Shen Woo: Shen is a very well requested and well-liked character, who has a background in the entire Ash Saga from start to finish(and if they wanted to keep the team Ash Saga related, it would work.) He teamed with Ash twice, and finally in XIII he was on the Rival Team with Betty and Duo Lon. He could end up being tied in somewhere with this crew again; Maybe Betty contacts him, maybe she contacts both him and Duo Lon and Shen was free to come, maybe Shen finds out he's alive again, but there's definitely a lot of grounding with this guy to easily fit on this team. Hell, in the event Betty isn't there, it's a small, but not impossible, chance they reassemble 03 Hero Team, though I feel like the stage is pointing against that at the moment.
But...
He may have some beef with Ash after XI, and usually Shen likes to beat someone up first before the beef is gone. *That* said, he seemed quite respectful toward Elisabeth in the end, so I don't think this would come into play. I think his biggest disadvantage is just 'no model', so I'd wonder. Plus I wonder if they'd want him on a DLC Dragon Spirit team. But all in all he doesn't have many negatives.
Adelheid Bernstein: My boy does have quite a lot of story here to be potentially on his team, as well as being a well liked and requested pick. For one, it was Ash that gave him the hints necessary that had he and Heidern working together to solve the issue with Rose Stadium. He'd know Heidern(if he's on the team), or Betty(if she's on the team; He was XI's midboss, and Rivals won that tournament, which had Duo Lon, Elisabeth and Benimaru, so they'd probably have had to get past him at some point. He was the other protagonist of Ash Saga as that has been mentioned a lot(Dev's own words), and that would stick with the ''Heroes of all Sagas'' bit. He's ALSO got beef with Those from the Past, who Ash could probably point him at, and given Heidern's involvement with finding Ash, there could be a request *from him* to join Ash's team. Finally, Ash, Betty, and Adel would cover Ash Saga the best, I feel, with Protag, Rival, and Co-Protag. So it's definitely a viable team with more angles than a lot of the other ones mentioned.
But...
Well, his narrative ties are good, but some feel that the 'was in XIV' is more of an advantage. Plus, if Heidern has his own team, I do think he'd have priority there than with Ash(Again, like I feel like Shen would have more priority on a Dragon Spirit DLC team.) Like Shen, he doesn't have too many negatives, though-I'd say the 'More Likely on Heidern's team if he has his own' thing is the biggest.
Duo Lon: Another character with a lot of ties to Ash, he won XI, possibly won XIII with Rivals(as well as Shen and Betty), they were the ones who fought Dark Ash. His ties to the Ash Saga run pretty deep, even though his whole thing is more going vs. Ron. He, like Shen, seemed to respect Elisabeth's greeting, and it was clear by the end Duo Lon was more against Saiki and Dark Ash than Ash himself. So while I feel like he's one of the weaker chances, I don't think I can rule him out. He'd also be an 'Ash Saga Third,' if they wanted to keep the team all Ash Saga. He gets along fine with Elisabeth, if she were the 2nd.
But...
Much like Shen, I feel like if they're bringing him back, it's going to be more of an anti-Ron team than a 3rd on this team; so the aforementioned Dragon Spirit team, or a Hizoku team(more than likely the former.) Really that and the 'it seems people think it will be people from XIV despite that being less hype' are leaning against it.
Heidern: Heidern is not an impossibility here; see the entire thing I wrote with Adelheid above, and he was the one who saw Ash's name appear on the list, and as such started the investigation into him. He may well have wanted to hitch his wagon with him(especially if that final team is attached to a South Beach oriented team, like Fatal Fury or Garou.) Plus if he's on another team, this team has a lot more open spots than K's, which I feel has about two paths right now, at best. The third could vary(Betty, Adel, the latter harkening back to the XIII plot vs. Those from the past, and Adel's got more ties to that plot directly.) The Ikaris made a pretty big showing in this saga, as well, and he was one of the 'In XIV' characters.
But...
Well, I do think him getting his own team has a better chance, like I said(depending again on that beach stage's situation, if it belongs to the last team, is it free floating, or whatnot.) Plus, if they wanted to keep this team Ash Saga related, Heidern, even though the Ikaris made a bit showing IN this saga, isn't from this saga. But all in all he doesn't have bad reasoning to be here, if he ended up not on his own team.
SO yeah. That's my breakdown of who I think Ash's potentials are, their plausibility, and possibilities why they may not be, as well.
Alrighty, that's it for this long-winded blog. I can't wait, dude's going into my main crew I think since I have a feeling even just judging by this trailer he's going to be mad fun to play in this and potentially one of his strongest showings in terms of sheer power level, to boot, which is win/win. Can't wait to see more of him!
'til next time, hoping for someone else I really want to get announced...
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