Link Social Thread

[Soldner Kei]

checked out 2.6 Link... vs CPU thou... it feels great, I like rangs range, I can have people where I want, at mid-range, that way I can retreat or go full charge... something that I couldn't do so often in 2.5

is it me or his Utilt has more range now? anyway, loving how he plays so far...

 

[MysteryRevengerson]

Not gonna lie, Link's sword definitely looks longer in general, as does the majority of his moves.

/NotALinkMainJustObservant

 

[RomeDogg]

I like his Claw shot change although it wasn't really necessary but I hate his new rang because of its trajectory and distance. They should have just reverted it to his Demo 2.1 Rang or Melee rang if it was such a problem with the addition of not catching it in the air. If it wasn't broke why fix it? I disliked the bomb trajectory since the get go but lived with it. This is too much though. Its like PM is switching the rolls of his rang and bombs with each other. So I personally think I am going to drop Link asides from in Melee or I will just stick to playing Demo 2.5B with friends instead. I understand changing some things but at times I think it is going overboard.

 

[Hylian]

I like his Claw shot change although it wasn't really necessary but I hate his new rang because of its trajectory and distance. They should have just reverted it to his Demo 2.1 Rang or Melee rang if it was such a problem with the addition of not catching it in the air. If it wasn't broke why fix it? I disliked the bomb trajectory since the get go but lived with it. This is too much though. Its like PM is switching the rolls of his rang and bombs with each other. So I personally think I am going to drop Link asides from in Melee or I will just stick to playing Demo 2.5B with friends instead. I understand changing some things but at times I think it is going overboard.

Notice in most of peoples recently 2.5 tier lists Link has been near the bottom of all of them? Link was great in 2.1, but this was 100% because of how powerful his rang was. It was a braindead move that you just threw out and could combo if it hit halfway across the stage from because of it's knockback/stun/angle etc. 2.5 this was changed for design purposes, but 2.5 rang was next to useless considering it often did more work for links opponent than himself, there just wasn't enough reward to compensate for the risk. Because of this, many people realized other flaws in links game that were previously covered by his broken 2.1 rang. He's always had trouble dealing with pressure regardless of rang and been pretty good against characters that have short range and have a hard time avoiding his grab. We wanted to push his design more towards a versatile mid-range fighter than a character who is sub-par at pretty much everything aside from off the stage play and juggling. Several of his tools effectively did the same thing and we felt out of all his projectiles changing his rang would help this design philosophy the most. Link still has fairly good long-range tools, and close-up options, but he really shines mid-range now with great set-ups and quick defense, this helps tremendously with his problems against fast pressure characters while giving him several new tools/options to explore in most match-ups and unpolarizing his combo/grab game.

I implore you to be creative in your play and not just fall back on familiar habits. Using rang like 2.1/2.5 won't work for you. I very strongly feel that link has a much better solid place in the cast now in terms of match-ups. Keep in mind that all of links changes were doing with a set goal in mind, things weren't just looked at individually.

 

[666blaziken]

Yeah, I don't Sakurai ever wanted a competitive scene for Brawl in the first place.

And the idea of Brawl players picking up PM sounds too good to be true.

Actually I used to be a brawl player, and when I found out about project M, It became my favorite video game of all time. It wasn't that Sakurai didn't want it to be competitive, he just wanted a different enviornment to be competitive in (yes, the tripping is bad, but not THAT bad) and he dissapointed fans with it. In the next smash bros, he already got rid of tripping, he brought megaman into the next one, and the game might be a mix between melee and brawl. I love the new 2.6 link and his boomerang. I also love using metaknight in 2.6 even though I am not very good with him yet.

 

[RomeDogg]

His rang change takes away an insane amount of set ups and utility. His old rang was good for controlling space and u Could use it at mid range. His boomerang rebound hit during space control was good for set ups too. The slower rang forced opponents to move where u wanted them too depending on how u used it. Look at Anikis Link for god sake. All the characters have bad match ups thats no excuse to screw up his playstyle. I thought the idea of PM was to stay true to the veterans playstyles with somewhat subtle buffs. They could have simply reduced the start up speed by a fair amount and tweaked the knockback & hitstun with the removal of aerial rang catching. I mean for this seeming small change makes him play nothing like his melee self so i really is a big screw up. But whatever im not using link anymore he is ruined bad.

 

[Hylian]

I thought the idea of PM was to stay true to the veterans playstyles with somewhat subtle buffs.

Where exactly did you hear this?

I'm sorry your playstyle was messed up, have fun with other characters. The rang changes add far more set-ups/utility than 2.5 rang, not really sure how you can argue this, but whatever.

 

[Dng3]

His rang change takes away an insane amount of set ups and utility. His old rang was good for controlling space and u Could use it at mid range. His boomerang rebound hit during space control was good for set ups too. The slower rang forced opponents to move where u wanted them too depending on how u used it. Look at Anikis Link for god sake. All the characters have bad match ups thats no excuse to screw up his playstyle. I thought the idea of PM was to stay true to the veterans playstyles with somewhat subtle buffs. They could have simply reduced the start up speed by a fair amount and tweaked the knockback & hitstun with the removal of aerial rang catching. I mean for this seeming small change makes him play nothing like his melee self so i really is a big screw up. But whatever im not using link anymore he is ruined bad.

I'm sure you'll regret giving up on Link later once you see videos of how much better he plays in 2.6. I for one hope this new rang stays and we don't get any more adjustments, maybe to the animation but that's just aesthetics.

 

[BRLNK88]

I'm liking the new rang so far, overall he feels much more fluid, and he combos better with it.
Sacrificing the range for speed seems like a good trade-off, hitting with it at low percents now often leads to a grab on many characters.

 

[Heero Yuy]

The only problem I have with the 2.6 rang is that I can't mindgame at all with it due to the shorter range. On the other hand, to throw in my penny on RomeDogg's post, playing like Aniki these days doesn't really seem to get anyone anywhere, longer rang or not. 2.6 Link has so many more options for aggression that where comboing has never been easier for him.

 

[RomeDogg]

Like also if they made its range only slightly shorter yet it returned alot faster like it does now then the utility of it in older versions and in melee wouldnt be lost yet it would still be usefull for its new purpose too.

 

[Ninjamo]

I will say that the new rang still throws me off sometimes. With the old rang I got really used to using its return to knock the opponent toward me or in conjunction with another ranged attack. It's bit harder to do now, but then I could just be a bad Link.

 

[B.W.]

I already nitpicked the rang before release. I still don't like it, it just rubs me wrong. It's definitely a better move like this, buuuuut I still don't like it.

What bothers me even more though is that animation. For serious, why does he throw it like that now? Looks gross.

 

[Xenozoa425]

I don't like 2.6 Link at all. He feels extremely awkward to play as now. And the new boomerang is just plain awful imo, most of my little tech chases, combos, and mind games don't work with it anymore as well, if not at all. I much prefer the 2.5 version over the new one. And the throwing animation. Seriously.

 

[Sarix]

The range of the new boomerang will take time to get used to but overall it is definitely a strong tool that requires intelligent planning to follow up on and maximize its utility. I find the shorter range combined with the improved speed makes it much more reliable in neutral game given how well it controls the space in front of Link and can make the opponent's approach riskier. It also makes for some relatively disgusting zoning traps in tandem with his other projectiles/clawshot which makes me particularly happy .

This current iteration of Link in 2.6 definitely will have more flexible play style options especially with offensive play with an improved pressure game and mobility to allow him to handle high speed rushdown and pressure more effectively.

 

[ClinkStryphart]

While I like the new style of Link idk what it is about him. Does he feel heavier than he did before to anyone else? Again I think the new style would fit Link fine but he feels heavier than from the previous version. Maybe my game is messed up or something but in all honesty he does feel heavier. I want to know if my SD card is going bad or maybe something didnt install right because he does feel wierd Not the rang because I watched vids/ Streams on that but just his overall weight.

 

[Sarix]

While I like the new style of Link idk what it is about him. Does he feel heavier than he did before to anyone else? Again I think the new style would fit Link fine but he feels heavier than from the previous version. Maybe my game is messed up or something but in all honesty he does feel heavier. I want to know if my SD card is going bad or maybe something didnt install right because he does feel wierd Not the rang because I watched vids/ Streams on that but just his overall weight.

I've been playing P:M again since 2.6 came out and his weight and falling speed didn't feel changed to me. I don't really see a reason for the P:M dev team to increase his weight or falling speed since most of his problems were speed and mobility related which weight doesn't really affect. I have no idea what the cause could be.

 

[Deleted member]

Why does the boomerang make or break the entire character for some people? Other than the boomerang's distance, everything else about 2.6 Link is the same or superior to 2.5 Link. He's faster, his sword hitboxes are finally fixed, the new Clawshot trajectory is awesome, and even the "terrible" boomerang adds to the improved smoothness of the character. Because it returns more quickly and doesn't force Link to pause to catch it, he's able to throw it out again much more quickly. I don't understand how all that amounts to him feeling awkward.

As soon as you get over your old habits of trying to pester the opponent by throwing the boomerang from aaaall the way across the stage, you'll be able to focus on how much better he feels. If you can't do that, then maybe you should consider the possibility that you were relying too much on the boomerang.

 

[Hylian]

Links weight and fall speed are the same as 2.5.

And yeah, the changes we were going for made him a lot more versatile..you know..like he is in the zelda games. Ready to take on any situation and change his gameplan in an instant.

 

[Sarix]

Links weight and fall speed are the same as 2.5.

And yeah, the changes we were going for made him a lot more versatile..you know..like he is in the zelda games. Ready to take on any situation and change his gameplan in an instant.

And I think the changes did a great job of making him much more versatile.

 

[Xenozoa425]

I do appreciate the little things like fixing his zair, dtilt, and sword hitboxes on most moves. But the new boomerang changes everything for me, to the point where I almost can't even do a basic boomerang -> fair anymore because the timing is so different from what I'm used to in Melee/2.0/2.5. I liked the boomerang much more when it had a bit more range and it stayed out longer. I'm sure you guys can find the right combination of speed, power, knockback, angle, and range by mixing 2.5's and 2.6's boomerang together.

Also his rang doesn't glow blue anymore. :/

 

[Hylian]

We changed his rang to it's OoT model since we got rid of the leaf/wind effect.

Boomerang -> fair is much much much easier now than it was in 2.5. Just because you are having trouble with it doesn't mean it's worse. You know there is a combo hitbox on rang that does 16% and combos into pretty much every single move link has? The 2.5 hitbox sent characters up and away from link making it extremely hard to combo out of unless your opponent didn't DI well.

 

[Master WGS]

I love the new 'rang.

 

[Shadic]

Also his rang doesn't glow blue anymore. :/

Yes it does.

 

[Sarix]

Out of curiosity and the lack of an official changelog, what got buffed in Link's mobility? From what I've seen he has a noticeably faster dash speed and longer wave dash from the looks of it. Did anything else mobility-wise get changed? The lack of information is killing me on this new and improved Link haha.

 

[Shadic]

His dash and run speed are slightly improved. His wavedash is not.

 

[Sanity's_Theif]

I already nitpicked the rang before release. I still don't like it, it just rubs me wrong. It's definitely a better move like this, buuuuut I still don't like it.

What bothers me even more though is that animation. For serious, why does he throw it like that now? Looks gross.

I don't like 2.6 Link at all. He feels extremely awkward to play as now. And the new boomerang is just plain awful imo, most of my little tech chases, combos, and mind games don't work with it anymore as well, if not at all. I much prefer the 2.5 version over the new one. And the throwing animation. Seriously.

His rang change takes away an insane amount of set ups and utility. His old rang was good for controlling space and u Could use it at mid range. His boomerang rebound hit during space control was good for set ups too. The slower rang forced opponents to move where u wanted them too depending on how u used it. Look at Anikis Link for god sake. All the characters have bad match ups thats no excuse to screw up his playstyle. I thought the idea of PM was to stay true to the veterans playstyles with somewhat subtle buffs. They could have simply reduced the start up speed by a fair amount and tweaked the knockback & hitstun with the removal of aerial rang catching. I mean for this seeming small change makes him play nothing like his melee self so i really is a big screw up. But whatever im not using link anymore he is ruined bad.

You guys must be joking, Link is finally good now and you're complaining? I swear some people complain just out of habit, Link is good, the changes he got are good and improve him a lot, you'd have to be really slow in the head to believe otherwise

 

[Sarix]

His dash and run speed are slightly improved. His wavedash is not.

Well clearly I was just seeing something that wasn't there haha. Thank you for the clarification Shadic.

 

[RomeDogg]

Link has improved in all other aspects I never said he hasn't his rang just went to crap. If I wanted to play Young Link I would play Melee.

 

[Deleted member]

So because you can't throw it all the way across the stage anymore, you're going to ignore all the other applications of the boomerang and claim that the move "went to crap"? And this one change has caused P:M Link to feel like Melee Young Link to you?

 

[Soldner Kei]

there was a local tourney yesterday, 2.6 code set, went full Link the whole tourney, he feels pretty solid, still I got countered with some bad match ups in bad stages( falco in FD, last match from a 1-1 set) from my experience Link can stand a decent fight against his previous threats, I would like to see what the community can do with this new Link, I think there will be a better approach for these previous "hard" match ups in the near future...

btw, I hate bowser, I figured out how to outplay him, but still, I couldn't beat that guy in all the friendlies I played him, I blame my lack of knowledge in that match up, but still... btw that bowser guy won the tourney lol

 

[RomeDogg]

It has lost Melee utilization, if it had the melee trajectory and distance at the very least with the other current Demo 2.6 Rang changes then I wouldn't hate it. Like if they just took Melees Rang then made it travel faster in the air and altered its knock back and/or hit-stun with a reduction of start up then it would be satisfying to everyone. Oh yeah and of course with the removal of link catching it in the air. They did do good changes with the rang but the trajectory and distance change wasn't one of them.

 

[Dng3]

It has lost Melee utilization, if it had the melee trajectory and distance at the very least with the other current Demo 2.6 Rang changes then I wouldn't hate it. Like if they just took Melees Rang then made it travel faster in the air and altered its knock back and/or hit-stun with a reduction of start up then it would be satisfying to everyone. Oh yeah and of course with the removal of link catching it in the air. They did do good changes with the rang but the trajectory and distance change wasn't one of them.

Melee's rang with 2.6 speed would be broken/useless depending on the adjustments to knock back and hit stun. You have to compensate speed with something and considering the combo ability of 2.6, the reduced range was fair in my opinion.

 

[Xenozoa425]

It just takes getting used to, but it's manageable.

 

[RomeDogg]

Well then they should have given it less buffs in other departments in order to maintain its Melee-esque attributes.

 

[Hylian]

We don't want it to be like melee.

PM link /=/ Buffed melee link with exact same playstyle.

PM Link = PM Link.

 

[BRLNK88]

there was a local tourney yesterday, 2.6 code set, went full Link the whole tourney, he feels pretty solid, still I got countered with some bad match ups in bad stages( falco in FD, last match from a 1-1 set) from my experience Link can stand a decent fight against his previous threats, I would like to see what the community can do with this new Link, I think there will be a better approach for these previous "hard" match ups in the near future...

btw, I hate bowser, I figured out how to outplay him, but still, I couldn't beat that guy in all the friendlies I played him, I blame my lack of knowledge in that match up, but still... btw that bowser guy won the tourney lol

Bowser's defensive options can be just as annoying as our projectiles.
So many super armor frames, some quick, strong tilts.
Link's weight also means nothing against him.

 

[Sarix]

With the new and improved boomerang I'll have to make some notes on trap and pressure set ups now.

 

[NaijaboyIrin]

The new rang is alright. I like how good it is at keeping people out/ starting combos, just takes some getting used to. Personally, I think it still needs a few tweaks but that's just me.
I do wish Link could be a little stronger with his ko moves, though.
Does bomb jumping seem harder now or is it just me? I practice in training mode, so stale moves should'nt be a problem. I hit the bomb and it explodes, but I don't get hit.

 

[Sarix]

The new rang is alright. I like how good it is at keeping people out/ starting combos, just takes some getting used to. Personally, I think it still needs a few tweaks but that's just me.
I do wish Link could be a little stronger with his ko moves, though.
Does bomb jumping seem harder now or is it just me? I practice in training mode, so stale moves should'nt be a problem. I hit the bomb and it explodes, but I don't get hit.

Yeah Link's KO power is somewhat below average, though his improved pressure game will allow him to rack up the damage more rapidly now to get to those higher percentages.

It depends on how you're bomb jumping, if you AGT first then you need to Spin Attack almost immediately out of it for the bomb to hit Link and not bounce away.

EDIT: Has anyone tried using AGT to get onto platforms? I've been playing around with it and I'm finding it could lead to some great platform control since Link shoots up so fast. You can follow up with an L-Canceled aerial or waveland onto the platform from my testing so far.