Options mentioned:
B-air, F-air, U-air, spindash from mid/close range, aerial down B (aka ASC for short), shield dash, shield grab, ...dash dance pivot, running. Once in a while, d-tilt and/or dash attack.
- Bair, fair and uair can all be punished if whiffed. They can all be avoided by landing with a drift away air-dodge too.
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- Aerial downB is good, Sonic can grab before the opponent can with it. Options upon landing are too limited though (block, spot-dodge, shield-grab or continue the spinning attack), so the opposing player has the choice to commit to mixing up and trying to counter an action or simply moving away from all Sonic's options from performing it.
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- Tilts are OK, but their reward is small and their cool-down is so big it allows the usual whiff punishment: dash usmash.
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- Attacking's more of a punish or bait thing than an approach thing.
- All of the actions I just named "gimmicks" (to name them quickly; I don't know what "gimmick means hahaha) are countered by walk into grab (and Fox has the best walk in the game, so if anyone's is effective, it's his).
- On B/F/U-air being punishable on miss: Yes, exactly the point. That's why most Sonic mains will rely on cancelling spindashes or just running/dash dancing to bait an attack/juke your mental commitment.
- On ASC (aerial downB): if you're not shielding, you can also probably RPG (retreating pivot grab) to counter it. Some characters can grab-armor or just straight out grab him before he lands, depending on how it's spaced (low ones that land in front of you: definitely - high ones that aim to eat your shield, not so much, unless you RPG).
Also, you limit the movements to block/spotdodge/grab/continue spin. However, either
before landing or after shield cancelling, Sonic can still DJ aerial, or spring. If he
does land and shield, he can SH aerial, jump backwards, do all the OoS options. From ASC, he's actually not physically committed to any specific landing/option - the main limitation is that if he's in midair, he'll be forced to jump to cancel it, and can't DJ backwards from it.
- D-tilt moves Sonic forward but has less ending lag. It's both unsafe but leads to pseudo-juggles, if not a frame trap grab.
- Attacks being more of a punish/bait: Yes. I believe last year, when Sonic/Fox boards tried to discuss the match up, a point came up to where we basically said both characters can be played really campy, and it's such that whoever trips up first (nobrawlpun) will get hit/string'd- but Fox has more damaging/rewarding followups. So the issue still remains between the players to try to pull that successful bait. Neither character really has a 'shut down' move option on the other though, AFAIK.
Sonic sucks and is known for terrible gimmicks, anywhere.
lol.
[1] And it's true. You either fully commit to your actions allowing interruption (Fox can move away from this too), or you can try not to commit as much and allow the possibility of whiffs; which Fox is good at punishing. Even with a KO move.
[2] Trying to force spin dash action whiffs hadn't occurred to me before. It may work too I guess...although it likely has obvious limitations, specially if the opponent's willing enough to fully commit.
[3] This makes it sound as if Sonic's even more limited than I thought before, but I still consider Fox one of the match-ups Sonic can actually fight against (which is why I don't consider it a big Fox advantage like GUARD does). It may be bias, lack of knowledge, or overrating of Sonic, but it's my point of view.
[1] Sort of. Because of the speed that Sonic runs, it leaves less time for the defending player to do a reactionary move. For example, in a situation where Sonic is
running at you (arguably, his best "approach"), he doesn't have to commit until he gets to the point where you
were standing. That means that by the time he gets within your shield / grab distance, he's still NOT physically committed. Mental commitment, like "I'm gonna run up to him and F-air to shieldpoke" is with the players.
...but that situation can be pulled slightly towards your favor if you walk/run backwards. RPG, countering a SH aerial with a retreating aerial of your own - all that can work, since technically, he'll reach you slightly slower than if you were just standing.
[2] Do you mean Sonic using spindash cancels to force whiffs? That's a somewhat common/"staple" feint tactic. But this reminds me (player behavior), if Sonic uses the grounded spindash to attack you, the most common behavior (as soon as it hits your shield) is to jump and immediately use an aerial. For example at around 130-140%+, a fresh-ish spindash can combo into Sonic's B-air for the kill, so you can usually shield it, wait for the B-air to end then counter with an aerial of your own (or hit it before it comes out).
[3] Sonic IS limited. It's why Sonic mains don't really argue for him to be past mid-tier. His feint options are a plus, but at most, it's low-mid/top-low material.
