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Style of Falco

C_Ferris32

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Oct 11, 2008
Messages
209
Location
Columbus, OH
I was watching one of HMW's videos earlier, and he was describing some of the big Falco players out there. He said "Pee Pee is more conservative, Shiz is raw as ****, and Zhu is in between". Where would you guys put yourself on that "scale"? (Not necessarily in skill, just play style) I'd personally be somewhere in between Pee Pee and Zhu. Mainly running around and shooting lasers, but occasionally getting off :)
 

XxDarkzeroxX

Smash Rookie
Joined
Oct 20, 2009
Messages
15
wouldnt it be more like this

chops -> PP -> Zhu -> Shiz

cuz u know that chops is just another word for lazer spam
 

VAL0

Smash Cadet
Joined
Mar 16, 2010
Messages
34
Location
Brooklyn, New York
My style is kind like shiz and chops...cause I like shooting an unecessary amount of lazers sometimes then being technical and comboing my opponent.
 

Kason Birdman

Smash Champion
Joined
Aug 6, 2009
Messages
2,240
Location
519, Ontario
i would put myself a cut above shiz rawness.

the birdman gotta eat.

but actually, probably somewher between zhu and shiz
 

FoxLisk

Smash Lord
Joined
Jun 18, 2007
Messages
1,851
don't forget forward!

i modeled my falco off of forward for a long time... then PP started ****** errbody out there. now i try to emulate his play in a lot of situations. i'm a lot campier when i'm uncomfortable, though. like against peach im happy to camp the whole match, PC style, and i dont make any effort to do anything but shoot lasers against a defensive marth, for example. so basically i play very conservatively in most situations.
 

Iron Dragon

Smash Lord
Joined
Aug 5, 2005
Messages
1,239
Location
Arizona
mangos falco is the godliest and i try to mold my falco from his inspiration :D
Nice on trying to base it off Forward's Falco. Can't blame you.

My Falco....apparently plays most like DSW. Just because I end a bunch of stuff with fsmash haha. It's weird cuz I watch vids of his Falco the LEAST of all the Falcos haha.
 

Aldwyn McCloud

Smash Ace
Joined
Apr 23, 2005
Messages
808
Location
My home (in Italy :D)
I am so similar to Zhu I sometimes actually watch videos of him wondering why I wouldn't remember being recorded while playing that match. With the difference he's 324231 times better, wins tournaments and stuff but doesn't matter I think :embarrass. I'm kinda switching to PP style though which seems to fit better the camp-oriented modern metagame. Every single match up of mine seems to benefiting from this, with the exception of Falco dittos lol (I still have to try it out more accurately though).

Speaking of old school players, my biggest 2006/2007 influences are PC Chris, Forward and Hiko. For some reason I never really copied DSW or Lambchops.
 

TheZhuKeeper

Smash Champion
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
2,908
Location
Philadelphia, PA
In terms of conservative -> aggro

Forward / Me -> PP -> Mango -> Shiz (when he's playing well / trying) -> Axe (when he actually goes Falco) -> Chops (imo of course)

It's weird to think of Falco as a spectrum, especially such a broad one. Ah well, Falco ***** and we have hella fun playing him (cept when we're being camped LOL). <33

@Aldwyn: <333
 

PB&J

Smash Hero
Joined
Apr 25, 2007
Messages
5,758
Location
lawrenceville, GA
shiz is more aggro but chops just shuts down more options and making it harder to breathe in most situations..but yeah..falco as a character is aggro to me ..but thats my opinion
 

Dr Peepee

Thanks for Everything <3
Moderator
BRoomer
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I didn't think I really camped so much as played awkwardly slow, but I guess I could always suck at analyzing myself.

@Aldwyn: I tend to play the ditto more aggressively than my other matchups, but I'm not really sure if that's saying a lot.

What I'm trying to say is I just try to be smart but I end up making bad decisions a lot lol so I don't really know what to call that.
 

omnibus2

Smash Cadet
Joined
Jun 27, 2010
Messages
58
Location
CA
I can't really break down the "styles" of these players, I would appreciate if someone else could-I've watched all their videos, but I haven't noticed any distinct play style differences. Although I'm newb, I do know that I am very campy, and I like to nair and tilt out of shl to "approach".

I'm still learning how to combo better, but ideally I'd like to be a laser spamming falco who can space very well and lure my opponents into positions that will favor me, and then just combo them.
 

TheZhuKeeper

Smash Champion
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
2,908
Location
Philadelphia, PA
I didn't think I really camped so much as played awkwardly slow, but I guess I could always suck at analyzing myself.

@Aldwyn: I tend to play the ditto more aggressively than my other matchups, but I'm not really sure if that's saying a lot.

What I'm trying to say is I just try to be smart but I end up making bad decisions a lot lol so I don't really know what to call that.
mmm, when I meant conservative I didn't really mean camp exactly. More like, you pick your battles / you're collected, as opposed to Shiz / Chops who are constantly in your face no matter the situation LOL. I don't think Falco is a character that was meant to be very campy, and I don't think it's coincidence that the majority of the top Falcos are relatively aggressive.

And you're def not awkwardly slow. I'm pretty sure that description fits me a lot better LOL. You're as close to the perfect Falco as we got, and I think your style models how Falco should be played.

And it's interesting because I feel like the one matchup that I don't really play aggressive is the ditto, not really sure why that is.
 

FoonZ

Smash Rookie
Joined
Feb 18, 2008
Messages
20
Location
Oakland, CA
Although my favorite style of Falco is Shiz's, I have great respect for all of you other falco players. In terms of of the spectrum or scale of aggressiveness, I'd even add Larry (DEHF) on there as most conservative, even though I think he just plays realllllly smart lol...:chuckle: But yeah, when Axe goes falco, that's something else...he just comes out the gates in Super Saiyan form lol shine wavelands all day @_@
 

Dr Peepee

Thanks for Everything <3
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mmm, when I meant conservative I didn't really mean camp exactly. More like, you pick your battles / you're collected, as opposed to Shiz / Chops who are constantly in your face no matter the situation LOL. I don't think Falco is a character that was meant to be very campy, and I don't think it's coincidence that the majority of the top Falcos are relatively aggressive.

And you're def not awkwardly slow. I'm pretty sure that description fits me a lot better LOL. You're as close to the perfect Falco as we got, and I think your style models how Falco should be played.

And it's interesting because I feel like the one matchup that I don't really play aggressive is the ditto, not really sure why that is.
I just feel like I'm the most unsure in my decisions of all the Falcos, so my style comes out kinda janky sometimes.

As for that "perfect model" bit, I dunno Mango told me that too and it's still kinda hard for me to believe haha. You guys know what you're talking about though, so I'll just try to make myself as good of a model as I can be.

Yeah I know I'm pretty conservative overall though, so I just accept the campy labels that come with it.

It's hard for me to aggro the ditto just because it's hard to get control LOL and also because of some of the good counters/defensive options Falco has vs himself.
 

Aldwyn McCloud

Smash Ace
Joined
Apr 23, 2005
Messages
808
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My home (in Italy :D)
Most Falco players I watched/played with are way more aggressive in ditto, not just you PP. My explanation to this is that Falco can combo himself so well it actually becomes the most pivotal thing in the match up, even more than predictions themselves. In other match ups Falco gets punished harder/more easily if he does mistakes (aka isn't campy/careful enough). Falco has limited defensive options (except those PP is referring to) so going offensive isn't really a bad idea most of the time. In my experience, being aggressive also leads to have better laser control.

I just feel like I'm the most unsure in my decisions of all the Falcos, so my style comes out kinda janky sometimes.
When I first watched you playing the first thing I noticed was sloppyness. But somehow that also made you more unpredictable compared to other Falco players. Nowadays you effectively polished most of your technical problems and your domination is the result. Most falco player can be fast, but very few can be careful. You also happen to be the first Falco since PC Chris that impressed me for how balanced your match ups are. Do not worry that much, if you win tourneys your stuff can be as sloppy as you want but surely works. You're kinda like the drunken master of Falco players lol.

As for the "perfect falco" well.. the best way to play Falco is the one that incorporates predicting your opponent the most. Mango's the best Falco exploiter at the moment. Most of the time he has complete prediction of his opponent's behaviour which he uses to land perfect comboes at max speed. If you're not Mango though, I think prediction of the opponent comes before speed/technical skills/comboing potential. PP seems to me the most calm/careful/aware of his opponents at the moment.
 

StriCNYN3

Smash Journeyman
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
290
Hmm, I can't really say what type of spectrum my Falco lies on since I seem to be going through different play styles a lot for some odd reason.

It's like I play along the lines of Lambchops and Kjab (really technical European Falco in case nobody knows) when I'm getting off, then I play in a more campy yet smooth style when I'm getting rocked. I don't think there's actually any Falcos that play campy that I can base off of though. Maybe Eggm and foward, but I don't think Eggm counts anymore.
 

Rubyiris

Smash Hero
Joined
Apr 19, 2007
Messages
6,033
Location
Tucson, AZ.
what about the people like me and vman whos falcos are basically a conglomerate of every falco in existence.

Axe and Shiz's technical skill and aggression

Forward and Chops' laser control

Zhu's grab game

random advice from PP over AIM/SWF

My spacing and combos suck **** so i don't really have dat mango influence.
 

Metal Reeper

Smash Champion
Joined
Oct 20, 2006
Messages
2,285
Location
Abington PA
My style is more like Zhu's probably cause I watch him the most, and he's my favorite player, but Shiz's comboes are sick, I think PP is the best Falco. And I WISSSSH I could laser like Chops, too **** good.
 

forward

Smash Champion
Joined
Nov 18, 2004
Messages
2,376
Location
Tucson Arizona
After thinking about this for awhile I believe what it comes down to is your technical execution. Falco is a technical character, no one has every played a match perfectly with him, there has to be some error. What we do is we minimize trying to do the things that we know we are more likely to err on.

This is probably what accounts for the difference between players styles. People who pull "forwards" or "zhuicides" are inclined to do the simple motions to punish. Players who have the tech skill to "axe someone in half" or "shiz on their chest" are able to take technical risks because they have a lower probability of making a mistake.

As of now my opinion on tech skill is that it has its limits. It can speed you up but there is a limit to that speed. There was a time when I tried to play as fast as possible, but what would happen is I end up losing to a "slower" Falco (RobFalco, Caveman, Dope) causing me to reevaluate the merits of being fast and technical.

Anyways, this thread has given me some interesting on ideas on the relations between technical skill and predictions/punishment.
 

RaynEX

Colonel RTSD
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Aug 14, 2005
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6,454
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Corneria, Lylat System
I didn't think I really camped so much as played awkwardly slow, but I guess I could always suck at analyzing myself.

@Aldwyn: I tend to play the ditto more aggressively than my other matchups, but I'm not really sure if that's saying a lot.

What I'm trying to say is I just try to be smart but I end up making bad decisions a lot lol so I don't really know what to call that.
I think your aggression in the ditto speaks to how comfortable you are with your character. You know Falco's limitations and potential, and have the ability to quickly discern the outcome of a situation and whether risk is necessary. When I watch your matches, it seems that you usually take the safe road, move back into good standing and maintain reliable pressure. Its part of the reason you don't get hit as much as the other Falcos. You usually have long fruitful stocks and have many opportunities to condition, adapt to, and simply hit your opponent.

Oh, and when you're on point you're hellaaa smooth bro.


And it's interesting because I feel like the one matchup that I don't really play aggressive is the ditto, not really sure why that is.
Maybe because if you approach the match-up wrong (and by match-up I mean shield), you get shined and die. Its hard to be the aggressor in Falco dittos nowadays; its so common to get shined oos and lose your stock. I think you're good at picking your battles when it comes to the ditto, like you said earlier to PP.

After thinking about this for awhile I believe what it comes down to is your technical execution. Falco is a technical character, no one has every played a match perfectly with him, there has to be some error. What we do is we minimize trying to do the things that we know we are more likely to err on.

This is probably what accounts for the difference between players styles. People who pull "forwards" or "zhuicides" are inclined to do the simple motions to punish. Players who have the tech skill to "axe someone in half" or "shiz on their chest" are able to take technical risks because they have a lower probability of making a mistake.

As of now my opinion on tech skill is that it has its limits. It can speed you up but there is a limit to that speed. There was a time when I tried to play as fast as possible, but what would happen is I end up losing to a "slower" Falco (RobFalco, Caveman, Dope) causing me to reevaluate the merits of being fast and technical.

Anyways, this thread has given me some interesting on ideas on the relations between technical skill and predictions/punishment.
Its quite entertaining to read your posts as you sift through thoughts in your head. Gives some insight into how you look at the game, and some of the issues you grapple with. I agree, tech skill has its limits. Not many people seem to realize that though. Its just go, go, go in 2010.
 

Limeee

Smash Champion
Joined
Feb 5, 2009
Messages
2,797
Location
Edmonton, Alberta
it really depends on my mind, sometimes i bumrush for no reason, and sometimes i play really campy/smart with lazers

:009:
 

ElloEddy

Smash Journeyman
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Apr 11, 2012
Messages
323
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$led- NYC the beast-coast
i want my falco to be a mix of AXE movement , shiz and westballz shield pressure with the spacing of zhu ...and pp accuracy ......hopefully this happens at a rapid pace i wanna turn some head at evo =D
 

Rocketpowerchill

Smash Ace
Joined
Dec 7, 2012
Messages
568
Location
Jarretsville md
i want my falco to be a mix of AXE movement , shiz and westballz shield pressure with the spacing of zhu ...and pp accuracy ......hopefully this happens at a rapid pace i wanna turn some head at evo =D
why does axe look so fast
its not that im being deceived cuz hes reduculously fast
i guess hes so agressive that it makes him look like mangos fox
and thats a sick combination
i guess each falco like to do their own thing
and westballz reminds me of zhu with superior shine ability
i need to start looking at more shizballz matches and zhu for sure
 
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