Okay, my first impressions! I've been playing the game for a solid 7 hours or so I'd say. I. Fucking. Suck. BUT I HAD SO MUCH DAMN FUN! That's how you know the game is good, you can have fun even if you're getting your ass handed to you. It was technical but crazy, and kinda overwhelming a lot of the time...for me, anyway. I rocked
Skarlet most of the time. Doing the same 2,1,2 combo along with the 4,4 like my life depended on it. I was getting stuck trying to figure out the best way to do my specials or when the right time was to toss out a bloodshot. (I know this character's meant to be a zoner, but I didn't necessarily play her that way the whole time. It was hard for me not to get out-zoned by Baraka's sparks and I just crumbled against Scorpion every time.
My Skarlet looking like a bad bitch.
~The Abilities I Used with Skarlet~
Dagger Dance (Parry): Holy shit do I love this move. I love how it looks similar to her block and that you can hold it as long as you want (although coming out of the parry state takes a bit so if Scorpion throws his spear you gotta be quick or you're screwed) A few of the people I played with caught me though and would hit me with a low or jump in cause they knew it was the parry. But, if you hit it and amplify you're gonna get health back.
Bloodport (teleport): I didn't necessarily use this TOO much, or at least I didn't utilize it how I should have. It's confusing to do against Scorpion cause we'd teleport at the same time and it's a clusterfuck. I wish it was a little quicker tbh (Like, Scorpion's teleport is fast as fuck) but it does its job. It's good against Baraka cause he'll be tossing the sparks out (like, a lot.) and you gotta get in.
Boiling Point: This move was dope, however, I didn't get a ton of chances to use it because the startup isn't super quick. But, it's really cool when you do hit it. The amplify version does a lot of damage.
I like her moves that give her health back. I didn't realize her bloodshot move gave her health if it hits and you amplify until later, but it's dope. You get a lot of health with the parry while dealing a bit of damage, it's sick.
All in all, I think I really like Skarlet a lot more than I thought I would, and may even end up maining her when the game comes out and I can actually practice. (Not having a training mode is tough especially when you don't know the moves. I was constantly pausing during the intros and between rounds to look up her stuff.) But with some practice, I think I'll get better. It's hard to jump into a new game with new mechanics and not know anything.
The gameplay is smooth and a lot of fun to me. I much prefer this to MKX. Although I was getting hit with some combos I still had fun. I like the armored wake up (the one that's safe) I was constantly throwing that out to try and gain some footing (still got my ass kicked lol) I only think I did a breakaway once and forgot how to do it. And I know there are wake-up rolls, but I never figure out how to do them either. (I was putting in the inputs, but I might've done it too early?)
Krushing Blows - Super lit, I only got the grab one once but I got the uppercut a lot. They feel really satisfying and I'm excited to be able to know their requirements.
Fatal Blows: Also lit. I like them a lot, but I know other people don't. I'd throw out my fatal blow and they'd block, so I'd have to try and survive long enough to get it back (I never played her as a zoner so I didn't keep away. I'd just go ham on the 2,1,2 and pray it came back, but I'd always end up getting wrecked and have to save it for the last round. I always saved them until the opponent was at lower health so it'd kill. Kinda as a "get outta jail free" card, but I'd still end up dying LMFAO. The only time I'd throw it out when they were at full health is when I was super close to dying and was scared.
Everything just seems so damn fun ughhhh I can't wait, you guys. I'm hype for the beta and I'm hype for the game. If the beta has some sort of training mode or solo play I'd love it, but even if it just has a handful of more characters I'd be content. I didn't think I'd be able to play it due to my slow download speed, but I'm so happy I got a chance to check it out. It feels so good. It's gonna feel even better when I can memorize this stuff.
Also, my variation name for Skarlet was
Bloody Mary.
