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Johnny Cage matchup chart

I was running through these with a friends the other day for good ol sake

Baraka: 6-4 (cage punishes blade charge from most distances, cage's up close game is very strong, baraka d4 is challenging)

Cyber Sub: 6-4 (johnny punishes dive kick with flash kick, johnny pokes to death, johnny baits parries and punishes, johnny can zone a bit in this fight.

Cyrax: 4-6 (only reason this is 4-6 is because of cyrax damage... cage is fine in the neutral game and cyrax hates cage pressure because his d1 is bad, close to even)

Ermac: 6-4 (zoning isn't strong enough to warrant huge disadvantage up close, plus flash kick punishment)

Jax: 6-4 (low hitbox, fireball makes gp whiff)

Jade:6-4 (jade has moderately obnoxious keep away normals and that armor bs, her poke game is free though, may be 7-3)

Freddy Krueger: 3.5-6.5 (freddy punishes you for 50% for jumping projectiles, freddies zoning is op

Cage: 5-5 (play lame)

Kabal: 3-7 (Honestly, Cage is one of the better characters to pick against kabal, if you get him without meter or bait a mb dash he's in trouble, it's imperative to play footsies while navigating through the zoning)

Kano: 7-3

Kenshi: 2-8 (you may be able to get early games with randomness and a few good guesses, but in a long set the Kenshi player will get comfortable and you will get destroyed)

Kitana: 5-5 (her keepaway vs your pressure

Kung Lao: (5-5, bird LAO)

Liu Kang: 5-5 (at a really high level, liu kangs should be 21ing out of your pressure and as a counter-poke, liu kang's footsie game and zoning are a enough to make it enough despite cages pressure being an issue)

Mileena: 6-4 (Mileena really struggles with cage might be worst

Nightwolf: 7-3 (better footsies, way better pressure)

Noob: 6-4 (this could be worst, noobs not doing enough damage with his zoning or keeping you out long enough

Quan Chi: 7-3

Raiden: 5.5-4.5 (Raiden's keepaway and footsies are excellent, the down 3 forward 3 option select can be blown up by counter-poke and teleport, raiden can punish you for all your string staggers)

Reptile: 5-5 (Reptile's space control is strong enough to dominate the neutral, but he has an awful time without meter dealing with cage pressure, as elbow dash is very unsafe, and he is very limited after down 4 acid hand)

Rain: 6-4 (Rain's armor and b2 and standing 3 are all strong, but he has no zoning and you can just footsies hiim to death with down 4 and f33b3 and relatively safe pressure)

Scorpion: 7-3 (scorpion's footsie game is garbage)

Sektor: 5-5 (sektor has dominant footsie game and 6 frame jab, he struggles with pokes and especially down 4, it could be slighty cage favor)

Shang 5-5 (shang's zoning and pressure is good enough, plus soul stealed cage is a big deal)

Sheeva: 7-3

Sindel: 6.5-3.5 she is free to pressure, and her projectiels only do chip and meter

Skarlet: 4-6 (incredible armored red dash and jump back daggers, this character is obnoxious enough for me to call a 4-6

Smoke: 5-5 ( smoke outfootsies, has obnoxious runaway, and does too much damage, hit and run all day)

sonya: 3.5-6.5 (calling this just 4-6 doesn't do it justice, she dominates footsies game with down 4, and her armor makes it a complete bitch to try and pressure her

stryker: 7-3 ( free to johnny)

sub-zero: 5-5 (johnny punishes him harder, the lifelead dictates this fight, but whomever has a lifelead gets walked to the corner, Johnny can punish clones with fireballs ex or non-ex, it's a very very very lame fight)
 
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xKhaoTik

The Ignore Button Is Free
A character that goes 4-6 against Kabal, (kitana, lao, kenshi, etc) are the better characters against Kabal. I don't think cage is one of them.

Mileena isn't anything worse than 4-6 at the highest level

Can't argue anything else since it looks fine.

MKX needs to hurry up lol
 
A character that goes 4-6 against Kabal, (kitana, lao, kenshi, etc) are the better characters against Kabal. I don't think cage is one of them.

Mileena isn't anything worse than 4-6 at the highest level

Can't argue anything else since it looks fine.

MKX needs to hurry up lol
I think cage does bettter than kang against kabal... in all honesty theres very few characters that go 4-6... i'll go 3.5-.6.5
 

Fractured_Shadow

Really likes to throw things at you.
I would argue that Cage beats Lao and Smoke 6-4. Cage definitly beats Jade 7-3.

I would also argue that Cage-Skarlet is 5-5

Also Cyrax's D1 is great, it is his D3 that is bad (9 frames).
 
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HGTV Soapboxfan

"Always a Pleasure"
I would say cage beats lao 6 4 and Sonya only 4 6 (just nit picking.) If you're having difficulty with her armoring out of your pressure, use standing 2 since at neutral it's duration is short rough that you can still block the cartwheel. Plus dizzy's ex nutpunch buffer thing. Pretty much agree though, good list.
 
I would say cage beats lao 6 4 and Sonya only 4 6 (just nit picking.) If you're having difficulty with her armoring out of your pressure, use standing 2 since at neutral it's duration is short rough that you can still block the cartwheel. Plus dizzy's ex nutpunch buffer thing. Pretty much agree though, good list.
I refuse to admit sonya is 4-6, but i knew someone would bring up that os... now lao i was on the fence with... but i think he has the tools to keepaway, and i am also operating under the premise that at the highest level cage's pressure is more easily reacted to. Some of the british guys who kept playing were exceptional at full string counter-pokes all the time and blowing up his pressure.
 
I'd say a good amount of his winning MUs should be higher, and some of his even MUs should be winning. Losing MUs are ok except I don't think Skarlet beats him and Sonya I'd put at 4-6.
 
I would argue that Cage beats Lao and Smoke 6-4. Cage definitly beats Jade 7-3.

I would also argue that Cage-Skarlet is 5-5

Also Cyrax's D1 is great, it is his D3 that is bad (9 frames).
Having a six frame d1 as your best option to deal with pressure is bad because it can eb full combo punished with knee
 

Fractured_Shadow

Really likes to throw things at you.
Having a six frame d1 as your best option to deal with pressure is bad because it can eb full combo punished with knee
His D1 is in no way shape or form his only way of dealing with pressure. How can you say on the same post that Kang and Lao are 5-5 because they can punish/escape pressure with standing normals but Cyrax with his amazing 8 frame standing 1 cant?
 

STRYKIE

Are ya' ready for MK11 kids?!
His D1 is in no way shape or form his only way of dealing with pressure. How can you say on the same post that Kang and Lao are 5-5 because they can punish/escape pressure with standing normals but Cyrax with his amazing 8 frame standing 1 cant?
Cyrax's standing 1 is 9 frames, so that would be player 1 dependent. But you should still respect Cyrax's option to cancel into EX ragdoll or buzzsaw after a D1. And even then you might end up being command grabbed anticipating either of them.

For what my opinion's worth, the way I would evaluate the matchup is that it's similar to a Cage mirror except Cyrax is Shang with permanent Soul Steal+damage boost. So 6-4 Cyrax sounds about right.
 
Cyrax's standing 1 is 9 frames, so that would be player 1 dependent. But you should still respect Cyrax's option to cancel into EX ragdoll or buzzsaw after a D1. And even then you might end up being command grabbed anticipating either of them.

For what my opinion's worth, the way I would evaluate the matchup is that it's similar to a Cage mirror except Cyrax is Shang with permanent Soul Steal+damage boost. So 6-4 Cyrax sounds about right.
d1 exragdoll is interruptable