I started messing around with SSF4AE PC for the heck of it, I couldn't figure out combo linking but now I understand sorta from this thread. Whats plinking/piano exactly? Are there wakeups like MK? I get cornered and I'm like "wakeup shoryuken!" but no, I just keep getting thrashed
Another thing I noticed is how specific special inputs are, like hadooken isn't just kinda mash down forward punch at the same time which works well for MK, but it seems you have to do the motions, and after the motions hit punch.
Think of it this way. In MK if you do a combo, everything connects to everything you just mash it out as fast as possible, and that's all there is to it.
In SF each normal move has start up frames, active frames, and recovery frames, and the character has hit stun. So when you're linking, you're linking a move because the character is in hit stun long enough for your move to recover, and the next moves active frames can connect while the other guy is in hit stun. A frame = 1/60th of a second. Depending on the link, you may have one, two, three (you get the idea) amount of frames to hit the next button to link it. To soon your move doesn't come out, you drop the combo and get mulched. To late and it doesn't link and you get reversal'd in your combo, or the guy gets a chance to block the rest of it.
So combo's can get extremely complex requiring multiple links and differing timings for each of the links.
Plinking is priority linking, you hit two attacks right after each other (ie piano the buttons) and it gives you two chances to land the link as the game engine will automatically pick the right option, provided you do it correctly. It's an "easier" way to land complex links, but it's still rather technical.
Of course, there are other rules as well. Some characters have target combos (kinda like MK where you just dial through things and skill means nothing) or chain moves (a move that automatically goes into itself, ie Ryu crouch and mash out light punch). It's completely possible to have a combo that requires both chains and links, or linking into a target combo.
SF does have wakeup moves, but it's not done like MK where moves have special properties on wakeup. SRK moves are used as wakeups because they have some amount of invulnerability around them, which is really what you're using for wakeup. However the timing on these moves is far stricter and you have to be far more exact with them than you do in MK. For other characters, ala Bison, often only the EX version of a move has any invincibility so you need to have meter to mount a proper wake up. It's also possible that you try a wake up attack against a move that has more invincibility or even armor on it and you're wakeup attack fails because it ran out of invinciblity sooner (not all frames of these moves have invinciblity and not all of the character is invincible while doing them). So you need to be a lot more careful with them, it's character specific, and the timing is rather strict.
And yep, the special moves are pretty specific and you have to hit all the motions, with some execptions ie you don't have to do a full 360 with Zangief to get his throw.
SF has always been like this and to be fully honest SF4 is the easiest and least demanding of all the SF games when it comes to this sort of stuff.
The plus side is if you can master linking and all the stuff that goes into combos in SF a lot of games become instantly a ton easier.
The best advice I can give you is to try the tutorials for a few characters. Ryu has some good basic links and cancels in his and Ibuki has some target combos and links. That's the best way to start and then go from there. Just keep in mind that there is no way out of links in SF4, you will have to learn them eventually and it's going to be a grind to get them down.
