Street Fighter 6: How To Play Zangief

Street Fighter 6 will give you a lot of different characters to select. Each of these characters has areas they perform well in and others they do not. Some of these characters are easy to pick and even easy to master. Zangief is not one of those characters.

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He will put your skills through the wringer as you learn them, but you will be well rewarded by being an entirely different kind of fighter for your opponents to deal with. They will need to understand how you play differently compared to normal fighters, and this can give you a great edge against those not prepared for what Zangief bring to the table.

Zangief’s Strengths In Combat

Zangief can do a large chunk of damage from a single Special Move. This means where one character might need to land follow-up attacks or string a combo in order to claim victory, Zangief can win it all with one final heavy-hitting grapple. You will always want to be getting closer to your opponents; the very fact you are getting closer will put a lot of pressure on them to be weary of an upcoming grapple, and this can throw them off their game.

Zangief is very dangerous at mid-range as well, as he can close the gap and rush in for grapples. Your opponents will never know if you’re going for a striking attack or a grapple, and this guessing game can take them out of their comfort zone of how they fight non-grappler characters, which make up the bulk of the roster. Zangief is a truly terrifying opponent when he has a full super meter, as his unblockable Bolshoi Storm Buster will have experienced players suddenly go on the extreme defensive trying to be ready for it and giving you a lot of control.

Zangief’s Weaknesses In Combat

Zangief does not have the best anti-air game. He has a lot of anti-air options in his kit, but it is slow, and opponents can exploit this. It’s not just with aerial attacks, either; Zangief is slow on ground, too. In fact, he is the slowest character in the whole game. Do not expect to punish your opponents with quick attacks like Luke or Ken — your damage is going to come from being an overwhelming threat while you are on the attack and not from exchanges. Zangief is great at Mid-range and close-up and deals a ton of damage; however, his attacks come with some knockback to them and can push his opponents out of his effective range, meaning he will need to keep repeating his advance to his opponents after his heavy hits.

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Zangief’s Best Moves & Strategies

• Screw Piledriver: This special has a ton of damage, speed, and range and makes it a great option for when you want to grapple at an opponent. Depending on your button choices, you can use heavy commands to deal more damage at the cost of range, or use light commands to increase the range at the cost of dealing damage.
• Thows: Zangief has a lot of throws, as expected, being a grappler-style character and all. He has lots of different throws for different situations.
  • Zangief’s best ground throws are his back crouch throw and neutral crouch throw for their damage.
  • His forward couch throw is good for a quick snatch but at the cost of dealing as much damage as his other throws.
• Borsht Dynamite: This grapple has the fastest startup, making it a must-use option against harder-to-grab opponents. It always feels better to get out some heavier attacks, but if you cannot grab your opponents, they are going to have the advantage, so you will need to up your speed game against them.
• Double Lariat: It may have a slow start-up, but this will be a good option for anti-air, if you can time it right. It has a slow recovery, meaning you will need to block instead if your window closes.
• Siberian Express: This will really help you close the gap, Zangief will run forward like a charging bear, but with low startup and high recovery, it is not something you can just send out without a good setup.
• Tundra Storm: Use this whenever you are positive your opponent is about to attack and you can land a high damage counter against them.

Dealing With Long Range Opponents

Advance towards your opponent, blocking what they throw at your from a distance, and utilize your Siberian Express on their recovery to really close the gap and get into a much more favorable position.

Dealing With Short Range Opponents

You are a grappler and have a wide arsenal with different ranged grapples to handle anything that is close enough to get your mits on. If your opponent tries to hit you, counter with Tundra Storm.

Stuck In The Corner

If your opponent is mid-range, block and follow-up with a Siberian Express on your opponent’s recovery. This will get you out of that corner and back in their face. If they are keeping their distance, use what you read from dealing with longer ranger opponents.

Zangief’s Difficulty Curve

Zangief is not easy, far from it; he is one of the hardest characters to learn, but in doing so, you will have mastered a character that your opponents will need to go out of their way to specifically learn how to fight against. Zangief players are in a game of their own, and opponents need to beat them at that game rather than treat them like just any other character on the roster.

Do not start your Street Fighter 6 journey with Zangief. Start with a more beginner-friendly option like Kimberly, and then Manon. Work your way up to Zangief.

NEXT: Street Fighter 6: How To Play Chun-Li