It looks like R. Mika won’t be the only grappler character in Street Fighter V, as Capcom announced earlier today that the ‘Red Cyclone‘ Zangief will be returning in the next installment of Street Fighter.
While Zangief looks similar to how he did in Street Fighter IV, he actually comes with a whole new arsenal of moves making him a much more dangerous characters. Zangief armed with Suplexs, air grabs, atomic drops, his spinning pile driver and a standing kinnuku buster has a lot more variety in his combo oppertunities which will make him a lot more fun to use, but most dangerous of all his new headbutt which looks like it can nullify a projectile and along with his V-Skill and V-Trigger, which you can read Capcom’s explanation below:
- V-Skill: Iron Muscle –Zangief shows the true power of his body when he activates Iron Muscle. During Iron Muscle, Zangief can absorb one attack, which leaves him with recoverable health. If players hold down medium punch and medium kick and then press a direction on the joystick, Zangief will begin to slowly close in on the opponent. Upon release from the walk, Zangief flexes his muscles and hits the opponent if close enough.
- V-Trigger: Cyclone Lariat – Zangief lives up to his name “the red cyclone” as he spins with high speed and velocity, pulling the opponent in close. If the player taps the V-Trigger activation buttons, Zangief will quickly spin and pull in the opponent. If the player holds the V-Trigger activation buttons, Zangief will continue to spin and hit the opponent multiple times.
I was also expecting Zangief’s Ultimate Atomic Buster to return in some form as his Super, instead though we see a powerful German Suplex which smashes his opponent into the stage with powerful force which doesn’t look as cool as many other characters supers.