Basic Movement — tekken

This page details Basic Movement in the Tekken series.

Neutral

Neutral refers to the state of a character that is standing with no inputs. Most basic moves are performed from a Neutral state, and Crouching, Jumping, Dashing, Running, and Walking can all be performed from Neutral. Since Tekken 2, in this state, the character will automatically be performing a Neutral Guard. A Neutral Guard will guard from most High and Mid Attacks outside of those which cancel out a Neutral Guard (such as Heihachi Mishima's Hell Axle) and Guard Break attacks (such as Steve Fox's Swingfire Advance).

Crouching

Crouching (しゃがむ, Shagamu^?) is performed by holding down, down and back, or down and forward. In this state, the player will avoid High attacks and block Low Attacks and Special Mids, but will be susceptible to normal Mids. Certain moves can only be performed from a Crouch (such as Law and Lee's Slide Kick) while other moves briefly place the character into a Crouching state, or allow the character to remain Crouching after performing the move by holding down. Certain moves will also force the opponent into a Crouch, such as Left Splits Kick.

Sidestepping

Stepping or Sidestepping is performed by tapping up or down. More Sidesteps can be performed into the foreground or background by holding either up or down after the initial tap in the chosen direction, and this is referred to as Sidewalking. Sidestepping and Sidewalking can be used to avoid most attacks which do not have Homing properties. Certain moves can only be performed while Sidestepping, such as Lars's Shockwave.

Sidestepping was first introduced in Tekken 3 while Sidewalking was introduced in Tekken 4.

Jumping

Jumping is performed by holding up, up and forward, up and back, or by tapping up and forward. While the player cannot block during a Jump, they will automatically avoid Low Attacks while in an airborne state. Certain moves can only be performed from a Jump (such as a Delayed Rising Toe Kick) while other moves have a built-in Jump which leaves the character in an airborne state (such as Burning Knuckle). It is possible to perform Air Throws on Jumping opponents. It is also possible for a player to jump over a crouching opponent with the exception of big characters like Craig Marduk.

Dashing

Dashing is performed by quickly pressing forward or back twice. Back Dashing can be used to escape the range of oncoming attacks, and is also a vital part of Korean Back Dashing, which involves Cancelling a Back Dash using a d/b input. Some moves are performed from a Forward Dash (f, f) input, such as Leo's Shang Bu Zhuang Quan.

Running

Running is performed by pressing and then holding forward while six or more steps away from the opponent, or by rapidly pressing forward three times when at close range. Running can be cancelled by pressing back, up, or down. Certain attacks can only be performed from a Running state, such as Claudio's Ira to Starburst, and these moves use the notation WR (while running).

Walking

Walking is a movement performed by holding either forward or back to move towards or away from the opponent respectively. Characters can also take a single step forward or backward by simply tapping the forward or back input (excluding characters with a Mist Step). Unlike Jumping, Dashing, or Running, there are no moves specifically accessed from the Walking state. When holding forward to Walk, the player is unable to block attacks. Alternatively, while holding back to Walk, the player is able to block Mid and High attacks. Walking forward can also be done while the character is Crouching with D/F, causing the character to move forward while remaining in a Crouched state.

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