Gameplay: Difference between revisions

'''Block before attacking.''' Oni does not reward button-mashing when fighting advanced opponents. In fact, any enemy can surprise you with a quick jab between your own attacks if you do not pay attention to defense. Wait for an opening before punching or kicking, such as when an enemy is not facing you or when they have just finished an attack. Learn enemy combos, so you don't try to counterattack in the middle of a combo and let the next attack through your defense. However, this doesn't mean you should just turtle for hours on end waiting for the perfect opportunity to counter your opponent; not only can some attacks do chipping damage even if you block them, but impatient enemies will just throw you.

'''[[Quotes/Objectives#{{C5}}|"Both the high road and the low road have hidden rewards."]]''' Get the high ground by keeping your opponent knocked down at all times. Useful methods to do this include the crouch+punch move, the crouching sweep kick, an attack in any direction but forward, or any jump attack. A prone opponent is a predictable opponent, as there are only so many ways he can get to his feet. If they try to get up with an attack, it'll be in the direction of their feet, so stay near the head of a fallen foe if you want to wait for him to get up before beating him to the ground again. When fighting on stairs, on the other hand, the low ground is preferable: you can block low attacks while standing, high attacks will generally miss you, all your attacks must be blocked low (allowing you to hit with an overhead like a jump attack) and a prone opponent can be hit by a full Triple Hit Haymaker combo without any possibility of retaliation.

'''Keep it fresh.''' Enemies adapt to your moves quickly. Don't expect to pull off the same move twice in a row. Keep asking yourself, "What haven't I tried yet?" Also, alternate high and low attacks. In fact, several such attacks combo well into others, such as a high punch --> low punch/crouch+punch combo, or a forward kick --> slide combo. Of course, there are some moves which are always effective simply due to their unblockability; a properly aimed Twister Kick, for example, should hit your opponent at an angle from which he cannot block, so even the best AIs in Oni can't do a thing.

'''Be stealthy.''' Enemies cannot hear Konoko when she is crouch-walking (sneaking). This allows you to learn their patrol paths, and sneak up behind them to get in a couple pre-emptive hits. You can also go for a Backbreaker (forward-kick while against enemy's back), which may end the fight before it begins.

'''Know when to retreat.''' Facing even two enemies at once can make a fight much more difficult. Omnidirectional attacks like Rising Fury and Devil Spin Kick are useful, but hard to pull off consistently when under attack. A quick cartwheel or side-roll will do wonders in avoiding enemy offensives. When truly overwhelmed, running away will draw your enemies out behind you in pursuit, at which point you can turn and attack the closest one, then run away again.

'''Bring a gun to a fistfight.''' If you knock an opponent down, you probably have time for a legsweep or jump-flip to add damage, but you could also pull out your weapon and squeeze off a couple shots before they get up. Make sure you holster it before resuming the fight, however, or you will quickly be disarmed.

'''Know thyself, know thine enemy.''' Sun Tzu's wisdom applies to small-scale battles as well. As important as knowing every move in Konoko's repertoire is knowing the details of your opponents' movesets as well. Get a feel for the ranges of different enemies' attacks versus your own; the best way to deal with an opponent's attack is not to be there. For example, several throws in Oni have rather lethal range, such as the Striker's standard throw, the Tanker's forward+kick "throw" (read: your-face-meets-my-knee move), et cetera, so make sure you don't let an enemy get within his throw range unless one or both of you is attacking at the time. Remember that enemies love to throw you as you're doing escape moves, which sometimes block attacks but never evade throws, so make sure to watch out for that.