Demystifying Tekken Notation – A Friendly Guide for New Players

Hey friend! Welcome to this super friendly guide explaining all the complex-looking notation and techniques in Tekken 7. I‘m Terry, a long-time player who wants to help you unlock your true skills. Let‘s get you up to speed on reading notation so you can start styling on people with big combos!

1, 2, 3, 4 – The Core Buttons

The foundation of Tekken‘s control scheme is the four main buttons – Left Punch, Right Punch, Left Kick, and Right Kick. The developers mapped these to 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively, similar to how boxing categorizes arms and legs. Once you internalize this:

• 1 = Left Punch
• 2 = Right Punch
• 3 = Left Kick
• 4 = Right Kick

You‘ll be reading notation in no time! For example:

• 1,2,3 means press Left Punch, Right Punch, Left Kick in sequence.
• 2+4 means press Right Punch and Right Kick together simultaneously.
• f+3 means press Forward plus Left Kick.

Easy right? With just four buttons, the notation may seem simple at first but allows for tons of creative combinations. Let‘s break it down further!

Directional Inputs – Forwards, Backwards, All Around!

Directional inputs modify the properties of attacks by altering your character‘s positioning. Here are some common examples and what they mean:

• qcf+2 – Quarter circle forward plus Right Punch. Roll stick down, down-forward, forward.
• hcb+4 – Half circle back plus Right Kick. Roll stick forward, down, down-back, back.

Other abbreviations you‘ll see:

• qcb – Quarter circle back
• qcf – Quarter circle forward
• hcf – Half circle forward
• hcb – Half circle back

Memorize these, as they open up special attacks, evasive moves and more for each character! For instance:

• qcb+4 – Lee‘s Mist Step goes under high attacks
• hcf+1 – Jin‘s Demon Paw parry

So don‘t get intimidated by the letters – quarter circle forward is just down to forward. You‘ll get it with a bit of practice!

Launching Foes Sky High

Notation is super important for juggling opponents in the air with combos. Here‘s the basic flow:

Launcher → Sends enemy skyward

Screw Attack → Spins them horizontally

Tailspin → Spins vertically for extra hits

Ender → Slams them down for a finisher

Here are examples of launchers notated:

• f,F+2 – Kazuya‘s Electric Wind God Fist
• uf+4 – Paul‘s Demolition Man
• WS+1 – Josie‘s Switch Stance low launcher

Common screw attacks:

• f+3~1 – Hwoarang‘s Sky Rocket
• 1,2,4 – Devil Jin‘s laser cannon

Practice key launchers and screws to juggle foes forever! It just takes repetition to build up that muscle memory. I believe in you!

Making Moves Fancy with Cancels

Cancels allow you to combo moves together quickly by inputting the next move before the current animation ends:

• Crouch Dash Cancel – CD into WS moves or special attacks
• Just Frame Cancel – Precise timing to cancel recoveries
• Tiger Knee Cancel – Buffer air moves instantly after jumping

Other examples:

• EWGF – Electric Wind God Fist – Cancel crouch dash into punch
• OTGF – Optimal Tidal Wave – Cancel recovery into punch
• WS+1, ff+3 – Josie‘s switch stance into instant divekick

Practice linking motions fluidly. Eventually cancelling becomes second nature!

Reading Frame Data

Frame data seems intimidating but just shows the speed of moves in frames (60 frames = 1 second). For example:

Now you can see Kazuya‘s jab is faster at 10 frames and gives frame advantage on block or hit. Meanwhile Hwoarang‘s string is slower but knocks down on hit. Reading frame data gives you knowledge on your best poking tools!

Movement – The Real Mind Games

Sure, combos look flashy, but movement is where high-level mind games happen! Master these movement techniques:

• Backdash Cancel – bb → rapidly dash backwards
• Sidestep – u or d → step left or right
• Sidewalk – ff or bb → walk left or right

Bait whiffs, realign your positioning, or sneak behind an opponent for a crossover counter combo! Pro tip – try recording dummy to do strings in Practice mode, then work on your evasive skills.

Got all that? You‘re well on your way friend! With enough passion and practice, these concepts will become second nature. Then you can style on people online and make Tekken look easy! Believe in yourself and have fun learning – you got this!!