Street Fighter 6/Kimberly/Introduction

Introduction

Uninvited student to Guy, the 39th successor to Bushinryu. Kimberly had an ordinary upbringing, but she's a genuine prodigy who graduated college early... and now wants to be a ninja. Loves '80s pop culture.

Kimberly is a fast, tricky character who uses her plethora of unique movement options and setplay to get in and keep the opponent guessing. Good Kimberly players use the many tools at her disposal to approach the opponent unpredictably and lock them down with a variety of unexpected attacks, pushing them to the corner where she can really put the pressure on.

On the movement and neutral fronts, Kimberly not only has a high walk speed, a far-reaching Drive Rush and Drive Impact, and good pokes with 2MK and 5MK, but she also has the classic Bushinryu Sprint special move, which has a variety of different options to approach the opponent on the ground like the Shadow Slicer slide or the Neck Hunter overhead. She can also use Hidden Variable, a teleport that lets her move in from the ground or air depending on whether she uses the Overdrive version or not. Shadow Slicer, Hidden Variable, and 3MK also give Kimberly ways to evade projectiles and get in on opponents who try to keep her out with them, while j.2MP lets her adjust her jump arc to bait anti-airs; on the ground, her 2HP and Bushin Senpukyaku serve as anti-airs, while the aerial version of Bushin Senpukyaku is a combo ender and juggle setup tool.

Where Kimberly especially shines, though, is the corner. Many of her combos give great corner carry, so once the opponent's stuck there, she can use Shuriken Bomb to set up powerful okizeme and keep the pressure going, which works exceptionally well with the likes of Sprint and its followups, Hidden Variable, and plain old strike/throw mix to force the opponent to guess at what she's going to do next. All of the above is especially true once Kimberly lands her Lv. 3 Super Art, Bushin Ninjastar Cypher. Once it hits successfully, Kimberly gains a damage and movement speed buff for the rest of the match, bringing her damage in line with the rest of the cast and making it even harder to deal with her walkspeed and the advantages that it gives her.

However, Kimberly's mobility and tricks are counterbalanced by her defensive options. Because Overdrive Bushin Senpukyaku doesn't have full invulnerability, Kimberly has to rely on system mechanics, Bushin Beats (her Level 1 Super Art), or Bushin Ninjastar Cypher when she needs to defend or force herself out of a bad situation. The buff from Ninjastar Cypher is also significant enough that without it, Kimberly's combos are going to be more useful for corner carry than damage until or unless she lands it, and her light buttons don't normally lend to the types of combos which give great oki at midscreen. If you like high-speed grooves and a bag of ninja tricks, then get on the scene with Kimberly.

Strengths

Weaknesses

High Mobility: Kimberly has many unique movement options. She has great forward walk speed, along with multiple ways to close the gap on her opponent such as her Sprint and Hidden Variable special moves. She can change her jump arc, and has multiple ways to get past fireballs. Her Level 3 Super installs her with a permanent speed/damage buff, which puts her walkspeed in a league of its own. Unrivaled Setplay: Kimberly gets okizeme off of almost any hit, and her huge variety of frame kills to set up meaty attacks and high/low mixups make most of her knockdowns very threatening from any screen position. In the corner, setting up her spray can after the right knockdown allows her to combo from her throw or perform multiple mixups in a row on a blocking opponent, all of which can lead back into more okizeme on a successful hit. Tricky Neutral: Kim's fast basic movement, variety of mobility tools, advantageous pokes, and options to punish a careless opponent give her lots of chances to get in and start her offense by baiting a reaction from the opponent or capitalizing on their hesitation. Corner Offense: Many of Kimberly's combo routes have very high corner carry without sacrificing much damage. She can also side switch easily with a Target Combo when her back is to the wall. Once the opponent is cornered, her damage and mixup potential are significantly improved. Gimmicky: Kimberly's abundant movement options make it hard for opponents to consistently react to her offense. She is a character with many knowledge checks that can confuse and overwhelm an unprepared opponent, while a prepared opponent still has to stay wary of her mix.

Lackluster Defense: Kimberly has no true OD reversal, forcing her to rely on her Lvl 1 and 3 Super or system mechanics to get out of pressure. Low Midscreen Damage: Before her Level 3 Super buff, Kimberly's damage is notably lower than most other characters, especially midscreen. The 11% damage boost from her Install brings her up to the level of the rest of the cast. Combos beginning with lights or her 4HK overhead tend to have low damage and poor midscreen oki. Stubby Heavies: While Kimberly has a couple good pokes in 5LK, 5MK and 2MK, her more rewarding heavy buttons are notably lacking in range. She may have to rely on whiff punishes when playing at farther ranges, and characters with similarly fast walkspeed and good footsies may force her to rely on gimmicks to get her pressure started.