Street Fighter 6 has much going for it, including your new best friend, the Drive System. It introduces several mechanics that dictate the flow of a fight or outright change it. Each combatant has a Drive Gauge under their health bar with six bars, with Drive move consuming a different number of bars. How do you perform them, and what are the best-case scenarios? Let’s take a closer look.
How to Perform Drive Impact
A Drive Impact is your most basic Drive move, consuming one Drive Gauge bar. When an opponent starts their combo, or there’s a slight delay in the middle, press R1+R2 on PS4/PS5 or RB+RT on Xbox Series X/S to perform it. Modern Controls only require pressing L1/LB, but you’ll want to get off that immediately. See our tips and tricks guide for more details on why.
After nailing an opponent with a Drive Impact, they’re briefly stunned. You can then follow up with anything. Execute a combo, Overdrives, throws – the sky is the limit. A Drive Impact is particularly useful when an opponent jumps in for an attack. While an anti-air is preferable, the window from a successful Drive Impact is also appealing, plus it helps keep your opponent guessing.
For example, if they’re playing as Cammy, they may wait for your anti-air and then perform a Cannon Spike in mid-air. With Drive Impact, you can effectively absorb the Special Move’s damage and create an opening (if not knock them back). While it can be blocked, Drive Impact has an additional function near walls. Use it on a blocking enemy near them, and they’ll splat against the wall, becoming vulnerable to your attacks.
On the flip side, Drive Impact doesn’t make you invincible. If an opponent deals enough damage, they can break through the “armor” and make you vulnerable. They can also execute throws while Drive Impact is starting up. Be careful not to become too predictable with your Drive Impact use.
How to Perform Drive Parry
Of course, the Drive System also presents some defensive options, like Drive Parry. Holding down Triangle and Circle on PlayStation or Y + B on Xbox Series X/S sees your character take a defensive stance. Hold the buttons down, and you’ll parry any oncoming attack. The Drive Gauge will slowly drain if you’re not taking hits while Drive Parry is active. On taking hits, it will replenish.
Drive Parry is better than blocking since you can effectively refill your Drive Gauge if you manage to parry a Super Art. It can also negate damage regardless if your opponent is attacking from above, below or while crossing (which usually requires you to hold the opposite direction when blocking to prevent damage). However, you are still vulnerable to throws in the Drive Parry stance. Entering it too early or keeping it up for too long can expose you to brutal throws, so keep that in mind.
There is a way around this, though. If you activate Drive Parry at the exact instant an attack lands, you’ll execute a Perfect Parry. It will result in a momentary pause (accompanied by some cool-looking effects), and you can then Punish Counter, which does additional damage. So if you Perfect Parry and then use an Overdrive or a Super Art as a Punish Counter, it’ll deal significant damage.
The timing on a Perfect Parry is strict, so only go for it if your timing is on point (or your opponent’s next move is super-telegraphed).
How to Perform Drive Reversal
Drive Reversals are another defensive option and can quickly punish an opponent, costing two Drive Gauge bars. When blocking an attack, press Forward in your opponent’s direction and R1 + R2 on PlayStation or RB + RT on Xbox Series X/S. You’ll execute a quick Punish Counter, which doesn’t do heavy damage but can be great for relieving pressure when trapped in a corner or creating an opening.
Drive Reversal is useful against almost anything, whether it’s a Super Art, Special Move, Overdrive or Drive Impact. The only catch is that it must be employed against melee attacks to land the Punish Counter. Blocking and using Drive Reversal after a projectile is pointless since your opponent is nowhere close.
How to Perform Drive Rush
So you’ve learned about all the defensive techniques that the new Drive System can employ. How about some offense? This is where Drive Rush comes in. First, enter the Parry stance by pressing Triangle + Circle on PlayStation or Y + B on Xbox Series X/S. Now press Forward in the direction of your opponent twice (like you’re performing a regular dash).
Drive Rush will activate and allows for quickly – and we mean, quickly – closing the distance with an opponent and catching them off guard. You can also press Forward in the direction of your opponent and then Forward again with Triangle + Circle or Y + B. This shortcut skips having to enter the Drive Parry stance and immediately executes the Drive Rush.
Given the distance from an opponent, Drive Rush is good for parrying a projectile and then immediately executing a Drive Rush into an attack. However, this is only the default Drive Rush, which costs one Drive Gauge bar.
You can also execute Drive Rush from a cancellable normal attack by tapping Forward twice in the direction of your opponent. Each character has moves that can be cancelled using Drive Rush, allowing you to extend a combo and deal more damage. The trade-off is that it requires three Drive Gauge bars, about half the total gauge. If you cancel using Drive Rush and your opponent sees it coming (or is already blocking), you’re in trouble. Granted, if an opponent is blocking, it may be possible to cancel into a throw, but the payoff isn’t as significant.
How to Perform Overdrives
Overdrives are essentially like the EX Moves from Street Fighter Alpha, except they consume two bars of the Drive Gauge. In addition to dealing more damage, they can add more hits to a combo (useful when executing a Perfect Parry), and introduce different effects. For instance, one of Luke’s Overdrives can punch an opponent and then transition into a grapple followed by a DDT.
To perform an Overdrive, input the Special Move in question while pressing R1 on PlayStation or RB on Xbox Series. For example, the commands for Ryu’s Hadoken are down, forward diagonal and forward towards an opponent and Square or X. If you add R1 or RB while performing the Special Move, he’ll execute an Overdrive Hadoken for more damage.
Overdrives are incredibly strong, but they consume two Drive Gauge bars. So while it might make sense to abuse Juri’s Overdrive wakeup when recovering from being knocked down, it will eventually lead to Burnout. Balance this with regular Special Moves to stay in the fight.
How to Taunt
It wouldn’t be a fighting game without the ability to taunt. Street Fighter 6 is no exception, and you can taunt your opponent by pressing all the Punch and Kick buttons and a direction. On PlayStation, this means Triangle + Circle + X + Square + R1 + R2 and up, down, left or right, while Xbox requires pressing Y + B + A + X + RB + Right Trigger and up, down, left or right. Depending on the direction, you’ll perform a different taunt. Interestingly, this is the one thing that Modern Controls do better since you only need to press Square + X + Triangle or B + A + X and then up, down, left or right to taunt.
While taunting, you’re open to attacks, and it doesn’t grant any benefits (though it also doesn’t consume any resources, like the Drive Gauge). However, if your opponent is stunned and you’re feeling overconfident, hit ’em with a taunt.
Street Fighter 6 is available for Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our review here.
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