Yesterday, a couple of people and I were discussing one of the new features of Mortal Kombat: Armageddon: parries. While parries are new to the Mortal Kombat series, they’re not new to fighting games in general. In essence, a parry allows you to block an opponent’s incoming attack and leave them open for a counter-attack. The parry doesn’t take a hit off your health like a normal block does; on the other hand, the parry has to be perfectly timed as it’s more complex to pull off than a block. While we were discussing the parry system, I was reminded of this particular moment from the Evolution 2004 fighting game tournament during a Street Fighter III: Third Strike semi-final match, where Daigo (playing as Ken) is fighting against Justin (playing as Chun-Li). Daigo has virtually no life left, and when Justin fires off a 17-hit super combo for the kill, Daigo masterfully parries every single hit and responds with his own super combo, winning the match.
Like I said, it was a sight to behold. I’m certainly in awe; I could barely get the hang of parries in MK: Armageddon, and I’m sure they’re easier in that than they are in Street Fighter III. :-)