Liked this FAQ? Click to recommend it to other GameFAQs users.

                         Street Fighter EX 3: Sakura guide

System playable on: Playstation 2

Revisions
8/30/03: Started FAQ. Included the moves, and combos for Sakura. Added
more detailed info for most of Sakura's moves.
8/31/03: Continued playing SFEX3 with Sakura. Added another combo and
a Tag Combo to the Combo section.
9/3/03: Fixed some errors and some stuff on my FAQ. Added some
additional info on Sakura's Shouoken, Haru Ichiban and
Nekketsu Hadouken, and her Meteor Tag Combo. Finished my guide, which
is being submited to GameFAQs today.
9/4/03: Submission neglected. Attempting another submission later.
9/5/03: Attempting submission today.

My Profile:
Name: Sammy/TwistedRyu
Email Address: crazytwisted@email.com

Legal Note: This FAQ is written by me. You are not allowed to use this
FAQ without emailing and having permission from me. My FAQ may
recently be found at GameFAQs, so don't expect to find it anywhere
else. And don't bother to steal information from my guide and put it
in your own FAQ, as this is my FAQ that I written with my time and
patience.  Anyone who wants to contribute something to my guide,
whether it be combos, comments, questions, criticsm (anything that
applies with the FAQ only, NOTHING else) or anything you want to do
with it (please be sensible enough to use my FAQ wisely, if you are),
I'll be glad to accept.

Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Sakura's Move List
3. Combos
4. Ending

1. Introduction
Hi, and welcome to my third guide. This guide is only used for Sakura,
and nothing else. Anyone else looking for something else, go away. My
time and energy for this FAQ is made to write a Sakura guide. Due to
the lack of some information for my Ken guide, I thought I had to do
better, so I'm still trying my best to include more stuff for my
Sakura guide. My Sakura guide is just as short as with my Ryu/Evil Ryu and Ken
guides, though I thought
I just wanted to include the more important information for readers to
know (such as a more detailed description for the moves, and combos).
That is all I've done here like my Ryu/Evil Ryu and Ken guides. Anyway,
go on and read.

2. Sakura's Move List

-------
Throws:
-------

Sakura Shibome (WP+WK)
Sakura grabs the opponent, goes to the back, hands onto him/her, squeezes
their neck 3-4 times, and ends with a hand chop, dealt to the opponent's
shoulder. If you rotate the D-Pad in a counter-clockwise direction while
rapidly pressing a button, Sakura will squeeze the opponent more times
before chopping them. This does decent damage, and is very good to use on
constant, blocking opponents.

Cellar Shoot (B+WP+WK)
Sakura grabs the opponent, hangs on the opponent's hands, places her feet
into the opponent's stomach, and thrusts the opponent while launching
forward, and a huge distance away as well. Good to damage AND escape
from a powerful opponent, especially if he/she is too slow to get to you
and attack.

------------
Other Moves:
------------

Flower Kick (MP+MK)
This move is almost like Ken's Inazuma Kakato Wari, except for the fact that
she does the kick in a rainbow-like motion. It can stun crouching opponents,
or knock down any jumping opponent, as with the other Surprise Blows.

--------------
Special Moves:
--------------

Hadouken (D, DF, F+P)
This is the same as Ryu's/Ken's Hadouken, except with three differences:

1) Tapping the Punch button will cause Sakura to hold the Hadouken,
and charge it up, making it bigger before releasing it.
2) It does more damage than Ryu's/Ken's Hadouken
3) It has limited range.

The range of the Hadouken varies on how long you charge the Fireball. Any
higher than about 3 buttons to charge the Hadouken will result in shorter
range. Though it's range is limited, it can be used to surprise the opponent
on the ground or in the air. Since you can hold onto the Hadouken before
releasing it, it might be possible to trick the opponent on when you will
release it and then hit them before they know it. Therefore, a horrible
playing opponent may never know when you will release the Hadouken to hit
them.

Shouoken (F, D, DF+P)
Not exactly, but it is somewhat like the Shoryuken, with a major difference.
The Shouoken hits the opponent more times, unlike the Shoryuken. Also,
while doing the Shouoken, Sakura will rush towards the opponent, strike
the opponent with her fist and then she will launch up to the air, which
will THEN knock the opponent down. The amount of hits the Shouoken will
do depend on the Punch button you press, which are:

LP = 1 Hit (like a regular Shoryuken)
MP = 5 Hits
HP = 6 Hits

It is fairly fast and you can often avoid what your opponent does if you
do it before your opponent strikes. The damage is not as lethal as the
Shoryuken, but unlike the Shoryuken, you can cancel it into any
Super Combo and still do more hits than having your opponent up and out
of reach of your next move, if it is used in combos.

Shunpuu Kyaku (D, DB, B+K)
This move isn't as useful as Ryu's/Ken's Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku. Sakura
jumps and does a spinning kick which knocks the opponent down. The speed
and the amount of spins Sakura does depend on the Kick button you press
while initiating the move. It doesn't inflict much damage or even do more
hits than Ryu's/Ken's Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku, so I always avoid doing this
move no matter what, unless I accidently use it during combos. Overall,
this particularly isn't a very good move to use.

A-Ha-Ha! (F, DF, D, DB, B, UB+P)
One of the most terrible moves that ever EXISTED in the game. Sakura points
and laughs at the opponent (as the move's name implies). The damage is half
of a Light Punch and will only harm the opponent while you are close to them.
The only real benefit is that it pushes the opponent a bit away, but it will
only
leave you wide open for your opponent to nail you while you are starting to
recover from the move. This move is just as horrible as it is, compared to
it's taunting effect, like Chun Li's Gomen Ne!, so if you are doing it,
you'll regret having Sakura laughing at the opponent, as she'll soon get
more than just her mouth shut during the move.

-------------
Super Combos:
-------------

Shinku Hadouken (D, DF, F, D, DF, F+P)
Like Ryu, Sakura will toss a big fireball, that hits up to 5 times. The only
difference is that it does a bit more damage than Ryu's Shinku Hadouken.
The Shinku Hadouken helps extend the range of Sakura's regular Hadouken,
which is very useful. Again, you can use it to counter moves or surprise
your opponent. Just be warned if you use it too far away though, because
it has also has limited range and will disappear right in front of your
opponent's face if you use the fireball too far away.

Midare Zakura (D, DF, F, D, DF, F+K)
This move consists of three Shouokens combined in one Super Combo. The first
strikes the opponent once, the second hits two consecutive times, and the
third hits four times. It does more hits than Ken's Shoryu Reppa/Evil Ryu's
Messatsu Go-Shoryuken, but the damage is a bit more weaker, as opposed to
the damage of a regular Shouoken. Just like Ken's Shoryu Reppa/Evil Ryu's
Messatsu Go-Shoryuken, the Midare Zakura is good in combos, surprising
airborne opponents, or countering most moves, just like a regular
Shoryuken/Shouoken would do.

Haru Ichiban (D, DB, B, D, DB, B+K)
Sakura does a series of spinning sweeps (which are very much similar
Sakura's Shunpuu Kyaku) while sliding on the ground, and finishes with her
Heavy Kick, which knocks the opponent away. The best thing about it is
that it can easily surprise an opponent, if they are not smart enough to
crouch-block it during the move. This doesn't do as much damage as a few of
her other Super Combos, but it is the only move that can almost never fail
to surprise an opponent and nail them. It is somewhat hard to cancel it into
another Super Combo if done in combos, but otherwise just leave it alone to
do it's work.

Shungoku Satsu (LP, LP, F, LK, HP)
This is the same as Evil Ryu's Shungoku Satsu. Sakura runs towards the
opponent, grabs him/her and beats them up (as with Evil Ryu's Shungoku Satsu,
the game covers what Sakura does to prevent you from seeing it). Like
Evil Ryu's Shungoku Satsu, Sakura's Shungoku Satsu is unblockable, but is
very easy to avoid or prevented. Just jump or try to hit her as soon as
possible, as unlike Evil Ryu's Shungoku Satsu, Sakura runs fast and may
possibly catch you if decide not to jump. Smarter CPU opponents can get you
easily by jumping to avoid it and then attacking you before you even recover
from the run. A rather risky strategy that I found out for this move is to
do it while an opponent is landing from a jump, so that you get them as
soon as they land and nail them before they do anything else. It's also
possible to catch your opponent again into the Shungoku Satsu after you do
it once. It is another good move (besides a Throw) to strike an opponent
who likes to block your moves a lot, but it is somewhat risky to attempt.
This deals a very nice amount of damage however, so use it whenever it is
possible to grab your opponent if you are sure enough that they won't
avoid or hit you out of it. One important thing to remember is that
Sakura can't cover a full distance while she is running during the
Shungoku Satsu, so if it is done too far away (like the Shinku Hadouken),
you are likely to get counter-attacked.

--------------
Meteor Combos:
--------------

Nekkestsu Hadouken (D, DF, F, D, DF, F+PPP)
Somewhat similar to the Shinku Hadouken, but the Nekketsu Hadouken is about
three times as large as the Shinku Hadouken and it does more damage than any
projectile in the game (in other words, this is the best projectile move in
the entire game). It can prevent almost anything in the game, since the
Hadouken is large enough to stop anyone who attempts to strike. If used too
far away from an opponent, it's possible for them to block this before it
reaches. The Nekketsu Hadouken, not only possessing a potential for it's big
size and damage, is also released very fast, and suprisingly, it can easily
counter your opponent before any attack reaches you. A tough opponent
wouldn't stand a chance getting his/her first attack to connect before
he/she gets pummeled by the Nekketsu Hadouken.

Genki Ichiban (F, DF, D, DB, B, UB+PPP)
Another terrible move that exists in the game. Sakura walks torwards the
opponent in a tip-toe-like expression, and then does her A-Ha-Ha!, with
three differences which are as follows:

1) The damage is BIG (160 damage)
2) It is unblockable (Experiment for yourself)
3) It knocks the opponent away a HUGE distance

However, it is easy to avoid and prevent. Once Sakura does the move, just j
ump away from her or simply hit her before she even reaches you. This will
waste her Super Combo Gauge. The same thing goes for you, so make sure
that this move succeeds, otherwise that will be three Super Combo levels
wasted for the usage of one move that failed
to hit the opponent.

-----------------
Meteor Tag Combo:
-----------------

Important Note: You will need Ryu as your partner for this Meteor Tag Combo.

Command: LP, LP, B, LK, HP
Description: Sakura begins by running towards the opponent (which is
just like with her Shungoku Satsu), and if the opponent does not jump
or hit her, Sakura grabs the opponent, goes behind them and holds them
with her Sakura Shibome. Ryu appears, punches the opponent twice, then
he kicks and Sakura does her chop, stunning the opponent. After both
do their attacks at the same time, both Sakura and Ryu jump away from
the opponent, gathering their Ki to generate a Shinku Hadouken, and
then they both toss it at the opponent. Sakura's will hit first and
"stun" the opponent, and then Ryu's Shinku Hadouken will collide with
the "stunned" opponent, damaging and knocking them away. This does very
good damage than Ken's/Ryu's Meteor Tag Combo, and it is unblockable.
The damage is not as lethal as Sakura's Genki Ichiban, but overall
this move is defitnitely much better than Genki Ichiban.

3. Combos
Here I've only included the Star combos from my Ryu/Evil Ryu guide. There
aren't as much combos here as opposed to my Ken guide, but at least it's
better than no combos at all.

Combo #1:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Heavy Kick/Crouching Heavy Punch
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura
- Shinku Hadouken

Combo #2:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Crouching Heavy Punch
- Haru Ichiban
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura

Combo #3:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Crouching Heavy Punch
- Shouoken (HP)
- Midare Zakura
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura

Combo #4:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Crouching Heavy Punch
- Hadouken
- Midare Zakura
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura

Combo #5:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Heavy Kick
- Midare Zakura
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura

Combo #6:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Heavy Kick
- Haru Ichiban
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura

Combo #7:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Crouching Heavy Punch
- Hadouken
- Haru Ichiban
- Shinku Hadouken
- Midare Zakura

Combo #8:
- Jumping Heavy Kick
- Heavy Kick
- Midare Zakura
- Haru Ichiban
- Midare Zakura

Tag Combos

Tag Partner: Ryu
Action: Manual

Tag Combo #1:
- Haru Ichiban (Critical Parade start-up)
- Shinku Hadouken/Shinku Hadouken (both intiate the SH at the same time)
- Shinku Hadouken/Shinku Hadouken
- Shinku Hadouken/Shinku Hadouken
Note: Make sure you have alot of room for Ryu to come to the left side of
the opponent so that both of you can intiate the SH without Ryu to come
over the opponent and then do the SH. More time will be wasted if that
happens.

4. Ending

Credits:
- My dad for buying the game
- Capcom for making a great fighting game
- Myself for writing the guide

Other Credits (sources I gathered from other FAQs):
- ShinGotenk's Sakura FAQ for the follow-up to the Sakura Shibome, the
difference with the Hadouken, and the downfall to the Shungoku Satsu,
and how to avoid Sakura's Genki Ichiban.

That's just all to my Sakura guide. Hopefully it had at least helped
you somewhat while playing as Sakura. Thanks for reading it, and have
a fun time kicking your opponent's butt in Street Fighter EX 3 as
Sakura.