Melty Blood/FAQ

General

• What is Melty Blood Actress Again: Current Code?

Melty Blood Actress Again: Current Code newest version of the originally doujin fighter Melty Blood. The series originated as a spinoff fighting game based on Type-Moon's Tsukihime series, as a fighting game/visual novel hybrid. Over the years, the focus on story has been lost in the series and the game mechanics reworked drastically as the game became more and more popular, eventually receiving a release in arcades as Act Cadenza in 2005. After several revisions, a sequel was released in Arcades in 2008, a new revision, Current Code, was release in 2010, and has reached a home port with the release of the v1.07 edition at the turn of 2012.

• Why should I play it?

First of all, CCCaster (the best netplay client for Melty) only works on the doujin release version of the game. Unfortunately, Steam's version of Melty doesn't have nearly as good netplay. We would still recommend buying the Steam version to support French Bread, but otherwise you can ask on the Melty Discord for information on how to acquire the doujin version. CCCaster's efficiency is not only similar to GGPO but in fact perhaps even better in some aspects. To give an example, two people with wired connections could be playing one another on the opposite ends of North America, and on average get about 3 delay. Said frames which by the way, are greatly alleviated by rollback. Third, the graphical requirements for the doujin version are relatively super-light. Thanks to the fact the base game is well over a decade old, you can imagine how friendly that makes it for modern computers. But enough about version benefits. Let's suppose you got either the official release or doujin version. Then what?

Of course you might be also wondering "what about gameplay/content/other?" Melty Blood's gameplay is arguably one of the richest to this day in anime fighting games. There are 31 characters, with 3 Moon Styles, each of which significantly change your fighter. On top of all the differences in Moon Style mechanics alone, all characters also get respective changes to specials, and yes, even normals. Some even go as far as different movement and/or HP. With this, you can see how in actuality, you'd get 91 characters. And of course, yes, they all play different from each other. So there's no way you're not going to find at least one character moon that suits your playstyle, or at least "vibes" with you. Even beyond that, the gameplay itself is rich. There's tons of different ways to interpret and structure your gameplan thanks to the system mechanics, namely Reverse Beat. You could spend hours in training mode based on that alone. And speaking of training mode, that too has been enhanced by the community version. But even if it wasn't, at base it was already helpfully comprehensive with all the options you'd ever need.

If you're looking for a more easygoing time, the game's soundtrack is universally agreed to be highly enjoyable, with seldom any song in the entire OST that's a turnoff. The game's aesthetic has also aged wonderfully, with some of the clearest and smoothest animated sprites in the genre; taking inspiration from Street Fighter III. This isn't even to mention that the game is packed with an arcade mode, a story mode, replay mode, and much, much more.

Whether you're a simple Tsukihime fan, someone looking to randomly try a new fighting game, someone who wants that game they can occasionally open at random to kill time, or a competitive fighting gamer looking for a deep new title to try, Melty Blood is perfect for all such various occasions. When you also remember that it's super friendly to modern devices, and it's free, you come to understand there's a reason it's hailed as the poverty game. If you're on the fence for trying out Melty Blood, you might as well give it a shot. At worst you lose some time, and nothing else deciding it's not for you. At best, who knows? With all the high quality content it has to offer, it's hard to imagine it won't strike some positive impression. It could even be one of your next favorites!

• Where can I get it?

Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code on Steam

The doujin version (that works with CCCaster) is harder to acquire. For information about how to acquire the doujin version, please ask on our Discord.

• How hard is this game to play?

Like most fighting games, the execution requirement varies greatly depending on the character chosen. Melty Blood is designed from the ground-up to be very user-friendly however, and the execution level is something that any modern fighting game player would feel comfortable with. Players coming from slower Capcom-style games may find concepts like instant airdashing strange and unusual, but the difficulty is no greater than most advanced tricks in games such as SF4 or MVC3.

Gameplay

Picking a Character

• Who's a good beginner character?

• Aoko Aozaki (Full Moon)
• Len (Full)
• Nanaya Shiki (All three. Don't lose sleep learning double DP combos though if you don't want to. You can replace it with single DP instead and still net good damage)
• Roa (Full Moon)
• Sion (Full, Crescent if you don't mind learning some technicalities)
• Tohno Shiki (Preferably Full, also Crescent. Much like Nanaya, don't lose sleep learning optimal stuff and stick to simple variants)

Some of the above characters may have more optimal combos which are difficult execution wise. Some characters may also have a lot to learn if you want to master them. However, in terms of fundamental teaching, starting levels of execution, and easy learning/interpretation, these are generally altogether your best picks. Of all characters, these will best help you learn Melty Blood, how to improve yourself with the system, and can net you decent wins based on good play. Some choices here may be more subject to exception in an aspect or two than others, but they still follow these guidelines well overall.

• Tier List?

Please refer to the bottommost section of this page

• Who should I play if I-

(Note that characters can very well specialize or do well in multiple things at once)

-want a shoto, or at least a "Melty shoto"? A.K.A. "fundamental" character with various-occasion tools

• F-Aoko, C/F-Sion, C/F-Tohno

-am an execution monster who likes long combos and thick pressure?

• Arcueid (C/H), Kohaku (C), Maids (C), Powered-Ciel (Any), Roa (C), Ryougi(C/H), Satsuki (C), Vermillion Akiha (F)

Execution requirements may vary across characters here, but everyone listed fits these requisites nicely altogether

-want to aggressively mix people up all day?

• Akiha (Any), F-Ciel, C/F-Maids, Miyako (Any), C-Kohaku, C/F-Nanaya, Vermillion Akiha (Any)

-want to zone/dominate neutral?

• F-Akiha, C-Aoko, C-Ciel, F-Len, Hime (Any), KohaMech (Any), C/F-Mech Hisui, Powered Ciel (Any), F-Ryougi, Vermillion Akiha (Any), C/F-White Len

-want to do well with setplay regularly?

• F-Hisui, C/F-Nanaya, C/F-Maids, C-Satsuki, F-Vermillion Akiha

-want a gameplan based on command grabs/grapples?

• H-Kohaku, Kouma (Any), H-White Len

Also sorry to say, but don't fall for the memes. Satsuki isn't "really" a grappler. She has command grabs, but her gameplans/style don't revolve primarily around them

-want to suppress my opponent from playing as much as possible at any time?

• C-Arceuid, F-Hime, C-Kohaku, H-KohaMech, C/F-Maids, C/F-Nero, Powered Ciel (Any, particularly F), C-Roa, F-Vermillion Akiha

Training Mode

• Who's the best training dummy and why?

Sion Tatari.

She has the most consistent hurtboxes and combo-properties of anyone in the cast, making her ideal to practice combos and setups on. In addition, she also has the most average guts/defense modifiers in the game, making her the best to lab damage with. On top of that, she has the fastest wakeup time in tandem with the speed of her 2A, making her the most ideal for labbing okizeme. The fact her 2A is also the fastest (outside the Necos) makes her perfect for practicing delay pressure. Outside of the fact she doesn't have any exceptional properties or hurtboxes, there's no reason to not use her in training mode.

• What about other characters? For what reason should I use them as dummies?

Though Sion Tatari will cover a vast majority of the reasons you will ever need a training dummy, she does not cover every one. There are some character specifics you should know, in order to get the most accurate results from your testing. Here are the characters, with a description on what unique properties they have to offer:

>Kouma: Has the absolute flattest and lowest hurtbox when falling with his back facing downwards. This makes certain combos impossible on him specifically, as this makes him hit the ground significantly quicker than everyone else. Furthermore, when it comes to combo properties, his hurtbox is among the odder ones.

>Ryougi Shiki: Has the absolute oddest combo properties of the entire game. If you think a combo should be universal, test it on her just to be really sure

>Archetype: Earth: Due to her large collision box, certain setups may not work on her. She is also one of the two characters where all her mashout normals are minimum 7f startup or so, making it ideal to test certain frametraps on her.

>Nero: Like Archetype: Earth, he's the other one (in terms of minimum normal startup, not collision box)

>Miyako, Len, and White Len: Due to their short height, comboing may at some point prove to be a problem (though it rarely ever actually is). White Len in particular may also be a problem if your character's confirms are dependent somehow on the character being crouching or standing (e.g. C-Sion) as her animation for either is extremely difficult to tell apart on reaction.

>Warachia, Riesbyfe: Certain OTG properties may prove to be an issue. For Riesbyfe, she has the slowest wakeup speed overall in the game. So it's good to test certain okizeme on her. Also for Warachia, similar to Kouma, he may have problems comboing off certain falling properties.

>Aoko: Has the most deceptive wakeup animation in the game. If you need to practice setplay or meaties, you should remember to do it against her, since her hurtbox becomes active a while after her animation tends to appear that way.

• How balanced is this game? What is the tier list?

For more information, please refer to the bottommost section

Tournament/Offline Standard

• What is the tournament ruleset?

Specific to Melty Blood, the winner of the previous match in a set may NOT switch characters. They may however, switch Moon Styles. This is to keep in accordance with native arcade ruleset as close as possible.

Though no stage is "officially" banned, communities typically tend to agree that being able to avoid certain stages due to dim lighting is preferable. For example, fighting White Len on the Archetype: Earth stage may be an annoyance. Fighting Akiha on Emerald Table is visually quite a dread. Usually people pick Classic Home; Evening Party, as its lighting is good and is quickly selectable.

The format itself is up to what the organizers decide. Whether it's Round Robin, Pools-to-Top-8, the Best-Ofs, everything can be different. Much like any other fighting game tournament however, granted there are enough people, the format is preferably Double Elimination, with BO3, until the Winners, Losers, and Grand Finals, which are all typically BO5.

Tech Help

• Wired? Wireless? Ethernet?

TL;DR: Play fighting games with the system of choice (in this case, the computer,) wired directly to the router.

The reason this is so important is because when packets of information transfer from one computer to another, wireless connections tend to drop many of them along the way, causing a significant increase of random lag spikes and even greater delay. In order to fix this, you need a wired connection, which involves having your system/computer connected directly to your router. Some computers may already be set up like this. Others, mainly laptops, may not.

If they aren't, you can fix this with an ethernet cable, which are extremely cheap. Ones that are 20 feet go for about 15-25 dollars. Not to mention, one ethernet cable can also help you in every game you play online ever. Modern consoles have ports for them to prevent this exact issue. Even if you don't feel playing wireless is an issue, the difference in performance is objectively undeniable.

Wired connections can make playing between eastern U.S. to Europe stable and possible with rollback netcode. Wired connection can be the difference between stable 2 frame delay connections in Under Night to sporadic 8-10 frame delay connections wireless with the same distance. It seriously changes a lot, and you'll be thankful you did it, if you haven't already. It's the closest you can get online to replicating a lagless scenario. And with the community version of Melty, that's actually at points quite possible. There's quite frankly no reason to not get one for online gaming.

• Why does it feel like there's lag when a laptop with Melty is hooked up to another screen?

Competitive Balance

Overview

If you are concerned about how much balance affects your character choice, understand that everyone (outside of Neco Arc and Neco Arc Chaos) are viable. While there is no denying the egregious quantities of bullshit, Melty Blood's gameplay is rich enough for you to formulate strategies and cultivate skills which allow you to consistently play any matchup.

The overall quality of Melty Blood's balance is heavily debatable. The conversation can tackle many different topics, ranging from claims saying there is no 8-2 outside Necos, to criticisms on how design philosophy may (not) reflect the foundation for balance. However, it is undeniable that by the end of the day, no matter who is chosen (minus Neco Arc and Neco Arc Chaos), the system overall allows for you to outskill your opponent. While this sentiment is less apparent in a handful of certain matchups (particularly against top tiers), it doesn't change the fact that every single character has to block just about the same way. This complements the fact that every single character has something which makes blocking against them scary. And because neutral is so auspicious (for both the right and wrong reasons), it allows every character to be a very potential threat. Even if the worst aspects of Melty (whether contradictory to the positives, or ironically part of them) don't tend to really change at any level, everyone at the highest level is a real danger for the right reasons, more than they are a comparative setback for the wrong ones; no matter the matchup.

Tournament results are also a bit of a controversial topic. For certain tournaments such as EVO, the top tiers usually tend to win with very, very little exception. However, where this perspective begins to muddle is when you consider the biannual Melty Blood majors held at major arcades in Japan; where the turnouts are much higher, the entrants are far more experienced, yet the format of Ringwide is slightly different. a-cho and BigOne2nd's Melty Blood tournaments have a variety of different winners, none of which exactly tend to be "no-names" within the community either. And the winners tend to range from a broad variety of characters, ranging from top tiers to lower tier characters such as even F-Riesbyfe. Much like a reflection of the game's balance in and of itself, tournament results are variable, for both the right and wrong reasons. But by the end of it all, there is no changing the fact it is what it is, and that skill is the biggest centerpiece to what matters most in the end.

TL;DR: This may not be a KOF or Tekken, but it sure as hell ain't a 3rd Strike or Blazblue, so outside of Neco Arc and Neco Arc Chaos, play whoever you want.

Though Melty Blood's gameplay has MUCH to consider, tier listing has always been closer to agreeable. However, standout (and we mean REALLY standout) choices among experienced players that many others would not agree with are far from uncommon (e.g. People unable to agree on who the best character is, Japanese players claiming C-Neco Arc is just barely viable, eclectic opinions on certain others). Because of that, many aspects of these tier lists cannot reliably be taken as gospel-truth, no matter who it is coming from or how widely accepted. That is how these go after all. So make of the information you understand and are given however you will. What is posted here will be done in the vein of information for information's sake above all else.

OP Note in this section will refer specifically to what the creator of their respective tier lists said about it

Tier Lists

ScrawtVermillion's Tier List

(Click the above image for the link)

OP Note: Saying that C-Kohaku as Top 1 is a rather strong opinion altogether; one unique to him as a matter of fact. New players looking to get into this game should not be agreeing for the wrong reasons (in this case, simple hearsay.) Ordered within tiers (left to right, strongest to weakest), all Moon Styles individually considered.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Alps' Tier List

(Click the above image for the link)

OP Note: Ordered within tiers (left to right, strongest to weakest.) Characters represented account for all Moon Styles at once, as that's how official arcade and tournament rulesets go. However there is a large leaning towards their best Moon Style as well. Note that this is accounting for only the highest level. Characters that perform differently at lower levels may see radically different placings for reasons typically unaccounted for until further testing and experience. For example, it is commonly accepted Aoko is top tier because of her incredible zoning and movement abilities. However in his viewpoint, those aspects are necessary for her to function. Especially because at worst, even with orbs, she commits as much as anyone else for just as average reward.

• S Tier: God Tier. The absolute best. Breaks all of the game's rules with staggering character strengths. Reflects this in their comparatively ridiculous matchup statistics, lack of any "real" weaknesses, all while rarely even hitting 5-5 for worst matchups
• A Tier: Top Tier. Strongly defies many of the game's most vital conventions. Can easily make for many situations which are all-ways risky to attempt beating. Weaknesses in character design are hardly reliable for your victory.
• B Tier: High Tier. Potent but fair. The standard for how this game's character design should be. Has just enough so that you instill very apparent fears into your opponent, while leaving some weaknesses just blatant enough to make fighting fair without crippling them. Anyone above, within, or below this tier can fairly fight against it
• C Tier: Mid Tier. The same as the tier above, except either it's either one of two problems. Either their toolset isn't "complete" in some crucial aspects, or they lack the means to keep up with parts of the game. Could be a slight mix of both. Can still at the very worst play the game "proper", and regularly make for great, if not terrifying situations. If this was the worst tier outside joke characters, there would be little to no discussion of balance on the prospect of weaknesses being too bad. Note that I specifically say "weaknesses" in terms of "exploitable faults" rather than "lack of strengths".
• D Tier: Low Tier. Same as C, except tack on either worst damage in the game by miles, or even more dreaded issues with their functionality. Still very real threats that can be carried skill-wise, painful as it might be to compensate that much.
• E: Unviable Cutoff Point. Almost a real threat, but lacks the essential ability to play the game as it's supposed to be. Has nothing to compensate for it. Good thing this is a joke character on purpose.
• F: Just don't