Broski Ranks SF6 Alex as Mid-Tier 'Marisa Upgrade'
After grinding to 2,000 Master Rate, top European competitor Broski has concluded that Street Fighter 6’s newest grappler, Alex, is essentially a stronger version of Marisa destined for the middle of the tier list.
Key Takeaways:
- Alex possesses a top-five Level 2 super that refunds immense drive gauge and meter.
- The character suffers from "The Marisa Problem," lacking reliable mixups from his abundant plus frames.
- Broski places Alex firmly in mid-tier due to his lack of a meterless invincible reversal.
The Marisa Diagnosis
Despite packing large normals with privileged hitboxes and potent drive gauge destruction, Alex struggles to open up disciplined opponents. Broski points out that while moves like a charged heavy punch leave Alex with frame advantage, they push opponents too far away to threaten a command grab. This forces Alex to rely on predictable frame traps. Savvy defenders can easily secure perfect parries against these setups. Furthermore, his inability to convert off low attacks makes it difficult to punish opponents who simply walk backward away from his pressure.
"So to me Alex is kind of like a Marissa upgrade I think he's Marissa but with better mobility and slightly better mixup potential in exchange for slightly lower damage output." — Broski, SF6 Competitor
A Top-Tier Level 2 Super
The brightest spot in Alex's toolkit is his Level 2 super. Broski argues this tool belongs in the top five of the entire game. Unlike Sagat or Cammy, whose non-cinematic combo enders severely scale damage, Alex's juggle extension breaks 5,000 damage off a safe crouch medium punch buffer. The subsequent juggle combo refunds roughly 75 percent of a drive bar. This breaks the usual restrictions Capcom places on super combo extensions.
The Mid-Tier Ceiling
Alex falls short of the highest competitive echelons because he lacks an invincible reversal outside of his super meter. In Street Fighter 6, characters without invincible defense survive by inflicting nightmarish offensive pressure. M. Bison exemplifies this archetype perfectly. Alex's offense relies too heavily on gimmicks and the controversial Stomp special to compensate for his defensive holes. Once the community fully labs out these knowledge checks, his tournament viability will strictly depend on pilot optimization.
Source: Broski