Blanka has a new, OP move in Street Fighter 6 that you need to know

Along with a new Street Fighter game comes new tricks for old dogs. This seems especially true in Street Fighter 6, as fighters such as Blanka, DeeJay, and Zangief all have new attacks and fighting styles that may surprise longtime players. This is definitely true in the case of Blanka, as his Street Fighter 6 iteration has a number of new attacks and tricks, including one new command normal that may make him a complete terror.

Thanks to the flood of new footage this week coming from the game's final version we're seeing what some of the characters will look like at launch. Let's take a look at the footage provided by FGC content creators PNDKetchup, PNDMustard, and WoolieWoolz.

Historically, Blanka has always had a reach problem despite being a fighter with the ability to bounce across the entire screen. His best strategies in past title like Street Fighter 4 and 5 was to mix opponents up with high and low attacks while punishing jump-ins. However, his new Wild Nail command normal in Street Fighter 6 adds a new dimension to an old strategy.

Along with a simple command input of forward+heavy punch, Wild Nail is a mid-attack that reaches almost halfway across the screen. If that wasn't enough to make it an excellent poking tool, the move also pushes back the opponent if blocked. This means that it's great as a keep-away tool and to create distance.

However, that's not all.

Wild Nail also does a hard knockdown on hit, in addition to being a Punish Counter that places the opponent in a combo state. If all of that wasn't enough, this command normal is also cancellable into Blanka's coward crouch on hit and when blocked.

That's a lot, but what does it mean?

Wild Nail enables Blanka to poke at the opponent for near-max distance. In turn, this gives him the ability to more safely charge up his special attacks and force the opponent to contend with Wild Nail. The ability to cancel out of the move on hit or block also gives Street Fighter 6 Blanka a tool for cancelling into other specials.

As seen in the video above, the real danger of the move is that it comes out looking like it needs to be blocked like an overhead, when in fact, it hits mid. It's a truly deceptive move and one that should give Blanka some new mind games to work with when paired with his new Blanka-Chan dolls.

We'll be taking a look at more of the changes to the old-school cast as we approach the release of Street Fighter 6 on June 2.

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