Smash Ultimate Kazuya release date and moveset for the Tekken fighter

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate kicked off Ninendo’s E3 2021 presentation, and the leading fighter of the show was far from what fans expected. Kazuya Mishima from Tekken will officially be the next challenger to join the roster, and it looks like he’ll operate differently from any other fighter we’ve seen yet.

Below, we detail the latest news with regard to Kazuya’s release date, full moveset, and more.

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When is Kazuya's Super Smash Bros Ultimate release date?

Kazuya Mishima will be available June 29, 2021 for $5.99 as a standalone purchase or included with the Fighters Pass Vol. 2.

What makes Kazuya a unique fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate?

The main draw for Kazuya’s inclusion in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is that this is essentially the first time a character with a more traditional fighting game moveset will be playable within Nintendo’s unique fighting game. While other similar icons like Street Fighter’s Ryu and King of Fighters’ Terry Bogard exist in Smash Ultimate, their base of attacks was reduced to match all other fighters on the roster.

That’s in contrast to Terry, for example, who has similar variations on tilt, attack, and smash like every other fighter, Kazuya features nearly three dozen moves ripped straight from the character’s Tekken 7 command list. Terry and Ryu can perform their most iconic attacks in Smash, but this mirroring of Kazuya appears far more granular.

Ironically, this detailed approach defies Sakurai’s mindset on Smash development as of 2013.

“The biggest feature we look at in Smash Bros. is, ‘What does this character bring to Smash Bros. that other characters don’t?’” Sakurai said in a GamesTM interview nearly eight years ago. “If you look at … someone from a fighting game already, and people like fighting with this character, from my point of view, it’s like ‘This guy does what this guy already does. He fills the role that this character already has. So while you may like this character and he’s interesting, that doesn’t really merge well here.” So, Sakurai has responded by adding Kazuya in a role that’s somewhat similar to the one he currently occupies in his original series.

True to Kazuya’s devilish ways, he also has the ability to transform into a Devil for certain moves as well, such as the iconic Air Inferno. This change will likely further complicate Kazuya’s fighting possibilities.

Kazuya’s Smash Bros. Ultimate moveset

Kazuya’s moves were a big feature of the character’s E3 showcase, and now we have specific details about all of them.

Special Moves

Neutral (B): Devil Blaster: Fires a fast beam instantly that can pass through multiple opponents. Its power decreases over time. The blast can be aimed in several directions and reflected.

Side (Left/Right+B): Devil Fist: A fast punch that rushes forward and through opponents. The closer they are, the more knockback there is. You can punch through close opponents. It can also be used for recovery.

Up: (Up+B) Devil Wings: Allows you to ascend in combination with jumps. You can move left or right once the jump peaks. It can also be used to KO opponents by shooting them upward.

Down (Down+B) Heaven’s Door: Grab an opponent and throw them to the ground. Can be used to take opponents down with you. Players can resist it through inputs depending on how much damage they’ve taken.

Rage

When damage is 100%+ or Stamina is below 25%, Rage triggers and can be used once per Stock. Attack power is multiplied by 1.1x. There’s also a Rage Drive throw that can be used once per Stock that’s used as a grab or by doing Heaven’s Door. Rage state ends after using the move. It also ends if you take enough damage. It will also end soon after you miss a Rage Drive attack.

Final Smash

Final Blaster: It releases a volley of Devil Blaster attacks that fan out. It will fail if the first beam doesn’t hit.

General characteristics

Kazuya is great for comebacks, has high attack power, but has low range and is slow. He’s also heavy and has a low jump. Kazuya auto-faces opponents in 1:1 scenarios like other fighting game characters and has continuous Super Armor, but not as much as Bowser. He has very little hitstun.

Normal Moves

Left stick has eight directions, but you still only use A.

• A (Hold or repeatedly press): 10 hit combo. The final hi resists shields.
• AA (delay) A: Flash Punch Combo. Has a blast at the end.
• A (while dashing): Leaping sidekick. Closes in on opponents.
• Forward, forward A: Left Splits Kick. It can reflect projectiles.
• Up AA: Twin Pistons. Great for airborne or advancing opponents. Can also be used as a combo.
• Diagonal Left + AAAA: Roundhouse to Triple Spin Kicks. A great combo finisher with multiple hits.
• Side A: Oni Front Kick. Launches opponents at a low trajectory.
• Diagonal Down right + AA: Tsunami Kick. Launches opponents and the second hit breaks shields.
• Down + A: Nejuri Uraken. Attacks while moving forward.
• Diagonal Down Left + A: Stature Smash. Knocks opponents down.
• Back + A: Flash Tornado. A quick counter to use in combos.
• Back+ diagonal up + A: Jump Side Kick. Can be used as a counter for short jumps.

Crouches

These attacks are all input while crouching.

• Downward diagonal + A: Tombstone Crusher. It’s a strong counter.
• Down + A: Crouch Jab.
• Diagonal Back + A: Crouch Spin Kick.
• Crouch+A While standing up: Demon God Fist. Causes heavy flinch that’s great for combos and KOs.

Smash Attacks

• Side Smash: Glorious Demon God Fist. Has high launch power, maybe even more than Falcon Punch.
• Up Smash: Devil Twister. Sends opponents flying upward.
• Down Smash: Lion Slayer. It launches opponents at an angle to kick off a combo and can be used to KO over ledges.

Air

• Neutral air: Jumping Knuckle.
• Forward Air: Searing Edge. Mainly used on the ground as a small jump.
• Back Air: Jumping Sobat. Good fpr launching opponents.
• Up Air: Rising Toe Kick.
• Down Air: Demon Scissors. Attack opponents with a sudden drop.
• Grabs and Throws
• Basic Grab: Sternum Smash. Does good damage, but opponents can break free.
• Forward Throw: Double Face Kick.
• Back Throw: Steel Pedal Drop.
• Up Throw: Air Inferno.
• Down Throw: Stonehead. Great for combos.
• Diagonal forward + Down + Diagonal Forward + Grab: Gates of Hell. It changes direction.

Shoryuken/Other

• Forward, Down, Down-Forward: Crouch Dash. Makes your torso invincible to close in.
• Shoryuken + A: Wind God Fist. Launches opponents.
• Shoryuken + A (hold): Dragon Uppercut. A KO move wih high launch power.
• Shoryuken + B: Spinning Demon to Left Hook.
• Side+ taunt: Demon’s Wrath.

Kazuya’s Smash Ultimate Stage

Kazuya will be bundled with the Mishima Dojo stage. It starts off fully enclosed, but its surroundings break through combat on all sides. It does not include any floating platforms.

Kazuya comes to Smash Ultimate June 29.