How to play Guile in Street Fighter 6
Street Fighter 6 has a roster of new and returning fighters, each with their own moves, strategies, and stories. Guile has been a staple of the franchise since Street Fighter II.
A lot has changed in those 30-plus years, so let's take a look at our rundown of Guile.
The basics of using Guile
Guile is the original charge character. This means that some of his primary special moves require charging to use, which is generally done by holding a direction for a short period, before quickly pressing another direction and a button.
This can be tricky to learn, making charge characters like Guile a bit more advanced for new players.
Click to enlargeCharge moves lean inherently toward a more long-range, defensive style of play. One of Guile's strengths is letting opponents come to him while peppering them with Sonic Booms, then hitting anyone stupid enough to jump in with a Somersault Kick.
Learning to play Guile does mean learning to turtle up and play defensive, but as you master his charge moves, his offensive potential unlocks and he becomes a versatile character, good at dictating the pace of a fight.
True mastery of Guile comes from learning to move freely, while always charging your moves.
Guile's moves and basic combos
Guile has added some new moves to his classic repertoire, giving returning fans some new tools to play with. Below are his special moves, unique attacks, as well as some basic combos to show you how to use them.
Special Moves
Click to enlarge| Special Moves | Input |
| Sonic Boom | Back (hold) - Forward - Punch |
| Somersault Kick | Down (hold) - Up - Kick |
| Sonic Blade | Down - Back - Punch |
| Sonic Cross | Forward + Punch (During Sonic Blade) |
| Sonic Break | Two punch buttons (during Solid Puncher, can be followed up by four punch buttons to launch more projectiles) |
Unique Attacks
Click to enlarge| Unique Attacks | Input |
| Full Bullet Magnum | Forward + Medium Punch |
| Burning Straight | Back + Heavy Punch |
| Spinning Back Knuckle | Forward + Heavy Punch |
| Knee Bazooka | Back + Light Kick |
| Rolling Sobat | Back or Forward + Medium Kick |
| Reverse Spin Kick | Forward + Heavy Kick |
| Guile High Kick | Down/forward + Heavy Kick |
| Recoil Cannon | Medium Punch - Back + Heavy Punch |
| Double Shot | Down + Medium Punch - Down + Medium Punch |
| Drake Fang | Down + Medium Kick - Forward + Medium Punch |
| Phantom Cutter | Down + Heavy Kick - Down/forward + Heavy Kick |
Super Arts
Click to enlarge| Super Arts | Input |
| Sonic Hurricane | Back (hold) - Forward - Back - Forward - Punch |
| Solid Puncher | (Down - Back)x2 - Punch |
| Crossfire Somersault (Critical Art) | Back (hold) - Forward - Back - Forward - Kick |
Combos
Click to enlargeCombos and playing defensively do not really go hand in hand, but as we discussed you shouldn't just see Guile as a defensive character. He is great at controlling a fight, and sometimes that means jumping in and smacking your opponent around.
Guile's handiest tool for busting out his supers is to combo standing Medium Punch into crouching Medium Punch. Be sure to be charging while you do it, so you can combo into a Sonic Boom or a Somersault Kick.
For something a bit more aggressive, jump in with Heavy Kick, then follow it up with a crouching Heavy Kick, then down/forward Heavy Kick, then finish with a flashy Somersault Kick.
The backstory of the character
Guile is an Air Force Major who has worked with long-time friends Chun-Li, Ryu, and Ken to bring down Shadaloo and the tyrannical M. Bison. With that mission completed Guile returns to his duty in the Air Force.
Click to enlargeWhen his brother-in-law Ken Masters is implicated in the Nayshall terrorist incident, Guile travels the world in search of him. After finding Ken, Guile decides he must also look into the Nayshall incident to learn the truth behind it.
For more on the game, check out our Street Fighter homepage, or check out how to play Jamie in Street Fighter 6.