Why Can’t We Be Friends?

Hey fight fans,

I’ve been spending some time in the ARMS lab, and I thought it’d be a good time to write about our newest fighter, Misango, who’ll be coming to the game as part of the 4.0 update that’s launching today!

Popular guy!

Taking a closer look at him, he’s got this friendship bracelet thing on lock. There’s some braided patterns within his ARMS, and if you peep his garments, there’s a thick cloth on top of other woven material. If you look at his stage, Temple Grounds, there are tons of friendship bracelets tied around pillars and hanging from the walls of the arena. Even though his scowl’s a little serious, he probably makes a lot of friends when he isn’t climbing the ranks of the ARMS League.

That spirit above him is a mysterious entity that follows Misango wherever he goes, and more importantly, grants him some pretty awesome abilities when he’s gotta throw down in the ring. He’s also bringing three new ARMS into the game as his default options. If you can unlock those for the rest of the cast, they can have some serious fun with them, too!

After a bit of hands-on sleuthing, I uncovered quite a few interesting tidbits about Misango and his spirit companion that you might find handy as you start planning new combat strategies.

Misango can absorb the power of the spirit in two ways:

The first is by fully charging via a dash or jump, which allows Misango to immediately absorb the spirit in its current state. The second is by charging via a guard; after a guard is held long enough, the spirit transforms into a small pillar of spiritual energy in front of him that Misango can walk into and absorb or hide behind for deflecting cover. (Important detail: the pillar has collision, so it’s great at blocking incoming attacks!)



I’m sure the spirit is fine, it…maybe doesn’t feel pain?

Absorbing the spirit is where things get a bit more complicated: see, the spirit rotates through three different colors in order—red, yellow, and blue—and which ability Misango obtains from the spirit depends on what color the spirit is at the time it’s absorbed.

If Misango absorbs the red spirit, he’ll don a mask with a small set of horns, which gives him the ability to resist flinching like Mechanica or Master Mummy. If he absorbs while it’s blue, he’ll get a mask with some wings, which gives him better mobility. And this one’s my favorite: if he absorbs the yellow spirit, he gets this spiky-looking mask and the ability to automatically block all incoming blows for a short period of time upon activating his rush combo (yeah, it’s hecka buff.)

*Note that any charged ARM will still knock him down and thereby remove the spirit buff, though.

Moving onto his ARMS:

Aww, look at those happiness bubbles!

Scorpio: The Scorpio is a cute little poison-injecting arachnid that will crawl on the ground, hop when it reaches its target, and stab them with PURPLE LOVE!!! What’s even better is if you use it in the air, it transforms into a fast-moving disc that can fly in a straight or wide arc, making it really hard to stop! I’m not the biggest fan of anything from the arachnid family, but man, do I love this thing!

*Note that poison damage can stack over time. The first time a target is hit with poison, it’ll take off about 1 point of health per second, but hit the opponent with it twice more and you can inflict up to 3 points per second. The poison itself doesn’t last forever, so it’s probably a good idea to mix-and-match the timings of tossing a charged Scorpio on the ground and from the air to get at least one hit to connect often throughout the course of a match.

I also wonder what these taste like….

Glusher: This is a heavy ARM that’s imbued with poison as well. Much like the Blorb, this one bounces once or twice before nailing your opponent. If you arc your punches correctly, Glushers can sail over ARMS that travel in a direct line. The arc is also very useful for tossing ARMS over everyday objects…like Limos.

What’s that thing inside its mouth? On second thought, don’t tell me.

Skully: One of the fastest ARMS in the game…which also has the ability to poison! These ARMS are great at getting an attack right in an opponent’s face as soon as possible. However, their light nature means that if a multi-shot Tribolt or Retorcher were to be fired and collide with a Skully, the other two shots of the Tribolt or Retorcher would continue to sail toward your grill. So, use it to pester and interrupt, but don’t count on it winning in a head-on ARMS collision!

“I feel the need for speed.” *high-five*

Playing as Misango: Set up your spirits as fast as possible! Depending on your opponent, different approaches may be needed. Some of you will find success with setting up your defense first by placing your spirit and using it as a shield, then carefully picking your times to attack. Others may find success in full “Rush-down” mode, getting right in your opponent’s kitchen and constantly attacking. No matter which way you decide to go, try different combinations of ARMS and defensive/aggressive playstyles, and find out what’s most effective against your opponent and their ARMS selection.

Playing against Misango: Know which spirit the opponent likes to use and try to be pro-active in countering their selection. In other words, don’t let him set up his spirits! If Misango sets up, knock him down so he loses the spirit. If the opponent can’t set up their strategy and line up the right spirit at the right time, it’ll be easier to get them into more disadvantageous positions where they either won’t have a spirit for support or where they’ll have the wrong spirit up for the situation.

I think I made him angry.

With all that being said, Misango will likely take some time to get used to and either way, don’t feel bad about crushing his spirit—it’s a medium-high difficulty curve. The most dangerous players to use Misango will be the ones who can alternate often between attacking and defending with the spirit and without hesitation. Remember, if something works against your opponent, keep doing it until they figure it out … Don’t give me that look, it’s a fair strategy! (Real talk, though—nothing is “cheap.”)

I’m sure you all will find even more high-level tech than I have, but I hope this gives you a good starting point with Misango.

Oh, and one more thing—do some of those markings in his stage look weirdly similar to another ARMS character, or is it just me?

—JC R.