Just now getting into Street Fighter IV

[synce]

I've been boycotting Crapcom for a while now but I recently played summa dat AE (against my will) and it actually felt like a breath of fresh air after SC5. Is it worth the $20 for the online these days? In terms of activity, lag, rage quitters, etc.

Also would you recommend starting out with Juri? She seems fun but I hear she's tough to use properly. I also liked Viper, but again I hear she's advanced

 

[d3v]

Honestly, start with Ryu as he will teach you the fundamentals of the game. Ryu is a character that can do well with footsies alone, which is what any person coming into 2D should learn.

Other specific things about SSFIV:
-The game plays defensively until someone gets a knockdown. Once someone's knocked down the attacking player can start using oki (crossups, safe jumps, etc.) to keep piling on the pressure. In other words, always go for the knockdown.
-When in doubt, crouch block.
-When in doubt, do crouching jab (cr.lp).
-Most characters can combo of crouching forward (cr.mk)

For Juri, the mistake most beginners make is that they try to RTSD with her when she's best played at mid screen. Keep up the fireball pressure if you have to. Crouching Fierce is your AA options, pinwheel only works as AA when they're not jumping in deep. Standing Forward and standing Fierce are great for footsies.

 

[UnD34D]

Honestly, start with Ryu as he will teach you the fundamentals of the game. Ryu is a character that can do well with footsies alone, which is what any person coming into 2D should learn.

Other specific things about SSFIV:
-The game plays defensively until someone gets a knockdown. Once someone's knocked down the attacking player can start using oki (crossups, safe jumps, etc.) to keep piling on the pressure. In other words, always go for the knockdown.
-When in doubt, crouch block.
-When in doubt, do crouching jab (cr.lp).
-Most characters can combo of crouching forward (cr.mk)

For Juri, the mistake most beginners make is that they try to RTSD with her when she's best played at mid screen. Keep up the fireball pressure if you have to. Crouching Fierce is your AA options, pinwheel only works as AA when they're not jumping in deep. Standing Forward and standing Fierce are great for footsies.

Another character pretty great for beginners, if Ryu isn't your flavor, is Balrog. He stays alive longer than Ryu, has really fast, strong pokes (cr. HK), easy combos, and while most people just starting find doing qcf+p easier than charging b->f+p, charging is a lot easier, I mean, how hard is it to slide your finger forward as opposed to hitting three different directions?

 

[Goro Hazuki]

Sagat's good too. But instead of medium kick (forward), medium punch (strong) is better for linking combos. Guile also comes to mind. Come to think of it, you can't go wrong with the original 12 characters.