On Dec. 4th, Capcom noticed Street Fighter 6 players had posted videos about the Perfect Parry bug. Attempting to patch it before the Pro Tour West Regional Finals on Dec. 8th, it forced tournament organizer, Level-Up to postpone the event. To understand the damage this bug could have caused, we will review Perfect Parry’s fighting mechanic.
Street Fighter 6 Perfect Parry Bug
The Perfect Parry can be performed by simultaneously pressing mid-punch (MP) and mid-kick (MK). Pro Street Fighter 6 players practiced this combat mechanic to prevent their opponents from spamming projectiles and to break their combos. By timing it correctly, Perfect Parry will become a fighter’s deadliest defense. So how did one special game mechanic create a game-breaking bug?
Street Fighter streamer Broski offers a perfect explanation when a chat member mentions it. During that time, the game was in its Dec. 2nd update. When its coding got set for universal adjustments, Perfect Parry did not offer frame buffering. According to the official Street Fighter 6 website, Capcom adjusted the Perfect Parry to handle multi-hit combos. However, if it’s followed by a combo and knockdown, it prevents opponents from landing attacks. They are stuck in a waking animation that makes them easy to grab at the end of it.
This bug became a major concern for Capcom when videos were shared across YouTube. They were running their current Capcom Pro Tour, World Warrior 2024 for their finals to finish the year’s end. Their next regional tournament matches for that upcoming weekend:
Regional Finals Dec. 7th-8th
- China & Asia East
- Mexico
- France/Monaco
- Europe West, North & East
- Middle West
- US Midwest
How Capcom is Fixing the Bug
On Dec. 4th, the US/Canada West Regionals were about to take place until news broke out of the Perfect Parry bug. Level-Up posted on Twitter (now X) to inform contestants they have postponed the event and will announce when it will be rescheduled. Capcom immediately jumped into action to figure out a solution to fix the game-breaking parry. So far, the devs have implemented a rollback code.
A rollback code reverts the set game string function to a previous version. It took the devs two days and a half to have Perfect Parry perform normally in Street Fighter 6’s Dec. 2nd update. They managed to fix it in time before the Eurasia, US Midwest, and Middle West Regionals Finals showing their dedication to the community. However, their site has stated that the rollback code is a temporary patch. Until the day comes, Capcom is continuing to playtest the Perfect Parry for a needed upcoming update.
A Good Amount of Time Given
Thankfully, the devs will not have to worry about rushing for World Warrior 2024 US/Canada West Regionals. Level-Up gave an update on Dec. 10th that the tournaments are set to resume on Sunday, Dec. 22nd. It could not be set on a Wednesday to prevent interruptions on Christmas Day 2024. This timespan will allow contestants to practice longer while no longer having to worry about the Perfect Parry bug.
Seeing how fast Capcom wanted to repair a core defense mechanic showed how dire the situation was. If Street Fighter 6 players didn’t share footage online, it’s possible many contestants would have used the Perfect Parry bug to their advantage. The worst-case scenario would have been players leaving the game entirely and complaining about it over social media.
