The big bad bruiser from mother Russia! The biggest and most powerful of the Streetfighters! He's still kinda slow and he can't really combo to save his life but his single attacks cause just as much damage as some other characters combos and supers! His punches and kicks hurt almost as much as Hulk's and his specials and supers just kill the opponent! I'm proud to say that I am a decent Zangief player now and I can kick some major ass even against human players! He's a definite crowd pleaser in the hands of an expert! Beginners might be able to get away with being cheap with him but I'd advise them to practice those 360 rotations! It's really not that hard...just dedicate an after noon to it and you'll get it!

Mega Zangief
What the hell happened to Zangief?!?! For some reason he's been turned into a lumbering Zombie! He has super armor that beats even the Juggernaut and Hulk, cause he can walk right thru anything and not get stunned! Mega Zangief cannot be launched, he cannot be stopped and combo supers like Final Justice and Weapon X will not work! Even Dragon Punch supers are a risk against him because he can grab his opponents while they are still attacking him! He also has a yoga flame kind of move to stop attacks quickly! The downside is that he can't block and he is a bit slower than normal Zangief! To beat him, you've gotta stay away! Check out his move commands and tactics in my Mega Zangief Strategy Guide!

Spinning Clothesline 3P
Zangief's classic move! He spins around with his arms outstretched! He can still move horizontally while doing this move but it doesn't go through fireballs as well as it did in the classice SF games! Watch out for crouching foes cause his legs are vulnerable and he can be tripped! Also, it doesn't work against beams like the optic blast! It can be done in the air but comes out to slowly to connect after anything though!

Spinning Lariat 3K
The same as the spinning clothsline but for a shorter period of time! Use this to fake out opponents and also for use as an air combo finisher! It is also a very effective air counter! Even Wolverine and Spidey will just trade hits at best against this move! The best thing about it is that it can be done in the air and can be used as an AC finisher! When hit, Zangief's opponent will fly stright up into the air! They'll land right in front of him and from there, you can pull off any Special grab of your choice! Preferably the Final Atomic Buster and Double Final Atomic Buster!

Green Hand +P
Zangief turns around and hits you with the back of his green lit hand! This move does decent damage, can set up SPD's and neutralizes fireballs! It's worth doing once in a while up close! Also against fireballers it helps save a lot of block damage!

Air Grab +K
Zangief with a dragon punch?!?! No way! Well it's not really a Dragon Punch but it's the same principle! Much like Rose's Soul Catch, he jumps in the air and if he connects, slams the opponent down in various ways, depending on the kick button! This was actually one of his supers in SFA2 but at least now it doesn't waste a whole level if you miss! Should only be used if your opponent is right above you since his angle of jump is really steep!

Spinning Piledriver 270 degrees + P
This is the most powerful move in the whole game! No other special can deal the damage that this does! One SPD can cause as much damage as most other characters supers! This move just hurts so bad! You can hear your opponents groaning as they emphatize with their character as they're crashing on their heads! Though it has been toned down since XSF, this is still the most powerful special in the game! Learn how to do this effectively and all matches against Zangief will be short ones! It can also be done in the air, but make sure your opponent is slightly beneath you for it to connect! Watch out though cause if you miss it, then Zangief stands there with a stupid look on his face while grabbing for air!

Running Bear Grab 270 degrees +K
If done up close, Zangief will grab his opponent, do a suplex and then jump up with them and slam them down! If done from far away, he will run up to them, grabs them and slams them into the ground! A good alternative to the the SPD cause of it's range! It does almost as much damage and he has super armor while running up to his opponent! So, unless they do a combo, they'll be wiping the floor with their faces!

Final Atomic Buster 270 degrees+2P(Level One)
After charging, Zangief walks slowly up to his opponent and grabs them! He then does two suplexes in a row, a piledriver and then a very high spinning piledriver! Except for the Chaos Dimension and Raging Demon, this is the most damaging super in the whole game! Once this is done to one of an opponents teammates, don't expect them to be winning! Nothing psyches out an opponent more than this move! You'll notice that they will begin trying to play keep away once one of these connects! However, it can be avoided rather easily so try to set them up or use it on opponents who like to switch out a lot! If you rotate the joystick while he's doing the last piledriver, he'll turn red and do more damage!

Spinning Lariat MP+MK
This works fine as a team attack but he can be ducked and swept so make sure your current teammate can defend Zangief's legs with an attack of their own!

Running Bear Grab HP+HK
Tremendous damage when used to counter up close attacks, but totally useless against projectiles and beam supers! This is also a great way of psyching out your opponent! They'll learn that "safe" combos are no longer safe against you! Hehehe....

Super Spinning Clothesline HP+HK(Level Two)
Zangief comes into the screen spinning! It looks like his custom combo from SF Alpha 2 if you just kept hitting the three punch buttons! It's not that great cause it can be ducked but it chips ok damage if it does manage to hit! However...it's better to do the......

Double Final Atomic Buster HP+HK(Level Two)
A truly painful and impressive team super! Very unique! You must do the motion while Zangief is the legal man and up close to the opponent! Both the Russian and his teammate will then grab the hapless victim and do a piledriver that just drains half of their life away! It does even more damage if you have a power character as a teammate! It's also easier to do than the Final Atomic Buster I might add.....

Zangief is a really good character in the hands of those guys who know how to use him! However, that really is one of his greatest flaws! He's so darn hard to learn! I mean, I've been trying to learn how to do the SPD since SFII and I've only recently gotten it! Anyways, this isn't a problem if you're already a Zangief expert but this is a hurdle for beginners and people not familiar with him!

All that aside, Zangief's lack of speed and the absence of any kind of long range attack makes him really weak against keep away characters like Cyclops, Ryu, Omega Red and Blackheart! You have to be really alert against these guys so that you can jump over their projectiles or cancel them with the green hand! Once you get near them, they should still be in their fireball stun animation so SPD their ass! Begin doing the motion as soon as you leave the ground!

The power characters don't really give him a problem cause he can just slam Hulk's ass all over the place! Also, he can just keep on doing the Spinning Clothesline to keep Dan away! Someone did that to me one day and it was really really annoying! I kicked his ass with a gale kick and some air combos though!

Of course, Wolverine and Spiderman will give him a hard time cause they give everyone a hard time! Wolverine is an especially big problem for him cause of his speed and the quickness of his supers! However, he has no fireballs as well and will have to come close! Grab him when he does! Spidey has his web balls so he can play keep away if he wants to so super jump after him! Basically stay on the offensive and don't let them get you into the corners! If they do, then push block!

Ground Magic: None
Air Magic: None
Super Jump Magic: Zigzag
Air Launchers: C.Strong
AC Finishers: Roundhouse, SPD, Air Lariat