Want to learn how to fight as Street Fighter 6 Jamie? Heavily inspired by his expert martial artist cousins, Yun and Yang, Jamie is the self-proclaimed defender of Chinatown. He specializes in the fighting style known as Zui Quan – Chinese drunken fist. Jamie is Street Fighter’s first drunken master character, though officially the drink Jamie can be seen sipping on during fights is said to be a ‘herbal concoction’, not alcohol.
Jamie’s main rival is Street Fighter 6 Luke – unlike the series’ main rivals, Ryu and Ken, these two feature radically different fighting styles. His drunken-fist fighting style can be tricky to understand at first, but if you can find time to take a few sips of his drink during the fight, you can unlock a variety of moves to help you crush your opponent. Jamie is by far one of the most interesting characters on the Street Fighter 6 roster, so here’s a breakdown of his moves, combos, and strategy to master this martial artist.
How to play Jamie in Street Fighter 6
The best way to play as Jamie in Street Fighter 6 is to give your opponent as little space as possible. Jamie’s unpredictable movements turn him into a nightmare to fight against, especially in close-range combat where he truly shines. Aggressive players will appreciate all of Jamie’s attacking options as he has plenty of ways of opening up his opponent’s defense.
Keep your opponent at bay with Jamie’s kicks, specifically standing medium, standing heavy, and crouching medium kick, and follow up with a special move on hit. While fighting, you need to find opportunities to drink in order to access the second half of your move set. If there’s a lot of space between you and your opponent, use this chance to use The Devil Inside to increase your drink level.
Experienced fighters will know how dangerous Jamie can be once his drink level is up to three and above, so they’ll work extra hard to ensure you can’t take any sips. It’s also important to remember that Jamie doesn’t take his drink level with him into the next round, you must fill it up during each fight.
Jamie isn’t the easiest fighter to pick up as a beginner, so we recommend avoiding him if Street Fighter 6 is one of your first fighting games. If you want to study some high-level Jamie gameplay, we recommend checking out Sean ‘Shine’ Simpson on YouTube during the second Street Fighter 6 closed beta.
Street Fighter 6 motions
Here are the most important motions for Jamie in Street Fighter 6:
- Quarter-circle forward – push down on the d-pad or stick and quickly rotate to the direction your character is facing, and press the move’s button.
- Quarter-circle back – push down on the d-pad or stick and quickly rotate in the opposite direction to the one your character is facing, and press the move’s button.
- Z Motion – press forward, then quickly press down and rotate so you’re pressing down and forward at the same time, then press the move’s button.
- Double tap down – tap down twice and follow up with a button to perform a special attack.
- Half-circle backward – in one fast motion, briefly walk forwards and move the d-pad or stick in a circle until you’re walking backward. This input needs to be fast enough that you don’t see your character move forwards or backward.
- Overdrive – previously known as EX moves, Overdrive attacks require you to press two punches or two kicks to execute an enhanced version of a special attack. Performing an Overdrive attack consumes two Drive Gauge bars.
Street Fighter 6 Jamie special moves
The Devil Inside – Double-tap down + Punch
Jamie takes a big swig out of a gourd that contains ki-unleashing properties. This special move raises Jamie’s drink level – the higher the drink level (starting at level zero, and ending at level four), the more moves Jamie has access to. If you hold down the punch button, Jamie will continue to raise his drink level.
Freeflow Strikes – Quarter-circle forward + Punch + Forward and Punch x2
Jamie lunges forward with his fists, dealing up to two more punches. This type of attack is known as a ‘rekka’ in fighting games. Overdrive Freeflow Strikes launches faster than its predecessor and deals slightly more damage.
Freeflow Kicks – Quarter-circle forward + Punch + Forward and Kick x2
Jamie lunges forward with his legs, dealing up to two more kicks. Unlike Freeflow Strikes, this attack ends in Jamie taking a sip out of a gourd to raise his drink level. Overdrive Freeflow Kicks deals slightly more damage and Jamie drinks faster.
Swagger Step – Quarter-circle back + Punch
Jamie dashes forward leading with his palm to quickly strike his opponent. Overdrive Swagger Step deals more damage and has a faster animation.
Arrow Kick – Z Motion + Kick
Jamie kicks his opponent into the air before following up with two flying kicks. Overdrive Arrow Kick is the same move but considerably faster.
Luminous Dive Kick – Quarter-circle back + Kick
Available at drink level one and higher. While jumping forwards, Jamie extends his leg and quickly descends to the ground. Overdrive Luminous Dive Kick sends Jamie to the ground significantly faster.
Bakkai – Quarter-circle forward + Kick
Available at drink level two and higher. Jamie uses his breakdancing skills to launch a barrage of upside-down kicks while moving across the floor. Overdrive Bakkai lands more hits, deals more damage, and sends the opponent higher in the air.
Tenshin – Half-circle backward + Kick
Available at drink level three and higher. Jamie gains access to a command throw where he instantly stops the opponent by thrusting a finger in front of their eyes. You can follow up this throw with a range of attacks. Overdrive Tenshin forces a hard knockdown on the opponent.
Swagger Hermit Punch – Quarter-circle back + Punch + Forward and Punch
Available at drink level four and higher. Jamie gains an additional move to use after Swagger Step, launching forward with his other palm to deal high damage to his opponent.
Street Fighter 6 Jamie Super Arts
Level One: Breakin’ (Quarter-circle forward x2 + Kick)
Perform a series of rotating kicks that moves Jamie across the ground. If you hold down during this attack Jamie increases his drink level by one.
Level Two: The Devil’s Song (Quarter-circle back x2 + Punch)
Jamie takes a huge swig from a gourd, taking him to the max drink level.
Level Three: Getsuga Saiho (Quarter-circle forward x2 + Punch)
Jamie attacks his opponent in a quick animation that breaks their posture, before landing a kick that forces his opponent into the air. It is possible to follow up this super art with another attack.
Jamie combos
Crouching MK xx Freeflow Kicks
As mentioned earlier, Jamie’s kicks have plenty of range and can be special canceled to follow up into combos. We recommend trying to land this combo right at the beginning to get you to drink level one. This combo is perfect as it’s incredibly easy to hit confirm into, but you can also land it using Standing MK as the starting attack, forcing your opponent to block correctly each time.
Jumping HP, Crouching HP xx Bakkai
If you want to punish your opponent’s projectiles, hit them with this combo to hurt them badly. Keep an eye out on your opponent’s health bar, you may be able to deal lethal damage to them by using the Overdrive version of Bakkai.
Standing MK xx Overdrive Swagger Step xx Heavy Arrow Kick (corner only)
Once you’ve reached drink level two, you should start to alter your combos to make use of your new moves. Overdrive Swagger Step is a fantastic way to follow-up from Standing MK, and it gives you the opportunity to deal additional damage using Heavy Arrow Kick.
Forward HK xx Getsuga Saiho xx Swagger Hermit Punch
This combo only works at drink level four and you need to be in the corner in order to land the final attack. Forward HK can be super canceled, giving you a chance to land Getsuga Saiho. This super art launches your opponent into the air – instantly bridge the gap with Swagger Hermit Punch to deal even more damage.
And there you have it, everything you need to learn how to play Street Fighter 6 Jamie. If you want to learn a basic character, you may want to read our Street Fighter 6 Ryu guide to get to grips with the world warrior himself. Give our Street Fighter 6 tier list a read if you only want to pick a top tier character – with big money prize pools on the line, you can’t be caught slipping.