Aris is a prolific fighting game player, who is best known for Tekken.  You can find him at his website, Avoiding The Puddle. Lately, he’s been tearing it up in Injustice: Gods Among Us on Wednesday nights, at the weekly tournament event, Wednesday Night Fights, held at Super Arcade in Walnut, CA. You can watch the action at www.twitch.tv/leveluplive.

This interview was conducted before the latest Injustice patch, which contains Batgirl, as well as other balance changes.

What’s the state of Injustice right now? Is keep-away still the way to go?

Injustice is still very new. Effective play styles are changing by the day. As of now, Cyborg has full screen fireball infinites so until that gets fixed, he is definitely a problem.

Who is the strongest keep-away character? Likewise, who’s the best at getting in?

The strongest keep away character is Cyborg, but the execution needed seems a bit unreasonable. Otherwise, it’s all about Deathstroke when it comes to keep out. As far as easily getting in, I think Black Adam excels at this more than any other character because of his dive kick.

How important is choosing a stage right now? What are your favorite and least favorite stages to play on?

As of right now, stages are very important. They act almost like an assist for certain characters. This is the most interesting part of the game in my opinion. My favorite stage is Ferris Aircraft and I hate every other stage.

What do you think of the Clash system?

I think the clash system works the way it’s supposed to but it seems a bit unnecessary. I don’t hate it because it adds depth in meter management. I guess I just hate the boring cut scenes.

Have you taken a look at any of the single player modes, like the Story mode or S.T.A.R Labs mode?

I don’t play fighting games for single player modes so I can’t really say much here. I heard it’s solid though.

Do you have any thoughts on Lobo?

I was going to buy Lobo until I found out he sucks against Deathstroke. Seems like a waste of money at this point.

The patch notes were a lot shorter than people expected. Do you think that not enough was patched, or do you feel like it’s just right? I’ve heard you jokingly say “Time to patch Deathstroke” from time to time.

It seems that there are many more balance changes on the way. Only time will tell what characters will survive. As for patching Deathstroke, I honestly think his design is very unique and I’m happy with him the way he currently plays. However, it is not fun watching people win with him so that may be grounds on it’s own to nerf him. We’ll see I guess.

Do you prefer to play on a pad or a stick? Also, what button layout do you use?

I play MK and Injustice on pad but I play all other fighting games on stick. Both MK and Injustice have extremely easy command inputs so I personally think pad is more logical for these games. My button layout is changing by the day. I haven’t decided on that yet.

Do you have any favorite costumes in Injustice?

I don’t really care too much about costumes but the Deathstroke outfit with a beard is cool.

Do you read any comics right now, and if so, what?

Never really got into comics other than Spawn and Lobo when I was a kid.

If someone is coming from playing another fighting game, and trying Injustice, would you have any tips for them on how to get adjusted to Injustice?

Be open minded. At first, when coming from another game, Injustice can feel like a POS. However, keeping an open minded attitude about the system will help you progress quickly at first. My second bit of advice is to pick a good character. Yes, as of right now, this is one of those games.