Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3: How to Switch Characters

It probably comes as no surprise to know that in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, each player chooses three characters they’ll be using in battle. Because of this system, it’s important to know how to switch your characters in and out and also why it’s vital to do so.

In Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, there are many characters all with completely different move sets and fighting styles. This means that there will also be a large number of counters, or certain characters that are good against a specific one. This makes choosing a diverse team all the more critical, because you won’t want your character to face off their counter in the middle of battle. So in order to divert this, you can switch to a character that is an equal or even better match up. When characters are switched out, they will also recover their Red Health over time, effectively increasing the overall HP of your remaining team, which ends up being a fundamental way to master the game.

When it comes to switching out characters, there are a few ways to do this. The first and easiest way is by holding down the R1 or L1 buttons (if you are playing on the default control scheme). These are also the buttons that will bring out Team Assists if they are tapped instead of held. However, you can choose to configure these to any button you’d like by going into the button control setup in the main menu while in a match as well. Be warned though; switching out characters using this method will leave the incoming character very vulnerable to attack upon entry for a short time.

The second way to switch characters is through the Team Aerial Combo system. When attacking an opponent in the air, you can initiate a Team Aerial Combo by holding down a directional button, or direction on the thumbstick, and also pressing the Special attack button (which, on default controls, is X on PS3/4 or A on Xbox 360). When the attack is performed, the next character in your sequence will come out and continue the aerial combo in place of the previous and will remain in combat even when hitting the ground. This effectively allows mostly-safe character switching and will prevent the moment of vulnerability the previous method has. Be warned, though, as it isn’t flawless. If the opponent holds the same direction you do while you attempt to switch, their character will stop your combo and knock your current character to the ground without any switching.

The final, and safest, way to switch characters in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is through using DHCs or Delayed Hyper Combos. When using a Hyper Combo attack with your current character, you will have a brief period of time to cancel the attack by performing a Hyper Combo attack for the next character in sequence. Not only will it chain these two attacks together to create a DHC, but it will also allow you to switch your characters with just about zero fear of the opponent retaliating against it. This is costly however, as it will use a minimum of two meters to pull off (one for the point character and one for the incoming), but in most cases it will be completely worth it for the damage and safety.