Shuai Jiao Tournament is a standing-wrestling minigame you play in the browser, on a computer or a phone. It is not a beat 'em up: there are no punches and no health bars. You win the way you win in real shuai jiao, by throwing your opponent. First you take a grip on the jacket, then you unbalance him by pushing and pulling, and finally you enter with the right technique at the right moment.
How to play
| Action | Keyboard | Touch |
|---|---|---|
| Close in, push, pull | ← → | ◀ ▶ |
| Take a grip, change it | Z | GRIP |
| Break the opponent's grip | X | BREAK |
| Defend (low centre of gravity) | hold C | hold DEFEND |
| Techniques | A S D F (or 1 2 3 4) | the four large buttons |
P or Esc pauses, M toggles the sound. On a phone the game is vertical: the mat is at the top and the controls at the bottom, within thumb reach.
Shuai jiao ideas in the game
- The jacket and the grips. Shuai jiao is fought in a short jacket, the 褡裢 (dālian), which has set gripping zones. In the game the bottom hand (底手) always holds the short sleeve (小袖) and the top hand (上手) takes the collar (大领), the same-side lapel (偏门) or the belt. Pressing the grip key again changes it, like the 倒把 (dǎobǎ) regrip. Each grip opens different techniques, as on the mat: sleeve and lapels are mainly for pulling and making the opponent move, collar and belt for controlling his centre of gravity.
- Action and reaction. Many techniques use the force the opponent pushes back with. 揣 (chuāi) goes in when he pushes back against your push. 大得合 (dà déhé) and 切 (qiē) work when he sits back to escape your pull. An arrow above each wrestler shows which way he leans; the technique buttons turn green when the moment is right.
- The landing foot. The most dangerous moment is when a foot touches the ground after a step and still carries less than half the weight. That is when to use the kick, 踢 (tī).
- Counters. Techniques have set answers. When the opponent enters, the name of his technique appears above him. If you have the right grip at that moment, the game suggests the counter given by the sources: for example 入 (rù) against 揣, or a kick against a kick.
- No ground fighting. After every throw the referee stops the action and both wrestlers restart standing in the centre.
The techniques in the game
| Key | Technique | Grip | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 揣 chuāi, back throw | sleeve | when he pushes back |
| A | 披 pī, shoulder drape throw | sleeve + side lapel | when he pushes back |
| A | 入 rù, hip entry | sleeve + belt | when he pushes back |
| A | 别子 biézi, leg block | sleeve + collar | when he pushes back |
| S | 切 qiē, cut | sleeve + collar | when he sits back |
| S | 大得合 dà déhé | sleeve + side lapel | when he sits back |
| D | 踢 tī, full-grip kick | sleeve + collar | as his foot lands |
| D | 落步踢 luòbù tī, crossed-step kick | sleeve + belt | as his foot lands |
| F | 勾子 gōuzi, rear hook | sleeve + collar | when he pushes back |
| F | 掏腿 tāotuǐ, leg scoop | sleeve | when he pushes back |
| F | 抱单腿 bào dāntuǐ, single-leg grab | none | at first contact |
Descriptions, variants and sources for every technique are on the Techniques page. The game has to simplify: real wrestling moves in every direction, here you only see it from the side, and the techniques are a selection of the best documented ones.
Scoring and rules
The game follows the bilingual Chinese–English rulebook that the European Shuai Jiao Union listed for the 2023 European Championship, the same one described on the Rules page:
| Situation | Points |
|---|---|
| The opponent lands on his back or side and you stay standing | 3 |
| The opponent falls, but you touch the ground too | 1 |
| The opponent touches the ground with hands or knees | 1 |
| The opponent ends up in the protection zone, the red strip | 1 |
| Warning to the opponent (15 seconds without attacking) | 1 |
A bout has two periods and points add up. A 6-point lead ends it at once, by superiority, and a fourth warning means disqualification. If the score is tied, the deciders are, in order, points scored with techniques, the number of 3-point throws and the last point scored. If nobody has scored, the bout goes to a golden point. That rule is not in the ESJU text: the game takes it from the French federation's rulebook. The only simplification is that each period lasts 90 seconds instead of the 3 minutes set for adults.
The tournament
In the tournament you face three fictional opponents: quarter-final, semi-final and final. Each one reacts faster than the last, defends better and has favourite techniques. In Practice mode your partner does not attack, so you can try grips, pushes and techniques at your own pace. Your best score is saved on this device.