Street Fighter IV Ladies it is coming.
http://www.gamespot.com/arcade/actio...opslot;title;4
Update:
http://www.gamespot.com/arcade/actio...;picks;title;2
Street Fighter IV Updated Hands-On
We get our mitts on the near-final arcade version of Capcom's most anticipated fighter in ages and get the latest on the console conversions.
Capcom showed off a near-final version of Street Fighter IV's arcade version at its recent Las Vegas press event. The game showed off the full roster of fighters, which includes the original world warriors, four bosses, and four new characters. Most importantly, the game featured the latest round of tweaks from the development team, which has been fine-tuning the game for the past few months. We tried out the single-player and multiplayer Versus mode to see if the game was continuing to deliver on the promise of its initial showing in February.
El Fuerte and Zangief lining up for a big hug.
While the arcade game on hand at the event had all characters playable in single-player and Versus mode, there were some limits to how far we could go in the single-player mode. This was apparently done to preserve some surprises in the form of story elements and boss encounters. As a result, the single-player game booted us after a few matches and our first fight with one of the new characters. These new characters also appear to be minibosses, which you'll face on the way to the classic Street Fighter II bosses of Balrog, Vega, Sagat, and M. Bison.
When hopping into the game, we noticed a few other modes selectable besides Arcade, the most intriguing of which was a beginner mode that will apparently serve as some kind of tutorial for new players. This should be a handy feature for newcomers or vets looking to become reacquainted with their staple players. We didn't get a chance to try the mode, instead spending our time getting up to speed on the fighters the old-fashioned way: getting knocked around until we got their moves and timing down.
Street Fighter IV's fighting system has been in a fairly perpetual state of tweaking since we last saw it at GDC. Feedback from US players and the test units that have made the rounds in Japan have led the team to refine IV's battle system quite a bit since we first tried it. Besides the expected timing tweaks, the team has actually changed subtle elements, such as character collision detection. The game has eschewed the more modern approach of handling collision between polygons for old-school collision boxes on the characters, which is more in line with the game's 2D roots. Throws are now performed by pressing light punch and kick at the same time. The new focus attack is tied to pressing medium punch and kick together. A quick tap gets off a quick focus attack that seemed to almost work like a parry. Holding down the buttons lets you charge up and unleash unblockable attacks. Taunting was tied to the hitting hard punch and kick buttons.
While some of the tweaking may sound odd, it actually worked well as we played. We tried a little of everyone to get a feel for their handling. Timing had definitely changed but, after a bit of practice, we started to get the hang of things. The old characters handle pretty closely to how they did in previous Street Fighter games. Vets will notice a variety of changes to specific damage and range on the light, medium, and hard attacks. And, it will require some getting used to these changes. We also noticed some speed changes on some fighters, with the most notable during our play time being Vega. While the masked, prancing Spaniard was still fast, he didn't seem to be his old self. Rolling attacks weren't quite as fast as we would have hoped, which forced us to play him differently. As far as the new fighters go, they felt a bit odd, with some even having a bit of a hybrid feel to them. Crimson Viper still feels a bit like an SNK character. Newcomer Rufus, a roly-poly ball of fury, has some interesting attacks that require a unique play style that emphasizes speed. Abel feels a bit like a faster Zangief but lacks some of the Russian's power (with some Cody from Street Fighter Alpha 3 thrown in). Latin chef and wrestler El Fuerte reminded us of Alpha 3's R. Mika was noticeable for his crazy throws and run attacks.
The visuals in the game are impressive--not so much because of some amazing displays of polygons and special effects, but more for their style. The characters all have sharp designs, with the classic crew featuring faithful updates to their original looks. The new blood has some slightly more contemporary touches, but otherwise they fit in pretty well. All the fighters now sport very fluid animation that isn't showy or intrusive to gameplay, giving combat a good feel. The backgrounds take the same approach and include updates to the classic scenery while adding some new ones. A key element now is the wealth of ambient animation you'll see, which keeps the backgrounds much busier than their 2D counterparts. The various special effects used for fireballs and the like have a much more stylish look to them, which still manages to hark back to the original. The super, ultra combos and ex attacks all get a touch of flair to distinguish them from normal attacks, which are one of many nice touches we noticed. Overall, the game has a nice sense of style that's got a much more cinematic flair than previous games, which is giving Street Fighter IV a winning layer of polish that agrees with us.
The audio in the game is almost as tightly crafted as the visuals. The various fighters yell out the usual battle cries, as well as taunts, while fighting. The action is framed by a mix of tunes that includes redone versions of classic tracks, as well as all new music. We liked what we heard of the game's soundtrack, thanks to the old and new tunes fitting in with each other well. The only weak spot right now is the game's announcer, which continues the unfortunate Capcom tradition (in recent years anyway) of using reedy-voiced actors. Yes, we still miss the bass-inflected announcer from Street Fighter II or even Street Fighter III. While this announcer doesn't grate as much as, say, the incredibly peppy guy from Street Fighter Alpha 3 or even some of the later Marvel fighters, we can't say we're fans.
To further work us into frenzy for Street Fighter IV, Capcom offered up some intriguing bits of info on what's being planned for the home version of the game. Capcom is adding proper animated prologues and endings for each character, as well as the expected network multiplayer mode. To whet our appetites for what to expect, Capcom showed off a bit of anime done in the style of the animation being done for the home version of the game. The sequence focused on Ryu, featuring Akuma, Ken, and his sensei. The animated segments are meant to shed light on the fighters and bring players up to date on what everyone's been up to, as the story is set between the events of Street Fighter II and Street Fighter III.
Classic characters look great in Street Fighter IV.
Based on what we played, Street Fighter IV is shaping up fantastically. The game looks and moves great. The detailed characters and smooth animations give combat a pleasing fluidity. Veteran players should enjoy digging into the combat, which is an accessible and challenging experience. The technical aspects of fighting may require vets to make some adjustments to their fighting styles with some characters, and the new characters don't quite fit in with the old-school fighters. We're not totally sold on the action being that accessible to newcomers to the series, but if Capcom can find a way to ease new combatants into the action, the game may have a widespread appeal. The only downside to all the news is that we're not officially getting the arcade release in the States, although we're willing to bet some machines will find their way over to a few spots, forcing most of us to wait for the home release, which is still a way off. Street Fighter IV is set to release this summer in Japanese and Asian arcades, with the game due in other parts of the world some time after
Update:
http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3168828&p=37
UPDATE:
http://www.gamespot.com/arcade/actio...89&mode=recent
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/947/947968p1.html
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/953/953819p1.html
UPDATE REVIEW!!!!
http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3172832
http://www.gamespot.com/arcade/actio...opslot;title;4
Update:
http://www.gamespot.com/arcade/actio...;picks;title;2
Street Fighter IV Updated Hands-On
We get our mitts on the near-final arcade version of Capcom's most anticipated fighter in ages and get the latest on the console conversions.
Capcom showed off a near-final version of Street Fighter IV's arcade version at its recent Las Vegas press event. The game showed off the full roster of fighters, which includes the original world warriors, four bosses, and four new characters. Most importantly, the game featured the latest round of tweaks from the development team, which has been fine-tuning the game for the past few months. We tried out the single-player and multiplayer Versus mode to see if the game was continuing to deliver on the promise of its initial showing in February.
El Fuerte and Zangief lining up for a big hug.
While the arcade game on hand at the event had all characters playable in single-player and Versus mode, there were some limits to how far we could go in the single-player mode. This was apparently done to preserve some surprises in the form of story elements and boss encounters. As a result, the single-player game booted us after a few matches and our first fight with one of the new characters. These new characters also appear to be minibosses, which you'll face on the way to the classic Street Fighter II bosses of Balrog, Vega, Sagat, and M. Bison.
When hopping into the game, we noticed a few other modes selectable besides Arcade, the most intriguing of which was a beginner mode that will apparently serve as some kind of tutorial for new players. This should be a handy feature for newcomers or vets looking to become reacquainted with their staple players. We didn't get a chance to try the mode, instead spending our time getting up to speed on the fighters the old-fashioned way: getting knocked around until we got their moves and timing down.
Street Fighter IV's fighting system has been in a fairly perpetual state of tweaking since we last saw it at GDC. Feedback from US players and the test units that have made the rounds in Japan have led the team to refine IV's battle system quite a bit since we first tried it. Besides the expected timing tweaks, the team has actually changed subtle elements, such as character collision detection. The game has eschewed the more modern approach of handling collision between polygons for old-school collision boxes on the characters, which is more in line with the game's 2D roots. Throws are now performed by pressing light punch and kick at the same time. The new focus attack is tied to pressing medium punch and kick together. A quick tap gets off a quick focus attack that seemed to almost work like a parry. Holding down the buttons lets you charge up and unleash unblockable attacks. Taunting was tied to the hitting hard punch and kick buttons.
While some of the tweaking may sound odd, it actually worked well as we played. We tried a little of everyone to get a feel for their handling. Timing had definitely changed but, after a bit of practice, we started to get the hang of things. The old characters handle pretty closely to how they did in previous Street Fighter games. Vets will notice a variety of changes to specific damage and range on the light, medium, and hard attacks. And, it will require some getting used to these changes. We also noticed some speed changes on some fighters, with the most notable during our play time being Vega. While the masked, prancing Spaniard was still fast, he didn't seem to be his old self. Rolling attacks weren't quite as fast as we would have hoped, which forced us to play him differently. As far as the new fighters go, they felt a bit odd, with some even having a bit of a hybrid feel to them. Crimson Viper still feels a bit like an SNK character. Newcomer Rufus, a roly-poly ball of fury, has some interesting attacks that require a unique play style that emphasizes speed. Abel feels a bit like a faster Zangief but lacks some of the Russian's power (with some Cody from Street Fighter Alpha 3 thrown in). Latin chef and wrestler El Fuerte reminded us of Alpha 3's R. Mika was noticeable for his crazy throws and run attacks.
The visuals in the game are impressive--not so much because of some amazing displays of polygons and special effects, but more for their style. The characters all have sharp designs, with the classic crew featuring faithful updates to their original looks. The new blood has some slightly more contemporary touches, but otherwise they fit in pretty well. All the fighters now sport very fluid animation that isn't showy or intrusive to gameplay, giving combat a good feel. The backgrounds take the same approach and include updates to the classic scenery while adding some new ones. A key element now is the wealth of ambient animation you'll see, which keeps the backgrounds much busier than their 2D counterparts. The various special effects used for fireballs and the like have a much more stylish look to them, which still manages to hark back to the original. The super, ultra combos and ex attacks all get a touch of flair to distinguish them from normal attacks, which are one of many nice touches we noticed. Overall, the game has a nice sense of style that's got a much more cinematic flair than previous games, which is giving Street Fighter IV a winning layer of polish that agrees with us.
The audio in the game is almost as tightly crafted as the visuals. The various fighters yell out the usual battle cries, as well as taunts, while fighting. The action is framed by a mix of tunes that includes redone versions of classic tracks, as well as all new music. We liked what we heard of the game's soundtrack, thanks to the old and new tunes fitting in with each other well. The only weak spot right now is the game's announcer, which continues the unfortunate Capcom tradition (in recent years anyway) of using reedy-voiced actors. Yes, we still miss the bass-inflected announcer from Street Fighter II or even Street Fighter III. While this announcer doesn't grate as much as, say, the incredibly peppy guy from Street Fighter Alpha 3 or even some of the later Marvel fighters, we can't say we're fans.
To further work us into frenzy for Street Fighter IV, Capcom offered up some intriguing bits of info on what's being planned for the home version of the game. Capcom is adding proper animated prologues and endings for each character, as well as the expected network multiplayer mode. To whet our appetites for what to expect, Capcom showed off a bit of anime done in the style of the animation being done for the home version of the game. The sequence focused on Ryu, featuring Akuma, Ken, and his sensei. The animated segments are meant to shed light on the fighters and bring players up to date on what everyone's been up to, as the story is set between the events of Street Fighter II and Street Fighter III.
Classic characters look great in Street Fighter IV.
Based on what we played, Street Fighter IV is shaping up fantastically. The game looks and moves great. The detailed characters and smooth animations give combat a pleasing fluidity. Veteran players should enjoy digging into the combat, which is an accessible and challenging experience. The technical aspects of fighting may require vets to make some adjustments to their fighting styles with some characters, and the new characters don't quite fit in with the old-school fighters. We're not totally sold on the action being that accessible to newcomers to the series, but if Capcom can find a way to ease new combatants into the action, the game may have a widespread appeal. The only downside to all the news is that we're not officially getting the arcade release in the States, although we're willing to bet some machines will find their way over to a few spots, forcing most of us to wait for the home release, which is still a way off. Street Fighter IV is set to release this summer in Japanese and Asian arcades, with the game due in other parts of the world some time after
Update:
http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3168828&p=37
Quote:
Previews: Street Fighter 4 Finally, a REAL sequel to Street Fighter II!  You're reading an E3 2008 preview, which we've broken into three sections to make it easy to sift through during this week of convention madness. Check out E3.1UP.COM for all (meaning words, screens, and videos) of our E3 2008 coverage. What's the game about? At this point, who doesn't know what Street Fighter is? For the tragically uninitiated: Street Fighter involves a group of badass martial artists who gather for a one-on-one fighting tournament and beat the crap out of each other. The 12 characters from Street Figher II: Hyper Fighting -- everyone from series mainstays Ryu, Ken, and Chun-Li, to series baddies Sagat and M. Bison -- return for Street Fighter IV, along with a quartet (that we've seen, anyway) of all-new characters. Capcom's hinted at the possibility of bonus characters (we're hoping for Alpha's Sakura or Super SF II's Cammy and Dee Jay) for the home versions, but the arcade roster currently sits at a snug 16. SF4's unique Focus system (referred to as the Saving system in Japan) allows players to immobilize their opponents with special quick attacks -- and it's a heck of a lot more accessible than Street Fighter III's parry system, which lent itself pretty exclusively to hardcore play. What's new for E3? The entire cast of (as-yet revealed) characters is playable, and they look good. Screenshots don't do this game justice -- take a peek at a few gameplay videos to see it in motion, because SF4 is a thing of beauty. What's our take? Not to rag on the SF3 or Street Fighter Alpha lines -- they're not bad games at all -- but those series didn't quite capture the same magic as Street Fighter II. The former catered unashamedly to the hardcore tournament crowd (partly due to the aforementioned parry mechanics, and partly due to a dearth of recognizable faces in the roster), while the latter almost felt like "Street Fighter Lite" compared to the SF2 games. While it's still obviously too early to make any concrete judgments about SF4, it feels much closer to the spirit of SF2 than any of the other follow-ups. With this and Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix on the horizon, it's a great time to be a Street Fighter fan. |
http://www.gamespot.com/arcade/actio...89&mode=recent
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Capcom confirms that its hard-fighting sequel is coming this winter, 'on track' for near-simultaneous EU and US releases. When details of Street Fighter IV first emerged late in 2007, Capcom quickly warned that the game was "more than a year away" from being ready for home consoles. When it hit Japanese arcades midway through 2008, there was still no firm news on the release, save rumours that it wouldn't be out until the end of 2009. In August the producer of the upcoming Street Fighter movie The Legend of Chun Li let slip that SFIV's release would coincide with his movie, but this was never officially confirmed by Capcom. Talking to GameSpot today, Capcom still didn't confirm the movie date tie-in but did say that the game was "definitely" coming this winter and that Europe could expect to see the much-anticipated game "at roughly the same time as the US." Street Fighter IV is coming to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and all the features from the arcades--including the new unlockable outfits--will be coming to consoles, according to a Capcom representative at TGS earlier this month. As well as the arcade roster, the versions for consoles include Sakura, Dan, Fei Long, and Cammy. Capcom has also said that the new nonplayable boss characters from the arcade will make the transition to consoles as playable characters. One of these, Akuma/Gouki, was playable on the PS3 and Xbox 360 at the Tokyo Game Show, and you can read GameSpot's impressions of that here, along with more information about Sakura The game will be making a rare playable appearance in the UK during the London Games Festival at the Eurogamer Expo next week and will feature 2D fighting with a 3D art style, going back to the series' roots after a number of abortive attempts to move it into full 3D. It will also be playable at the MCM Expo at ExCel in London this weekend. GameSpot will also bring you more on the console versions of Street Fighter IV as the release nears and all the new characters are revealed. |
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Street Fighter IV Character Mania All the moves, all the characters. by IGN Staff February 12, 2009 - Capcom's Street Fighter IV is one of the most hotly anticipated games of 2009. Featuring a slick new graphics system, highly-tuned, one-on-one fights and a truly legendary roster of characters, Street Fighter IV is sure to bring the classic franchise back to the spotlight in a big way. Considering the massive hype behind this game, we here at IGN want to take some time to highlight each of the characters on a daily basis and show Street Fighter enthusiasts what the fourth true installment is all about. Below, you'll find a collection of all our character montage videos as they're released, so take a look now and start figuring out which character you'll train with when the game hits store shelves on February 17th.  Still got the fight left in you? Then be sure to check back daily for more characters and more videos.
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February 12, 2009 - Fighting game fans that don't have access to a Japanese arcade have been waiting for Street Fighter IV for a long time. Capcom's high-profile fighter continues a nearly twenty year tradition and many gamers -- especially long-time fans -- have been intensely curious as to how the game will play and what it will do for the legendary series. The good news is that Street Fighter IV is an outstanding title and one of the most enjoyable fighting games I've ever played. Capcom has managed to strip away the baggage that has accumulated around the series over the years and returned to the franchise's roots. The result is a game that plays very much like a purified, simple fighter -- but with several modern enhancements to enrich the combat. If you've been playing Street Fighter for years, this game will feel like an old friend. If you're completely new to the scene, Street Fighter IV is a great place to start. Street Fighter has traditionally been a game focused on one-on-one combat on a 2D plane. Over the years, the roster has evolved and various tweaks have been made to the formula, but the core components remain to this day. Street Fighter IV lets you select a character and square off against another warrior in the ring. Each character has a variety of normal attacks and Special Moves to take advantage of, but the actual gameplay boils down to a balance between raw physical skill and the mind games that play out between players.  Click here for our Video Review. The beauty of Street Fighter IV stems from how approachable the game is and how it can be enjoyed on so many different levels. For those gamers interested in grabbing trusty ol' Ryu and diving into the mix, things will feel natural and there's no need to obsess over learning all the subtle details and nuances that make up the fighting game experience. However, there's so much flowing beneath the surface of Street Fighter IV's mechanics that long-time fans will have plenty to learn and re-master, if they want to truly understand the gameplay. For example, one of the newest systems in Street Fighter IV is the Focus system, which allows a character to charge up an attack that will knock an opponent down if it connects properly. For a beginner, the Focus Attack isn't necessarily needed to win. He or she could simply rely on the traditional assortment of fireballs and dragon punches to get by and have a good time doing it. But if the Focus Attack seems appealing, performing it is a piece of cake -- just hold down both Medium Punch and Medium Kick together and charge it up (or alternatively, just assign the attack to a button of your choice in the options menu). With a simple input, the player now has access to an attack that adds another layer to the combat. But that's not all there is to the Focus system. Players who want to dig even deeper into the technical elements of it all will learn that the Focus Attack can also absorb a single oncoming strike without being interrupted. Although you take damage for the absorption, that damage will heal given time. In this way, the Focus Attack becomes a defensive technique as well as an offensive one and offers even more strategy for players to consider.  Don't worry, ladies: Ken is back. And there's even more. You can also cancel a Focus Attack mid-charge by dashing out of it, which can help you play tricks on your opponent. Or, you can expend a portion of your Super meter (which I'll touch on shortly) to cancel a Special Move directly into a Focus Attack. This single system depicts the broader Street Fighter IV picture: it's so easy to pick up and play but there's enough depth to keep even the most hardcore competitors satisfied. There are a number of other systems in Street Fighter IV that players can keep track of. There are two meters that can be used during a match: the Super meter and the Ultra meter. The Super meter fills as you land attacks and fight normally, while the Ultra meter (or Revenge gauge) builds up as you take damage. You can use the Super meter to execute Super Combos, which are elaborate attacks that can be chained together with normal techniques for some spectacular combinations. On the other hand, you can use the Ultra meter to perform Ultra Combos, which are more cinematic, devastating attacks that can turn the tide of battle in your favor. Once again, these systems can be enjoyed on a number of levels. You can -- for the most part -- ignore them if you wish, or you can just wait for your meters to be filled and then attempt a Super/Ultra Combo. But if you're interested in even more technical applications, you can use a quarter of your Super meter to perform Ex versions of Special Moves, which generally strike in different ways than the normal versions. As you can see, there's a tremendous amount of information to consider and balance while playing, but it's easy to learn one step at a time and SFIV gives you the tools to do so. Not only is there a robust training mode for plenty of sparring (you can even record your own actions for your sparring partner and play them back to suit your own needs), but Street Fighter IV also boasts an extremely exciting suite of Challenge modes. My favorite among the Challenges -- which include typical Survival and Time Attack offerings -- is the Trial mode, which actually teaches you introductory and advanced combos for every character. If you're curious about what Special Moves cancel into what else, or how to set yourself up for an Ultra Combo, Trial is a brilliant place to start. This mode is clear evidence that Capcom wanted Street Fighter IV to appeal to a new generation of gamers -- players previously unversed in the intricacies of the series. For those new players, there are also new characters to experiment with. Besides a few unlockable fighters, Street Fighter IV introduces Abel, Crimson Viper, Rufus and El Fuerte right off the bat and each new competitor is a welcome addition to the cast. I'm particularly fond of Crimson Viper, as her design is extremely stylish and her collection of special moves makes her a (flexible) force to be reckoned with. Of course, all the classic characters are back as well, like Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li and Guile. Like so many of the other elements in Street Fighter IV, the original characters feel exactly like they should and that's absolutely a good thing.  Crimson Viper is a welcome addition to the roster. Street Fighter IV feels sublime and is a real blast to play. It's easy to see that an absurd amount of effort was put into balancing and fine-tuning the game, as every match runs beautifully and controls tightly. Obviously some characters are stronger than others, as has been the case with the series for years now, but a truly skilled player can still take a weak character and do some impressive things in the ring -- much to the dismay of his or her opponent (e.g. Editor-in-Chief of IGN Guides Mark Ryan Sallee pwning the office with Dan). Although I was hesitant regarding the muscle-filled art style of Street Fighter IV, I eventually grew to like it, which helped me see the game's character models in a much different light. The animation of each character is divinely fluid and some of the effects for projectiles and Ultra Combos are simply breath-taking. Street Fighter IV is an incredibly good-looking game and I'm happy that Capcom went with the 3D models. I'm also equally happy that the gameplay is still on a 2D plane, even though the game's visuals are all 3D. This allows for some impressive camera work during Ultra Combo execution that enhances the rush of a narrow victory against a skilled opponent. Besides the 3D visuals, Street Fighter IV also sports online play, which will certainly please network-happy gamers looking for more than just the local competition. During my time with Street Fighter IV's online mode, I found it ran well on both the PS3 and 360, though there were occasional hitches that popped up mid-game. Honestly, casual fans will have no problem playing online, though the hardcore audience will likely stick with local multiplayer, regardless. No matter how good your connection is, there's never a guarantee that you're experiencing the exact same battle that your rival is experiencing, which would trouble competitive players. Furthermore, there's no telling how the game will run online once everyone begins jumping on, but my time with it was quite positive. While online isn't SFIV's best feature, there are plenty of other aspects that will keep gamers playing. Specifically the absurd amount of unlockables. Whether you're collecting titles or icons for online play or discovering new colors and taunts for every character, there's always something to unlock in Street Fighter IV and that's a fantastic incentive to keep playing. Even subtle details were well thought out, like being able to switch between English and Japanese voice acting per character or adjusting the position of the health bars and Super/Ultra gauges on the screen. Street Fighter IV isn't just about outstanding gameplay -- it has polish and plenty to do. But as good as Street Fighter IV is, the game isn't perfect. We ran into a few bugs with bringing up the XMB on the PS3 version, as the game would occasionally crash in the process and there was a strange Trophy bug that reared up when foreign unlock data was transferred to our PS3. Of course, these issues might not be relevant for the average consumer as they won't be constantly swapping data between hard drives, but it's worthy of note nonetheless.  Don't mess with Abel. He'll go biblical on your ass. Perhaps more bothersome are the anime cutscenes that are present in every character's Arcade mode. You get one cutscene at the beginning and one cutscene upon completion, and they're all terrible. Keep in mind, I'm a tremendous anime junkie, but these cutscenes are almost a disgrace to anime as they are so poorly animated and tell you almost nothing about the story or the context for each character's participation in the tournament. For a game clearly designed to appeal to new players, these cutscenes are surprisingly convoluted. And lastly, if you've grown tired of the Street Fighter formula over the years, your passion might not be rekindled with IV. As much as I love it, I have to admit that this is still Street Fighter and we've been playing these games for almost twenty years. If the Street Fighter scene (or perhaps, more precisely, the fighting game scene) has bored you as of late, I don't see you finding a revolution in this one -- but it'll sure come close to bringing you around. I'd be remiss if I didn't discuss the differences between the PS3 and 360 versions, which are actually few and far between. The game runs brilliantly on either console, but to get the PS3 up to quick load times, you'll need to perform the optional install. If you do install the game, the versions are nearly identical, though the PS3 benefits from the vastly superior D-pad on the DualShock. Fortunately for 360 owners, both consoles allow for arcade sticks and a good stick is strongly encouraged if you want to play on 360. Closing Comments Street Fighter IV is a fantastic game overall and Capcom should be commended for designing a game that can work on so many levels by appealing to both casual and hardcore players. I'll admit that when I first heard I was reviewing Street Fighter IV, I wasn't terribly excited. I suppose I just didn't think much of it. But as I played and experimented with each character, fighting a variety of the IGN folks and learning something new with every match, I realized just how irrevocably deep fighting games -- and Street Fighter games in particular -- really are. I encourage everyone to give Street Fighter IV a try, even if you're relatively new to the fighting game scene. There's so much depth to the gameplay that you'll be rewarded long after your purchase. And with that, I'll leave you with the mandatory... Hadoken! |
http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3172832
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Street Fighter 4 Release Date: 02/17/2009 A When you think about it, Capcom's taken its damn sweet time bringing us Street Fighter 4. Took over two decades, in fact, since the original Street Fighter first troubled arcades. To put this in perspective, the Street Fighter series, which was the first to integrate complex joystick and button inputs into a fighting game's mechanics, has been eclipsed in raw numbers by relative newcomers like Virtua Fighter (five, not including the Evos and Tournament Battles), Tekken (six so far), and King of Fighters (I've lost track of how many there have been). And, lest we forget, it's been 10 years since the last Street Fighter (SFIII: Third Strike) hit arcades. Ironically, this is the Street Fighter revival that Street Fighter III should have been. Not that there was anything wrong with SFIII -- quite the opposite. SFIII still stands up today as one of the greatest technical 2D fighters of all time, with still-impressive levels of animation, a flexible parry-based fighting system that separates it from me-too fighters like Guilty Gear, and one of the best soundtracks to ever grace a fighting game. Period. Where SFIII fumbled was in how drastically it veered off course from the groundwork laid by its countless predecessors. Of course, that's what made it a true sequel, rather than just SFII Hyper Jungle Mix, but something was lost in the leap from II to III. The parry system, while much loved, made SFIII more of a defensive fighting game than Capcom had intended, as opposed to the all-out fireballin' brawls of the II-era games. Now, with that decade-long break from the fighting game scene, Capcom (and co-developer DIMPS) return with a refreshed Street Fighter that will have old-school fans reaching for their fighting sticks. The first and most critical part of this reboot is the return of fan favorite (read: Street Fighter II) characters like Guile, E. Honda, Blanka, and Cammy, all of whom were absent from the SFIII series. If any cast of characters outside of Nintendo's first-party stable could be viewed as the "comfort food" of gaming, it would have to be the Street Fighter II stable, who have had countless anime, manga, movies and spin-offs devoted to them. Not included in SF4 are any of the fighters from the Street Fighter EX games (sorry, Skullomania fans) -- Capcom's first excursion into 3D. Those characters are owned by Arika, which is noteworthy only because Street Fighter's fourth iteration arrives in three gorgeous dimensions. Purists would have loved to have seen what Capcom would have done with a high-res 2D brawler stocked with thousands of frames of beautiful 2D animation, if only to steal back some of the thunder that the Guilty Gear series took with its hi-res fighters (or to see how it stacked up next to SNK's upcoming King of Fighters XII). But while SF4's graphics may be rendered in polygons, the fighting takes place on a strictly 2D plane. The 3D approach provides a couple of immediate benefits. The first is that everything looks amazing. Every character flexes and animates with a level of detail that would have been virtually impossible in 2D. The smoke trails, the painterly "splatter" effects that's a signature effect in SF4, the close-ups that precede Super moves, the screen-filling fireball Ultras, the beautifully detailed and animated 3D backdrops, and even the jaw-dropping cinematics, are only possible in 3D. The second, and likely more important advantage to the 3D approach, is the accuracy of the hit-detection. Despite the fluidity of the graphics, you can still see the "frames" in the animation, which basically makes this 3D fighter feel 2D. This subtle meshing of technologies lends SF4 to some truly wonderful versus play. Two live opponents with two joysticks suddenly transform into a pair of World Warriors on screen, with the game transcending petty arguments of "2D vs. 3D." This is a game we've been waiting a decade to play, a game that almost never got made, and has it been worth it? Has it ever. The key of course is how the game plays. With only one default speed setting, SF4's pacing would best be described as "fast." Not super, ultra, or turbo-fast, but still plenty fast, and to be honest, pretty optimal considering Capcom wants newcomers to be able to enjoy what's on offer here without being too intimidated at playing with veterans. This will be, after all, many gamers' first experience with the Street Fighter series. But whether you're a veteran or a newcomer to SF4, you'll find the combat fast and furious, egging you on to play "one more match." That's because the game is designed with the notion that "the best defense is a strong offense." If you want to spend your matches turtling or parrying until you find an opening with which to exploit and punish your opponent, well, Street Fighter III already exists in many flavors for the taking. SF4 favors a more aggressive pugilistic approach, but that doesn't mean it lacks for strategic options. Gone is the parry system, and in is the Revenge gauge, which, in tandem with the Combo meter, EX gauge, and Ultra moves, offers players everything from high-risk/high-reward opportunities, to almost Guilty Gear-esque comebacks. Do you spend your gauge on punishing gain-the-upper-hand-now Super attacks (which are painful to watch when your opponent dodges them), or do you save them for an end of match come-from-behind victory? Naturally, it's up to the player to decide, but SF4 doesn't want for options. Nor does it lack in variety, with familiar charge-up fighters like Guile, to the classic fireball/dragon punch/hurricane kick yin-yang of characters like Ken and Ryu, to high-impact/low-dexterity grapplers like Zangief (and their low-impact, but highly mobile counterparts like Vega) available to satisfy all stylistic preferences. New fighters, like C. Viper, El Fuerte, and Rufus all prove worthwhile additions to the canon, despite some of their outward, me-too appearances (the fighting genre didn't really need another luchador-style fighter, but El Fuerte is formidable nonetheless). The thing that really makes SF4 special is its overall polish and finesse in almost every category. From small things like the art direction (match ending lettering, menu system, etc.) to the ability to tweak online matchmaking to suit your skill level, SF4 is clearly a labor of love. The character art is fantastic and the 3D renditions of the original 2D art are impressive, making each character a thrill to view in action. The more you play, the more icons you unlock for your custom profile, which may take a few cues from Virtua Fighter 5's recent advancements in the realm of personalized profiles, but is rewarding nevertheless. SF4 also features a considerable amount of stat tracking, keeping tabs on your time played, win/loss ratio, character preference, medal list, leaderboard rankings and winning streaks. Online play is included, and while we haven't had the chance to test it out in the myriad conditions one might experience on either Xbox Live or PSN, with DSL vs. cable vs. T1 and the like, playing over a private network was as smooth as could be expected. But expect your own experience to vary as with any online game, with things like peak hours adversely affecting your latency. Since fighting games rely more on pinpoint precision and timing than nearly any other type of game, you should probably avoid any intercontinental matchmaking. One nice and very arcade-like feature is the ability to accept versus challenges from other players on the network even while you're playing in Arcade Mode (which is the game's default story mode). Not everyone will recall the thrill of playing Street Fighter II in the arcade, only to have a rival put some quarters on top of the marquee to challenge your skills, but for those who do, this is about the closest comparable sensation to that. You can, of course, turn this option off if you'd rather play unaccosted, as well as adjust search priority according to stability of connection, skill level, and even language preference. Not everything is perfect in SF4, although the transgressions are minor. The lamest part of the game arrives in the hand-drawn pre- and post-game cut-scenes which are, in the best of cases, merely bland. Remember in Tekken 3, which had those really cool CG and hand-drawn ending cinemas for each character -- the hand-drawn ones which were of particularly high quality? Yeah, these aren't like that. The anime cut-scenes in SF4 are so at odds with the gorgeous 3D cinematics that grace every other part of the game (the opening movie is truly a high-def showcase piece of work) that you'll immediately wonder why Capcom didn't use the game engine to tell the game's stories. The worst of the hand-drawn cinemas are just plain bad, similar to the cheap, low budget, nearly motionless junk that floods the anime DVD market today. Another mild drawback is that while the backgrounds are indeed beautiful, and many are homages to classic Street Fighter II backdrops, none are the real deal. Sure, Drive-in at Night, Crowded Downtown, Pitch-black Jungle, Deserted Temple, Cruise Ship Stern, and Small Airfield are nice enough, but anyone longing for E. Honda's onsen hot spring will be left wanting. Maybe Capcom has this planned as downloadable content, but for the moment those classic SFII settings are on our wishlist. So too is a save-a-match mode which could have been used to capture and upload those hardcore, tournament level matches you know this game is going to inspire. Sure people with a video capture set-up can still grab footage and post it on Youtube, but it would have been nice to have seen a feature like this built in to the game. If Halo 3 can do it, then surely Street Fighter 4 could do it. These are minor quibbles, though, and shouldn't hold anyone back from an immediate purchase. Any differences between the PS3 and Xbox 360 version are negligible, as well, with the only advantage being the PS3's more flexible D-pad versus the stiffer 360 counterpart. That shouldn't really be a factor though, as players really looking to derive the maximum arcade-y enjoyment from this game should be using one of the many arcade joysticks available for either system. In case you're wondering, yes, the Mad Catz stick really is that good, and a great value considering how much import sticks usually cost. They're heavy and worth the investment (import sticks usually cost over twice as much) as they'll last you quite a long time. Plus they look really great too. The specialized Mad Catz controllers are also pretty good, arranging the buttons in the classic Sega Saturn pad formation. I have doubts as to how long the controllers, specifically, will hold up under long-term abuse, but fresh out of the box they're quite responsive needing little break-in time before they're ready for heavy-duty combat. Of course, if you already have a time-tested Hori Real Arcade Pro stick, or any of the large number of other, high-quality joystick options for 360 or PS3, there's no need to add another stick to the pile. In my opinion Capcom and DIMPS have done an amazing job with Street Fighter 4. It's obvious from front to back that the people working on this game knew the legacy they were contending with, and found the guts to finish this project with conviction. This is no mere copycat; this is a proud new addition. It's a bold, confident fighter that celebrates its heritage while bringing fresh, new ideas to the table, arriving in a remarkably complete package that -- if this were the last Street Fighter to ever be created -- earns its rightful place in the series' canon. It'll be great to see the tournament-quality matches that arise from this fourth iteration (as well as the crazy exploits that only the best players can discover), and the future innovations it will awaken in Capcom. In all, it's a fine return to form from the masters of the genre. |
