Street Fighter IV Review

Capcom’s anticipated heavyweight is back for another go and ready to take on all challengers.

The Good:

Street Fighter is back and just as good as it ever was. In this installment you’re free to choose from any of the original 12 characters plus 6 new characters (more on them later) for some toe to toe with your friends, the AI, or a stranger online. By completing arcade mode with different characters you can unlock some other familiar faces, such as: Cammy, Fei Long, Dan, and more. The fighting system has been reworked and now includes the powerful focus attacks. These attacks are unblockable, and if landed successfully, will knock your opponent to the ground. Also new to the game is the revenge meter. This meter fills up as you take damage, allowing you to unleash a powerful special attack on your opponent when it is full. Basically it acts as a contrast to the EX meter, which fills up as you land successfull attacks on your opponent. Things like hadoukens are also much easier to pull off than they ever were before. Despite all these new additions to the battle system it still feels like classic Street Fighter, so veterans won’t be left in the dark.

There are plenty of great modes this time around, inlucding the classic arcade mode. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it seems to be the mentality here. You play through a random selection of characters, eventually facing your rival (which differs depending on your fighter) and ending with a battle against Seth (who is unlockable). At the beginning and end of arcade mode you are shown a video shedding some light on your chosen fighter’s reasons for entering the tournament, their situation following the tournament, etc. These videos aren’t very long or story heavy, but since when were Street Fighter games story heavy anyway?

Street Fighter IV’s online play runs very smoothly. I had no problems finding an opponent and experienced no lag whatsoever from either side. Players can adorn their online profile with various titles that read everything from “Go Easy On Me” to “Merciless”.

This game looks beautiful. From the character models to the stages they fight in, everything is visually pleasing. There are even some familiar stages such as Guile’s airbase and Blanka’s Brazilian jungle. Character models have an almost cel-shaded look to them which works out very nicely combined with the detailed muscle tones.

The Bad:

Where the hell are the bonus stages?! I was looking forward to engaging in a car smashing frenzy in between battles, but this feature is sadly nowhere to be found. Another sorely missed feature is the tournament mode, I have heard something about it being available in a DLC package somewhere down the line, but if you ask me it should have been included with the game.

If you’re anything like me, you’ll probably stick to the classic characters because the new ones are pretty ridiculous. I wouldn’t consider a luchadore wrestler who has a knack for cooking to be on par with characters like Vega or Akuma, and Rufus just seems to be a joke character more than anything else.

It is possible to set-up arcade mode in a way so that players can challenge you on XboxLive as you play through your single player game. This is a great idea, but, you have no choice but to accept every single challenge. This makes playing through arcade mode with this feature on pointless, because you will be receiving back-to-back challenges. A good concept, but would be much cooler if the option to decline were present.

It's Super Dynamic Cooking Time.......

The Ugly:

That intro theme, I don’t think I’ve ever came so close to bludgeoning my own head before.

The Verdict:

Street Fighter IV doesn’t dissapoint. This game will please fans and newcomers alike. However, Capcom have this way of releasing revised Street Fighter game after Street Fighter game, and that makes me a bit weary about buying this game. Although, with the emergence of DLC onto the gaming scene this could change. We’ll have to just wait and see until then.

Grade: A

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Street Fighter IV Preview

It’s that time again. That time that only comes once every 8 years or so. Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for a new Street Fighter installment.

How Does It Work?:
Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono said that this installment will be more akin to Street Fighter II than the third release was. After hinting at the possibility of having Street Fighter II-like bonus stages (car smashing goodness!), Ono and his team decided against this for the arcade version because they believed this would cause arcade operators to lose too much money. Notice they said nothing about the bonus stages not being in the home versions, so let’s keep our fingers crossed. The new ‘Focus Attack’ feature allows for players to block a move by their opponent, and unleash a powerful counter attack. Ono says the reason this has been implemented is to give the game a feel not unlike boxing, rather than button mashing chaos. Also new to the series is the ‘Ultra Combo’. This takes the Super Combo feature from the past, and turns it up a notch. When players are hit by their opponent their ‘Revenge Gauge’ will slowly fill. Once it is full players can unleash a flurry of punches, kicks, or what have you on their opponent, complete with cinematic camera view.

What Does It Look Like?:

The 4th installment of the series boasts beautiful 3D characters and backgrounds rendered in 3D. However, gameplay will stay remain in 2D due to, as stated earlier, the team wanting to keep that Street Fighter II vibe.

Who Is In It?:
Street Fighter IV will contain many of your past favorites including: the original 8 from SF2, the 4 ‘boss’ characters from SF2, Akuma, and 5 new characters. The home version will include 8 extra characters not available in the arcade version such as: Cammy, Dan, Fei-Long, Rose, and more.

What’s In It For Me?:

So what exactly are all the things the home version is going to have that the arcade didn’t? Let’s have a look.

– The choice between English and Japanese voice acting

– Animated opening and ending sequences for each character’s story

– Bonus stages/DLC

– ‘Challenge Mode’

– A ‘Collector’s Edition’ release containing: a guide done in comic book style, a disc with the animated short The Ties That Bind as well as selected trailers, the game’s soundtrack disc, a Ryu figure for PS3 owners, A Crimson Viper figure for 360 owners, and five downloadable character outfits.

So there you have it, Street Fighter IV out on February 17, 2009. I’ll be playing it, will you?

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