Street Fighter IV Preview

E3 2008 Preview

It’s been a long time in coming, but Capcom is finally gearing up for another Street Fighter invasion. As the fourth official sequel (every game in between was considered an offshoot), Street Fighter IV goes back to the classic gameplay of Street Fighter II. Familiar? Yes. Exciting? Absolutely.

The console versions (Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3) weren’t ready to be played, so Capcom used the stellar arcade edition – complete with a gorgeous widescreen, sturdy plastic buttons and a resistant (but not too resistant) joystick – to give us an idea of what to expect. From the moment the start button was pressed, Street Fighter IV was wonderfully traditional and superbly refined. Having started with Chun-Li, a character I failed to master in the days of Street Fighter II, it was hard to keep up with the first batch of AI opponents. But it didn’t take more than a couple battles to remember Chun-Li’s key moves, which could be used to pummel the average baddie until a more skilled attack style could be formed.

Moving onto the next character, it was time to see how the other classic fighters (M. Bison, Ken, Ryu, Blanka, Guile, E-Honda, Dhalsim, Zangief, Balrog, Vega, and Sagat) compared to the four newcomers: Crimson Viper (often known as C. Viper), Abel, Rufus and El Fuerte. These warriors bring a different style to the game while staying within the bounds of Street Fighter’s trademark gameplay and character craziness. Crimson Viper seems to have an electrical element – her special moves emit what appears to be a lightning shock. Abel is fast and hard-hitting, Rufus is an enormous fighter (literally – he clearly loves his cheeseburgers), and El Fuerte appears to come from the world of wrestling. His moves depend on your ability to grab your opponent and start a lengthy chain of close, hard-to-break-away-from attacks.

In addition to the element of familiarity, two things come to mind when first playing Street Fighter IV: this game is fast and pretty. The gameplay is quicker than Street Fighter II but not more hyper. It’s frantic but not ridiculous. There are more aerial attacks (Mortal Kombat-style air throws) and a cool unleash-your-power type of combo system that lets you deal a tremendous amount of damage. That is, of course, assuming you don’t miss.

There are two types of combo moves: Super and Ultra. Similar to the previous Street Fighter games, these moves are not performed in real-time. First you execute a series of motions and button taps, then the move is executed. Only if the first strike (a punch, kick or grab move) hits the opponent will the move continue on. If you miss, it ends right there.

Super moves may be performed after a portion of your power meter fills up, which is done simply by attacking. The Ultra moves, however, may only be performed after your Revenge meter fills, which doesn’t happen unless you get pounded into the ground. The balance between these is solid and effective – in my 10+ rounds with Street Fighter IV, the game was fair in giving the players something to work with even when they’re losing. At the same time it rewarded the best player with more Super move opportunities.

The cel-shaded graphics – first promoted with a teaser last year and gameplay screens/trailers in the more recent months – are far more stunning in person. The characters are well-rendered, three-dimensional models that look somewhat real. It’s an effect Dragon Ball Z fans will liken to DBZ: Burst Limit but is even more impressive, thanks to an array of animations and facial expressions that add depth to each character’s appearance.

As far as effects are concerned, Street Fighter IV is most impressive when a special move is being performed. The fire effects, for example, are not taken from the world of anime (even though it’s clear the cel-shading was inspired by it). Instead, Capcom made Ken’s fireballs look closer to a real ball of fire.

Needless to say, playing the arcade version of Street Fighter IV was a bit of gaming Heaven for anyone who remembers what public/social gaming used to be about. Hopefully Capcom will wow us once more when they unveil the first playable content for the PS3 and Xbox 360 editions. As for arcades, Capcom says that we can expect to see the game in "some" North American venues. GameWorks or Dave & Busters -- could you please make that a reality!?

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