Capcom stays true to fans in ‘Street Fighter IV’

Shane Kaiser

As of recently, Capcom has been one of the few gaming publishers to listen to fans and make quality games reviving their older franchises from the late 80s and early 90s.

With the release of Bionic Commando Rearmed in August 2008, Megaman 9 in September, Super Street Fighter II HD Turbo Remix in November, and the Bionic Commando sequel coming later this year, Capcom has made hit after hit in response to its fans.

This streak was continued with the release of the long anticipated installment to their Street Fighter series, Street Fighter IV.

Gameplay:

Just like every other Street Fighter game, it is one of the most balanced fighting games on the market.

With a total of twenty-six playable characters, each unique character has a diverse set of moves.

They included most of the classic characters everyone knows and loves from Street Fighter II, with their classic moves still intact, and added a considerable amount of new characters.

The fighting system is very similar to the other games in the series.

With the only differences being the new focus attacks, EX moves, and ultimate moves, the game retains the classic Street Fighter feel.

They also eliminated the “parry” fighting system that was badly received when it was first implemented in Street Fighter III.

Since, the controls are extremely tight and have the classic arcade feel, there is really not much to complain about with the controls and gamplay.

Graphics/Presentation:

The graphics are absolutely beautiful and the game features a great soundtrack.

All the backdrops and characters are extremely detailed and colorful.

They used three-dimensional characters for the first time in the series and did a great job with it.

Instead of using three-dimensional stages like most other fighters, they decided to stick with two-dimensional stages to keep the Street Fighter feel.

The game looks great and my only complaint is they made some of the classic characters, like Ryu and Ken, appear more muscular than they traditionally looked in previous titles.

Re-playability:

Like most fighting games, playing against other people in multiplayer mode is the main reason for purchase.

The game has excellent online capabilities, giving it an infinite amount of re-playability, because there will always be opponents waiting for a fight somewhere in the world.

Final thoughts:

This game is easy to pick up and play, but nearly impossible to master.

Every character plays differently and they all have different and unique sets of moves.

Unless you dedicate a large amount of time to this game, you will not be able to master it. Despite this, it is an excellent game that is extremely balanced and fun to play.

Yet, if you never liked previous Street Fighter games, you will not like Street Fighter IV because it is more or less the s ame game as Street Fighter II with a few new characters and moves.

In conclusion, if you have been a Street Fighter fan this game is a definite buy, if you never cared for Street Fighter, I would pass, and if you never really had a chance to play a Street Fighter game before I would rent it to give it try and decide after you test it out.

It is one of the best Street Fighter games to date, but it is still a series that some people love and others dislike.