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Street Fighter IV review

Game: Street Fighter IV
Platform: Xbox 360
Genre: Fighting Action (Versus)
Developer: Capcom

Reader review by joseph_valencia

May 06, 2010

“Street Fighter IV” is a respectable fighting game that's easy to pick up and pretty easy to master. It has low ambitions, which essentially boil down to repeating what Capcom did over a decade ago, but with flashier visual flair. A lot of gamers won’t care, because gaming culture has reached a stage where it is content to mine and relive a nostalgic past. Fair enough, especially if the throwback is fun.

All of your favorite characters are brought back, and they play almost exactly the same as they do in the recent release “Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix”. (A mouthful, I know.) The biggest difference is that they are now 3D polygon models instead of 2D pixel sprites, which means their motions are more fluid than even the painstaking animations in “Street Fighter III”. Polygons apparently allow Capcom to achieve a greater level of detail on a smaller budget, and they also allow for dramatic angles on certain throws or super arts.

Remember all your favorite features from past incarnations of “Street Fighter”? They’re all here too: the basics of SFII, the super moves of Super Turbo, the EX moves from Alpha, and even the parries from SFIII. To all of that, “IV” adds new Ultra Arts. They're pretty much Super Arts but, like, “ultra”. Ultras have their own bar that is separate from the super bar, so you now have two gauges to keep track of. There are so many ultra and super and EX attacks that you might forget there are six standard punch and kick buttons too. (In the future, I imagine they'll be replaced with six buttons that launch assorted special techniques with a single press.)

Another new feature is the “focus attack”, but I found it virtually pointless. A focus move allows you to nullify an incoming attack and counter with a hit that will surely down your opponent. It sounds mildly nifty, but personal experience found me unable to capitalize on the counter. Usually, my enemy would crumble to the ground and I'd have to wait for him to get back up before connecting further attacks. Maybe your mileage will vary.

I would be lying if I said “Street Fighter IV” isn’t fun. It is, but not to the degree of warranting a $60 purchase. The above-mentioned “HD Remix” is cheaper and features most of this game’s roster. I like the new characters, especially the sexy Crimson Viper and the stout Rufus, but there’s not enough that's new. 1997's "Street Fighter III" was far bolder in tossing out most of its predecessor’s familiar line-up. It also boasted a more interesting fighting engine, one that encouraged measured brawls instead of flashy assaults. “IV”, on the other hand, endeavors to be accessible in a way that makes it easy to put down and easy to confuse with other (better) games.

(NOTE: The price of this game has dropped in recent months, but why spend $30 on SFIV when you can drop just $10 more on *Super* SFIV? And with the advent of 3D television, we might soon be graced with "Super SFIV Turbo 3D Remix".)

Rating: 6/10

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