We sat down with Seth Killian from Capcom last Thursday to preview Super Street Fighter IV, and to test drive the new character, Hakan. They have definitely listened to the fans who have responded to Street Fighter IV, because they have improved many things about the game from the smallest detail up to some larger changes, like improving the difficulty levels of the game.
As you may already know, they have added 5 new stages. They include Metro City, Africa, Korea, India, and the Crumbling Lab. Each one features interactive backgrounds such as animals that can be knocked over when powerful moves are made while standing near them. There are a lot of nice subtle touches throughout each of these levels. Metro City, with the large Haggar statue in the back, is a standout if you are a fan of Final Fight.
Along with all the characters from Street Fighter IV, they have added a few more characters from previous games, and a couple of new characters as well. Returning from Street Fighter 3 are Ibuki, Dudley, and Makoto. From Street Fighter Alpha, we will have Adon, Guy, and Cody. And from Super Street Fighter II, you can play Thunder Hawk (T. Hawk) and Dee Jay. The two new characters are Juri, a South Korean Taekwondo expert, and Hakan, a Turkish oil wrestler. Hakan is a hilarious addition, as one of his special moves is to coat himself in oil and preform some pretty outlandish attacks.
The online experience has been enhanced with the addition of two new modes: Team Battles and Endless Battle. Team Battles allows up to eight players to team up in just about any fashion, including 4 vs. 4, or 1 vs. 7! Endless battle gives you a chance to relive the good old days when you and your friends would sit down and take turns beating the crud out of each other for hours. Up to eight players can compete in an endless match where the winner plays the next player and the loser goes to the back of the line. Spectators can chat as they watch the match. You may also record and post matches and play them back online with others!
As another piece of fan service, Bonus Stages will be making a return. As you progress in Arcade Mode, you will be treated to the popular Car Stage and Barrel Stage from Street Fighter II. Once you play them, you unlock them to play any time you want without having to play the Arcade Mode.
If that isn’t enough, all characters are unlocked out of the box! In Street Fighter IV, you had to play all the way through the Arcade Mode for each character to unlock them. Now they are available from the get-go.
If you are wondering what I meant when I wrote that they improved the difficulty levels of the game, I mean that they have rebalanced some of the characters to eliminate some of the overwhelming advantages some characters had over others in SFIV. On easy, the boss Seth, is now easier.
We asked Seth if there were any advantages to those that purchased Street Fighter IV, and he said that there is something, but he could not talk about it. What a tease. Anyway, if we can get it out of him, we will let you know! More announcements will be made in the upcoming weeks and so keep checking the site.
For now, we have reported everything we know. It truly is an exciting release, particularly for the new playable characters and the Online Endless Battle. However, since the game is essentially the same as SFIV, the price tag is reduced to only $39.99! That is a bargain for those who passed on SFIV, however they will be missing out on this mysterious bonus.
Stay tuned as we will keep you updated until the release of the game on April 27th, 2010! Super Street Fighter IV will be available for the Xbox 360 and the PS3.
Recent Comments