Early Preview of Street Fighter IV

It may be difficult to believe, but it's been over 10 years since the last "numbered" Street Fighter sequel, SF3, was released to the public. Since then, only remakes and spin-offs of the once-cherished series have been released by cornerstone gaming company Capcom, the publisher and developer of the hit fighting-genre franchise that single-handedly changed the face of the 2D fighting era nearly 20 years ago. So unlikely had the prospect of another real Street Fighter title been, that even the most hardcore of fans had all but given up on the series. Now, at the dawn of the 20^th anniversary of what could very well be the most influential fighter series in the history of gaming, fans and critics alike gasp at the reality that is now upon us: Street Fighter IV is not only in the works, but is starting to come to fruition. The few of us that have been fortunate enough to play the very first demo of what could be the biggest and most anticipated sequel of the decade, can only comment on the vast potential that has already been shown in these early stages.

SF4 Producer Yoshinori Ono has taken the helm in creating the next installment of the genre-defining, standards-setting Street Fighter franchise. Many critics are already predicting that SF4 could be the game to bring some popularity back to fighting games, harkening back to an era long since ended. For many fans, Street Fighter II was their last real game in the series. Subsequent titles in the franchise, including those of the Street Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter III, and Street Fighter EX series, have not been nearly as successful. However, Capcom believes that SF4 is destined to bring the series back into the spotlight. Not only does the game incorporate most, if not all, of the vastly recognizable characters that made Street Fighter II a breakout hit 15 years ago, but unlike recent installments, SF4 does not include any of the convoluted gameplay that turned off many fans from the SF2 era.

The first indication of such a sequel being in development came some time ago, when Capcom released a cryptic, tease of a trailer that featured SF mainstays Ryu and Ken battling it out in a familiar environment. However, this trailer would give fans a firsthand look at the brand new animation that makes up SF4. A fresh new art style with innovative brush strokes and ink splatters give both the familiar characters and locations a brand new look. Rather than taking a photo-realistic approach to the visuals, as most other games do nowadays, the producers have creatively developed SF4 so that it almost looks like authentic oil paintings moving in 3D. And speaking of 3D, all of the characters and settings have been revamped for a completely 3-dimensional look. However, as far as the gameplay goes, the game remains intentionally in 2D. It seems smart for the developers to go this route, as much of the addictiveness and fun that came out of playing SF2 were fundamentally based on its 2-dimensional, side-view, strategic placement. That strategic nature would be lost if the game allowed for eight-way movement or sidesteps, taking away from the fundamental core of the series. Keeping the gameplay 2D and setting everything in 3D environments allows for old fans of the series to become easily familiarized with the same game they remember from all those years ago. However, the enhanced 3D models of the characters themselves, as evident in the recent demo, allow the anime-like fighters to convey real, relevant reactions and facial expressions in every detailed situation, something that is truly an enhancement for the gameplay experience.

As other popular fighters have done recently, Street Fighter IV will also feature online gameplay, a move that will allow for the possibility of content updates in the future, as well as fan-desired multiplayer competitiveness. Chronologically, the game itself takes place after the events of Street Fighter II, but before all of the recent installments in the last 15 years. As such, many of the poorly-received, newer characters that have been added in recent games will not appear in SF4. Rather, Capcom has promised that the finalized roster will include most of SF2's classic, fan favorites, including Ryu, Ken, E. Honda, Dhalsim, Guile, M. Bison, and Chun-Li, most of whom were playable in the recent demo. As for the demo's featured gameplay itself, the game feels and plays just like SF2 did back in 1992. All of the characters' moves, including the exact button combos, have been carried over to SF4, so those who played the game religiously 15 years ago will feel right at home. The same wickedly fast gameplay from early SF titles has been incorporated into this game, staying away from the deeply convoluted defensive strategies offered in recent Street Fighter titles, most notably the Alpha and EX series, which turned out to be a confusing turn-off for many players.

For now, Capcom is keeping quiet about the release details of the game, including an exact date as to when the game will be shipped, although "sometime" in 2008 seems to be the targeted time frame, just in time for the 20^th anniversary of the franchise. Also up in the air is the question of whether or not the title will be multiplatform, or if it will remain exclusive to one specific console, a scenario that the producers don't seem very interested in. Based on its impressive visuals, the game would definitely be best suited on the powerful PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360 consoles, yet Capcom may also produce handheld ports for the Nintendo DS or PlayStation Portable. In any case, sequels and remakes generally do not get much bigger than Street Fighter, easily the most influential fighter in the history of gaming. The success or failure of Street Fighter IV will no doubt play a hand in determining the future of the entire genre of fighting games, and for now, all any of us can hope for is that the title stays true to the series and does right by the franchise. But based on the potential that we've seen so far, the game seems to have a very bright future ahead of it.