Super Street Fighter IV

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List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $12.39
Today's Bonus: 38% Off

I only played Street Fighter 4 a couple of times before I realized that I just plain didn't like it. And that's pretty bad coming from someone who grew up with the series, playing the first incarnation of Street Fighter 2 when it hit arcades in the early 90s. Something seemed off to me, balance was horrible, and the online modes were lackluster. Plus it seemed like there was a lot missing that they could've put in, but didn't just so they could make the release date. Sure enough, Super Street Fighter 4 was announced just a few months later. So I waited, and once I saw gameplay of the new characters and the changes they made to the original cast, I went and pre-ordered it, knowing I wouldn't be disappointed. Obviously, I wasn't, given the title of this review and the ratings, and anyone who was disappointed with the first SF4 should at least give this a rental/borrow.

First things first, the new characters. While I wish they would've added a few more unique characters (like Oro, so then we could have the 4 true masters in one title finally!), the characters they added all rock for the most part, and getting to see Dudley take on Balrog is something that needs to be seen for yourself in order to experience the gentlemanly bad-assedry. Juri's pretty rad too, and once I played as her in the Training mode just to see her moves, I could see why there are so many people playing as her online. The original cast from SF4 got changed here and there, like some attacks having different priority, being slowed down, or not being invincible during an EX move. Sagat and Ryu were notorious for being god-like in the previous version, and here...they're still pretty tough, but not -asimpossible to take down as they were. Trust me when I say that if you play competitively, the tiers list will be quite different from the SF4 tiers. Heck, I think Cody's an automatic upper tier just because his knife attacks do chip damage while being blocked and one of his Ultras can almost always hit you when you're on the ground.

Online modes have been revamped as well, and it's so much better from what it used to be. There's little to no lag most of the time when I'm playing people in the same region, though sometimes there'll be a quick freeze for both players, and then it goes back to normal. Endless Battle is similar to the mode in the Dead or Alive 2 remake for Xbox, where a person hosts a game, then others keep playing them until they're defeated. This can be a true test of skill if you think you're all that. I still wish there was a way to do rematches when a match ends in the Ranked Battle, so I wouldn't have to go right back to the Network menu to pick another match type, but it's not that big of a complaint. I did have some problems with trying to join another person's Ranked Match. Sometimes it would say that there was a problem, and ask if I wanted to try again, only to have another problem. If this happens to you, just host your own game. SSF4 is so hot, there's ALWAYS someone to play against. Heck, look at Super Street Fighter 2 HD Remixthere's ALWAYS someone to play against on there too, and that thing's been out for a while.

There are a few extra features, like titles and icons you can earn through Arcade, Network and Challenge modes, and there's also a completely new set of trophies to earn here. Nope, they didn't just port over the old list from SF4, everything's new and you'll have to earn them again. Costume packs from SF4 transfer over to SSF4, and that 'bonus' that Capcom talked about for people who have their SF4 files still saved...is just an extra color. It's a cool filter [that only works for the original color] that gives you a comic book look, similar to the style in Valkyria Chronicles. Capcom also gave a couple of characters an extra Rival scene in Arcade mode, but unfortunately, Gen and Akuma didn't get one. The opening and ending animated scenes are still horrible, but eh, how often do fighting games get good endings in Arcade mode? I would've liked Capcom to have finally made a Story mode like what Guilty Gear and BlazBlue had. They've been sitting back while the fans figure out what's actually going on with the story for way too long. Even the endings here, which are completely different from those in SF4, don't explain much if they have anything to do with the story, and what they do explain is often left for you to figure out (like Akuma's).

The graphics remain the same from SF4 of course, but the new animations for new Ultras can range from incredible to incredibly goofy (like Akuma's new Tasmanian Devil Ultra). There are a lot of new tracks to listen to, and I'm happy to say all of them are just as memorable as the old themes from the first Street Fighter 2. You gotta love Cody's theme, and especially the new Dudley mix. As with the last game, you can also set the voices to English or Japanese...or mix and match and choose who you want to speak either language. 'very good for those people who whine about 'omg da english subs sux0rz' all the time and think it affects gameplay.

All in all, despite the few problems here, I'm glad I waited for this. Oh heck, I was actually hyped for this game, and I -neverget like that for anything. While I love BlazBlue, Street Fighter tends to be the fighting game series that I always play the most, and with SF4, it looks like it'll be staying that way for a while. Now if Guilty Gear X3 comes out...

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I am almost 40 and when I was a kid I remember playing Street Fighter in the arcade and then at home. It has always been a 2D fighter. This latest iteration helps this long in the tooth fighting game revive some of its newness and lost luster. Now you can fight as all of the original fighters plus 10 new ones. I have not played the online multiplayer yet.

Gameplay (+)

This game is a fantastic 2 player game to have at your house when your friends come over. Its so much fun to battle your friends head to head as characters you have played in the past. The mechanics are still the same and you can pull off combos with the right joystick movement/ button combo.

Graphics (+)

The last street fighter I played was probably 4 years ago and at that time they were trying to introduce 3D into it. It was never that convincing because one of the beauties of this game is actually the 2D space. By restricting you to only forward and back you can concentrate on the killer moves needed to take out your opponent. What this version does (and others prior to this might but I never played them), is bring in 3D movements and marry that to the 2D space. Now your fighting moves are very lifelike and yet you are bound to the restrictions that make this game work.

Scenes (+)

The scenes are just great. Each one of the characters has their background that fits their look. Each one is animated with great characters or objects.

New Characters (+/-)

I like the new characters. Each has their own style and special moves. I have not unlocked special characters as of yet. The main selectable new characters have cool looks, and genre specific styles that emulate where they come from like Juri is Korean and has a Hapkido/Tae Kwon Do look to her style. The negative I can see is that the new characters are archetypal versions of what we already have. The big muscular slow fighter, the fast quick light fighter and so on. Nothing added is really innovative other than their special moves.

Special Moves / Finishing moves (+)

Some of the finishing moves are absolutely hilarious and great to taunt your friends with. An example is Hakan; this fat slow guy that resembles a hippo. Some of his finishing moves I have tried out are awesome. He slimes himself up so when he fights hes slippery. He uses that slime to do some cool finishing moves on people. I have not tried every character out, but have seen some of the moves watching friends play this in the arcade.

Tactics: (+)

You could go into this doing the same combo over and over and quickly see that you would have your butt handed to you. This iteration of the Street Fighter series rewards you for tactics in that there is more damage done when you pull off the harder moves and not spam your opponent with them repeatedly.

Summary:

Overall this is a fantastic fighter to have in your arsenal of games. The price makes it even more appealing. I highly recommend it!

Thanks for reading my review.

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I played the original SFIV, but felt that it was lacking characters. However Super SFIV is a step up, but nothing ground breaking. Online play is ok; some challenging opponents others just do nothing but the same move. I do recommend this game, but I would wait until it hits games like this go down in value fast...

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I just wanted to address some of the main complaints I see with regards to this game.

Apparently, some folks out there who purchased the original Street Fighter 4 have a problem with "paying for the same game twice".

Some folks think that they "wasted their money" on the original SF4, because Super SF4 is better.

Others think that this is nothing more than "Capcom's attempt to milk a franchise and rip off its customers."

I can understand the cynicism n this day and age, but it's unwarranted here,

-You aren't "paying for the same game twice", because of the ridiculous amount of additional content they've added. 10 brand new characters is major. Most franchises don't even add 10 new characters in a SEQUEL, let alone an update. PLUS gameplay revisions and all new ultras for the existing cast that can completely change the way the old characters are played. PLUS a more social online atmosphere thanks to lobbies, team battle, and the upcoming free DLC tournament mode. There's a lot of stuff here that wasn't here before...

-You didn't "waste your money" on the original SF4 because IT WAS A GREAT GAME, AND YOU ENJOYED IT. The original SF4 was a fantastic, genre-reviving game with infinite replay value and appeal. The past 14 months of intense beat downs, tournaments, hype, and discovery were well worth the $60 we paid for it. Purchasing Super SF4 won't change that. Especially since the knowledge you earned over the past year will serve you very well in this new game.

-This isn't "Capcom's attempt to milk a franchise and rip off its customers", because so much of the ingredients to this feast were based on fan requests. Online lobbies? Fans demanded it. Better balance? Fans demanded it. Street Fighter 3 characters? Fans demanded it. Listening to classic character themes during regular battles? Fans demanded it. The list goes on. Capcom simply saw the demand, and provided the supply. Sure, it would have been great if this massive cornucopia of fighting were available in the original SF4, but unfortunately Capcom doesn't have a magic wand that creates fighting games out of thin air. Limited time and resources forced them to split the costs and risks over two separate releases (remember, the original SF4 was a huge gamble that Capcom wasn't sure would be a success.)

In the end, it's all just business. In February 2009, Capcom released a game called Street Fighter 4. I paid 60 bucks, and in return got way more than 60 bucks worth of value for it. Both sides profited.

Fast forward to April 2010 as Capcom now approaches me with the similar proposition. Pay them 60 bucks in exchange for more than 60 bucks worth of enjoyment. I see no reason why I shouldn't pull the trigger again.

Oh wait...you mean to tell me, it's not 60 bucks? It's even CHEAPER?

Well, maybe we need to reconsider who exactly is ripping off whom here...

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Really great game at a great price! It can be upgraded to arcade edition at a later time if you want, and it is still cheaper than getting arcade edition outright. Cant go wrong with super street fighter 4.