Official site plays catch-up and makes up for it with a first look at unique battle system.

At the rate of all these Street Fighter IV updates, I may have to start making an index. Fans should be pleased to hear that the official Street Fighter IV site now has officially presented the screens which have already made their way to numerous online media outlets big and small. So why should you bother visiting? Well, for one, there's a new trailer showcasing the Saving system in action. Up till now, we've been given some light details from Ono, but this trailer gives visual proof which should help draw more constructive opinons.

Looking good guys, now can you treat us to some new stages? I am sure everyone else is very eager to see something other than the revamped Chun Li environment. :p

Guess who else is joining Ryu and Ken? 

Street Fighter IV seems to be shaping up to become a rebirth of the original SF2 classic, at least that's what many are being lead to believe with the recent reveal of more classic World Warriors. My guess is that even game development isn't safe from Hollywood insisting on doing reboots for anything and everything under the sun; but I digress. Earlier this week, Capcom revealed that Guile, Chun Li, Dhalsim, Blanka and Zangief will be making a return in the highly anticipated release.

We also know that there's word of some newer characters (i.e. Crimson Viper) which seem inspired by the SNK style which could totally change the dynamic veterans are used to. Judgment will be reserved until more players stateside have the chance to finally get some hand-on time with the arcade build. As for the story, well, the little which we know of it — a recent Gamespot interview with the producer Yoshinori Ono and Capcom's Director of Communications Chris Kramer hints that the alleged reason behind the classic characters returning might have something to do with a time parallel. No, I am serious and here's an excerpt of the proof from the "Street Fighter IV Q&A - Familiar Faces article…

"GS: When is the game's story set in Street Fighter chronology?

YO: Well, the [sequel] number has indeed ticked up one unit, but the story and time period is actually not after SFIII. This game actually takes place after SFII. Is it before SFIII? Does it represent some parallel timeline? I guess you'll have to wait and see…"

(Let's all do a collective "WTF?" God please no time parallels, that just sounds so cheesy)… 

Moving on, it looks like Famitsu has beat the rest of the general Japanese public and media to the punch as evidenced by new shots featured on their website. Below is just a small taste of what you'll find there including several close-up shots of the game played in a cabinet and (cleaner) official artwork scans of the aforementioned cast. Additional screens can be also found here.

Update: Gamespot has larger "high-res" screenshots available. Check them out here.

Be on the lookout for more reports to trickle out next week as the AOU 2008 kicks off on February 15 at the Makuhari Messe just outside Tokyo.

(more…)

Stealing is bad, nuff said.

I spend a 8-hour shift at work and come home to find an explosive amount of drama and hysteria has flooded several popular online destinations. I am talking about Kotaku, a certain Brazillian freelancer, and Ziff Davis. To put it simply, those two new screenshots that circulated faster than any virus epidemic turned for the worst. Why? Because the leaked info was in fact, the same "intellectual property" which was published in the SF4 cover story. You know… the same story which my colleague Shane Bettenhausen worked so hard to put into words that I'd be able to say "nice job" just won't have the same impact now.

See, that certain Brazillian freelancer actually used to work for EGM Brazil and it turns out that he stole a password to EGM USA's servers, posted the information on his blog (which was *surprise* shut down of course). As for Kotaku's role in this… well, they initially jumped the gun and sort of gave ZD the middle finger. Funny how we all roll in the media world when all the facts aren't revealed. Everyone's getting along now it seems, after Dan Hsu set the record straight leading to Kotaku to take a step back and realize: shoot, we were wrong — shame on you Douglas for being a thief and forcing James Mielke to write an extensive blog reiterating all the hard work that goes into creating a successful publication and building strong relationships with videogame developers (like Capcom for instance).

It's crazy y'know… all this time, I just wanted to kick back with the message board patrons talking about how I am finding it difficult to keep an open-mind (that's a story for another blog), but instead — I am left pondering how pathetic this guy had to be. And if I were in Shane's shoes, I'd certainly feel devastated, especially since he was the first editor anywhere to actually have some hands-on time. Some people might not see this as a big deal because those shots eventually would have made their way to the net (but in case you haven't figured it out… that's a big no, no… seriously). If things aren't sinking in yet, go read Milky's blog, take it all in and then you'll see that my colleagues in the field certainly are justified to be upset. This was a very big story for EGM and that's been tainted.

Was it everything you ever hoped for? Now updated with 50% more DRAMA.

Yesterday, 1up.com gave us the first official look in the fourth (true) long-awaited installment in the Street Fighter franchise. What I didn't expect was a single screenshot. Don't get me wrong, I was definitely impressed as it confirmed my theory of the game consisting of a 2D/3D engine; I just expected more. Fortunately, we'll be offered a more detailed "inside look" at what's to come from Street Fighter IV in the next issue of EGM. Shane Bettenhausen (I am so jealous, haha) was the first editor outside of Capcom to actually play the game and I am looking forward to his impressions with great interest.

For now, I know just as much as the rest of you. Here's my two cents on what's been revealed so far:

Old faces: SFIV will mark the return of four classic characters: Ryu, Ken, Chun Li and Dhalsim. There's no word if we'll see other familiar faces, but I wouldn't be quick to dismiss the possibility that they may appear as hidden characters. 

The NEW challengers: It's anyone's guess what type of fighting styles and unique characters will be introduced. I must admit, the ones in SFIII were definitely respectable (and eventually accepted by many longtime SF fans) like Matoko, Q, and Urien… I for one found them much harder to get into than say Karin from SFA3. I also hope they make all the African-American characters more politically correct. Sorry, but M. Bison and Dee Jay were definitely on that sterotype train. Believe.

2D vs. 3D: So we're told (via 1up.com) that the game is definitely 2D, but the screenshot suggests that it's a far cry from that classic look we've grown to know and love. Change is always difficult to accept especially when previous history with 2D meshed with 3D elements presented in the form of Street Fighter EX leaves me somewhat skeptical how promising this will play. Of course, I haven't seen the game in action so it's best to keep an open mind that Capcom will not disappoint. After all, we've been waiting over 10 years for this sequel; please don't suck!

New special moves: Now I can have a field day dreaming up all the possible new moves the developers have come up with. Personally I think the Shotokan duo are in serious need of something beyond their traditional Shoryuken-Hadoken routine. The press release suggest that they'll be beyond any Street Fighter fan's wildest imagination. Shoot, are they going to be pulling off some DBZ meets Matrix fisticuffs? Only time will tell. 

New gameplay elements: Yeah, that doesn't say much, but if the upcoming Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is any indication, I am willing to guess that some of the motions will be a lot more simplified than the few hand gymnastics that were required in past installments. Yup, I am looking at you Vega, Fei and Guile — some of your moves made me a sad panda.

Arcade or console: Right now, no one's confirmed anything and yes Capcom is being tight-lipped for now. My thoughts? An arcade release will definitely happen, though very few states have an active arcade presence so I don't expect its debut to be quite the shockwave that occured with say, Street Fighter III. I think it would make more sense just to go ahead with a full-blown multi-platform release. Oh, and hook that title up with online play please, courtesy of that new GGPO-esque netcode. Kthx! 

Your thoughts: I haven't got over to see the feedback at SRK, but the thoughts on 1up.com and another forum I frequently visit expressed favorable responses. Some are uncertain, and the rest… well, they couldn't care less either way — they're just glad a new SF is on the way. I am be more interested in everyone's opinion once EGM's issue has gone public. I am also looking forward to 1up.com's feature which will offer some retrospective highlights and quite possibly a deeper look into the next Street Fighter and maybe… just maybe other iterations are on the way. Street Fighter Alpha 4? Yeah, right… keep dreaming.