When fighting enthusiasts were introduced to online gaming (sup Xband), everyone was amazed by this new milestone which for the first time ever, expanded the competitive userbase beyond your friends around the block. And with the advent of high-speed connections (DSL, Cable, T1), one would think that latency would be a thing of the past, right? If only that were true. Lag is one of the number one reasons that allegedly has been a major turn-off for most diehard players.

This has prompted the launch of GGPO.net, (created by co-SRK founder Tony Cannon), which every single fighting fan not only should seriously pay close attention to its development. Do you dream of a world where you can finally enjoy lag-free online battles? Than you need to support GGPO.

GGPO.net’s primary objective is to present a new approach to fighting games. Tony explains:

Traditional networking algorithms used to compensate for network latency result in either slower than normal gameplay or an excessive amount of delay (or lag) tacked onto the beginning of each move. GGPO.net uses a novel way to hide latency which lets the game run at full speed without adding any delay to any of your moves. So your timing doesn’t change and combos come out like butter. It’s almost like playing head-to-head in your living room!

I know what you’re thinking: “Whoo, that means I can enjoy all my CPS2 and CPS3 favorites online, right?” Well, ideally - yes. We contacted a member of the GGPO team and they’ve revealed that basically [any emulation title] will work with the application. For the moment, Alpha 2 is the only title that’s currently being supported.

Currently the project is in its alpha phase - meaning users can expect to encounter a few bugs (i.e. crashes, resets, etc) during the matchmaking process. As a longtime SRK supporter, it’s great to see the fighting community stepping up to address something that corporate developers should have started LONG ago. I am told the code is “very good” so I am definitely looking forward to getting a test-run first hand once the beta stage is up and running.

[Via GGPO.net]

Capcom Digital has received quite the range of responses to last week’s release of Guile artwork. It’s a clear indication that the fans are certainly excited and basically want to see the new “fan mod” done right. Well the develoment team is definitely listening are taking the feedback under consideration.

It’s important however that Street Fighter fans recognize fact: regardless how much the game is tweaked, there’s going to be a percentage of people who will find something to complain about. You just can’t please everyone. Rey addressed a few critical observations that justified Guile’s new design in addition to some other key concerns such as why they chose not to work on Street Fighter III.

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Another day, another sweet update at Capcom Digital. Producer Rey Jimenez revealed a new set of high-res Guile images. With each new update, my interest in this game increases a hundred fold; I just want to see more and MORE. Fans should look forward to a forthcoming update next week. I hope they give us a glimpse of Chun Li — her time has come! All in due time.

Check out the first Guile image below and click the link to see the additional images at Capcom Digital.

Go home and be a family man

Capcom Digital has released a bunch of new information on Super SF2 Turbo: HD Remix which gives fans a glimpse into how the HD animation process is developed, featuring new artwork. There’s a bit of technical language tossed around which Photoshop users in particular can identify with.

Click to view full image

Producer Rey Jimenez provides a detailed tour on how Udon Comics creates their visual magic. And best of all, he sheds some light on a number of concerns, requests and speculations expressed by fans who’ve commented on the Capcom blog and discussion boards. Here’s a few things that were clarified (or revealed)…

– The chances of this kind of treatment (“HD Remix�?) being done on another Street Fighter game will depend on how SF HD Remix does.

– This has not been announced for release on the PC.

– The game will support lower resolutions, not just 1080p.

– We will not be redoing the music or the voice and sound effects. (I believe they’re going to be redesigning the backgrounds though. If not, the game is going to look wierd. - Ed)

Excellent reading material all around which you all should NOT hesitate to check out (if you haven’t done so already). Gogogo!

Ok, you’ve piqued my interest — take me to the goodies!

[Via GN forums, Thanks Advocate!]

Due to the overwhelming response to the first look at the new-and-improved SSF2T: HD Remix version of Akuma, CapcomDigital delivered with an sneak peek at the Russian brawler, Zangief!

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