Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition Review

The Good

  • Solid, fun fighting  
  • All four new characters are interesting additions  
  • Across the board character balancing.

The Bad

  • No Challenge mode for new characters.
It's been two years since Capcom rejuvenated the Street Fighter series with Street Fighter IV, one of the best fighting games to be released this side of the 21st century. Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition--which comes as either a standalone package or as a downloadable update to existing versions of Super Street Fighter IV--is the latest iteration of the game, adding four new characters, tweaking the online experience, and introducing a raft of character balance changes. For Street Fighter IV fanatics and competitive online players, Arcade Edition is essential, because its additions make it the most complete and well-rounded version of what was already an excellent brawler. For everyone else, Arcade Edition's core-focused changes won't add too much to the experience you're already having with last year's Super Street Fighter IV, so it's a version you can safely skip with the knowledge that you're not missing out on too much.
With Super Street Fighter IV, Capcom made some significant changes to the original, adding in 10 new characters and selectable ultras, as well as overhauling the game's online features. Arcade Edition isn't as ambitious in scope, so the game feels and plays much like its predecessor. (Check out our full review of Super Street Fighter IV). The most apparent additions are the four new characters Arcade Edition brings, bringing the game's total roster up to 39 fighters. Street Fighter III veterans Yun and Yang skateboard and rollerblade their way back in (respectively), while Ryu gets a villainous makeover as Evil Ryu. The last new character slot is filled by Oni, an even nastier version of Akuma.
While Yun and Yang might superficially look and play similarly, the only thing they truly share is their similar rushdown style of offence. Both characters are effective for getting into an opponent's face and pressuring with fast strikes. For players not used to Yun and Yang's aggression, they can be tricky to fight against (particularly online, where the twins have become favorites). Evil Ryu plays like a mix of Ryu and Akuma, with additional moves like an Akuma-like teleport and a wicked axe-kick. Oni, on the other hand, is a mixture of Akuma and Gouken, sporting a ridiculous number of projectile attacks and easy combo potential. Both of the dark hado characters also pack a mean punch, dishing out high damage and making them dangerous characters in expert hands. The trade-off, however, is low health. In fact, all four of the new character's offensive strengths are balanced out by relatively less staying power, particularly Evil Ryu and Oni.
Because Evil Ryu and Oni are essentially souped-up versions of characters like Ken, Ryu, Sagat, and others, Yun and Yang are the most interesting additions to the roster. Those wanting to brush up their skills on the newcomers, however, might find the early going tough because none of the new characters have been incorporated into the game's Challenge mode. Challenge mode--a series of trials set for each character that effectively taught players different combos--was the best way to get to grips with an unfamiliar fighter in the previous incarnations of Street Fighter IV, given the paucity of other training options within the game. Without challenges for the four additions, you'll have to look elsewhere for advanced tips on how to improve your game.

As for the other 35 fighters on the roster, they've all experienced some changes as part of an overall tweaking of the game's balance. Some of the changes are quite noticeable (Akuma and Ryu's air hurricane kick, for example, has had its jump arc modified to make it tougher to run away with, while Guile's flash kick damage has been nerfed), while most have had subtler tweaks made to attack damage, recovery, hit boxes, or frame counts. The majority of these changes only really affect high-level play, and for casual or moderate players, their favorite characters will still handle much as they have previously, and the overall gameplay experience will feel very similar to Super Street Fighter IV.
Unlike vanilla Street Fighter IV and its Super incarnation, online play between Super Street Fighter IV and Arcade Edition is not mutually exclusive. In Arcade Edition, you can choose to either play other Arcade or Super players online, with the game letting you choose which version to look for (Super owners, however, won't be able to play you online if you're set to Arcade Edition). "Downgrading" to Super will also turn off the balancing that Arcade Edition introduces, which could be a handy fallback if you're not happy with how your favorite character has been changed. Online play is seamless, with only matches with players from the other side of the world experiencing any sort of lag.
Arcade Edition comes in two flavors--either as a download via the PlayStation Network or Xbox Live to upgrade an existing Super Street Fighter IV copy or as a budget-priced retail box that includes the entire game. For Super owners, Arcade Edition isn't a dramatic overhaul of the game, and its worth really depends on how competitive you want to stay when playing online. But for those who haven't picked up Street Fighter IV, the low price point of the boxed version of Arcade Edition makes it a great entry point into this outstanding fighting game. Street Fighter IV is a tight, fun, and competitive brawler with a healthy online community, and Arcade Edition is the most complete and comprehensive version of it yet.

PlayStation Store Update: L.A. Noire DLC, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

Sony's online marketplace hosts a range of new content this week, including Ezio's newest adventure as a full-game download and a trial for Atlus' Catherine. However, it's Rockstar Games that is bringing the biggest of the week's new releases, hoping that crime does in fact pay.
Leading the charge today on the PlayStation Network is the Reefer Madness ($4) downloadable content for Rockstar Games' well-received 1940s sleuther L.A. Noire. The new case tasks players with pursuing and bringing to justice a Los Angeles drug dealer who trades in heroin, morphine, and marijuana.
Detective Phelps, making a loud house call.
Switching to the PlayStation 3 game download hub, Sony added just one new title today, Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood ($40). The stealth action game follows the long-knifed Ezio as he once again hunts down the Templars, but this entry has a twist. Instead of fighting alone, Ezio will recruit an army of killers to fight alongside him.
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood also features a multiplayer component, a first for the popular series. In this game mode, players will receive contracts for the heads of other players. They must sneak around the multiplayer environments and kill their opponents before they fall by the knife to another player.
Gamers hoping to try before they buy this week can grab a demo for Catherine today on Xbox Live. The sampler gives gamers a first look at and feel for Atlus' puzzle adventure game, which is due out in full on July 26.
Living room rockstars can grab new tunes for the Rock Band franchise today. New songs added to the PlayStation Network include two tunes from Christian rock band P.O.D. and one song each from Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Erasure. Songs are available for $2 each.
A full list of the week's deals and new PlayStation Store content, including themes, wallpapers, demos, discounts, and add-on content, is available on the PlayStation Blog.

EA taking Army of Two, Skate, more offline

Earlier today, Electronic Arts purchased PopCap Games for at least $750 million, opening a new chapter in the Plants vs. Zombies and Bejeweled franchises. However, EA is also ending the era of multiple games, today announcing its plan to take a long list of games offline for good.
Army of Two's online component will soon be an army of zero.
According to EA's updated Service Updates page, the publisher will turn off online capabilities for Army of Two (Xbox 360, PS3), Skate (Xbox 360, PS3), Battlefield 2: Modern Combat (Xbox 360), Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (PSP, Xbox 360, PS3, Wii), and more on August 11. For the full list of games that will have their online components shut down next month, see the EA's website.
EA will continue the deactivation wave on October 1, when the publisher shuts down online functionality for NHL 10 (PS3, Xbox 360) and Madden NFL 10 (PS3, Xbox 360).
EA noted that the reason these games are going to be shut down is because they account for less than 1 percent of total traffic, and so that EA's IT staff is free to focus on games users are more actively playing.

South Park seconds coming to Xbox 360

Unlike the aesthetically crude Comedy Central show it was based upon, South Park's first brush with gaming in the late '90s was objectively not good. However, Microsoft and Comedy Central went a long way to righting the franchise in gamers' minds with their 2009 tower-defense title South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play.
Now, it appears as if a second South Park game is headed exclusively to the Xbox 360. Speaking to Joystiq, 345 Games creative director Prithvi Virasinghe confirmed that his studio is collaborating with Microsoft on a new title based on the tiny-town travails of Kyle, Stan, Kenny, and Cartman.
"Right now, South Park is actually in a first-party deal with Microsoft Studios, who published the first game, and they're doing a second game as well," Virasinghe said. The head of 345 Games, which is Comedy Central's internal game development arm, went on to note that the second South Park game will mark the end of its exclusivity deal with Microsoft. Additional details on the title were not revealed.
South Park may be goin' back down to Xbox Live.
Beyond South Park, Virasinghe also indicated that he'd like to create a game based upon mock right-wing talk show host Stephen Colbert. "It has to be the right combination of game idea meets property," he said.
Microsoft had not responded to a request for comment as of press time. For more on the original South Park title for Xbox Live.