Street Fighter IV (Sony Playstation 3, 2009)

I'm a Street Fighter vet since the days of SF2 when it first hit the arcades. Over the past Street Fighter games (and Capcom Vs series) there were hardly ever a time when Capcom had let us players down. Every game there was something new worth replaying over and over. Well, Street Fighter 4 offers some new stuff such as gameplay using the Focus Attack. Pretty much a one button move where it act somewhat as the parry move's replacement from Street Fighter 3. Once charged up, you can unleash a devastating, unblockable blow that will temporarily stun your opponent. All our Super Street Fighter 2 (Turbo) crew is in it, minus Deejay and T.Hawk. Plus there's some crew from Street Fighter Alpha such as Dan Hibiki, Rose, Gen (originally from SF1 actually), and a few others.
Arcade Mode - Of course we all know this is the where we follow the story lines of each fighter in the game. There's a pretty decent anime sequence for the prologue and ending, YET... the English dub is very...very...AWFUL. Some of the voices don't even seem fitting for the characters like Akuma, Gouken, Blanka (oh geez), etc. What's even worse is that the endings don't either match the reason why the fighters joined the tournament, or the ending would leave you going, "Huh...? That's it?" if not both. When you're about to fight your rival, the in-game sequence seemed to make better sense than the anime cut scenes imo. But if you just want to kick tail and take names from the cpu, then Arcade mode would be fitting. Plus your scores will be uploaded online. It just suck you can't view it offline or see a screen displaying your top scores like in every previous Street Fighter related games.
Challenge - This is broken down to 3 gameplays, Timed, Survival, and Trial. Trial is my personal favorite because if you recall from Street Fighter EX series, there is a training mode where you must execute the moves and combos that the cpu display in order to pass. This is the exact same thing in this mode. We all know survival mode is so let's get to Timed. That mode, you have a certain amount of time to beat a set of opponents. Every win will grant you more time and various other conditions will net you more such as super combo finishers, ultra combo finishers, etc.
Characters - I'm a straight Ryu, Akuma, Dan, and Gouken player. Pretty much all the Shoryuken people in it I use. Some of the new characters have interesting techniques that prove to be useful. Some...are pointless to be in the game. El Fuerte is one of them and a very annoying fighter when the cpu uses him running back and forth across the arena doing nothing. SO 90% of the time, you'll be garunteed a perfect in both rounds against him. Seth, the last guy in the game can be a true cheesey character when you face him. But if you compare him to Gill in SF3, Gill was helluvalot harder to beat because of his unmatched reach. Seth, has a excellent variety of moves at your disposal when you play as him. From Zangief's spin pile driver, Ryu's Dragon Punch, Dahlsim's arm punch (Heavy Punch button), he got it all. You just need to master ALL of Seth's moves to make him your cheat character. He got the distance and up close moves.
Overall - I still prefer Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike over 4 for some reason. The storylines got me heated so that took away some of my replay value. But the gameplay is top notch. And online play is just as fun might I add. I recommend this game to all the pioneers of Street Fighter like myself!

After almost 9 years since the last Street Fighter game, CAPCOM punches back with the franchise's latest installment: Street Fighter IV. In case you didn't know (just in case) Street Fighter is a fighting game franchise that set the bar for all fighting games to follow. All the characters from the arcade are playable in addition to Sakura, Rose, Dan, and Gen from the Alpha games, Fei Long and Cammy from Super Turbo, and making his world debut; the master of Ryu and Ken and the brother of Akuma: Gouken. Plus, this game sets you up with the ability to play as the game's boss: the S.I.N. CEO Seth. And so without further ado, let's begin the review. (Not a word about the rhyming!)

Gameplay: 9/10

The legendary 6-button set-up of Street Fighter returns: 3 punches and 3 kicks of differing strengths. In addition, if you push two buttons of the same strength, you can also do other actions. The two light attack buttons perform throws, the medium attack buttons performs focus attacks, and the strong attack buttons perform personal actions (or taunts).

This game offers several game modes to play: Arcade, Versus, Network Play, Challenge, and Training modes. Arcade mode pits you against a series of opponents until you face the boss Seth to unlock the videos and other characters. Versus mode allows you to play against other players on the same console. Network Play allows you to play other players via an internet connection in either ranked matches or just for fun. Challenge mode gives you various challenges: Time Attack (where you try to beat opponents before time is up), Survival Attack (where you try to beat opponents with a set amount of life that recovers after each battle), and Trial (which gives you a series of commands for you to successfully connect; a great place for those new to the game to start). With each of the challenges you complete, you are rewarded with titles (for your network account), colors, personal actions, and artwork.

This game offers some new system features. The first is the focus attack, which allows you to absorb one hit and strike back with a stunning blow. You can also cancel out of the attack by doing a forward or back dash during the attack. Plus, you can cancel normal or special attacks into a focus attack for half the super gauge. But be warned, every character has a move that can break the focus attack armor. The second new feature is the revenge gauge that builds each time you get hit, block an attack, or absorbing hits using the focus attack. When this gauge reaches 50%, you can perform an Ultra combo. The more the gauge is full, the stronger the Ultra combo will be.

The game still offers many of the same combos and features from SF3:3rd Strike, including super combo cancels, which allows you to cancel a special move with a super move, and the target combos. Leap attacks (Universal Overhead attacks) were replaced with focus attacks.

Graphics: 8/10
Replay Value: 8/10

At first glance, this game seems to not offer much in the say of replay value, but looks can be deceiving. First of all, there are a ton of trophies that would take a while to get. Second, the challenge mode takes quite a bit of time. But, what gives this game the most replay value is online versus play. You can play anyone who has a PlayStation Network account when you want. And, if they are getting too good for you to beat, you can go back and practice offline before going back. But honestly, this can only hold your attention for so long.

Street Fighter 4 blends the SF2+SF3 onto a 3D plane. Letting go of the mechanical baggage that made SF3's learning curve too steep for many casual gamers to climb but adding things like EX to the the SF2 cast and gameplay. Although many techs were removed like the parry, the focus attack adds a new more offensive-style tech, and brings back the complexities of zoning into the mix. FAs can be used in multiple ways. It can be used to counter, setup specials/ultras, cancel out of moves, EX focus attacks, and the list goes on.

If you are a fan of either, I recommend this game. In addition, if you are a hardcore SF3 player, give this game some time... it just might grow on you.

this game is worth buying. It looks like the original games but with much better graphics. The game play is amazing, combos flow smoothly and you can actually see the expressions on the characters faces when they are about to be hit with a Hyper Combo...GREAT!! The special moves are easy enough to pick up, and the training modes help you figure these out, along with the often difficult combos. Great game to play. Would recommend for all ages teen & up

I've been a fan of the Street Fighter series for many years now and had eagerly awaited the release of the new Street Fighter IV.

Many times in the past I've been caught up in the pre-release hype of upcoming games and been majorly disappointed once the game was released.

NOT THIS TIME!!!!

Street Fighter IV is AWESOME!!!

The developers at Capcom have stayed true to the classic formula that has made Street Fighter the cult classic that it is.

They kept the storylines to a minimum, no long, painful, cheesy clips to sit through before fights.

The action is still in 2D, as it should be, but set in highly detailed, 3D locations.

All the classic characters are there, with a few new ones thrown in for good measure.

The action is fast and furious, and beginners to experts can just pick up and play.

Overall, I highly recommend this game if you're a Street Fighter fan, and if you've never played any of the Street Fighter games in the past, now is a great time to pick it up.

9.7/10