Super Street Fighter II gets the HD treatment and much more
One of the most popular games of the early ‘90s is reborn! Super Street Fighter® II Turbo HD Remix, originally developed by Capcom® for the arcade, makes its downloadable debut on the Xbox LIVE® Arcade. Capcom will stay true to the foundation of the popular game by utilizing the original game code, while creating a fresh upgraded experience with new artwork and high resolution 1080p graphics. All of the art has been completely redrawn and created in conjunction with the artists at UDON Comics, which currently publishes the official Street Fighter comic and is responsible for the new contemporary look of the Street Fighter franchise.
Numerous online features
In-game voice chatting between players
Matchmaking flexibility through multiple options
Personal and friends statistics tracking
Quarter Match Mode– this spectator-based system allows online competitors (2 competitors and up to 4 spectators) to use a “virtual quarter” to “buy into” heated two player matches
Comprehensive worldwide rankings and leaderboards by character and country – tracks overall wins and losses, number of throws, perfects, highest combos and more
Street Fighter is one of those games that are nearly impossible for any other fighting game to beat. It stands alone, despite the many cloning attempts over the years. Of course, Street Fighter has been absent of a truly new game for a long time and we’re getting that hopefully sometime next year. For now though, we have Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix to tide us over…and it will definitely do that.
First of all, the game features all 17 original fighters from Ryu and Guile to M.Bison and Akuma. There’s the inclusion of online, which is the main highlight for me as the AI can be relentlessly difficult to beat. The Xbox 360 controller isn’t the best for fighting games and sadly this is true when playing with Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, I found combos hard to pull off and moving to be a bit stiff at times…not all the time, but it’s noticeable.
The game has two different main modes, a HD Remix version and the classic arcade version. Each of which are set with some pointless text boxes of dialogue and then fight after fight. Like I said, the AI is pretty tough…even on easy, I struggled to topple them. Of course, fighting games aren’t my forte but it would have been nice if it was a bit easier for newcomers to the game, although purists will surely love this version.
Each fighter has their own special fighting style and there’s a player out there for everyone, I personally like Ryu even if I still get my ass handed to me. Technically, I know I should be able to beat most of those guys but they can be incredibly hard, although pros at these games should have no problem toppling them. I like the visual style of SSF II TH Remix with its anime look and feel; it’s really quite an impressive looking game considering it’s in 2D. The soundtrack to the game is also catchy and you can choose from the classic music or remixed tunes, both of which are great. Purists will probably stick to the classic sounds, but the remixed ones are nice too.
I’m impressed that the game supports 1080p; it’s rare that any arcade games does so it’s a nice addition and looks amazing on my 47” HDTV. Capcom have done a great job in making the game look great but making it stay true for fans at the same time, it’s astonishing to say the least.
Most of Capcom’s XBLA/PSN titles have been tough. Bionic Commando, Mega Man 9 and now SSF II TH Remix is another to join the tougher downloadable games. It’s fresh to find a game that is incredibly challenging in this era of easier games. Fans of the series will simply love it, but newcomers may be put off by hard it can be. It still remains perhaps the best 2D fighter on the next-gen consoles and I’m sure that the next-gen version of Street Fighter will deliver what fans have been demanding for years.
The Verdict
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is one hell of a fighting game. It remains true to the original, while updating the visuals with an amazing anime look that’s just great to look at. Definitely one of the best fighting games of 2008.
