Games release list 16/02 to 20/02 2009
How can one not have memories of the Street Fighter series in the arcades. I was never any good at it of course and in any case I was more of the NBA Jam type of player.
But going to Piccadilly, especially during the anti-occupation demonstrations, was part of my teenage life. Street Fighter 2 was by far the most popular machine in that place. You could see people playing the “single player” campaign but also playing the Vs mode. Coin after coin. Challenger after challenger.
I can still remember some of the epic Blanka Vs Ryu battles and Honda’s hand slapping people around. Even when I was playing with my Phoenix Suns, Charles Barkley and Kevin Johnson I could hear (Sho-)ryu-ken in the background.
It was the lion in the jungle. The King of all
It’s now 2009 and I am twice the age I was then. The popularity of the beat-em-up genre has been replaced by the FPS. It’s now all about Call of Duty and Halo.
But, after a million versions of SF2 and a not so well received SF3 Capcom wants to lure old fans back and attract newcomers as well with Street Fighter IV.
Edge reviewed the arcade version and gave it a 10. Eurogamer reviewed the console version and gave it a 10. Will Street Fighter 4 prove to be enough to revive a whole genre on its own? That I do not know.
What I do know is that it is my game of the week.
Release list:
(1) Street Fighter IV (360, PS3)
(2) Race Pro (360)
(3) 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand (360, PS3)
(4) Disgaea 3 : Absent of Justice (PS3)
(5) Dragon Quest: The Hand of the Heavenly Bride (DS)
(6) Rogue Trooper: Quartz Zone Massacre (Wii)
(7) Nerf-N-Strike (Wii)
(8) X-Blades (360, PS3, PC)
(9) B-Team Metal Cartoon Squad (DS)
(10) Eledees: The Adventures of Kai & Zero (DS)
February 19th, 2009 at 14:04
I used to seriously love the Street Fighter games - first on the arcades, and then I got hold of a copy for my Mega Drive all those years ago… I hadn’t really thought about it but I guess you have a point about the beat-em up being overtaken by the FPS, though that’s not really a route I went down. The only other beat-em up I’ve played since, on a regular basis, is probably the Tekken series but Street Fighter is always going to feel like the original! Anyway, definitely looking forward to giving the new version a go.
February 20th, 2009 at 10:44
They supposedly made it very accessible now but also difficult to master in order to cater everyone’s needs. I really hope it becomes a good multiplayer experience where you are at someone’s house instead of the arcades.