Enter Street Fighter Anniversary Collection which combines all variants and the sequels into a fitting tribute to one of the most influential games of that era. Capcom's latest phase of slapping old school series together continues and cannot be more appropriate as Street Fighter is the granddaddy of the fighting genre. Although this is not the most complete package (where is the original Street Fighter, Capcom?), there is more then enough here to relive those warm fuzzy feelings of the early nineties.
The package contains the already released Hyper Street Fighter 2, which was released on PS2 earlier in the year, and Street Fighter 3: The Third strike. Hyper Street Fighter 2 is basically a compilation of all 5 versions of the once ever-evolving Street Fighter 2. This gives you the ability to select any of 5 variants fighters and duel it out. This is a great idea as it is really interesting to see how the characters evolved through the games, especially our favourites Ken and Ryu. By the Super Street Fighter time frame they were no longer the same body with a different head, they actually had different animations and voices to boot. One note of concern is the insane difficulty of this game. This reviewer once considered himself to be a Street Fighter master, however playing the game on normal difficulty, I felt like a little mouse trying to Sho-Ryu-Ken a fifty foot elephant. The AI is incredibly cruel and leaves no margin for error.
Also included is the brilliant Street Fighter 3, which never received the recognition it deserved. Release in a time dominated by the cross-fighter genre, Street Fighter 3 inspired to recreate the magic of its predecessors, by having a very balanced system with sublime graphics. To this day it plays incredibly well, and after spending a few hours with Street Fighter 2, you appreciate how fantastic Street Fighter 3 is. The only gripe with the game is when the carnage really gets going; the special effects tend to hide the fighters creating a bit of confusion. Not to be outdone by Street Fighter 2’s history, the “Third Strike” included in this package is Capcom’s second update for the fighter.
The graphics have been well ported to Microsoft's black box. Unlike recent ports of classics, the translation to the next generation hardware is not crude and the visuals are very crisp and bright. Street Fighter 2 is certainly beginning to show its age, but it still has the same flare and style that is tried and true. However looking at its successor, you'd think you were looking are a modern day 2-D fighter. Capcom went all out with the sequel and it shows with its brilliant animations and character design. Although it must be said that some of the characters look like they belong on the set of Guilty Gears more than Street Fighter, but regardless there are some truly memorable characters included in the game. Presentation wise, Capcom has its usual set of options, which is as always, as minimal as possible. It certainly would have been nice to have an "auto-save" feature at least.
Sound wise, both ports have made the jump successfully. Capcom have included a nice mix of sounds for Hyper Street Fighter 2, allowing either arranged music selection or picks of a specific version (that is, from the arcade boards CP1 or CPII). Also selecting a specific edition character changes the sounds they make, from the original Ryu’s fireball grunt to the optimistic grunt of Super Street Fighter 2 which is a nice touch. Street Fighter 3’s sound is a somewhat mixed bag however, with the tunes sounding more like a Latin night club than a fighting game. The sound effects however make up for the music, having great crunch sounds when you connect that killer blow.
Perhaps the biggest selling point of this title (apart from reliving that special time with Chun-Li) is the Xbox Live inclusion. Glaringly absent from its PS2 cousin, the idea of fighting the best Street Fighters in the world is "great" at worst. It certainly beats going to a pub and getting into an all out brawl. Playing online is significantly improved from Capcom's other attempts thus far. Online play is smooth in both variants of the game and hardly any lag was present. However the interface and options (or lack of) is very disappointing. Which basically boils down to a SNK vs. Capcom 2 skeleton. Why Capcom didn't implement Xbox Live 3.0 features is particularly upsetting, as tournaments and variations of game modes would have been fantastic and fitting for a 15th anniversary package. But probably worse is the missing friends list. Including only the ability to allow friends to join your game. Despite the lack of options, finding a game is somewhat easier than before, as it shows how many games are available and refreshing in real time when options are changed. It should be noted that the Xbox version of the game will not be released in the states until early 2005, hence Live pickings may be slimmer than normal.
Like its PS2 cousin released only in the states to date, the package comes with the 1994 anime movie "Street Fighter 2" and a host of galleries, which include introductions, endings and music. This is a nice option for Street Fighter buffs, although the movie has been censored (the famous shower scene with Chun-Li) which is disappointing. However in terms of unlockables there isn't much on offer throughout the two versions, so replay value of the single player is hampered a little.
All and all, this is a fantastic package and should not be missed by any Street Fighter fan, especially if you have never had an opportunity to play the brilliant Street Fighter 3. The ports have been professionally done and with Xbox Live support, there are many hours of Ha-Do-Ken-ing to be done here. Thank you for the memories Capcom.
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