What happened to Street Fighter?

[Guest Prototype450]

I was playing street fighter turbo. One of the many Street Fighter II games. ANd I started to wonder, what the hell happened to the Street Fighter series? It was one of the greatest fighting series ever. Then, they started doing the Alpha games which confuse me. Then they went 3d. But then they went back to the 2d format for Street Fighter 3 which a lot of people don't like. I heard another alpha game is coming out for the ps2. So what the hell happened.

 

[Guest Renegade]

I was playing street fighter turbo. One of the many Street Fighter II games. ANd I started to wonder, what the hell happened to the Street Fighter series? It was one of the greatest fighting series ever. Then, they started doing the Alpha games which confuse me. Then they went 3d. But then they went back to the 2d format for Street Fighter 3 which a lot of people don't like. I heard another alpha game is coming out for the ps2. So what the hell happened.

 

Ok:

 

- SF 2 was released to death, gold, rainbow...zig zag, whatever, there was no more value for it.

 

-Capcom decided to release SF alpha, which was set before SF.

 

-Capcom release SF alpha 2, which was an update of SF alpha rather than a sequel, as Capcom stated that SF alpha 2 was a complete version of SF alpha.

 

-Capcom release the EX games (3D streetfighter) which were tedious.

 

-Capcom release SF alpha 3, set after SF but before SF2, and Capcom altered many of the characters storylines in SF2 so its fits the game.

 

- The street fighter 3 series comes up, where the only original fighters are Ryu, Ken and Akuma (Chun-li added in 3rd strike). Many SF fans disliked SF3 mainly because of its new set fighters (Oro for example.) A rumour was that Ryu was not supposed to be in the SF3 series at all, making Alex the main figure for the game. Again many steered away from it since you could only do one supermove, the cast of fighters were unknown and less.

 

Since then the last time SF has been in the scene was with C vs SNK and an EX game for the PS2

 

Another SF alpha game? Where did you read this? The only Capcom fighting game I have read coming for the PS2 anytime soon is a Capcom all stars game, which sounds pretty bad.

[Guest chirs3]

Well, as far as ORIGINAL Street Fighter's go, there haven't been any new ones in a while.

 

But there are a bunch of games like X-Men vs Street Fighter, Marvel vs Capcom, Marvel vs Capcom 2, etc, if you like those...

[Guest razazteca]

Capcom vs SNK is the future

 

I liked the Ex and Alpha series but hated the SF3 series

[Guest J*ingus]

Sometime around 1996...

 

Capcom Executive: ladies and gentlemen of the board, in front of us we have the Street Fighter series, which has been amazingly profitable in its first incarnation and is oddly shaped like a golden goose. Now if Guido would just bring me the butcher knife...

[Guest Pegasus Kid]

I was playing street fighter turbo. One of the many Street Fighter II games. ANd I started to wonder, what the hell happened to the Street Fighter series? It was one of the greatest fighting series ever. Then, they started doing the Alpha games which confuse me. Then they went 3d. But then they went back to the 2d format for Street Fighter 3 which a lot of people don't like. I heard another alpha game is coming out for the ps2. So what the hell happened.

 

Street Fighter is basically broken up into three sections and each of them is popular in their own right.

 

The CvS series is something onto itself, complete with its own chronology IIRC. One assumes that it takes place after Street Fighter II ended but before Street Fighter III (it should be noted that everything takes place before Street Fighter III as that's set like 20 years after Super Street Fighter II Turbo ended).

 

The MvC series doesn't fall into any category. That's just a fucking mess of a series.

 

The SFIII series is the other and takes place (as said earlier) about 20 years after SSF2T. Ken became a sensei and Sean became his student, Ryu travelled looking for answers after discovering Akuma and wondering about the extent of his powers.

 

The new SF games all have something to off, it's just a matter of how much time you're willing to put into them. Most SF enthusiasts will tell you that SSF2T was the best game of the lot. If there was ever a game that required skill to win it, that would be the one.

 

Personally, I prefer CvS2 more than any other game. The roster is massive and it has six different styles of fighting to choose from.

 

Right now I'm learning to play 3rd Strike, probably the most difficult of the SF games (at least if you plan on winning with a high grade) because of the timing for combinations and the ever difficult parrying. Hopefully I can get good enough to win some tournaments for it.

 

But yeah, I advise you go to your local arcade and see the new SF games. I'm sure any decent arcade will have all the new stuff (at least CvS2 and MvC2).

[Guest razazteca]

I play CvS2 alot and use the A-ism if you will, I have already beat the game with the team Yuri of KOF & Ken Masters.

 

the last SNK Mark of the Wolf power up is hard to use since it is based on anger? I bet Ryu, Iori, Rock should be a good team using that system. Considering that they have a dark side to reckon with.

 

Dan vs Yuri has a funny intro........You Lose

 

alot of strategy can be used with Capcom vs SNK2 with the 6 different grooves to play with. It is my personal fighting favorite game. And I have SF Ex2, SF3 3rd strike, KOF 99 and the dreamcast games, Marvel vs Capcom2, Capcom vs SNK1. Hell even the SF2 game on SNES still holds its own today.

 

I still yurn for Billy Kane as a player in the next Capcom vs SNK, if there will ever be another one.

 

1. Capcom vs SNK2

2. SF Alpha 3

3. SF2 on SNES

4. SF Ex2 on PSX

 

rant over

[Guest KoR Fungus]

CvS2 is the best all around game in the series since SSF2T, imo. There's just so many characters with so many different styles, and so many different grooves to mess around with, that you can play it forever. It's also very slick and well presented, and that makes it appeal to the masses. The only problem is balance, which always becomes an issue with that many fighters, but that doesn't matter much for casual play. I'm certainly hoping for a CvS3, but it doesn't look like we're going to get one anytime soon.

 

The SF3 series gets buried because most of the new characters just aren't appealing, and it's hard to get into. The graphics are also very much an aquired taste. As far as depth and skill goes, though, SF3 Third Strike is pretty much without equal. Parrys are a bigger part of the game than they are in any other fighter, and it's amazing to watch the intricate game that goes on between good players. The problem with depth, though, is that the learning curve is completely ridiculous, and unless you are willing to put in many hours becoming very good, you're not going to get much out of it. As a result, SF3 is really popular with elite players, but has very little mainstream appeal.

[Guest Thoth]

Capcom All-Stars is coming soon, the first time Capcom has done a 3D Street Fighter (Street Fighter EX was only Licensed by Capcom, I believe the game was made by Azure... Aruze... something with A)... let's hope it's good and as deep as CvS 2 or MvC 2.

[Guest Renegade]

the last SNK Mark of the Wolf power up is hard to use since it is based on anger?  I bet Ryu, Iori, Rock should be a good team using that system.  Considering that they have a dark side to reckon with.

Well the K-Groove is a mix of Fatal Fury mark of the wolves and Samurai showdown. And out of the SNK grooves it's probably the most lethal if you know how to "just defend".

 

What bothers me about CvsSNK2 is the absence of some fighters (Andy for example) where you have total duds like Todo on the roster.

[Guest El Hijo Del Lunatic]

First off, trying to figure out Capcom's official canon for this series is like trying to compute quantum physics with a slide rule and an abacus. Good fuckin' luck. Unfortunately, it's really the only way to know where the series has been, why games got released, and other good stuff like that. Let's see what we can do:

 

1.) Saturday Night Slam Masters and Ring of Destruction may or may not be officially canon. They feature Mike Haggar, who is a part of the official canon, and Gunloc, who doesn't necessarily have to be. Apparently, since these games occurred before Mike Haggar was elected mayor of Metro City, they'd have to have taken place before the original Street Fighter, as well as the first Final Fight.

 

2.) Final Fight comes next, and is a part of the offical canon. In addition to Mike Haggar (who is officially canon because he and Zangief are rivals), Cody (SFA3) and Guy (SFA, A2, A3) have appeared in the Alpha series, along with Sodom/Katana (the Alpha series) and Rolento. Hugo, the strong man from 3rd Strike, as actually Andore Jr. in the Final Fight game.

 

3.) The original Street Fighter is next. It happens approximately during the same time that Final Fight does, but this is more storyline-important. Here's the way it ended as of right now: Sagat, God of Muay Thai, holds the first Street Fighter tournament because he's bored and wants competition. Ryu apparently gets by everyone, including Adon somehow, and faces Sagat. Sagat absolutely beats the piss out of Ryu, of course, but when Sagat takes pity on Ryu's lame-ass skills and tries to help Ryu to his feet, EVIL RYU TAKES THE FUCK OVER and unleashes the infamous Shoryuken that opens Sagat's chest and wins the Street Fighter tournament. There's a ton of revisionist history there to not only explain why Sagat (who became a very noble character later on) would be so pissed, but also why EVIL RYU exists. The game took place most likely in 1987-88.

 

The characters are: Ryu, Ken (sorta), Birdie, Eagle, Lee, Gen, Retsu, Geki, Joe, and Mike. Birdie reappears in the Alpha games, Lee is the father of Yun and Yang from the SF3 series, Gen is the teacher of Chun-Li (but NOT Chun-Li's dad), Geki is NOT related to Ibuki from SF3, and Mike is actually Balrog from the SF2 series. Retsu and Joe are never heard of again, though Retsu is a friend and student of Gouken's from the same dojo as Ryu, Ken, (and later) Dan. And here's the fun part: Ken is NOT part of the SF1 canon, even though he's in the game (available as Player 2). Ken apparently was in the States, winning martial arts tournaments and meeting his wife Eliza, who is actually Guile's sister.

 

4.) Final Fight: Revenge was a Saturn 3-D fighting game that probably is, but might not be, official canon. Cody's still looking for Jessica, apparently, and the Mad Gears are still around. IIRC, Belger, the last boss from FFOne, is the last boss of this, too, but he's a zombie or something. This would kinda be the equivalent of Final Fight Alpha, in that it's not a tournament, just a bunch of people beating each other up. The cool part of this game is you could pick up weapons and items, just like Final Fight. Anyway, the only characters of consequence are the Big Three (Haggar, Guy, and Cody), Poison (she resurfaces later as Hugo's girlfriend in 3rd Strike), Rolent, Sodom, and maybe Andore, if that's Hugo and not someone ridiculous like Grandpa Andore. I'd assume, though, if Capcom had to choose, they'd say it's Hugo, just to give him more backstory. Also in the game are Edi. E, Damnd, and El Gato.

 

Anyway, I'm almost sure this is canon, because at the end, Cody gets hauled off to jail (framed by Poison for killing Jessica), Guy and Sodom haed eastward, and Rolent gets control of the remnants of the Mad Gear.

 

So far, so good? Good. I'll do the Alpha series in a second.

 

(BTW, i'm checking my facts with The Street Fighter Canon FAQ, because I can't remember all of this.)

 

LUNATIC

- Pimpin' ho's and clockin' a grip like my name was Dolemite.

[Guest Renegade]

I've got the identical file of that, only difference I got mine from GameFaqs.

[Guest Kotzenjunge]

So... for those of us who really don't care about storyline in fighting games(sorry, I just can't be that serious about something as simple as a fighting game), what the dilly? New games or no? And if so, for what system?

 

Also, for my pretty tiny opinion compared to some people who know this stuff better, I liked Street Fighter II Turbo the most, barely edging out the Super version, mostly because the Super version took so much from the original characters I felt. I always play/played as M. Bison, so I didn't appreciate some new people coming in as if they were superior. DeeJay rocked the house however.

 

Fo sheez,

Kotzenjunge

[Guest Renegade]

So... for those of us who really don't care about storyline in fighting games(sorry, I just can't be that serious about something as simple as a fighting game), what the dilly? New games or no? And if so, for what system?

The only new Capcom SF related game announced is Capcom all Stars for the PS2, its in 3d, it features a new dodge button.The storyline probably isn't going to follow off anything since its features people like Stryder.

 

There are some new fighters designed for the game (wow!) and from what I've seen Haggar from Final Fight will be in the game.

[Guest Kotzenjunge]

And the "what system do I get?" question is further muddled...

 

Fo sheez,

Kotzenjunge

[Guest El Hijo Del Lunatic]

Ok, the Alpha series a little weird. What happened was some Japanese studio made a Street Fighter anime movie that was a BIG hit, and to take advantage of that, Capcom released the Alpha series of games.

 

5.) Unfortunately, the original Alpha game was a rush job, done to capitalize more on the success of the movie and not be a, y'know, good game or anything. It's NOT canon at all. Alpha 2 IS canon, and took place instead of the original Alpha game. Most of the stuff that happens in the original happens in 2 anyway, it's just that after the release, people at Capcom said, "Hey, what if we included this character?"

 

The characters are: Adon, Akuma, Birdie, Bison (Vega), Charlie, Chun Li, Dan, Guy, Ken, Rose, Ryu, Sagat, and Sodom. I won't get into the characters, because this didn't count, and they're all in SFA2 anyway.

 

6.) Gotta talk about Rival Schools and Project Justice here. Rival Schools was an arcade game that was set in a high school, had weird storylines, and I generally don't know a hwole lot about it. Something about organized crime, and disappearing high schoolers, and I think there was a mode where you actually could go to school there for a year or something. The only thing I do know is that one of the playable characters is Sakura, lovable SFA schoolgirl. Is it officially in the storyline, though? I have no idea. It could be, but the FAQ I'm staring at is telling me that even though Eagle and Yun got ported over to SFAdvance 3, Rival School's Kyosuke did not. Advance 3 isn't out yet, so I can't help.

 

Probably shouldn't have mentioned that here, because if it WAS canon, it would take place AFTER ...

 

7.) Street Fighter Alpha 2. Here's what counts, kiddies. First off, this is not a tournament, it's just a bunch of crazy stuff that happens after the first Street Fighter occurs. There's no official ending to the game, either, so it's a bunch of random stuff that carries over into the next game.

 

The characters are: Zangief, Sakura, Rolent, Dhalsim, Gen, Adon, Akuma, Birdie, Bison (Vega), Charlie, Chun-Li, Dan, Guy, Ken, Rose, Ryu, Sagat, and Sodom. I'm going to have to go to the actual FAQ for help here. Ok, Adon beats Sagat to become new god of Muay Thai; Birdie fights his way to a spot in Shadaloo; Bison beats the shit out of Chun-Li; Sagat realizes what a poor fighter Dan is, and lets Dan beat him, for the sake of the poor soul's esteem; Gen fights Akuma and both men survive the other's MEGA-EVIL-DEADLY ULTRA ART; Guy becomes Bushin master; Rose beats Bison but doesn't kill him; Ryu loses to Ken because he's more focused on his no-decision with Akuma and the EVILNESS inside him; Sakura also beats Ryu, and then Ryu declines to teach her; Zangief goes Communist; Dhalsim and Sodom do virtually nothing. Oh, and Charlie goes missing. Phew.

 

Dan, for those who don't know, is a joke character. He's a stupid parody of a couple of SNK's fighters, and that's why he's so damn lame, and why his endings make him out to suck so bad. Lord knows why Ryu loses to EVERYONE in the official canon, though.

 

Alpha 2 takes place a year after the SF1 tournament, so it happens in 1988 or early 1989.

7.) Final Fight II is next, though it has nothing to do with Street Fighter. This is canon, because the manual says Guy's away training (because he's fighting in the SFA2 game), and both Haggar and Rolent make appearances. It might as well not be canon, because the game includes a killer French mimey-clowny thing and a Frankenstein rip-off. I mean, lamer than the one from DarkStalkers.

 

8.) Street Fighter Alpha III "takes place" in 1990, and is an even uglier game to get what's canon in. Also, this game is a whole lot weirder than any other game in the series, and that includes the Gill/Necro/Twelve/Urien stuff from 3rd Strike. Ok, now, there are three main plot points to the end of this game. First, Bison finds Ryu and brainwashes him. However, Ken and Sakura hold off Bison until Sagat can knock sense back into Ryu. Sagat beats the brainwashing out of Ryu, and Ryu recovers in time to help force Bison to retreat. Wait, it gets better: Next, everyone's trying to kill Cammy, and she doesn't know why. She gets into this bog fight with Vega, and then with the Dolls Juni and Juli, before she finally forced Bison to retreat again. Wait until you find out why. Anyway, Bison gets killed at the end (THAT'S RIGHT) by Charlie, who fights Bison during a self-destruct sequence so Guile can escape.

 

Characters in the game are: Adon, Akuma, Balrog (Mike), Birdie, Bison, Blanka, Cammy, Chun-Li, Cody, Dan, Dhalsim, Fei Long, Gen, Guy, Juli, Juni, Karin, Ken, RAINBOW MIKA~! (the obligatory large-breasted female Luchador), Rolent, Rose, Ryu, Sagat, Sakura, Sodom, T. Hawk, Vega (Balrog), and Zangief. Other than the plotlines above, Adon went looking for Akuma and never found him; Akuma and Gen fought again, and I'd assume Akuma killed Gen; Balrog and Birdie screw up; Cody does nothing of real note; DeeJay gets a record deal; Sakura becomes Dan's student; Guy saves Rose; Honda and Dhalsim do nothing; Karin beats Sakura; Mika meets Zangief; Rolent and Sodom form an alliance; and Vega saves Cammy after the Doll thingie.

 

Ok, that's the Alpha games ... only a few games left. Final Fight 3, Street Fighter 2, and the Street Fighter Three games. Oh, and the EX games. And maybe the "VS." series. Whatever. I need a break.

 

LUNATIC

- Pimpin' ho's and clockin' a grip like my name was Dolemite.

[Guest El Hijo Del Lunatic]

Ok, the retconning got pretty ugly between SF II and Alpha III, but the only true game that counts is ...

 

9.) Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo, or whatever its equivalent on the Advance is now. Anyway, Capcom decided that Bison's soul escaped death by hiding in Rose's body, and then got extracted into a new Bison body. Kinda lame. Anyhoo, the basic premise is the same throughtout the Street Fighter II series: Bison holds a tournament to settle old scores. And nobody won. whoever was fighting Bison at the end got pushed aside so Akuma could jump in a kill Bison. Sweet.

 

The characters in this game are Ryu, Ken, Chun Li, Guile, Honda, Dhalsim, Blanka, Zangief, Vega, Sagat, Balrog (Mike), Bison, T. Hawk, DeeJay, FeiLong, Cammy, and Akuma. Balrog takes over Shadaloo and destroys it; Blanka meets his mom; Cammy gets told by Bison that she's a clone of him (?); Chun Li probably won the tournament; Guil might've won the tournament, but finds family more important; Ken walks away to be with Eliza; Dhalsim, Dee Jay, Fei Long, Ryu, Sagat, T.Hawk, and Vega do nothing; and Zangief checks out Gorbachev's ass. Seriously.

 

10-11.) Anyway, after that, the Street Fighter 3 games came out, and they've got virtually no backstory whatsoever. The characters in Second Impact are Ryu, Ken, Sean, Yun, Yang, Oro, Alex, Dudley, Elena, Necro, Ibuki, Akuma, Urien, Gill, and Hugo. Nothing of note happened, except that Gill held this tournament that Alex ended up winning. Good for him, he kinda rules. Anyway, Ken and Ryu weren't supposed to be in the game, but everyone cried, so they got stuck into the game and that was it. 3rd Strike added in Twelve, Q, Remy, Makoto, and Chun Li, but again, there wasn't a TON of backstory. Akuma can now move mountains with some new technique; Ryu beats Alex; Chun Li saves a kidnapped girl and starts training kids to be warriors for good; Elena and Dudley do nothing; Gill continues to be lame; Hugo satrts a wrestling promotion; Ken wins the US tournament again; Necro's still on the run; Ibuki is in college; Q, Twelve, and Remy are kinda just there; Oro wishes to train Ryu; Sean loses to Ken; Urien tries to overthrow Gill; Yun and Yang get to run their town.

 

Lots of people don't like Street Fighter 3. It's just such a far cry from the other games in the series that there was a serious backlash against it. It's not a bad game, but it's not SSF2T either. It's just lame, compared to what came before it. Since Capcom seems to put out a new Street Fighter title every five years (1988, 1993, 1998), it'd make sense to create a fourth one for next year. However, with the success of all the "VS." games, and the poor reception that SF3 got, and the popularity of the 3-D fighter, I'd guess that there won't be another official 2-D Street Fighter title.

 

Also, the Street Fighter EX games are not official Street Fighter games - they're just games that Capcom let another company make to see if they could translate their characters to 3-D. There probably won't be another EX game, either, because a few of the characters in the EX games (Allen, I think), have moved on to other games from that company (Arika). Also, the "VS." series of games don't count. If they were to count, then you'd have to believe that the entire Capcom universe is one thing, and merged with the Marvel and SNK universes. They're just fun, popular "what-if" type things. This new Capcom game probably won't count, either.

 

That's enough of that.

 

LUNATIC

- Pimpin' ho's and clockin' a grip like my name was Dolemite.

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

I can still rock on just about anyone with Chun Li in SF2T.

[Guest Prototype450]

Thanks guys. That was informal yet confusing.

I heard about the new SF game from a friend. In the alpha movie Ryu has a brother though.

[Guest razazteca]

I am confused what is cannon? does cannon = Capcom Universe

 

and what about that game on Dreamcast called Cannon Fodder? that features the wrestler Axle and Cammy in it?

 

video game storylines giving me a headache.....

 

does every Capcom fighting game have to be connected somehow?

[Guest Thoth]

Not all Capcom fighting games are related. But ALL SNK fighting games are. Which is scary when you realize how many they made.

[Guest areacode212]

I am confused what is cannon? does cannon = Capcom Universe

 

and what about that game on Dreamcast called Cannon Fodder? that features the wrestler Axle and Cammy in it?

 

video game storylines giving me a headache.....

 

does every Capcom fighting game have to be connected somehow?

canon = considered to be part of the "official" storyline

 

In another context, the Star Trek novels are generally not considered to be canon, while the TV episodes are canon.

 

So this means that Saturday Night Slammasters may or may not be part of the official Street Fighter storyline continuity. Which is kind of cool because this means that it's possible that the badass Big Van Vader clone from that game may someday show up in a SF game (not that I care about SF to begin with, but whatever).

[Guest Renegade]

Not all Capcom fighting games are related.  But ALL SNK fighting games are.  Which is scary when you realize how many they made.

- Fatal Fury

 

- Art of fighting

 

- KoF

 

 

I don't claim to be the biggest SNK buff, but surely Samurai showdown and Ninja masters aren't related to the KoF saga...are they? Are there anymore I'm missing?

[Guest El Hijo Del Lunatic]

Don't quote me, but I think Samurai Shodown *IS* part of the SNK fighting game universe - it just happened so far in the past that it doesn't affect the King of Fighters tournaments and stuff.

 

And, for the record, I don't know why Capcom won't just throw the 40 to 50 fighters they have left over into some sort of final Street Fighter game. Seriously, one last hurrah that'd tie up all kinds of loose ends. They really wouldn't have to do much - they've stuck enough guys from the Street Fighter Universe into "VS." games, I'm sure that half of them are already programmed. Just throw it out there, fix all the storylines, tell us who won the 2nd tournament, and let it be trumpeted as the final Street Fighter game ever. I'm sure that it'll work, but this All-Stars game seems to make me believe that they're going to leave the 2-D stuff, unless they make another SNK game. If they were smart, they could bring back a bunch of old guys (Retsu, Joe, and a couple of the non-lame Final Fight bosses) throw in the dead guys as unlockables, maybe add a few other new fighters (Gouken's daughter, for one), revamp MORRIGAN~!,and then say that's it. They'd make a nice chunk of change, I'd bet, as long as they kept the whacked-out story to a minimum.

 

LUNATIC

- Pimpin' ho's and clockin' a grip like my name was Dolemite.

[Guest razazteca]

Capcom vs SNK could be cannon if and only if you consider it just to be another Tournament in SNK Japan.

[Guest Renegade]

Well it cant follow any of the officical stories as it conflicts with many other, its just one of those "what if" games

[Guest razazteca]

they need a Vs anime to fill in the loose plots

 

SF II V vs Fatal Fury

[Guest Jobber of the Week]

IMO, Street Fighter III should have never happened.

 

Nothing would have made me happier than for my children to tell the same jokes I did back in 94, about how Capcom would never make an actual SF3 but just keep making SFII's name longer and longer

[Guest The Czech Republic]

I used to do that with SFII jokes in 3rd grade, my suggestion was "Super Ultimate Street Fighter II Turbo Gold Master Edition." I even invented new characters: an Australian, a Greenlander, a Moroccan, and a Greek. I wanted to pick interesting locales. Also, Zangief wouldn't be representing the USSR in 1994...why didn't they ever change that to Russia and have him fighting in St. Petersburg or something? Lazy.

[Guest Thoth]

Sam Sho takes place in an era where it wouldn't interfere with KoF or any other stories.