Let's Get it on Select to Make Your First Pick. Let's Get it on Now!

After many months of Japanese kids having access to what possibly may be the best fighting game that we've ever gotten for a few years, I finally got my hands on Street Fighter IV. I walked about 10 blocks from the train station to this really small arcade shop that has great fighting games. (To find one that's *hopefully* near your area, check out this link.) Yeah, I know. The things I'll do to satisfy my video game addiction.
There was only one cabinet in the arcade, and when I got there, several guys were playing. So I basically just watched and got a feel of the game. I know there's YouTube, but it pales in comparison to actually being able to see the game in person.

When I decided I'm ready, I popped 50 cents in, and challenged the current winner. I chose Ryu, and I was up against Akuma (curiously enough, he doesn't seem to take deal and take more damage than the rest of the characters, reminiscent of Street Fighter III: Third Strike). Now I understand why the Saving Attacks (or Focus Attacks) are the cornerstone of SFIV's game mechanics: They're as complex as the parrying system of SFIII, but is not as difficult to implement that first-time players will be pummeled by more experienced ones.

A fully charged SA not only will be unblockable, but will also result in awesome ink splatter-style art.

The best part about the Saving Attack (I'll abbreviate it to SA from now on) how it will always help mix up the fight. In one case, I've seen a Ken player throw an SA just as he's about to get up from a foot sweep; in another, Sagat used it to get out of a corner-harassing opponent. (Well, there's also the fact that Sagat's huge he shouldn't have problems dealing with the smaller characters.) In one more occasion, the SA is used to cancel a Shoryuken to an Ultra Combo. (It takes off a portion of your super meter.) In my case, I didn't get to use SA that much, because I continuously have to readjust to having to press the middle two buttons. I'll get to abuse it more in the future I bet.

For anyone harassing you, activate SA immediately after you get up...
Then whack their head. Follow up with a combo.

Now the gameplay. As was originally intended, SFIV plays more like SFII than III, and I definitely noticed that from the get go. Air blocks (or parries) are gone, the pace is slightly slower—though I have to say, for a 3D fighting game it's pretty brisk, and the multiple Super Art selection is gone.

EX Attacks, done by pressing two buttons instead of one in performing special moves, are essential to any game.

Many of the combos and moves that you're accustomed to with the old world warriors are intact, and you shouldn't have difficulty pulling them off with relative ease. As I mentioned before, the SA adds an extra layer of strategy with how you fight, and because it's both an offensive and defensive tactic (the parrying was admittedly more offensive), it's integral that you always factor in how you can throw an SA when you set up combos and plan your attack.

The new fighters Rufus, Abel, etc, are also well integrated in the roster and look interesting enough to warrant your choice. Their move lists share some similarities with established characters, which helps with the familiarization. In fact, in the arcade I went to, more than one player picked Crimson Viper; and I heard that Abel is popular at the Japanese arcades.

Vive le France!

Graphics-wise, I will not complain at all. Sure, the shift from hand-drawn 2D to rendered 3D may have been a bit of a letdown for purists (I'm not one), but Capcom executed the transition so well. The stages are vivid, the characters well-detailed (you can even see the horror in their faces as you're about to unleash a can of whoop-ass i.e. an Ultra Combo), and the ink splatter gives the whole game a very cartoon-y, 2D-ish feel to it.

Shin Shoryuken: D, DF, F, D, DF, F + 2P (must have half-full Revenge Gauge)
Watching Ryu's face before his jaw gets rearranged by a Shin Shoryuken: Priceless.

Sound quality is fantastic. Hours after I've left the arcade, I still keep on replaying "Metsu Hadouuuken" in my mind, savoring at how there's a lingering "whoosh" sound as Ryu builds up ki for his Ultra Combo. The announcer is no less great. I miss the hip-hop announcer in SFIII: Third Strike, but I'm glad that the annoying one in SFA3 is gone. Saying things like "Let's pick up the pace...fight!" and "This is the final round...fight!" fits in the context of SFIV.

So, how did I fare? I kept on losing against this one Korean guy (aren't they supposed to be playing Starcraft instead of SF?), who adds insult to injury by leaving the machine as soon as no one's challenging him anymore. (If I wasn't savoring the game so much, I probably would've done bad stuff to him—I mean, what the fuck? You waste my quarters and walk out?) But I did manage to place a few wins with the other guys—many with last-ditch, well-placed Metsu Hadoukens, and was able to finish the game. So not bad!

You don't want to mess with Ryu when he ain't happy.

Final recommendation: You will miss the extensive collection of Super Arts and parrying that SFIII introduced. I myself wished that Ryu had access to his Denjin Hadouken; and Chun-Li have her Kikoushou, etc. If you're also quite adjusted to the pace and the fast-and-flurry attacks of Third Strike, you'll have to scale back once you get to play SFIV. But despite this, SFIV remains a very polished, very enjoyable, very complex game that rivals the best the series has to offer (SFA3, Third Strike, and SSFII: Turbo). I can't wait for the home version to drop February 2009.

By the way, the thread title is the first two lines from the song that plays in Third Strike's character selection screen.