Games

Quietly, without all the hype surrounding the SNES and Mega Drive versions, the PC Engine Championship Edition has entered the street-fighting arena. The hardware may well be six years old, but it can still hack it when it comes to fast gameplay. With a few concessions, primarily in the sound department, PC Engine SFII is pretty much identical to the SNES version. None of the gameplay has been compromised whatsoever – there’s all the same characters and moves (hell, there’s even an extra rock on the floor in Chun-Li’s stage). (Edge Online)

GET READY TO RUMBLE! From across the globe comes eight of the wildest fighters the world has ever known. Choose your champion, gather your courage and prepare to battle your opponents in a bare knuckle brawl. Face Ken and his devastating "Dragon Punch"! Watch the temperature rise as Dhalsim incinerates you with his mystical Yoga Flame! Hear your spine crack as Zangief smashes you to the pavement with his spinning pile driver! Cover your ears as Guile breaks the sound barrier with the awesome power of the Sonic Boom! Annihilate your competition and claim the right to test your skills against the bone-crushing power of the Grand Masters! Can you survive? Can Anyone?

Street Fighter EX3 is the third console installment in the Street Fighter EX series developed by Arika and published by Capcom.

Street Fighter EX Plus Alpha takes the long-standing series into the third dimension with eight original Street Fighter combatants and 12 new fighters making their debut (a total of 23 including hidden characters). Among the veteran staples are Chun-Li, the limb-endowed Dhalsim, Ryu and the all-American Guile; newcomers include an experienced Shadowloo guard named Crackerjack, the enigmatic Skull-o-mania and an amnesia-stricken Kairi. As always, each character features his and her own unique special attacks and combinations. There are seven gameplay options including the Arcade, Team Battle, Survival, Watch, Versus, Time Attack and Practice modes. Although veteran Street Fighter fanatics may feel right at home with the controls, those unfamiliar with the series may want to practice before jumping into the fire. Practice comes with two different modes -- Training and Expert; Training familiarizes you with basic and special attacks and Super Combos whereas the Expert mode features a chart listing all the basic characters. The objective is to execute each fighter's special moves, combos and Super Combos.

Street Fighter EX 2+ is Capcom's second attempt to bring the Street Fighter II series into full, polygonal 3D. Returning characters from the original Street Fighter EX (Ken, Ryu, Guile and Chun Li) are joined by new characters to make up a roster of 20 playable fighters, not including hidden, unlockable characters. Like others in the series, gameplay involves fighting opponent after opponent to determine once and for all who is the strongest fighter in the world. Play options include Arcade, Vs. Mode, Director's Mode, Practice and a Bonus mode. Games and options can be saved using one block of space on the PlayStation memory card.

The original version of Street Fighter EX2 retains all the features from the previous game, Street Fighter EX Plus, including original features such as "Guard Breaks" (unique moves which cannot be blocked by an opponent) and "Super Canceling" (the ability to cancel a Super Combo into another Super Combo). The primary new feature in the game are "Excel Combos", ("excel" being abbreviation for "extra cancel"). Much like the "Custom Combos" featured in the Street Fighter Alpha series, Excel Combos allows player to connect a series of basic and special moves for a limited time. During an Excel Combo, the player begins with a basic move and can follow up with a different basic move or follow-up a basic move with a special move, which can be followed by a different special move. However, the player cannot connect any move with the same move, nor can they cancel special moves into basic moves during an Excel Combo.

The Street Fighter EX fighting system uses fighting systems of the Street Fighter II and Street Fighter Alpha series. In many ways, EX still plays like a 2D fighting game, but the linear plane in which characters fight often changes along a 3D battleground. The game uses special moves and super combos familiar or similar to previous games in the series. Like in Alpha and Darkstalkers, the super combo gauge, used to do Super Combos and other moves, was divided into three levels. The game introduces various new features to enhance the player's combat choices.