When I found this at my local Wal-Mart I decided to pick it up, I played
Street Fighter 2 a bit when I was a young adolescent and I was anxious to get back into this classic. I also picked up and enjoy Capcom s other major collection the
Mega Man Anniversary Collection. So does Ryu and Ken stand up to the offerings the blue bomber provided, well the answer is no but the street fighter collection is a solid fighting game.
Ok there are 2 games in this collection one of them is HYPER Street Fighter 2 the anniversary edition (try saying that 5 times fast) and the other is Street Fighter 3 third strike. While there is only 2 games the Hyper Street Fighter 2 has all the versions of Street Fighter there are.
Hyper Street Fighter 2 the anniversary collection. Ok so how many versions of Street Fighter 2 are there. Well there was the original Street fighter 2, which only had 8 fighters and a lot of slow down, Champion which let you choose from the 4 bosses that where in the original, Turbo version which fixed few of the graphics problem and let you choose faster speeds, Street Fighter the new challenger added 4 completely new characters in the game. Then finally there was a version no one has ever heard of which was if you buy another version of Street Fighter 2 Capcom will gladly pay the bill do have you committed version, ok that one didn t exists but needless to say there was a lot of Street Fighter 2 games out.
Story.
Ok not much on story in either game but the basics go like this your character is in a street fighter tournament and the main purpose is to beat the crap out of the character your pitted against. The last guy is always a character named M. Bison (even if your playing has M.Bison.)
Graphics.
Ok the graphics have been much improved since the days of the Super Nintendo. While the character models themselves still stay the same the way they move is a lot cleaner and smoother then it was during the 16 bit days. The backgrounds themselves are more animated and beautiful to look at. With one exception and that is M.Bisions stage and I notice they took something out of the graphics, when you break one of the statues on the side of the stages a guy is supposed to stand up and start wailing his arms like he s causing you out that has been taken out.
Sound.
If you like the music of Street Fighter 2 then your going to like this version has the music itself is strictly unhampered around with. The music in Street Fighter 2 hasn t been fooled around with so there s no complaints hear. They also fixed some of the sound effect and voice problems the original one. Ryu now sounds more like he saying Hydouken, then heatemucas.
Gameplay.
While the core use special moves and beat the crap out of your opponent stays true in this version there are a few options hear that allow you to change the way you play. There are modes each one representing a street fighter 2 game. You pick a mode and then only the fighters and the moves they posed in that version of the game are allowed. In the original only 8 characters are allowed and there special moves can be done. In champion mode you get to choose the 4 extra boss characters. In turbo mode they all done there different costumes including Ryu dark blue, and Ken s bright purple robe. In Super you get to choose from all the characters, and in Super turbo you get to use Super art moves.
This Super Turbo I think might be new because all the versions I have played didn t let you use super arts like a lot of the more modern Street Fighter games do. You build a bar on the bottom of the screen and when it get s full you can do a super move that s more powerful then a special move. Unlike other Street Fighter games there is only one Super Art per character and the bar can be rather pesky to fill, often times the fight will have ended before the super arts bar has been filled. It s a nice addition though.
There are problems with the different modes though and that is the newer modes like Super and Super Turbo modes are a lot better then the old modes, so much the computer chooses those by default no matter what mode you choose from. Would you rather have a Ryu who only knows one type of Hydouken and has no super arts move, or would you rather have a Ryu who knows the fire hydouken and has a super arts move. The different modes only really come to play in either 2 player games or if you want to challenge yourself. The only exception of the Super T is of course E.Honda who in champion version can be a realy chap SOB and pin anybody down with his hundred hand slap.
Gallery mode.
A new mode is called Gallery mode but don t expect much hear. Other then Street fighter opening screens, and all there opening screens are just a variation on 2 different scenes (either 2 people beating the heck out of each other or Ryu firing his Hydouken) . There is also some back ground music that you can choose from. Also Crap Fighter 2 the animated movie can be started from hear, and god is it awful. Trust me your better off spending your time beating the crap out of your friends in the main game then making them endure this crappy movie.
Street Fighter 3 the 3rd Strike Ok I only played Street Fighter 3 once in an arcade long time ago before picking up this game. It s was a good game but I didn t think that it was all that great compared to the Street Fighter alphas and Capcom VS games that had come out by then. But Street Fighter 3 the third strike does prove itself has an unique fighter, even if it uses the same Street Fighter engine.
Story.
No story information is given in either the instruction booklet or the starting screen so I don t know much about the story. Only that Ryu, Ken, and Chunli are the only fighter that appear in both games. And that in the end you have to kick the crap out of some red and blue guy wearing a g-string.
Graphics
The graphics are needless to say better since this one was made in 1999, the sprites are larger and look like there hand drawn animated. This is what a 2d fighter should look like and it looks great, a lot of good effects are done hear and the whole it looks great.
Sound.
The sound is of course is great and this one actually uses really voice actors rather then sound effects so every character has a different voice and the moves are even more easier to understand.
Gameplay.
While the basic kick the heck out of the opponent is still in effect, the gameplay is a bit different. Each character now has a lot more moves in which they can use. Also each character has 3 super arts but your force to chose one and only one at a beginning of a match. There is also are new moves called parry by pushing the right direction at the control pad at the exact moment of an attack your character will parry an attack and suffer no damage. Unlike blocks which still give you a small amount of damage parry techniques give you completely no damage. The game is also a whole lot more difficult then Street Fighter 2.
Extras.
Ok no complication pack of classic games is ever perfect, we old school gamers can be a picky bunch. Even ones that are done right like Mega Man anniversary collection have things that people wish that where included in the game. Street Fighter Anniversary is more so.
The main extra comes with a full length animated feature called
Street Figther the animated movie on the link to read my review of the movie and it s rated PG-13, or what I rate it PC has in pure crap.
Other then that aren t many other extra features in the games sure there is a gallery mode but other then background music and the two openings there aren t much there. I would have killed off that movie for the original Street Fighter game, a featured or two about the games or something like that, and few character sketches. The extra in the pack suck.
Final Recommendation.
Get Street Fighter anniversary collection for the two great games on it and the ability to tweak Street Fighter 2. But don t get it if your expecting a lot of extra special features in this pack because there aren t any.
