Massive Lazygamer Preview: Super Street Fighter IV (Plus Advanced Info)

The More Advanced Stuff

If you, like me, are an addict and understand the depth to the fighting system in Street Fighter, then this is the part for you. I will be using some jargon as well as shortened names, but if you are interested and want to get more involved, leave a comment and I will explain further.

What changes have been made, what sort of balance tweaks have been implemented and how do the new characters stack up?

To begin with, let’s look at some of the changes that have been made to the stronger ‘top-tier’ characters.

While we don’t have any proper frame data from Super Street Fighter IV yet, some players are reporting that focus attacks seem quicker, as well as certain characters walk speeds being changed (I seem to think that Guile walks quicker).

Some slight changes have been made to certain characters to try and better the balance of the game overall, although some might not be as big as you may have thought. I’ll go through a few of the more interesting or important ones.

SFIV Characters

You will obviously be facing some Ryu and Sagat players at some point in the near future, so I want to take a quick look at some changes that have been made to them.

Ryu’s fierce Shoryuken (Dragon Punch or DP) now connects with two hits instead of one. Those of you familiar with Ryu’s fantastic DP > FADC > Ultra can rest easy in the knowledge that the combo is still completely functional. The only difference is that because the damage is spanned over two hits instead of one, you will only hit with the first before the FADC cancels the move, which means less damage overall. This combo is still really effective though, so the nerf is only slight.

Ryu’s second Shoryuken Ultra Combo is very similar to Gouken’s, but is not very effective to link to and will mean that almost all Ryu players will be sticking to the Metsu Hadoken Ultra instead.

Many people have also complained that Sagat is too powerful, which have led Capcom to eventually give in and nerf him. The nerf however, is very slight.

Sagat’s health has been dropped 100 points and the damage on his fierce DP has also been reduced slightly (with a new power up move that increases the next DP’s hit damage – I don’t see this being very effective in a real match), but don’t think that he is going to be that much easier to take on than before. As a side note, you are probably going to want to stick to his original Ultra combo as well even though the new one still links to his DP > FADC > Roundhouse > Ultra.

Other additions/changes in the game that deserve a mention:

• Akuma’s Raging Demon Ultra seems to have a lot less damage.
• Akuma’s New Ultra is linkable from teleport (even after a normal)
• Zangief has been nerfed quite a lot ( lariats, jump-ins, health, everything?)
• Gen as you know him is dead. Jumps higher, no more kick to hands combo (unless EX), can now link to specials through normals more.
• Guile has not been fixed, new ultra is useless
• Gouken’s Metsu Hadoken does 500 stun even if blocked. Can be charged and released.
• Rufus’ EX Snake Strike damage has been toned down
• Balrog’s (Boxer) new command throw ultra is not as effective as his Ultra 1, but does 800 stun if executed.
• Cammy and Fei-Long now have counter-Ultras, they are terrible.
• Abel’s new Ultra is scary good. Can be charged and released. Has Super Armour.
• Viper’s new ultra is much better, and still linkable
• Seth is stronger overall, new ultra is linkable and great anti-air
• Sakura’s Metsu Hadoken Ultra can be shot straight or upwards
• Vega’s original Ultra will now connect on the way up (like an EX wall dive)
• I will answer any other questions in the comments

New Characters

The new characters included into SSFIV are definitely going to change things up quite a bit. A lot of the new characters will usher in a newer, faster paced era for Street Fighter IV. The game itself is not faster, some of the new additions possess move sets that allow for a much faster style of play. Think Viper, without the need for such precise execution.

So we have 10 new characters to tinker with, but which ones are noteworthy additions?

The characters that you should look out for in SSFIV begin with Dudley. Dudley is seriously dangerous, he is powerful, has many options, a linkable ultra, great target combos and can stick to you like white on rice with ‘invincibility’ dashes that don’t even require EX.

You will also want to keep your eye on Cody. He has a ton of great moves available for any situation, has very decent health and damage and can also link both his Ultra combos. Some of the other characters seem like they have potential, such as Juri, Ibuki and T-Hawk but time will have to tell on this one.

As much as I actually love playing with Makoto, Hakan and Deejay it will take a very skilled player with great execution and a solid knowledge of basic styles to fully exploit their strengths ( Add Guy to this list, although I have spent the least amount of time with him).

I will pretty much straight out say that Adon was the biggest disappointment, while his style will possibly appeal to casuals and newcomers, I think that he is pretty much completely useless on a competitive level. He has very few links and his moves just don’t feel effective, so those of you who were interested in “maining” him should probably already start looking elsewhere.

Got A Question? Leave A Comment.

Super Street Fighter IV is a big game with a ton of characters and changes and it would be almost impossible to include everything. If you have any specific questions that need answering, leave a comment and I will do my best to answer them.

Last Updated: April 12, 2010