STACK #136 Feb 2016

GAMES FEATURE

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You need to understand your opponent’s style in order to truly be a master

is generally a considerable roster of characters to learn – and eventually master. When it comes to deciding which to roll with, Ono-san advises against pigeonholing your roster. “Personally I would encourage people to diversify," he offers. “In any martial art where you face off against an opponent, you can’t win just by your own actions. You need to understand your opponent’s style in order to truly be a master." Although the SFV roster is down to 16 characters on release, as opposed to Ultra Street Fighter IV ’s whopping 44, there will be an additional six fighters added post- launch, so there’s always somewhere to improve. Ono-san confirms there’s no need for ‘real money’ to get your hands on the new characters: “As previously announced, you will be able to earn Fight Money and use it to unlock these characters for free without spending any real-world currency”.

been officially sanctioned by Capcom, I’m sure you’ll agree it has that feeling of being an official quality production," says Ono-san. “When I read the script, I thought to myself, wow, this is good enough to make official. The story and background of Street Fighter is something that I think each player is invested in and thinks about in different ways, so I’d like for each player to interpret each character in whatever way they feel." It is this innate story continuity that has led to the high return rate of its playerbase, as well as the dedication fans have to the series; lore is just as important as gameplay to some. Almost three decades on, Capcom’s beloved franchise doesn’t look to be slowing any time soon. Ono-san recognises the impact it has had on the video game community, and acknowledges its "great history of providing a tool for old and young alike to compete against each other”. And we can certainly look forward to further Street Fighter titles in the years to come. “I’d like to see the brand continue to expand and attract players from around the world of all ages," hopes Ono-san, "who can play together, be they parent and child, college students playing as if it were their home sports team, [or] casual players treating it like kicking a soccer ball around on a Sunday in the park”.

With so much competition in this genre's marketplace, Street Fighter relies on humour to differentiate itself from the competition, as well as its continued reformatting, according to Ono-San. “Most game series have each main title build on the existing gameplay of the previous one, but Street Fighter has a new system per title, and that means that we are also in the unusual position of having a separate community for each of our major titles." In addition to the game's release in February, an accompanying live-action miniseries will also be aired. “ Assassin’s Fist was made by some great creators who love Street Fighter, and as it’s

Five Brutal Martial Arts

GAMES

1. Ninjutsu – From the shadowy men in black pyjamas, Ninjitsu disciples are schooled in espionage, stealth, guerrilla warfare and unconventional combat practices that include both armed and unarmed fighting techniques. 2. Lerdrit – Taught to the Royal Thai Army, Lerdrit harnesses all the brutal aspects of Muay Thai into one uncompromising, unarmed fighting technique. It utilises open hand strikes, knees, powerful kicks and grapples. 3. ValeTudo – With its origins in Brazil, the English translation means anything goes. Well, that kind of sums it up perfectly really. An unarmed method of fighting, Vale Tudo draws influences from many different martial arts.

4. Systema – The Germans called their Russian opponents ‘super soldiers’ during WWII, and it’s hardly surprising if they were practising this. Systema focuses on the weak points of the anatomy with an emphasis on both single and multiple opponents.

5. Krav Maga – This Israeli self-defence technique was designed to be used on the streets and really isn’t for the faint-hearted. There are no rules, just survival; hit the vulnerable parts of the human body and keep on hitting them, until you can either escape or kill your opponent.

FEBRUARY 2016

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