Mark: Street Fighter: The Anniversary collection rocks. It is close to being the best video game that has come out during this half of the year.It is Capcom's gift to the fighter fan. Not only does it come with every DVD version of Street Fighter 2, it comes with Street Fighter III and the Street Fighter anime. What more could one ask at a price tag of $30? For those who have been absent from the video game scene, and have never heard of Street Fighter, I have one question - where have you been the last 15 years? Street Fighter has been a large part of video game culture, one of Capcom's pride and joys. The premise is simple - a tournament is being held to attract the strongest fighters around the world. Gameplay is just as simple with three kicks and three punches each of varying strengths. Blocking an attack is as simple as holding back on the controller. But it has been that simple premise that spawned countless sequels and imitations.Mastering a character can take weeks, as each character has unique strengths, weaknesses and attack patterns that can be explored and exploited in a variety of different games. Street Fighter III included a parrying system, which added increased depth to the game.Replay value lies solely on the gamer. The lone gamer may find the game somewhat short, as unlockables are hard to find and mastering a character doesn't have the same flavor when the only thing witnessing the fighter's skills is the in game opponent. The social gamer will find this game has almost unlimited re-playability, with matches that can last for almost 10 minutes with two gamers are of equal caliber. In an age where 3-D pretty graphics are almost required for a game, it would be easy to overlook this gem. Don't make that mistake. At a price tag of almost half your average game, as well as three different features being included in the game, this should be a welcome addition to any gamer's library.
Trevor: The only fighting game that has made it into my gaming library is the Nintendo Gamecube's Super Smash Brothers Melee. The fighter genre has been a longtime staple on consoles and in arcades everywhere for years and years. A game with history, the Street Fighter franchise has been a long-time contender in the battle for fighting game supremacy. The only other title that comes to mind with a comparable amount of history and following is the dreaded Mortal Kombat chain of games (which has also spawned numerous sequels, both successful hits and disappointing fluffs).As far as gameplay goes, mastering the many combo moves and special attacks is the name of this game.Button mashing will only get you so far in battle, so strategy and tactics are the only way to win. Like Mark mentioned above, it would be easy to bypass this old school title for the flashy new graphics boasted by games like Soul Calibur 2I wanted to give the Street Fighter game a fair fight in this review, but given that each gamer's tastes may vary, I must admit that I personally would hold no interest in buying this particular title. However, if you are a hard core fighter who holds classic games in high esteem, there should be nothing keeping you from investing in this solid title that has proven its worth over the span of 15 years.
