Street Fighter 6 Review – Versus Fighting at its Peak!

Nostalgia can hit us hard; that’s a fact. And Street Fighter 6 has hit the scene, so it’s changing the fighting game field! Now, this game was long due, and most people who enjoy some casual whooping waited enough.

If you’ve spent countless hours perfecting those Hadouken and sonic booms, consider this your ticket to a nostalgia-packed trip.

Street Fighter 6 is a game for everyone. No matter if you’re a button-mashing newbie or a combo-crunching pro, this title wants you on board. So, without further ado, let’s get down to business and see what this game is all about.

Street Fighter Legacy – Packing a Punch

Let’s take a trip down Street Fighter memory lane, where it all began in 1987 with the OG ‘Street Fighter.’ It might not have been the flashiest, but it laid the groundwork for what was about to hit gaming. Then the “Street Fighter II” appeared, and it was a game-changer. This gem not only rocked our socks off with awesome gameplay but also introduced characters with killer fighting styles, making it an instant classic.

ButCapcom didn’t stop there – they kept throwing surprises with each update. “Super Street Fighter II Turbo” brought us crazy “Super Combos” and the mysterious Akuma. The Alpha series stepped up the game with “Street Fighter Alpha 3,” giving us three fighting styles and a cool cartoony look that many spent hours playing during their teenage years.

Later on, the release of Street Fighter III had a bit of a not-so-good start. Fans were scratching their heads at the almost all-new character lineup, and the game’s distribution was a bit off-putting. But hold up, once you got the hang of its mechanics, especially the parry system in ‘3rd Strike,’ it became one of the trickiest yet most skill-packed games in the series. Even after all these years, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike is still organizing tournaments.

And let’s not forget that epic showdown between Justin Wong and Daigo ‘The Beast’ – a memorable thing in Street Fighter history that proves this game isn’t just about button-mashing; it’s about serious skill and heart-pounding intensity.

Street Fighter IV, V, and VI

Fast forward nine years after the Street Fighter III fiasco, and we get Street Fighter IV. This was a true comeback for both Street Fighter and the entire fighting game genre. Street Fighter IV was like a reboot with a modern touch. They mixed 3D characters with a 2D battlefield, making it look slick. Then, they threw in something called the Focus Attack, which made people create unique strategies. The final version, “Ultra Street Fighter IV,” added more characters and cool stuff like Red Focus and Double Ultra moves, making the gameplay even more intense.

Street Fighter V had us scratching our heads at first – not enough content, Capcom! Especially that forever-wait for the story mode. But guess what? The Arcade Edition came in, giving us what we wanted with new modes and an extra V trigger for characters. The Champion Edition took it up a notch, adding a bunch more stuff and new V skills. Capcom heard us, and now Street Fighter V is a heavyweight in the genre.

Now, the Street Fighter 6. Think of it like the perfect mix of a fancy drink, enjoyed both by the hardcore versus gaming champs and the newbies. So, let’s find out more about this game.

The World Tour Mode – Street Fighter 6 RPG

Street Fighter 6’s World Tour mode is a special kind of storyline players can enjoy. In this mode, you create your own avatar and explore the streets of Metro City, where quests, challenges, and street battles await. This is something like an RPG, only you’re not roaming around the map, challenging bosses. Here, you have a straight storyline that you need to follow.

So, the story starts with you, Luke’s apprentice, who needs to meet cool characters like Chun-li, Jamie, Ken, Ryu, and more. They become your mentors, helping you learn special moves like Hadouken or Chun-li’s spinning kick.

Then, you go around Metro City, where you’ll find NPCs with quests or street fighters to challenge. When a fight begins, the open-world mode steps back, and the 2D battle map takes over. Quests are well-told, keeping you hooked until the final showdown with JP. While it’s not as epic as Final Fantasy 16, the World Tour mode is a great training ground for new players.

And for the fun part – your opponents might wear cardboard boxes or even fridges on their heads. Despite that, the World Tour mode is a surprising and fun single-player adventure, taking about 15 hours for the main quest and 25 hours for all side quests.

Fighting Ground Mode: What’s New?

Now for the fun part, the Fighting Ground Mode. This mode is specially designed to bring back the classic arcade vibes, featuring an arcade mode with character stories, Training mode, Extreme Battle mode, and online battles. The more, the better!

Now, in the ‘Extreme Battles’ mode, things get spicy with raging bulls disrupting fights or unique rules like winning by performing specific actions or scoring points. It’s a twist that adds unpredictability to single-player battles, making them more intense. This way, you can win/lose against someone who’s completely out of your league.

Capcom learned from Street Fighter 5’s mistakes and gave us a full arcade mode right from the get-go; that’s a good move! This mode allows you to enjoy the fights but also learn more about the characters in the roster. You’ll learn the lore and what characters love and hate, and based on that, you’ll know more about them.

Speaking of characters, the starting lineup for Street Fighter 6 is a mix of classics like Ryu, Ken, and Cammy, plus newcomers JP, Jamie, Manon, Marisa, Kimberly, and Lilly. While some iconic characters might be missing at launch there’s still a solid crew to enjoy. We surely hope the Capcom will include all the characters from the past.

Controls at Street Fighter 6 – Good or Bad?

One thing that people find confusing in Street Fighter 6 is the controls. Namely, there was some debate about its new control options. To bring this subject closer, here’s the lowdown on the Modern and Classic Controls:

Modern Controls Mode:

• For Who? Novice gamers or those looking for an easier way to execute combos and special moves.
• Default Setting? Yes, it’s activated when you start the game.
• What’s Different? Simplified controls for light, medium, and heavy attacks – no more punching and kicking distinctions. Special Moves are just a button press away. The ‘Assist’ key lets the AI handle the best action for the situation.
• Pros: Great for new players, making things more accessible.
• Cons: Slightly less damage on hits, and some special moves are off-limits.

Classic Controls Mode:

• For Who? Long-time Street Fighter players who love the traditional setup.
• Default Setting? Nope, you need to switch to it if you’re a classic controls enthusiast.
• What’s Different? Back to the roots with 3 Punch buttons, 3 Feet buttons, and no assist button. Offers a deeper play experience and access to all special moves and combos.
• Pros: Full control for experienced players who want the classic feel.
• Cons: It might be a bit overwhelming for newcomers.

However, Capcom’s approach to Street Fighter 6 is clear: they aim to broaden the game’s audience without compromising the challenge for classic controls enthusiasts. The result of this strategy is commendable, as the game offers options for everyone. The controls in Street Fighter 6 provide a choose-your-own-adventure setup.

Gameplay: How Good is Street Fighter 6?

For those wondering how good is Street Fighter 6, the gameplay would answer your question. Simply put, Capcom made sure to put extra effort into gameplay. They realized that everything else would be blown to bits if the gameplay sucks. So, in terms of mechanics, this version has raised the bar significantly for fighting games.

But, at the beginning, people were worried about Drive Impacts, thinking the game might be too easy for button-mashing newbies. But, surprise! The game is way more complicated than it seems. Street Fighter 6 needs you always to adapt and change your strategies. Each character has loads of different abilities, so you’ve got to understand each fighter well to stand a chance. If you spend time learning the little details about each character, the game gives you big rewards.

So, if you truly want to learn how to defeat one character, play with it and learn its strengths and weaknesses, as that’s the only way to go.

Besides that, let’s learn more about the mechanics:

Drive Gauge System

The Drive Gauge System adds tactical complexity to the game. It requires players to balance between offense and defense, using a 6-box Drive Gauge Meter below the life bar. This meter shows moves like Drive Impact, Parry, Overdrive, Drive Rush, and Drive Reversal. Managing this is crucial in case you want to win. So, if this bar is depleted, you enter burnout, but rendering these moves again is possible; you just need to pack a couple of kicks.