Welcome back to “A Look Back with Oscar,” the column where we take a dive into classic video games of the past to see if they still hold up today or if they should be forgotten.
Since this is episode two, what better way to start with the second installment of Capcom’s greatest franchise “Street Fighter”?
Lets take a dive into the game’s history, after the first “Street Fighter” Capcom began experimenting with the franchise, taking it from a fighting game to a “beat-em-up” style game.
After “Final Fight” succeeded expectation, Capcom began experimenting with the franchise before returning to the fighting game genre for the next Street Fighter game.
The plot of the game was pretty good for 1991 as the Criminal Organization Shadaloo led by M. Bison is hosting a World Warrior Tournament with some of the world’s greatest fighters participating for their own means.
Some enter to get stronger or gain wealth but others enter to take on Bison and end his Criminal Empire.
“Street Fighter 2” has multiple versions, eight of them, with each one adding in multiple changes and additions that been with the franchise to this day.
The second version, Championship Edition, adds all four boss characters.
“Street Fighter 2 Turbo: Hyper Fighting” makes the game faster and tweaks the game balance.
“Super Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers” adds four more characters into the roster while adding new moves for other characters but slows down the speed of the game.
“Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo” is what everyone considers the definitive version of the game. It cranks the speed up, gives everyone a super meter and adds a secret character Akuma, the true final boss of the game.
Other versions including “Hyper Street Fighter 2”, “Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix” and “Ultra Street Fighter 2: The final Challengers” adds updated visuals, remixed soundtrack and for the latest version two more characters.
The game play is 1 vs 1 where one player has to take down the opponent’s health bar using different combos and button motions for moves.
Beat the opponent two times and win the match.
“Street Fighter 2” is the reason fighting games got more popular throughout the years and to this day is one of the most-viewed fighting games in tournaments like EVO.
There are a few problems with the game, though.
For someone who doesn’t play Street Fighter, it may be difficult to do the button motions for moves but there are some characters that are easy to use for beginners like Ryu and Ken.
Another problem is the different versions of the game, but many just pick the version that best suits the player and then move on to the other ones if they crave more of a challenge.
This is a game where it can be easy for beginners but difficult to master and harder to do different combos.
Regardless of these difficulties, “Street Fighter 2” is one of the best fighting games in the market where anyone can try out and play.
For those who are having a difficult time picking which one to play, the recommended versions that anyone should play are “Super Street Fighter 2: The New Challengers,” “Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo” and “Ultra Street Fighter 2: The Final Challengers.”
The first two are available in the “Street Fighter Anniversary Collection” and the third is available only on Nintendo Switch.
I give “Street Fighter 2” a 4.5/5 Stars, a classic fighting game that will be played for years to come.
Click here for a full visual display about the game’s history.
