Gaming & Culture —

Arcade guru helps Capcom tweak Super Street Fighter

In a recent post on Capcom's blog, arcade veteran David Sirlin recounts his …

We've been keeping a very close eye on Capcom's HD-infused Super Street Fighter II remake since it was first announced, but the latest update on the downloadable title is somewhat of a surprise.  In a recent post on Capcom's "Unity" blog, world-renowned Street Fighter tournament player David Sirlin has posted a long description of what the company has done to tweak the controls of Super Street Fighter II for the HD Remix in order to make the game more responsive and more accessible. 

Sirlin's long post details the company's decision to revamp the control system.  The design goals behind this decision are fairly straightforward: Capcom wants the game to be "easier to play—more inclusive rather than exclusive" and "more balanced for tournament play." 

The changes include some reduction in the strictness of the necessary motions for certain moves: for example, Sirlin explains that "[Zangief's] Spinning Pile Drives can now be done by half-circle forward, then back + punch or half circle back, then forward + punch.  There is a lot of leeway on these commands so that they can still be done from defensive crouch, and the old 360 commands still work too."  In addition, the window for certain moves to take place has been increased or made constant. 

Control changes have been made in the past to other remakes of the Street Fighter series.  Street Fighter Alpha Anthology on the PlayStation Portable, for example, had an "easy control mode" option. 

While the original mission objective behind the title appeared to be "leave everything as is and just update the graphics," changing the controls is something few would have expected. 

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