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VC Monday Madness: Secret of Mana and Street Fighter II Champion Edition
What a week for the Virtual Console, eh? We've got some classic 2D rumblin' and one of the greatest games ever made. Can you guess how I feel about Secret of Mana yet? Well, if you're looking for a clue, hit up the video above, then cruise past the break for more on this week's Virtual Console releases.
XBLA size limit no longer a problem for SF2HD
What a difference a few weeks make. Back in January, designer Dave Sirlin was complaining about how Microsoft's 150MB size limit for XBLA games was making it hard to squeeze everything Capcom wanted into Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix. Now, it turns out, it's not such a problem after all.In a blog post today, Producer Ray Jiminez officially confirmed "the filesize will not be an issue" because of some "great help from the guys at Microsoft." It's not quite clear whether the size limit was waived or whether Microsoft just helped squeeze those files in there, but regardless, Jiminez promises the gameplay experience will be identical in both the Xbox and PS3 versions of the game.The full post also has way more details than you could possibly want about the vagaries of hand-drawn HD art. Check it out if you're into that sort of thing.
The VC Advantage: Down, R, Up, L, Y, B
The internet has made it easy to find cheats for games, but we miss the tips pages from game magazines, when the discovery of a new code could inspire you to go back to an old game. These codes aren't exactly new, but oldness is the essence of the Virtual Console! We're bringing back the classic codes every week on The VC Advantage. Immediately following the release of Street Fighter II for the SNES, my dad was out delivering mail when he saw a blurb on some game magazine's cover about a secret SF2 code. He cracked open the magazine (which was either on a magazine stand in a store he delivered to, or was part of a delivery to a residence -- either way, he didn't buy it and it was slightly rogue of him) and transcribed the code. When he got back to the post office after his route, he called me (which happened quite rarely from work) to tell me of his discovery. Expecting to unlock some aspect of Champion Edition, I found that "DRULYB" unlocked the ability to play as the same character in two-player games. Surprisingly, I didn't mind not being able to play as M. Bison.
Go behind the scenes of Street Fighter animations
Have you ever wondered how an animation is born? ... No, you probably haven't. Don't feel bad, neither had we. But once we saw this interesting look at how Capcom is cleaning up movements for their Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, we felt like we gained a new appreciation for the intricacies of animation.Take, for example, the fact that some characters in Super Street Fighter II had motion blur while characters from Street Fighter II didn't? Isn't that fascinating? Hello? ... OK, so we admit this sort of "inside the sausage factory" stuff isn't for every one. But if you're a fan of the series, you'll want to take a look.
F-Zero X, Street Fighter II Turbo rush onto Virtual Console
Today's Virtual Console releases, scheduled to go live at 9AM PST, are all about pushing the pedal to the metal in our quest to satisfy the need for speed and finally outrun the terrible writing clichés and racing game references pursuing us. Europe's 100th Virtual Console game, F-Zero X, has you hurtling about futuristic tracks at absurd speeds, Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting has you hurting Chun Li even quicker than before and China Warrior has... uh... released much faster than we expected! Yeah, let's go with that. F-Zero X (N64, 1-4 players, 1000 Wii Points): The N64's hover-car racer pushed the series forward in the best way that was possible at the time -- it added a prominent "X" to the title. It wasn't until later that we learned that adding a "GX" was the ultimate masterstroke. Street Fighter II Turbo Edition: Hyper Fighting (SNES, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): With mention of both the words "Turbo" and "Hyper" in the title, it becomes clear that this game is indeed a bit faster than The World Warriors. Enjoy it before those fancy HD characters start punching your eyeballs. China Warrior (TurboGrafx-16, 1 player, 600 Wii Points): A side-scrolling action game depicting either gaming's most fragile hero ever, or just some tough guy in China.
Street Fighters mop and drive taxis, in the later years
CollegeHumor is hosting a short film, with surprisingly high production values, detailing the whereabouts of two of Street Fighter II's eight World Warriors: Zangief and Dhalsim. We wonder if their sorry state is proportional to their lasting popularity in the game; like ancient gods who thrive on belief, do these has-been street fighters have a need for success? We can't imagine pretty boys like Ken or Ryu mopping floors or driving a cab ... maybe E. Honda.Part one (of what appears to be an ongoing series) is embedded after the break. We'll keep our eyes peeled for future installments.[Via GayGamer.net]
More XBLA lovin', Time Pilot, Lumines!
For those of you who missed it on Joystiq, the Official Xbox Magazine (UK) revealed the next batch of games for Xbox Live Arcade Wednesdays. The list reads thusly: Aug. 16: Texas Hold 'em Aug. 23: Time Pilot Aug. 30: Scramble Sept 6: Lumines Live! Hmm...two (arguably) obscure retro arcade titles sandwiched by Texas Hold 'em and Lumines Live! Not bad at all. While few will doubt the appeal of card games or the wonderfully addictive Lumines, one must wonder how well Time Pilot and Scramble will do. Any fans of these retro classics out there?Bonus points for anyone that can point out the connection between Konami's Time Pilot and Capcom's XBLA smash hit, Street Fighter II.[Via Joystiq]
SFII is the fastest sellng XBLA game ever
Timeout problems, E. Honda spammers, impossible d-pads, lag, all of these things combined could do nothing to stop the momentum of the Live Arcade juggernaut known as Street Fighter II. Within the first 24 hours of its release, SFII became the fastest selling Arcade title ever. Behold:"Capcom® today [Aug 4th] announced that Street Fighter® II' Hyper Fighting, the company's first title for Xbox Live® Arcade for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, has seen a phenomenal record of downloads since it's debut on August 2. Within the first 24 hours of it's unveiling, Street Fighter II' Hyper Fighting has become the fastest selling Xbox Live Arcade title to date with hundreds of matches being played every hour."Great news for Capcom sure, but it also means that we can pretty much kiss five dollar XBLA games goodbye. 360 Fanboy would love to complain, but then we'd have to stop playing. (And by the way, since you've all gotten your Street Fighter fix, give Cloning Clyde a try.)
SF2 enthusiasm starting to lag
While the overall reaction to Street Fighter 2 for Xbox Live Arcade has been positive (based on comments on this site and the average 77 score at Metacritic), there are unhappy with the game's perceived lagginess in both single player and online play. There's also alot of hostility being directed the 360 controller, which went from "best ever" to d-pad deficient over night. Hater response is typified by Tony from the VGM Daily podcast, a self-proclaimed Street Fighter fanatic, who gave the game a none out of five and proclaimed it an abject failure. Only later in his rant do we learn that he's been getting his ass kicked on Live. But even if you chalk up some of the negativity to bitterness and thumb rust, it's clear that Capcom failed to satisfy their hardcore fans, despite numerous delays. It's just that I can't blame the beat downs I suffered on lag.Does this mean that future retro ports will have to be coded from the ground up if we want superior online performace? Maybe developers should quit jerry-rigging old classics, and focus on building new homages that capture that old school flavor with modern convenience.
