Perfect for fans, stunted for beginners
Even with a love of games and willingness to try out anything in hopes that it's good, I will admit that there is certain genres I just plainly suck at. The primary 2 are RTS (real-time strategy) and fighting games and unlike say, first person shooters which tend to rely on communication and teamwork, it's you and you alone and that makes it hard to get into these genres. So when I was playing Super Street Fighter IV and actually found myself losing several times against the AI....on Easy even, it confirms that, yep, I've got a long way to go. However the biggest failing I see with this game is what I'm looking for out of it: to go from mediocre-but-capable fighter to solid and strong. There's no doubt that Super Street Fighter IV is a great game but it feels like one I can only half glimpse for the time being.
There's not so much a "story" mode here as a loosely set up scenario for characters to play in, that being something involving the "S.I.N. Corporation", a character named Seth and something called the "BLECE project". However unlike the text heavy Blazblue or the fully-cinematic Mortal Kombat, SSFIV is strictly the formula of intro cinematic-bunch of fights-a "fight your rival" battle and your final boss, Seth. You do have a gigantic list of characters though and unlike the original version, they're all able to be selected from the get go.
The game is somewhat light on modes but the longevity of it makes up for it. It's got the classic arcade mode, versus mode and a training mode so you can practice combos and set-ups but the thing I would've preferred more than anything is a more fully fleshed out challenge mode. It starts off simple: do this character's special move and move on but then it starts getting into cancelling moves, linking combos and doing strings of attacks but it doesn't do a great job at explaining how to do any of it. Sure a longtime fighter will be like "this is how" but for someone who hadn't touched a fighter in, literally, years, even instruction booklets can only go so far. On top of that, timing and precision tend to be key so while a combo may require a "standing low punch, crouching low kick, standing high punch and special move", figuring out why you're standing high punch isn't coming out can be maddening.
New to Super Street Fighter IV is several new characters from past games and entirely brand new such as Juri and Hakan while older favorites such as Dudley, Adon, Cammy and Fei Long return. And like a good fighting game should be, every character tends to be very distinct in how they operate but one can see the downside if one thinks tournament level. So while it may be fun to play as an Ibuki or Sakura, very rarely have I seen one in finals and even online it can make for some uneven matchups. But do got to admire the diversity of the roster which can have some people latching onto one and making them work.
One thing I'll mention though is be prepared for a tad frustration in regards to your controller since it can be very frustrating to have wrong moves come out or the right move to come out at the worst time and even with the superior d-pad of the PS3, I've lost many a fight simply because the controller decided I wanted to do a special move and not the ultra. While it is doable on traditional d-pads, that irritation will be cut down if you have something more responsive.
Unlike some games where you can recognize that it is a top game despite no interest in the genre, fighting games and Super Street Fighter IV in particular are something I'd really love to get better at. Seeing new people deciding to pick it up and do successfully in tournaments and matches can inspire one to really practice like crazy however SSFIV's near "for veterans only" sign at the front means that I can recognize it as a good game but not one I can really sink my teeth into over time.
