I’ve been procrastinating on this quite a bit. For one, as ‘small’ as Super Street Fighter IV is in terms of gameplay functions (being a 2D fighter as opposed to a MMORPG, for example), the way it plays out in the context of over 600 fighter combinations, turn any attempt to cast a fair judgement into a gargantuan effort. Secondly, it’s worth noting that I am not equipped with what one might define as competition-worthy skills and as such, am not entirely the kind of person that can evaluate the game’s balancing and competitive play online. I can and do, however, appreciate the interplay of the range of mechanics and like to experience it against AI that I stand half a chance of overcoming. So it is on these terms that I shall attempt to assess SSFIV.

For the purposes of this review you should know that prior to Street Fighter IV, my knowledge of the franchise was limited to an awareness of characters that liked to engage in ‘fights’ in places that could be referred to as ‘Street’ locales. But after having spent quite a bit of time in the past year playing with the roster on offer in SFIV, I was pleased to see the additions to the ‘Super’ version of last year’s game include peeps from the series’ previous iterations as well as add completely new characters. So it is with open arms that I welcome SSFIV which brings with it a few new modes, a total of 10 new fighters and countless new opportunities to be beaten into a snivelling pathetic lump by those stalwart, duplicate choices of online fighters, Ryu and Ken.

In deciding who to bring ‘back’ for SSFIV, Capcom spread their choices across quite a few of their past titles – T.Hawk and Deejay from SFII (long rumoured as SFIV DLC); Adon from Street Fighter; Dudley, Ibuki and Makoto from SFIII; and even Cody and Guy from Final Fight. New faces on the roster this time around are Juri, a South Korean Taekwondo fighter; and Hakan, a Turkish Oil Wrestler. In terms of modes, in offline play the game plays host to the return of the car and barrel bonus stages from previous games that break up the arcade mode fights. On the online side, SSFIV adds Team Battles, a Replay Channel and the Endless Battle mode (described in detail later on).

But the big question here is how does it all play out, particularly in comparison to SFIV? The answer is pretty damn well; I’d even be tempted to say it plays out a darn sight better and then some. The ‘new’ characters are interesting and offer a varying set of tactics and fighting styles– ranging from the accessible quarter-circle combos used by Juri to the complex tiered attack structure employed by Hakan – that mix up gameplay without upsetting the ever-so delicate balance. There have been some changes across the board, too. Most of the moves in the game have had their damage reduced; unleashing an Ultra or a Super no longer means a guaranteed win. This has the glorious consequence of making fights last just a bit longer, enough to claw back victory from points that would have been almost certain defeat in SFIV.

In other good news, for those of you that enjoy the challenge offered by AI opponents in Arcade modes, be aware that the AI in SSFIV has been re-tuned. Each encounter feels much truer to how a player would use each character; M. Bison, for example, will hang back and use his charge moves to pick holes in your defence as efficiently as possible. The AI competitors in general don’t really overuse moves to the point of feeling cheap anymore, which goes a long way to establishing a ‘fair’ challenge. Perhaps best of all Seth, infamous for employing some really despicable tactics, is now a tough, but reasonable challenge.

For those masochists (or non-noobish folk) that wish to take the fight online, the new modes add quite a bit to the online experience. Endless Battle allows up to 8 players to enter a lobby to recreate an old-school arcade experience where the winner stays on. The rest of the players get to watch the fights live and chat amongst themselves, creating a fun, social space that was sorely missing from the original release of SFIV. Team Battle puts players into two teams in a winner-stays-on ladder whereby the defeat of one player brings on the next until an entire team has been vanquished. And finally, the replay channel allows players to save replays of their online encounters and view others from across the world – especially handy if you’re trying to learn how best to play as (or against) a particular character.

That’s really about it. One caveat worth noting is the price of the package. Originally rumoured to be released as DLC, the decision to release SSFIV as a standalone package was supposedly made due to the amount of content on offer. Though it is on sale for less than the price of an average retail game, it is still a bit harsh to ask players to fork out for what is essentially a tweaked version of a year old title. If you’re a fan of Street Fighter IV, it’s pretty much a no-brainer that you should pick this up, assuming you haven’t already. For those of you on the fence who enjoy the idea of Street Fighter more than your ability allows, know that SSFIV doesn’t rewrite the rules set forth by SFIV or make the hardcore fighter that much more accessible. For better or worse, this is the same game as last year – just better. If that sounds good, pick it up and good luck trying not to get your ass kicked online too much.