(LAST UPDATE: 7/16/09)
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Developer(s): Capcom
Publisher(s): Capcom
Platform(s): Playstation
Network, Xbox Live, PC
Release: November
25th, 2008 (PS3), November 26th, 2008 (Xbox 360)
Characters:
Ryu,
Ken,
Chun-Li,
Guile,
Dhalsim,
Blanka,
Zangief,
E.Honda,
Balrog,
Vega,
Sagat,
Bison,
Cammy,
Fei
Long, Dee Jay, T.
Hawk, Akuma
Related Games:
Street
Fighter, Street Fighter 2, Street
Fighter 2 Champion Edition,
Street Fighter
2 Turbo, Super Street Fighter 2,
Super
Street Fighter 2 Turbo, Super Street Fighter
2 Turbo: Revival, Street Fighter 3: New Generation,
Street
Fighter 3: Second Impact, Street Fighter
3: Third Strike,
Street Fighter 4,
Street
Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Street
Fighter Alpha 3, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper,
Street
Fighter Alpha 3 Max, Street Fighter
Alpha: Anthology, Street Fighter
Anniversary Collection, Street Fighter EX,
Street
Fighter EX 2, Street Fighter EX 3, Street
Fighter: The Movie,
Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo,
Super
Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix, Pocket
Fighter
Review: SSF2: Turbo HD Remix is Capcom's first ever "complete" re-make of a classic fighting game, and what more deserving game than the classic, and long-time fan favorite Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo; the last installment from the seemingly never ending Street Fighter 2 series (originally released in 1991). Every background, character sprite, and frame of animation has been resized to a much bigger scale, and completely redrawn by the team of talented artists over at Udon comics. Coming from someone who grew up playing all the incarnations of SF2 in the arcades (and at home) religiously, and having nearly every frame of animation in this game deeply embedded into my brain... I, like many other die-hards out there, can fully appreciate what Udon has done with this classic. Re-drawing and re-coloring every single frame of animation must have been a frustrating and incredibly long trial & error process, but let me be the first to congratulate Udon on their beautiful final product; because it was well worth the effort.
I guess we'll have to talk about the graphics first... First off, this is a "re-make," so it shouldn't really be judged as a "new" 2D fighting game. Although, by today's standards of 2D fighting games, the 2D character sprites are definitely bigger than most we've seen, and "fill the screen" like no others ever have. The characters themselves have enough presence and charisma to fill the screen under normal circumstances, but these beefy & colorful new sprites simply light up the room! HD Remix really does look like a completely new game, complete with fabulous selection screen artwork; and the in-game characters look more like actual game artwork rather than "character sprites." I have to say that overall, I'm very pleased with nearly every character in the game as far as looks go. They really nailed the faces, and to me, the characters actually resemble the way Edayan (a well known Capcom artist) draws them, which is possibly my favorite artwork style of all time.
As an avid Street
Fighter player might have expected, many of the animations in HD Remix do have a
dated look and can sometimes appear a bit on the choppy side. The backgrounds, while looking awesomely
sharp, also still contain characters that poorly animate (2 frames)! It's a forgivable flaw given the nature of what this
game actually is, hence the word "remix." As far as the characters themselves,
they obviously wanted to keep
the frame count the same as in the original so it plays exactly as we remember;
and the good news is, it does!! Capcom has kept the gameplay mechanics perfectly intact from the original arcade
version,
but also presents a new HD mode with small gameplay tweaks,
character balancing, extra moves, more combo possibilities, and even all new character colors! If you were ever a
fan of the Street Fighter 2 series, there's no reason not to love
playing this visually superior version of one of the biggest arcade
hits of all time... Remember, this is arguably the series that brought
arcades in the early 90's to a new level.
Speaking of
arcades, where ever did they go? ...I'll always miss the smell of token
machines. 
Ohh how times have
changed. Seems like the best arcade you can go to these days is in your
own home... In that online mode. Heh. I tried out the online mode for
around two hours already, and had some trouble connecting with a few people but once
I did connect, the game ran smoothly for the most part. There's
even Network Smoothing options which also helps when any lag pops up.
Overall, seems like you can play the same type of intense game online as
you can offline, and with each fighting game release, the net code seems
to improve (notably on the PS3)! The way things are going, I think it's safe to say... "The
future of arcades is online." You can quote me on it if you like. 
Online options are good, and I'm sure
with time they'll patch the online mode and iron out some of the rough edges.
As far as gameplay goes, you know this
game is Ooooold school... As much as I love playing HD Remix with
my old school buddies, honestly, I'd still rather pop in a game in the
later Street Fighter III or Street Fighter Alpha series. Being
able to parry that fireball when your life is down to nothing (so you don't die
of chip damage), or use a variety of super moves to mix things up (and
awe the crowd as all the hits in your super connect after K.O.); are
fighting game novelties that I dearly miss when playing this game for any
long period of time. As a 25 year old fighting game connoisseur, I'm old school
myself, but I'm also quite partial to newer, more advanced gameplay systems
these days... And sometimes my thumbs don't feel like working so hard anymore: Shoryuken,
Hurricane Kick, Shoryuken, Shoryuken, Hadoken, Shoryuken, Hadoken, Fake Hadoken,
Jump Air Hurricane Kick, Shoryuken... Carpal Tunnel, and I lost...
Dammit, 2 more rounds to go... 
Options...
HD Remix has em! Firstly, there are a nice variety of arcade style "dip
switch" settings, which allow you to tweak some interesting details about
specific character moves and abilities! You also have the
option to set the stage music back to the original arcade themes, or keep
the default "remixed" themes (which kick ass by the way). And, as funny as
it sounds, you can even switch out the character sprites *ehem* character art
back to the originals! The old style sprites have a filtered and blurred
look to them, and although they look rather out of place in front of the
HD backgrounds, they come out looking fairly decent... For old ass pixels. 
The brand new endings, drawn by Udon, are also a much appreciated addition to
this solid package!
Overall, this game kicks ass... Buy it. It's well worth the 15 dollars.
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- Review is for PS3 version of SSFII Turbo: HD Remix - |
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9 / 10 |
Closing Comment: It's been a long time coming, but HD Remix is a blessing to Street Fighter fans and was well worth the wait. The final product turned out better than I originally expected, and it's truly a beautiful thing to see all of the original street fighters brought back to life in this new art style, and in full HD! The coloring is particularly well done, and the awesome attention to detail on the character sprites will not soon be forgotten. A lot of the rough edges that the old sprites had were expertly smoothed out and given a fresh cel-shaded-like re-coloring... The animations are also notably "better than the original" overall.
Granted, the end result of these bigger sprites animated in the
"original style" can sometimes have it's funny / awkward moments.
After being spoiled with the amazing fluidity of the Street Fighter III
series, and the awesome "anime-esk" look of the characters in the Street
Fighter Alpha series; the characters in HD Remix do have some clear "imperfections." For one, everyone still turns into M. Bison
when "on fire" (or turns into Zangief if they're T.Hawk)... 
I was hoping they'd maybe fix that, but I guess they wanted to really
stay true to the original. I'm sure everyone will
draw different opinions on the way the characters look in general, and if you
want my two cents; Cammy went a little overboard on the eye make-up, and Fei
Long's noggin is a bit large... 
Nitpicking aside, I realize "perfection" in a project like this would
be damn near impossible, but for what Udon had to work with, they really came
through and made the most impressive "remake" of a fighting game ever.
In closing, a game like this makes me proud to me a Street Fighter fan...
There's obviously still a lot of love for the series and the unforgettable
original cast of characters. HD Remix offers tons of nostalgia to
Street Fighter veterans like myself, and I will most definitely be playing offline
and online...
when my thumbs feel like they need a workout.
~F.Yagami,
Webmaster
of TFG
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