Pros:
A great blend of Street Fighter and Tekken characters
Gem system is pretty good addition
Online play is fantastic
Cons:
Game modes are a little bland
DLC content already on the disc requiring unlock keys for a price
Capcom has always been known for some great crossovers as of late. Marvel vs Capcom, Tatsunoku vs Capcom, X-Men vs Street Fighter. The list goes on and on. Now we may have not gotten that Mortal Kombat vs Street Fighter that we’ve all wanted back in the day, but the folks at Capcom and Namco have teamed up to bring fans one of the best crossover games of all time to date. Street Fighter and Tekken together in the same game. The World Warriors versus the King of Iron Fist. Who will reign supreme? As gamers, it wouldn’t really matter because Street Fighter X Tekken is a win/win situation filled with awesome fighting action that will have you hooked in for a very long time.
If I had one issue when this game was announced it had to do with the thought of the Street Fighter characters having a distinct advantage over the Tekken characters. Hadokens and Psycho Crushers taking on fists and feet. You would think that players would rather spam Ryu and Ken to death rather then play as Jin and Heihachi. Well I’m here to tell you that the balance between the characters is well done. The Tekken characters really hold their own in this game. You might have a more overpowered character players will use online for a time early on, but you can expect Capcom to fix it really quick like they do with all their fighting games.
Street Fighter X Tekken is presented with the 2D Street Fighter IV style and it looks and plays extremely well. The tag team fighting style is practically flawless in it’s design which is something that Capcom has plenty of experience in with it’s countless other mash ups. However, there is a difference. Unlike Capcom’s previous tag team fighters Street Fighter X Tekken uses Namco’s tag team fighting design in Tekken Tag Tournament where there is no recycling of fighters. When one character is knocked out the round is over. If perfectly ok with this concept, because of the fact that this adds a bit of strategy into the game other than the typical attitude of gamers saying “Oh well. At least I have another fighter to work with.”
One thing you can expect in Street Fighter X Tekken is that the fighting system is still top notch. Street Fighter is still one of the most technical fighting games in the market with it’s wide array of attacks and counters. Defending is more important than attacking in the series and this game shows that as well. Super Moves, EX Moves, and plenty of counter attacks still exist here. New to this game is the use of moves that include launchers that knock your opponent up in the air and then your partner runs in to rack up more hits. There’s also a team up combo where both of our characters run in at the same time to engage in a total beat down. Of course these combos work best when your opponents health gauge is low so you can get that flashy KO just to show off your ass kicking skills in front of your friends.
Also new to Street Fighter X Tekken is the use of gems. These gems really add a new strategic element as well as change the pace of the fight. These boost and assist gems have different abilities including an added offensive boost, defensive boost, allows for an easier button combinations for special moves and super attacks, and so much more. These gems can be set to your character by default, or by customizing your own set of gems (maximum of three per character). Gems will then be earned by what happens in the fight in terms of whether your an offensive juggernaut, special move spammer, or just plain getting your ass kicked. I really thought that the gems would “cheapen and dumb down” the game, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. The gems are awesome and are activated immediately as you gain them. You’ll also have a glow around your character which reminded me of Leroy and Shonuff in the old school ’80s flick “The Last Dragon.” Just for shits and giggles, you should yell into your speaker when playing online “Who is the master?” when this happens.
I’ve really noticed something about fighting games as of late. The single player game modes are rather lacking. Also they seem rather bland in nature, because every fighter has the same modes and nothing really original. You get your standard game modes including arcade mode and training mode to learn your basic moves and combos. There’s a challenge mode which has you winning matches in different scenarios. There’s even a tutorial mode where the fan favorite and lovable loser Dan, who can’t even get a roster spot in the cast, trains you in the game’s basics. I found the tutorial very helpful as well as get a laugh or two out of Dan’s antics. If you need a bit of freshening up on your moves then might I suggest the practice mode. Here you can get work on your skills as well as see your button presses on the left side of the screen so you can cure any button mashing problems you might have.
Now every fan knows that it’s the online arena where any fighting game really succeeds. Street Fighter X Tekken once again shines in this aspect. Just like in Street Fighter IV and it’s later versions you’ll find nearly lag free matches with your friends and complete strangers to compete for supremacy or look like a Dan. You can also set online play challenges to take place in arcade mode so you can have a match at any time. Obviously, online is where your going to spend the most time with this game. Each of the matches I played online I enjoyed a lag free experience with my AT&T Mobile WiFi hot spot (cheap plug). I also did a little trash talking on the side for some extra fun (friendly of course unless the other person was a real jackass). Overall, the online multiplayer scores a perfect victory.
I do have one major beef with this game and it has to do with the upcoming DLC add ons. According to an article from IGN, the upcoming future DLC that features extra characters as well as the costumes are already on the disc and require an unlock key to use. What the fuck is up with that Capcom! Didn’t you get enough money from me when I bought the game in the first place? I’m sure I speak for all the gamers out there when I say that this should be free. Maybe have an unlock system in the game as bonuses for completion like the old fighting games had. There’s no need to get greedy and rape us for more money. At least they learned from the fiasco with Marvel vs Capcom 3 and decided on DLC instead of a new disc down the road. Then again I could be wrong. Of course this is nothing new with Capcom, because they’ve been doing this for years with the same Street Fighter games with longer titles and new additions. With all this said I’m sure that in the next few months we might expect a Super Ultimate Street Fighter X Tekken Tag Tournament Turbo with Hyper Fighting.
Street Fighter X Tekken takes two of my favorite fighting franchises and blends them into the ultimate fighting game that’s so enjoyable. The main storyline is not important (notice how i skipped it). The fighting action is very technical and strategic yet flawless in it’s nature. The gems are cool. Online play is a blast. What else can I say to a game that is awesome in just about every way except for the whole DLC thing. Street Fighter fans, Tekken fans, all fighting game fans should be buying this game right now! Now let’s see what Namco does with their version Tekken X Street Fighter due out sometime in the near future.
The World According To Brian 