The gameplay in Third Strike is what really sets it part from all other fighters. It’s not at all like Street Fighter II and it’s certainly not like Street Fighter IV. It’s a whole different beast entirely. This game was made before the infamous “comeback mechanic” that you see in so many fighting games nowadays. You can certainly tell the difference. It takes an incredible amount of skill to overcome the odds in Third Strike. The inputs required for commands also require more precision in comparison to a game like SSFIV. If you mess up a half circle motion the game is not going to let you slide.

[drop2]There is only one meter to keep track of and that’s for your Super. Each character has three Super Arts but you can only select one before the match starts. The amount of bars you can have depends solely on the Super you chose.

Ryu’s Shinkuu-Hadouken, for instance, allows you to store up to two full bars of meter while his Denjin Hadouken only allows for one. Each Super Art has it’s own advantages and disadvantages to consider. You also have to think about whether or not you’re going to be using EX moves often, which also use up a portion of your meter.

It’s incredibly important to understand how meter works in this game since it can easily cost you the match if it’s not managed properly. You can build meter in this game by just whiffing any normal attack that’s not a jab or a short. All special moves, with the exception of projectiles, also build towards your Super meter. Hitting the opponent with an attack increases the amount you gain tremendously and you’ll even gain a few pixels each time you take damage.

The biggest difference with the way you’ll play Third Strike comes with parrying. You can parry all attacks by tapping the direction towards your opponent right at the impact of an oncoming strike. For low attacks you need to press down at the right time. You can even parry in mid air even though you can’t block from that position. This makes it a bit safer to jump towards your opponent since you can attempt to parry anti-air attacks to avoid getting Shoryuken’d in the face.

In order to effectively parry you first need to learn the timing for each strike, special, and super move. Thankfully the parry training mode makes this easier to do. Once you’ve learned how to parry, which is going to take some time, you need to learn when to parry and what to do after you parry.

While it may seem obvious, there are many situations where you don’t actually want to parry because it could potentially put you in an unfavorable position. Plus, even if you do know how to parry it’s not like you’ll be able to do it all the time against an actual opponent. It’s easy to make mistakes when you’re in the heat of battle but once you get it right there’s a huge sense of accomplishment, even if you lose.

As with most fighting games, you’ll be spending the majority of your time fighting against another player, whether it’s in the same room or online. For online multiplayer, there’s your standard ranked matches, player matches, a tournament mode, and a replay channel. These are the same features you’d find in Super Street Fighter IV but with better execution and far better netcode.

Ranked matches are pretty standard. You face off against a random opponent and then you’re given points for winning and completing challenges. For player matches you can create lobbies with up to seven other players. You can set the rules to the standard best of three, pro tournament best of three, or set up a best out of seven marathon. These same rules can be applied to Tournament mode, which is single elimination. One of the more practical options is being able to rematch opponents in 1-on-1 player matches.

It’s also possible to ban up to three characters from player matches. Normally, all twenty characters can be used. This gives people a chance to use Gill, the unlockable final boss, since he’s banned in ranked matches. Seeing as he’s ridiculously broken (we’re talking one hit kill combos here) you’ll most likely see him banned all the time.

For online play, Capcom opted to use GGPO netcode technology. Fans have been requesting GGPO for fighting games for years now and it’s for a good reason. Basically, GGPO does a really good job at making it seem like there’s no lag online, which is obviously important for a genre that requires precision. The technology was developed by Tony Cannon, who is one of the founders of Shoryuken.com and Evolution, the biggest fighting game tournament in the world. To say that its inclusion is a big deal would be an understatement. This is the best thing that could have ever happened to a fighting game.

While the netcode isn’t exactly perfect it does come pretty close. I played against a few people in Europe from the United States and there were only a few moments where the action got a bit jerky. It was still more playable than any other fighting game under the same circumstances. It was even better when playing someone in the same country. Sometimes the game will think you got a KO near the end of a match but the ruling gets reverted a second later. It’s a weird situation but it makes sense given how GGPO works. It’s not gamebreaking or anything like that. The best part about playing online is that there’s no input delay. There isn’t a single fighting game out in the market right now with a better online mode. Even something as simple as spectator mode is amazing in Third Strike due to its flawless execution.

[videoyoutube]All matches can be saved to your profile for later use, even local matches. You can then watch them in the replay channel by yourself or with friends, add them to the match server for the world to see, and even upload them to YouTube. Only the PS3 version will have YouTube support available at launch. According to Capcom, the 360 version will receive a free update in a couple of days.

Searching for online replays is surprisingly comprehensive. You can search by match grade, age, region, player rank, winning/losing character, and even by tag. When viewing replays there’s an option to just stream some of the best matches. What the game considers the best isn’t exactly clear but it works great. You’re just thrown into match after match without any downtime.

Not everything is as perfect as it should be. For some reason you can’t go back to the character select screen during a match. You have to exit out of the game entirely to go back to the main menu. This is especially inconvenient for the hardcore tournament scene since players check their buttons before every match. Although this is a rather unfortunate oversight, it should be noted that the game loads lighting fast. You can quit a game and go back to the character select screen in seconds. Player names also aren’t displayed during replays. Nobody online will know who’s fighting who unless you tag screen names beforehand or add them to the title of the video.

Pros

• Arcade perfect port.
• The soundtrack.
• Rewarding gameplay that emphasizes skill.
• Tons of replay value due to challenges, trials, and unlockables.
• GGPO netcode provides an experience that is unmatched by any other fighter.
• Replay channel and spectating works flawlessly.

Cons

• Some minor user interface oversights.
• Gameplay might be too overwhelming for fans not devoted to learning the mechanics.

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike is the perfect example of a game that has actually aged better over time. There’s something for everyone even if you never got into it twelve years ago. While the high level of execution may take some time to get adjusted to, it’s ultimately worth it. The online multiplayer not only provides a near lagless experience, it moves the genre forward in terms of features and technology. That’s an achievement not only for Capcom, but for the fighting game genre itself. Hopefully it’s a sign of things to come.

As a fan I want to give this 11/10, but if that doesn’t work for obvious reasons…

Score: 9/10

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition releases on August 23rd  for the PlayStation Network in North America for $14.99. It launches a day later in Europe and Xbox Live for 1200 Microsoft points.