If the announcements and reveals hadn’t already sold you on it, then getting to play Street Fighter 6 really drives home that this could easily become the definitive fighting game experience. It’s the kind of fighting game you could easily find yourself sitting next to your mate and playing hundreds of rounds into the wee hours of the morning.
Maybe it’s the presentation, the way that the characters now walk out together, or simple things like being able to pull faces while setting up a fight, but Street Fighter 6 is going to be the game to bring the hardcore and casual fighters together.
Inclusivity is important, and the Modern control scheme is going to do just that. Love it or hate it, Smash Bros. was able to attract millions of casual players just because it’s easy to get into. It’s the same reason Multiversus has immediately reached a large player base.
With the Modern control scheme, new players will be able to jump right into Street Fighter 6, pull off special moves with ease and get a feel for some of the depths of the game’s systems. Then, once used to it, if they wish, can transfer over to the Classic controls to expand the nuanced fighting available to them. Not all the moves are available with Modern controls and naturally, some of the more complex combos can’t be pulled off, but it’s a great gateway to get people started.
I tried this with one of the newly announced characters, Guile, to see if having one button Sonic Booms was going to be as broken as it sounds. As it turns out, it’s not so bad. Players of the 3DS version of Street Fighter IV will remember the nightmare that was Guile who broke the game’s balance with his one button Booms. I think Capcom has adapted it smartly here, with Sonic Booms not feeling so oppressive and the Flash Kick actually requiring a slight charge to pull off.
In general, Guile feels very tanky compared to his previous iterations, maintaining a lot of his kit from previous entries, but feeling sturdier, almost like a wall. Also, a few of his tricks from Street Fighter V have made their way into SF6 as standard moves, such as the Sonic Blade, giving his Booms more oomph, and the Sonic Break now activating from a Super, instead of being his Solid Puncher V-Trigger.
Further Reading: Street Fighter 6 makes Street Fighter fun again
Juri was the next character I tried and found myself enjoying a lot. She plays much like her SFIV version, bringing her fabled Dive Kick back into the mix, amongst other things. Juri’s Fuharenkyaku (quarter circle forward and kick) has changed considerably. In SFV, you’d needed to charge the move before performing it again to fire a projectile, making it a little awkward to use in general. Now, charging the Fuharenkyaku is not essential as the base versions have great utility. Charging them, if you have time, now just gives a little extra bang for your buck.
The changes are welcome, and for someone like me who isn’t a Juri main, I was able to pick her up a lot easier. It also helps that the new Drive system in SF6 means characters are hitting straight out the gate, which is what Juri needed.
One of my favourite characters to try was Kimberly, who I can see being an absolute menace on the tournament scene. As her master is Guy (mainly from Final Fight but also Street Fighter), she has a lot of his style of play and panache, including his signature Hurricane Kick. She has runs, slides, teleports and bombs! Naturally, I wasn’t able to explore as much of her potential as I would have liked, mainly down to time constraints, but I can see that she is going to have some amazing combo set ups using her bombs.
She has a run that can be cancelled into other moves, but my favourite part about it was letting the run connect, turning into a throw which looked so stylish. Coupled with the fact that everything about her is so colourful, it makes her a joy to watch, especially during hitstop animations after a Drive Impact.
Finally, and certainly not least, I got hands on with the newly announced Ken!
It was a no brainer that Ken would be in SF6 and it’s great to see him back, even if he’s looking a little dishevelled these days. While SFV’s version of Ken felt like a major departure from his origins, feeling very aggressive with his super rush down playstyle, SF6’s older Ken feels a little more grounded, slowing down slightly and exerting a little more patience. I definitely prefer this Ken.
He’s retained some of his tricks from SFV however, in the form of his quick step which has a slightly shorter range, and the ability to be cancelled into different attacks such the Thunder Kick or the Forward Step Kick, making for some great mix up potential. To add to this, Ken has a new move called the Jinrai Kick (not to be confused with Third Strike’s Shippu Jinrai), which is a great combo opener.
Overall, Ken feels like a less frantic, centred version of himself while still maintaining a potentially aggressive playstyle. I really like him!
It has to be reiterated, the five Drive System techniques and the Drive Gauge that powers them really opens the floodgates up for all these characters. With ways to counter and block incoming attacks, and soup up your own, everyone feels powerful to play with from the off.
Without having to worry about building up a meter to do cool things, new players can properly learn the fundamentals of fighting games, meaning hopefully they’ll give it a go and stick around. For veterans, the Drive System is going to help showcase some real creativeness, and will foster deeper experimentation to make the most of it. The professional scene is going to be a marvel to behold in the coming years!
We haven’t even scratched the surface yet of what Street Fighter 6 has to offer, but I can tell you now, it’s going to be an all timer.
Want to try out Street Fighter 6 for yourself? You’ll want to try and get into the closed beta coming in October!
