Street Fighter V Champion Edition analysis:

A while now, Capcom is doing surprisingly well. The launch of Monster Hunter World marked a new stage for those from Osaka, regaining, launch after launch, the trust of their fans. And Street Fighter V Champion Edition is the latest example of that positive change. But also the sum of everything learned and added since the launch of Street Fighter V.

After all, Street Fighter is not just any fighting saga. Traditionally, each new installment has been the measuring stick of the health of an entire genre. As a result, the difficult beginnings of Street Fighter V were especially painful for fans of the World Warriors. The fifth installment came with few modes, not too many fighters, and the total absence of the Arcade in favor of the online experience. That was a mistake and Capcom paid dearly for it.

Four years later, the state of the game is totally different:

40 superbly defined and full of character fighters, great excuses to fight offline and online, and a polished and fun gameplay experience to tackle. It doesn’t matter who you get into the ring with or the model you choose.

In this context, Street Fighter V Champion Edition starts with the aim of being the first ticket to that experience that fans wanted to see from the beginning. Not only does it seek to win back the fans, but also to offer a brutal (and irresistible) pack of Street Fighter V articles also thinking of those who have the game and even those who stopped having it.

An all-inclusive edition? In fairness, betting on upgrading or acquiring the Street Fighter V Champion Edition is, at heart, the easiest way to unlock all the fighters. But also – and this is important to take into account – to access an inexhaustible wardrobe of alternative suits and colors. And that matters.

SF V Champion Edition wants to be the first ticket to that experience that fans wanted to see from the beginning

Capcom made many promises before releasing Street Fighter V. It was assured that only one disc was necessary to enjoy its future content, that there were expansion plans until 2020 and that its exclusivity on consoles was intended to unify its faithful community of players.

Four years later, the same company publishes Street Fighter V Champions Edition, and it is the second major revision of the game. The time has come to take the Osaka people at their word.

Street Fighter V Champions Edition: Full Game or DLC?

It doesn’t matter when you buy Street Fighter V (if you ever did): if you own a copy of the game, from February 14, 2020, you have access to the Champion Edition. That is the most updated version of it.

Capcom has updated the ” base ” game adding all the modes, all the news, all the fighter settings, the new V-Triggers, and V-Skill and, of course, everything you have unlocked during that time: fighters, scenarios, colors, illustrations, and everything that is offered. Another thing, of course, is the extra content.

When it comes to modes, Street Fighter V offers a huge variety. More than any other main game in the saga, despite not being able to fill the screen like in that Street Fighter Alpha 3: Saikyō-Ryu Dōjō from DreamCast. What’s more, we are talking about very well crafted additions, including.

The best and most interesting Arcade mode of the saga, at least in the playable. Six variants directly inspired by the six main installments (also counting on Street Fighter Alpha ) replicating the presentation and details of each one of them (costumes, scenarios) and taking it to the outstanding aspect of the Unreal Engine. A chance to unlock hundreds of endings and tons of new and classic art from the series.

An inexhaustible Survival mode with five variants, the possibility of random confrontations, mini-bosses, being able to use power-ups, and even saving the game to restart it another time. All the above weaknesses have been eliminated.

Multiple training options and facilities to master each character that is the example to follow: from combo challenges to customizable options, through demonstrations and explanations with which to squeeze out each of the small nuances behind the movements or character.

Two options when it comes to addressing the plot context of this installment: a separate cinematic story mode (if you are not interested in it you do not need to download it) and individual stories for each fighter illustrated by Bangus, a veteran of the saga and one of the artists Capcom’s key (although his touch is missing in the Street Fighter Alpha installments ).

A whole variety of competitive options: customized online rooms, informal confrontations, and ranked matches with crossover play between PC and console, elimination modes a la King of Fighters, and – of course – one-on-one pits. And here it does not end: Capcom is testing a new tournament mode that will be added to the game soon.

Finally, challenges and extra fights that add a touch of color to the matter. With them, it is possible to acquire the game currency with which the extra fighters, costumes, and other bonuses are acquired. Even items for the Dojo, a kind of social commitment to encourage the creation of communities and, incidentally, develop a scenario with details to taste.

The question from here is asking itself: if all of the above is included in any copy of the game: what do I get when I purchase the Upgrade Kit or a copy of Street Fighter V Champion Edition?

The sum of everything learned and, at the same time, the most ambitious batch of content in the saga

As we mentioned, all Street Fighter V players can enjoy the game modes, but when it comes to fighters, costumes, and colors (among other things) it is necessary to use Fight Money (the game currency) or real money. The new edition is, substantially, a pack with practically everything that Capcom has added to the game since its launch,

Contents that, on the other hand, have been arriving in a staggered manner throughout these four years. In some cases, complying with its roadmap, and in others seeking to file or eliminate the weaknesses of the game. And I will not deny that it would have been a detail that at least half of them had appeared on day one. After all, titles like Mortal Kombat 11 fill you with launch options.

In this way, the Street Fighter V Champion Edition Upgrade Kit (digital) is the definitive content pack, and the physical and digital copies of the Champion Edition in the background offer the game and the aforementioned pack for one difference of five euros or less.

All the DLCs? The reality is that there are exceptions. We are referring to promotional outfits, content that has been available on a limited basis, or items obtained through the Fight Opportunity. A very small number of articles that, being fair, it is even understandable that they are left out. But it is also true that we will not miss anything.

With that established: how are the gameplay sensations of Street Fighter V four years later?

The best Street Fighter? All the essential ingredients are all ready there

The quantity and variety of modes are very good, and that there are four dozen fighters included in the lot even better. It’s not a record number, as The King of Fighters XIV hit the shelves with ten more characters. However, what we are really interested in knowing is the feeling of the game. That has been the true strength of Street Fighter V and what, in the end, should really matter to us.

Starting from the novelties, Street Fighter V Champion Edition adds a second V-Skill to choose before each fight, that is, a custom action designed to settle and enhance the fighting style of each of the 40 available fighters, which expands generously layer the depth of the game for regulars and gives more resources to new players.

There are fighters who benefit more than others. Ryu receives a Thrust Strike that will put our reflexes to the test and will guarantee us with a dry blow when counterattacking and that makes this addition not shine as bright as Abigail’s C’mon Spare Tire, which adds a rolling tire to combat with very good effects. interesting; or Kiai of Akuma, hitting from the ground and if gives an instant impact invaluable, leaving her suspended, helpless enemy, and in the perfect position to start some juggling.

With that ahead, and following the line of the second and fourth numbered installments, Street Fighter V is tremendously simple to understand, although it takes a lifetime to master it. The classic characters have gained more identity in terms of movements and attacks and they benefit greatly and well from the game system. But the best thing is that the new additions have been integrated with mastery.

In a way, and after several updates and new features, Street Fighter V Champion Edition works just as well as a settlement of the saga as a retrospective. Not only because the selection includes forgotten fighters and there is a wide representation of the Final Fight characters, but because it retains what resonates with fans of the previous installments and gives them an extra character. Not only visually, but also in the sensations it offers through the control (or the Fightstick).

There are marked changes, of course. From the launch, it was decided to change the inputs to Vega (the Spanish bullfighter-ninja ) so that he would benefit more and better from the new system and other fighters such as Juri or the recently added Seth were rethought for the occasion. In the end, it’s not about how each character works together through a shared system, but how to unleash their full potential individually.

In this aspect, and fully addressing the selection of fighters, in SF V Champion Edition there is (finally) the feeling that almost no one is missing. The original 12 World Warriors say present alongside new faces and with them a superb selection of representatives from Street Fighter Alpha, Final Fight, Street Fighter III, and Street Fighter IV , including all the final bosses from all numbered installments.

What’s more, the top bearers of this edition are Gill ( SF III’s final boss ), which offers a spectacular dual style based on hot and cold hits without being as abusive as in the arcade classic; and Seth (last opponent of SF IV ), who currently occupies the body of one of the Bison Dolls, losing part of his repertoire -such as his extendable arms- and gaining more agility and new techniques.

Street Fighter has always shone through its Vs mode, and the Champion Edition has perfected that aspect, not only through the aforementioned depth layer and the balance of fighters but because the team mode (which we could see in Street Fighter II Champion Edition of Mega Drive) is one of the best successes of this new stage

And in your online? If you haven’t played Street Fighter V since 2016, you’ll be glad to know that the game no longer takes you out of games when you lose connection. In fact, little by little its net code has been filed and, without being totally perfect, it is quite correct. However, at this point, Capcom continues to work on it to make the experience what is expected of it. Something that stands out four years later.

Matchmaking is not bad, quite the contrary. It takes very little time to find a match and great care has been taken in establishing the pairings. Which does not mean that in many respects the CFN (Capcom Fighting Network, the game’s social platform) has not taken off. And we doubt it will at this point.

Playable, SF V Champion Edition exceeds expectations in its own right. After all, that has never been the weak point of this batch of installments. But this time Capcom has included all the ingredients to make it the best game in the saga in each of its aspects, separately and together. Now, is it too late to get redemption?

Despite what it might seem, Street Fighter V: Champion Edition is basically a relaunch. A new impetus for the game of 2016 with tweaks that add new layers of depth to the experience, a second chance to shine for every character, and access to virtually all of the modes released. But above all, the best version of a fighting game that, little by little, has become a must for fans of the genre.

The funny thing here is the focus of this Champion Edition for those who already have a copy of Street Fighter V. They are given the opportunity to acquire all unlockables and practically all cosmetic items. In all fairness, after a four-year window, it has been possible to unlock all the extra fighters by playing.

As a curious note, when Street Fighter V Arcade Edition was released, the physical version included a copy of the game and a redeemable code to unlock the extra DLCs. On this occasion, the disc copies of the Champion Edition have all the contents recorded, although -logically- the game needs to be updated.

The really important question here is not the value of the extras per se, or whether Street Fighter V is a good fighting game -which it is-, but rather to discuss if we are facing the final and definitive edition of the 2016 game. : Is this the last DLC to pay for?

Capcom proposes to unify the contents of its stalwarts, laggards, and those who have waited cautiously.

The reality is that Capcom has not hinted at any time that the list of fighters has been closed. And seeing as the PS5 will offer backward compatibility with Sony’s current desktop, it has a whole generation ahead of it to add new characters to the panel in case 40 fighters aren’t enough.

In the end, everything is reduced to two premises: the experience as a fighting game is superb and now is the perfect time to tackle Street Fighter V. In fact, very few titans of the genre manage to stay firm and high for so long, even after four years.

The World Warriors lost the first round, and the Arcade Edition was much more than a comeback for fans. Now, in this Third Round, Capcom proposes to unify the contents of the unconditional, the laggards, the initially disappointed, and those who have preferred to wait cautiously, contributing much to all the previous ones,

Was this third Round a victory? With the game’s trajectory in perspective, the truth is that Capcom could have won more gloriously. Which does not mean that the fans of Ryu and Chun-Li will see their expectations fulfilled with a Street Fighter V that – finally – is at the point of candy?