| Street Fighter Alpha 2 | |
|---|---|
 North American arcade flyer | |
| Developer | Capcom |
| Publishers | |
| Composers | Setsuo Yamamoto Syun Nishigaki Tatsuro Suzuki |
| Series | Street Fighter |
| Platforms | Arcade,PlayStation,Sega Saturn,Super NES,Windows |
| Release | March 25, 1996
|
| Genre | Fighting |
| Modes | Single-player,multiplayer |
| Arcade system | CP System II |
Street Fighter Alpha 2, known asStreet Fighter Zero 2[a] in Japan, Asia, South America, and Oceania, is a 1996fighting game developed and published byCapcom forarcades. The game is the sequel to the previous year'sStreet Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams and features a number of improvements, such as new attacks, stages, endings, and gameplay features. It wasported to thePlayStation,Sega Saturn andSuper Nintendo home consoles globally in 1996, and later aWindows port. It was followed byStreet Fighter Alpha 3 in 1998.
Street Fighter Alpha 2 retains most of the new features introduced in the originalStreet Fighter Alpha, such as the three-level Super Combo gauge, Alpha Counters, Air-Blocking, and Fall Breaking. The main new feature in the game is the inclusion of the Custom Combo system (Original Combo in Japan), which replaces the Chain Combos from the firstAlpha.[6] If the Super Combo gauge is on Lv. 1 or above, the player can initiate a Custom Combo pressing two punch buttons and a kick or one punch button and two kicks.[7] The player can then perform any series of basic and special moves to create a Custom Combo until the Timer Gauge at the bottom of the screen runs out. The characters Guy and Gen can still perform Chain Combos, but only to a limited extent. Additionally, each character now has two Alpha Counters instead of just one: one that can be performed with a kick button and another with a punch button.[8]
The single-player mode, much like the originalStreet Fighter Alpha, consists of eight matches against computer-controlled opponents, including a fixed final opponent whose identity depends on the player's selected character. Each character also has a secret "rival" whom they can face during the course of the single-player mode. After meeting certain requirements, the rival will interrupt one of the player's matches and exchange dialogue with the player's character, and the player character will then fight the rival instead.[7] WithAkuma now a regular character, a more powerful version of the character dubbed "Shin Akuma" replaces him as a secret opponent. UnlikeSuper Turbo and the originalAlpha, Shin Akuma challenges the player before the player's final opponent, rather than as an alternate final boss.
The game brings back all thirteen characters fromStreet Fighter Alpha, withM. Bison,Akuma, andDan now being immediately selectable as playable characters. In addition to theAlpha roster,Alpha 2 includesDhalsim andZangief, both fromStreet Fighter II;Gen, an assassin from the originalStreet Fighter;Rolento, a member of the Mad Gear gang who originally appeared inFinal Fight; and newcomerSakura, a Japanese schoolgirl who takes up street fighting after witnessing one ofRyu's battles.[9] The game also features a "classic-style" alternative version of Chun-Li where she is wearing her outfit from theStreet Fighter II series.
According to Capcom senior plannerShinji Mikami, "When we were trying to get the balance ofAlpha 2 right we only concentrated onAlpha 2. That's the one that's important. We don't really have to get the actual same damage as Alpha. InAlpha 2 some new characters were introduced, so in order to maintain the game balance we had to increase the damage for the normal hits. In addition, this time forAlpha 2 we wanted to focus on the importance of the normal hits and not just the specials."[10]
Street Fighter Alpha 2 was first unveiled at the February 1996 AOU show inTokyo.[11]
BothManga Entertainment/A.P.P.P. andGroup TAC developed OVA adaptations based on the game, titledStreet Fighter Alpha: The Animation (2000) andStreet Fighter Alpha: Generations (2005), which were both co-produced byKaoru Mfaume. All of the characters except Gen and Dan also have roles in the Canadian-American cartoonStreet Fighter: The Animated Series.
Street Fighter Alpha 2 was released under the titleStreet Fighter Zero 2 in Japan, Asia, and South America. The North American and European versions ofAlpha 2 feature three additional characters who were not in theZero 2 version: Evil Ryu and alternative versions of Dhalsim and Zangief known as EX versions, where they use their movesets from theStreet Fighter II series and do not have access to the Super Combo gauge.[9] These three characters were selected by Capcom USA.[10]
Capcom also released an updated version ofZero 2 titledStreet Fighter Zero 2 Alpha in Japan, Asia, and South America, which features all the additional characters fromAlpha 2, as well as other changes to the game. In addition to Zangief and Dhalsim,Zero 2 Alpha also features EX versions of Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li (where she is wearing her outfit from the[Street Fighter II series, similarly to the "classic-style" version of her), Sagat, and M. Bison, all of whom were characters fromStreet Fighter II: Champion Edition. Custom Combos are now executed by pressing a punch and kick button of the same strength simultaneously and now require half (1+1⁄2 level) of the Super Combo gauge filled to perform them. Some of the characters have gained new moves such as Ryu'sShakunetsu Hadouken and Dhalsim's Yoga Tempest.Zero 2 Alpha also features a survival mode, as well as a 2-on-1 Dramatic Battle mode similar to the hidden "Ryu and Ken vs. Bison mode" in the originalAlpha. In this version, Evil Ryu has different dialogue exchanges and a different ending from his regular counterpart.
| Aggregator | Score | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arcade | PS | Saturn | SNES | |
| GameRankings | 82% (4 reviews)[19] | 87% (4 reviews)[18] | 75% (5 reviews)[49] | |
| Publication | Score | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arcade | PS | Saturn | SNES | |
| AllGame | 2.5/5[20] | 4/5[22] | 3/5[21] | |
| Computer and Video Games | 5/5[23] | 5/5[23] | 4/5[24] | |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 36.5/40[26] | 4.5/10, 4/10, 6/10, 6.5/10[25] | ||
| Famitsu | 32/40[27] | 32/40[28] | 6/10, 7/10, 7/10, 5/10[29] | |
| Game Informer | 7.75/10[32] | 8.75/10[33] | ||
| GameFan | 281/300[31] | 228/300[30] | ||
| GamesMaster | 86%[34] | 87%[35] | ||
| GameSpot | 7.8/10[37] | 8.1/10[36] | ||
| IGN | 8.5/10[38] | |||
| Mean Machines Sega | 94%[39] | |||
| Next Generation | 3/5[40] | 4/5[41] | ||
| PlayStation: The Official Magazine | 8/10[42] | |||
| Maximum | 5/5[43] | |||
| Sega Saturn Magazine | 95%[44] | |||
| Publication | Award |
|---|---|
| 10thGamest Awards (Winner) | Best Game of 1996, Best Fighting Game, Top Character (Dan Hibiki)[45] |
| 10thGamest Awards (Nominee) | Best Graphics (#9), Best Direction (#6), Best VGM (#4)[45] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | Arcade Game of the Year, Saturn Game of the Year (Runner-Up), Fighting Game of the Year (Runner-Up)[46] |
| GameFan Megawards | Fighting Game of the Year, Coin-Op Game of the Year (Runner-Up)[47] |
| GamePro Readers' Choice Awards | 5th Best Arcade Game, 5th Best Fighting Game[48] |
In Japan,Game Machine listedStreet Fighter Zero 2 as the most successful arcade game of April 1996, outperforming titles such asVirtua Fighter 2.[50]Street Fighter Zero 2 went on to be thehighest-grossing arcade game of 1996 in Japan.[51]Game Machine also listedStreet Fighter Zero 2 Alpha as the second most successful arcade game of September 1996.[52]
Maximum magazine reviewed the arcade game, calling it "Capcom's best fighting game to date" and scoring it 5 out of 5 stars.[43] A reviewer forNext Generation gave the arcade version 3 out of 5 stars, praising the large number of characters, smooth animation, innovative backgrounds, and "wonderful" character design. He deemed the custom combos "an unprecedented, new, and complex innovation inStreet Fighter gameplay", though he found some points of their implementation to be odd. He concluded, "Although it's just another 2D fighter for those who aren't paying attention, this is a fine new addition for true hard-core gameplayers."[40]
In the Japanese arcade magazineGamest,Street Fighter Zero 2 was votedBest Game of 1996 in theTenth Annual Grand Prize.Zero 2 was also number one in the category of "Best Fighting Game", number nine in "Best Graphics", number six in "Best Direction", and number four in "Best VGM (Video Game Music)".Dan Hibiki andSakura Kasugano were depicted on the cover of this issue, who were placed number one and three respectively on the Top 50 Characters of 1996, withRyu at number 13,Zangief at number 18 (sharing the spot withMature fromThe King of Fighters '96),Guy at number 26,Chun-Li at number 32,Akuma at number 37 (sharing the spot with two other characters),Rolento at number 45 (sharing the spot with the Elf fromDungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara) andKen at number 49 (sharing the spot with two other characters).[45]
The Saturn and PlayStation ports both received praise for their faithfulness to their arcade counterpart,[26][36][37][53][54] large selection of characters,[26][44][53][54] and replacement of the easily exploited chain combo system from the originalStreet Fighter Alpha.[26][37][41][53][54] Some critics, while acknowledging that the 2D fighting genre was dated, heldStreet Fighter Alpha 2 to be equal or even superior to any of the 3D fighting games on the market at the time.[26][37] The Saturn version tied with the PlayStation version ofTomb Raider forElectronic Gaming Monthly's "Game of the Month".[26] ThoughEGM never reviewed the PlayStation version ofAlpha 2, in an overview of fighting games released in 1996, Sushi-X commented, "Both the Saturn and PlayStation versions are great, but the Saturn version has a few advantages", citing frames of animation that were missing from the PlayStation version and the Saturn-exclusive illustrations mode.[55] The following year,EGM named the Saturn version the 36th best console video game of all time, saying they chose the Saturn version specifically due to its superior graphics.[56]
The Saturn port was also a commercial success, selling over 400,000 units in Japan.[57]
The Super NES version was much less well-received, with reviews commenting that the sound quality is exceptionally poor,[25][58] the animation is choppy,[24][25][58] and the overambitious graphics cause the game to play at a slow speed, compounded by bouts of slowdown when performing special moves.[24][25][58] Shawn Smith and Dan Hsu ofElectronic Gaming Monthly deemed it the worstStreet Fighter game for the Super NES.[25] Most critics were more forgiving, concluding that despite the port's flaws, it was a decent buy for gamers who did not own a Saturn or PlayStation.[24][25][58]IGN ranked the game 96th on their list of the "Top 100 SNES Games of All Time", saying it pushed the limits of the SNES and had to make some compromises, and concluded: "But it's hard to fault the effort, and that's why it deserves this rank and recognition."[59] In 2018,Complex listed the game 71st in their list of "The Best Super Nintendo Games of All Time", saying that it had loading times before the fights and graphics that were not as good as on the other ports, but stating that "Nonetheless, the gameplay was still on point, and the bells and whistles were pretty amazing for an SNES game. We loved it."[60]
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