STACK #224 June 2023

GAMING FEATURE

visit jbhifi.com.au/stack

Have you ever wondered where ideas come from for new Street Fighter characters? Nakayama explains: “We decide based on the new fighting style and the country of origin. This is a tradition in the Street Fighter series. The characters are younger than the ones who will appear in the game again. This is because we want newcomers to the game to feel a sense of familiarity with the characters.”

Street Fighter first hit arcades in 1987. DYK?

You’ve really catered for solo players this time out. What stands out to you as the highlight of the single player SF6 experience?

World Tour allows you to create your own avatar. I think it's fascinating to find and customise your favourite outfits. I also think it is fun to interact with legendary fighters. Arcade mode in Fighting Ground also supports high score rankings, so I think it's a good idea to challenge yourself there as well. You’ve promised three distinct control schemes. Will classic SF fans feel at home, as well as newcomers to the series who may have previously been deterred by the game’s complexity? We hope that this will be the case. We have designed the game so that it can be played comfortably even with the controller that comes with the hardware from the beginning. How has it been creating Street Fighter 6 on the RE Engine, and did it allow you to do things that you couldn’t previously accomplish in the series? We tried other game engines but chose the RE engine for the long term. Using our own engine allowed us to solve problems faster. We have a dedicated team within the company, and it was great to work with them. We were able to discuss enhancements with them. Please, do you have any hot insider tips that you’ll share for players of Street Fighter 6 ? Hidden commands are built into the actual function (top secret that even the development staff doesn't know much about!).

It’s been seven years since Street Fighter V released, and we now have a whole new generation of consoles on which this month’s sequel, Street Fighter 6 , gets to play. STACK had the opportunity to fire some questions at the game’s director at Capcom,Takayuki Nakayama, and received the following translated replies. Words Amy Flower

that is linked to the World Tour are too diverse to summarise in a few words. We encourage you to play the World Tour. There are three distinct modes in ‘World Tour’, ‘Battle Hub’, and ‘Fighting Grounds’. Can you please briefly explain what they bring to the world of Street Fighter 6 ? World Tour allows you to experience how to operate and improve your fighting game. You will also get to know the personalities of each character. There is a big storyline, and you will be able to have a new experience by playing the game with your own character. Battle Hub allows you to interact and compete with other players. Management events are also available. Fighting Ground offers a greatly enhanced version of the fun parts of previous fighting games. We have prepared many support functions for players to improve their skills, as well as content for casual matches.

When did planning start for Street Fighter 6 , and what new features did you consider to be “must-haves”? I wrote my first project in 2018. I thought that fighting games are interesting games, but in order to get used to the game, the problem is that there are no support functions, experiences, or explanations on the game side to help people understand the fun of the game, and I thought it was essential to have an idea to solve this problem. Were there any ideas that you’d have liked to have included but were considered a bit too wild? I thought it would be interesting if we could have a money match, but gave up due to legal issues. It would be interesting to see a future where people can make a living just by playing fighting games. Can you please give us a brief summary of the story that drives Street Fighter 6 ? This is a story that takes place after Street Fighter III . It’s the story of legendary fighters such as Ryu and Chun-Li, who have gained more dignity, and newcomers such as Luke, Jamie, and Kimberly, who are all active in the game. The story of the World Tour, the Arcade Mode story of each character, and the manga

• Street Fighter 6 is out on Jun 2

What are you most hoping that players will take away from playing Street Fighter 6 ?

I want people to like the Street Fighter series and fighting games more. I also hope that the young people who are interested in these games will become the next generation of creators.

JUNE 2023

jbhifi.com.au

8