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Reviews
Reviewing Chun-Li’s Giant Plastic Thighs (and Ryu’s Giant Veiny Feet)
Square Enix’s first two Street Fighter IV figures, based on series “heroes” Ryu and Chun-Li, have just hit shelves. Part of the company’s Play Arts line, they’re big, they’re detailed and they’re a little on the expensive side. But are they any good? They’re certainly heavy, that’s for sure. Standing just over 20cm each, these…
By Luke Plunkett Published December 1, 2011 -
Street Fighter‘s Bosses Are Much More Menacing in Mecha Form
Artists BossLogic and Reza have teamed up to give the big baddies of Street Fighter a mecha makeover, creating a set of characters I’d gladly purchase another version of Street Fighter IV to play. While the sinister hunch of Mecha-Sagat brings chills and the sleek lines of Mega-Vega hint at a deadly efficiency, it’s Mecha-Bison,…
By Mike Fahey Published November 29, 2011 -
“Fighting Game Characters Are Racist”
That’s not a view I hold, mind you. It’s just the name of this great piece by artist Sachin Teng! I don’t think it’s a grand political gesture on his part. Just the kind of observation we’ve all made once or twice, with a chuckle and a shake of the head. Only he made a…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 21, 2011 -
Culture
Bengus’ Capcom Game Art Will Knock Your Teeth Out
Since I’ve started a thing lately with Capcom artists, I may as well finish it by spending a morning showing off the work of Bengus. A bit of an enigma, Bengus’ art has been a big part of Capcom’s fighting games since 1987, with almost every title and series from the original Street Fighter through…
By Luke Plunkett Published November 2, 2011 -
Thank Capcom These Hideous, Offensive Street Fighter Rejects Never Saw Life
Did you know that Zangief’s original name was Vodka Gorbalsky? Do you realize how horrifically stereotypical some of the early Street Fighter character designs were? You will once you watch episode one of Machinima’s FighterPedia It’s not Japan’s fault that they don’t have a lot of African, Indian, or Russian people hanging about to model…
By Mike Fahey Published November 1, 2011 -
He Asked About Misogyny in Street Fighter, and the Game’s Caretakers Didn’t Dodge
At a New York University conference about game design this past weekend, a conversation about misogyny broke out. Street Fighter brought it on, and the answers, some of them from one of the current caretakers of the series at Capcom, were frank. You might have expected defensive answers. People don’t usually react well to being…
By Stephen Totilo Published October 31, 2011 -
Culture
Capcom Wouldn’t be Capcom Without Akiman’s Amazing Art
Japanese artist Akira Yasuda, better known by his pen name Akiman, is a legend in the video game art world, being responsible for more classic images, posters, box covers and characters than we’ve got space to share. So we’ll keep things brief, and just focus on some of his more memorable works. Akiman worked at…
By Luke Plunkett Published October 27, 2011 -
Can You Handle Zangief’s Tiny Red Shorts?
Say hello to Mike Fass. You might be familiar with this guy if you watched Street Fighter: The Later Years or if you attended the Mr. Stonewall Bear Competition earlier this year. The Mr. Stonewall Bear Competition was to pick the top “bear”—or manly, hairy gay dude. Fass has worked as a rock drummer, an…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 27, 2011 -
CultureTotal RecallThe Best Street Fighter Movie Starred…Jackie Chan?
You’ve seen the bad of the Street Fighter craze of the early 90s. Now see the good. No, not good. Amazing In this clip, from 1993 movie City Hunter, we see martial arts superstar Jackie Chan take a bit of a beating. After which he starts seeing things. Namely, characters from Street Fighter II. Then…
By Luke Plunkett Published October 27, 2011 -
CultureTotal RecallWhen Street Fighter met GI Joe, the World Suffered
The year was 1993. Street Fighter was one of the biggest things on the planet, and venerable toy franchise GI Joe…wasn’t. In an effort to boost Joe’s sales, Hasbro figured creating action figures based on Street Fighter would be a really good idea! It wasn’t. Between 1993 and 1994, Capcom and Hasbro teamed up to…
By Luke Plunkett Published October 20, 2011 -
This Ryu Cosplay Is an Animated GIF Waiting To Happen
Cosplay is not easy. And this Ryu cosplayer gets the costume part totally right. He also does a solid job uttering “Hadouken!” It’s when he actually starts trying to pull off Ryu’s moves when things go south. Also, cartwheels? Wait, what? You can contact Brian Ashcraft, the author of this post, at [email protected]. You can…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 18, 2011 -
The Best (Fake) Video Game Wedding Picture Ever?
I just went to a friend’s wedding this weekend and while it was a emotional, sincere and booze-filled good time, there was no roundhouse kicking at any point during the ceremonies. As you can see by the pic above, that was a clear error. Especially when you consider that the groom is a games journalist…
By Evan Narcisse Published October 17, 2011 -
Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition Punches Out a Ver.2012 Update
On Dec. 2, the free update will hit Japanese arcades first, and then it will be available for home console download on Dec. 13. The patch rebalances SSFIV:AE and adds a “Ver.2012” below the title screen’s logo. [Capcom]
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 17, 2011 -
Stupidly Low Salary Offered to Street Fighter II‘s Iconic Artist
Akira Yasuda, better known as “Akiman” is about as big as they come among Japanese game designers and illustrators. Besides designing and planning titles like Forgotten Worlds, Final Fight, and Street Fighter II, he’s created some of gaming’s most iconic characters and art, such as for, again, Street Fighter II For a guy with credits…
By Brian Ashcraft Published October 17, 2011 -
Street Fighter x Tekken Comes Out March 2012, Brings Fighting Game Viagra With It
Fighting games have traditionally been one arena of player-vs-player engagement where pyre skill wins the day. Sure, characters like Street Fighter‘s Dhalsim throw off the balance with his long reach, but generally the genre’s big titles are tuned to the point where reflexes and training can equal things out. Street Fighter x Tekken might be…
By Evan Narcisse Published October 14, 2011 -
Watch Daigo Get Perfected in Super Street Fighter IV
Could you obliterate legendary competitive Street Fighter player Daigo “The Beast” Umehara? Could you perfect him in Super Street Fighter IV, keeping him from laying a finger on you? At the EVO 2011 fighting game tournament this past summer, a gamer named Poongko did. Marvel at this. Remember, in a different Street Fighter game, Daigo…
By Stephen Totilo Published October 3, 2011 -
In Japan, Wrestling Masks Aren’t Just for Half-Naked Dudes in Boots
It began, as so many things do, with sweaty men in tight underpants. And they wore masks. Let’s not forget the masks. Lucha Libre masks. Those masks might have started in Mexican professional wrestling, but they live on in Japan, whether that be in fashion, manga, pornos and, yes, video games. “You want to know…
By Brian Ashcraft Published September 29, 2011 -
A Street Fighter II Painting So Small, It Could Fit on a Fingernail
Hadouken! Self-styled retro game artist Maya Pixelskaya painted Ryu unleashing a “wave motion fist” and Chun-Li pulling off a spinning bird kick—on her fingernail. Not sure which is more impressive: Maya’s painting or her cuticles. For more retro gaming art, check out Maya’s website. It’s chock full of neckties, shoes, and guitars. Maya Pixelskaya [Official…
By Brian Ashcraft Published September 27, 2011 -
Cammy vs. Chun-li (or Cannon Spike vs. Spinning Bird Kick)
Cammy and Chun-Li settle their differences in this ass kicking Street Fighter illustration by Fung Kin Chew. Fight! Cammy and Chun-Li by Fung Kin Chew (deviantART) (Twitter) Need your daily fill of geek eye candy? If so, head over to Justin Page’s Rampaged Reality and get your fix. Republished with permission. Cammy and Chun-li by…
By Michael McWhertor Published September 23, 2011