Capcom delivers an epic crossover once again, Pringles not included. Street Fighter x Tekken (pronounced Street Fighter CROSS Tekken) on the PS3 and Xbox 360 combines two of fighting’s most famous franchises into one single fast-paced button-mashing melee.
The gameplay includes elements of both the Street Fighter and Tekken franchises, but the actual fighting engine itself skews heavily towards Street Fighter. The game is a basic 2.5D tag fighter, with just a hint of Street Fighter IV‘s complexity and a dash of the insanity that the Marvel vs. Capcom franchise is known for. Overall, it’s a good mix. The demo on the show floor had several playable characters from each side, with Ryu, Sagat, Ken, Abel, Guile, Cammy, and Chun Li representing the Street Fighter franchise, and Kazuya, King, Hwoarang, Bob, Julia, Marduk, and Nina playing for team Tekken.
The fighting is fast and furious, with an emphasis on tag combos and special moves. Like in many of Capcom’s crossover fighting games, there are multiple ways to change characters during battle. The game uses six attack buttons like Street Fighter (as opposed to Tekken‘s four). Pressing MP+MK will do a “normal” tag, which causes your player character to run offscreen and the replacement character to run in. In practice, it plays like a faster version of Street Fighter EX3‘s tagging, and leaves the player just as vulnerable. Tagging mid-combo is accomplished by pressing HP+HK, which leads directly into a juggle opportunity for the character tagging in. Tagging this way allows for massive shenanigans and, as a bonus, is also completely safe for the aggressor. Each character’s iconic special moves have translated flawlessly into the game and are deadlier than ever.
Street Fighter x Tekken is shaping up nicely and looks to be another feather in the cap of Capcom’s fighting game renaissance. I’m very excited to give the full version a thorough beatdown when it launches later this year.
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