Capcom recently announced that they will be releasing their console and PC title Street Fighter IV to the iPhone and iPod Touch in March. Specifics on the roster haven’t been released but will include both classic characters and new fighters introduced in Street Fighter IV.
“This is Street Fighter IV in all its glory… uncompromised and awesome,” said General Manager of Mobile Content Development, Takeshi Tezuka. “We’re particularly proud of the multiplayer feature as it remains true to the series arcade roots by allowing players to go head-to-head over Bluetooth in spectacular fashion.”
Well, I guess it's going to have to do...
Controls for the game will use conventional virtual d-pad and will play just like the console versions and bring a new level of flexibility to the controls we’ve seen in similar game interfaces on the iPhone thus far. Players will be able to move the d-pad and buttons anywhere on the screen for comfort and precision and adjust the transparency of the controls to preference as well.
Considering how much emphasis the franchise has put on tactile physical controls and how much time and money gamers have been willing to spend on getting custom equipment to play the game we’re a little skeptical that the virtual pad is going to be exceptionally satisfying experience. However, we’re still excited to see how the game will run on this platform regardless of the limitations.
Too early to call
Players will be able to get a good feel for the game in the single player Dojo mode but the real action will take place in the Bluetooth multiplayer championship. It’s a good start but we would have been much more excited to see online multiplayer competitions or at least the ability to play with specific friends over WI-Fi or 3G. Hopefully this is a feature they will consider adding sometime after the release if the game proves as popular as they are hoping.
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