Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike

"Is SF3:3rd Strike really worth getting???"

Well, here it is the second Street Fighter III game to be released to the dreamcast. I'm a huge street fighter fan, so I bought this game right when it came out. But what about for those so-so street fighter fans? Is it really worth getting if you already have Double Impact? Well to answer these questions, you have to consider the differences between the two.

What 3rd Strike has that 2nd impact doesnt:
-more characters
-grading system
-hit frame system
-new throw button system
-new music and artwork
-more or new superarts for some of the characters
-another bonus stage
-arcade mode path selection
-recordable training mode
-System direction

Obviously there is a huge difference between the two console games, but still, is it for so-so street fighter fans? And is it worth getting if you already have Double Impact? Well lets move on to rating the game more technically.

Story 6/10
Yes, I'm sure you buy fighting games strictly for the story, :) but let me say this, if you don't know anything about the Street Fighter III storyline, you won't learn any more from playing this game. Yes, it is a decent story, but you'll hardly know any of it by beating it; it requires you to know it before hand. So if you know the story, like it, 3rd strike has new endings so you'll be amused. But if you don't know it, good luck, because some of the new characters <ie Remy> you won't know what is going on at all.

Graphics 8/10
No doubt Street fighter III dishes out the best kind of 2D graphics on the market, but you'll notice that there is an obvious difference between 3rd Strike, and Double Impact. The graphics aren't exactly as good as they were! Whether it being a memory problem or whatever, its just not as good. But still, the animations are great, and of course, the gameplay is not affected. In my opinion the character selection artwork isn't as good as it was in 2nd Impact, some of the characters (Oro/Necro) don't look as good as they did. However, the endings look good still.

Sound 7/10
Sound on the whole has improved, with a new parrying sound which brings more satisfaction than any of the previous ones. Also Super Arts summon on a new sound effect which adds to a better feel. Many people will say that the music is better in 3rd Strike, in my opinion, it hasn't. The music is repetitive, in which they will repeat the same riffs over and over. In my opinion, 2nd Impact has more memorable music than 3rd strike. Of course, its all a matter of opinion, 2nd Impact is more jazzy, while 3rd strike has taken up a more hip-hop kinda sound.

Gameplay 10/10
SF3: 3rd strike is the perfection of the street fighter III engine, with its manual throws, parrying(including gaurd parrying), and improved air parrying, the gameplay can't get any better. Also, there are a wide range of characters with very individual styles, so I'm sure you'll have fun learning to play all of them. Also, the training mode is great. Have you ever had a friend do a super art over and over so that you can learn how to parry it? No more with this baby. You can pre-record what you want to parry within about 60 seconds, and you play it back against yourself and you can try to parry it yourself. While on the topic of recording... you can record individual battles, and replay them whenever you want. So if you finished your friend off really good and want to gloat about it, just hit the replay option over and over again. Moving on to skill. Now with the new grading system, you can tell how good you are, and you are granted with some new bragging rights. From grades of G to MSF, you can find out where you stand. 3rd Strike more so than the other Street Fighter III installments, rewards skill. For example, the parrying system has improved so the better you are at parrying, the better you'll do. Also there is also a new hit frame system, in which hits are more precise. If you are good at the game it'll show, and the way the score is set up now, the better you are, the higher your score. Yes, this sounds obvious, but what I mean is that cheapness doesn't exactly reward in this game. For example, I see guys coming in playing Akuma, using the same combo over and over again, but due to the improved scoring and grading system, they won't get that good of a grade. SF3: 3rd Strike has SOLID GAMEPLAY, street fighter III perfection.

Replay 9/10
The game is absolutely perfect. Its gameplay is solid like I mentioned earlier, and the greatest feature I saw in this console version is the System Direction. Seriously, with system direction you can totally alter the game to what you want. Don't like the fact that you can't airblock? Well go to the system direction pages and turn it on. Wish you could use more than one super art in battle? Well go to the system direction and enable multiple super arts. This game can be altered so many different ways, in which, I'm sure you can not get bored of this game.

Buy: Yes or No
Now here is the main issue. Should you buy this game? especially if you already have double impact. If you are a big Street Fighter fan, YES YES YES. It is the best Street Fighter III installment, full with new endings, characters, and features. However, if you are not a huge fan and already have Double Impact, I suggest you borrow it before buying it. The main reason being, that it is STILL a Street Fighter III game, so don't expect a drastic new level of play. It'll play basically the same with just a couple of new features. But if you want to play the new characters, I suggest you go out and buy this game.

Regrets...
The US version disappointed me when I got it. The most noticeable difference I saw is that it lacked Modem support!!! I really wish it had it, but it doesn't, so if you were disappointed that Double Impact didn't have it and expected 3rd Strike to have it, you'll be disappointed again. Another thing that disappointed me is the lack of the Sean basketball Parry practice option and a the SUV destruction option. Yes, they're still in the game, but you can't choose them in the options like you were able to choose Sean's Parry practice in Double Impact. Also, I know I shouldn't compare this game to Street Fighter Alpha 3, but I will. I was hoping that 3rd Strike would have more options, like maybe at least a world tour mode. However, its training mode is very very good.


To finish up....
If you want a solid fighting game, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike is the game for you. It has such a wide range of options, and with a good selection of characters, it'll be sure to entertain you for years to come. Like I said, SF3: 3rd Stike is definitely a BUY game if you don't have any other Street Fighter III game, but if you already have Double Impact and are not that big into this game anyways, try it out before you get it. Believe me its a good game... I mean its the reason I even bought a dreamcast.

Try before Buy is my advice.
comments/questions to -- dosetsu@neo-tokyo.org

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/10/00, Updated 10/10/00