SF4 AE Adjustments

There's an updated list of Street Fighter 4: Arcade Edition changes over at SRK. I found some of the listed changes intersting.

Hakan can be very scary with his new buffs. Stacking oil will give him the ability to actually stay oiled for a good portion of a round. Hitbox buffs to his F+LP and s.HP will give him some better anti-airs. The ability to combo s.LK into LP Slide (which can then be followed with an oil-up) will help his pressure game tremendously. It's defintely much better than c.LKx3.

Honda is getting well-deserved nerfs. I like the idea that his Headbutt will do less damage from far away. This makes trying to counter random Headbutts less risky. LP Headbutt also loses upper body invincibility, making it far less effective as an anti-air.

Bison's changes are a nice compromise. His s.HK does less damage from a distance, which seems totally fair. His Ultra 2 gets a charge motion, but also does more damage. His super gets complete projectile invincibility, which may or may not come in handy.

T. Hawk can supposedly cancel j.MK into EX Condor Dive, which could make for some interesting mix-ups (or juggles?) His Ultra 2 gets faster startup and better range, which could be a godsend. His Ultra 2 would be awesome if it just reached a little further. I think it has the potential to be more useful than his Ultra 1. Although, none of this matters if T. Hawk remains subpar overall.

Abel gets nerfed really hard. I don't think his Ultra 2 was that scary to begin with, but it sounds like total garbage in AE. His roll is more vulnerable, and his Tornado Throw does less damage. Abel was definitely strong in Super, but I don't know if he was in need of such punishing adjustments.

Dan gets some interesting adjustments, mostly in the way of buffs to the frame advantage on his normals. These buffs give him the ability to do some nice combos via linking. He can do c.LK, c.LK, Koryuken; s.MP, c.MK, EX Dankukyaku; or even counterhit s.MP, Ultra 1.

Gief's EX Glove no longer knocks down, which is something we've heard before. This might totally kill his knockdown mixup game, but will his new in-your-face mixups be even more dangerous? You can apparently steer his Ultra 2 now, although it still probably pales in comparison to "Mother Russia." And in the most unexpected buff category, LP SPD gets more damage and range! I don't think a Gief player could wish for anything better. Jab SPD is already a threat, but this makes it a promise: You will get scooped up! This will help Gief in matches where his opponent is able to poke from further than he currently can really do anything about. I'm looking forward to it.

Third Strike Video Featuring Sugiyama's Necro

I haven't showcased Third Strike in quite a while, but I found this great video uploaded by TheShend on YouTube. Highlights include some amazing Necro action by Sugiyama and solid Elena play by Teppei:

Licensed to Take You for a Ride

Marvel vs Capcom 3 has a new online ranking system involving "license cards." A player's license card contains data about his strengths and weaknesses, wins and losses, and most-used team. Mentioned (but not pictured) in the Capcom-Unity post is that license cards also contain data on a player's favorite attacks. Before entering an online battle, you'll have a chance to scout your opponent by reviewing his license card.

The game will also contain a Mission Mode, containing character-specific challenges. Performing the required challenges and combos will apparently earn titles that can be displayed on your license card. Will it have SF4-level challenges, or will we see SF EX-style challenges that are maniacally difficult?

The Most Important SoCal Regionals Championship

SCR played host to a Tekken Ball tournament. For those unfamiliar, Tekken Ball is a mini-game included with the PlayStation version of Tekken 3. The game plays like a cross between dodge ball and volleyball. The players attack the ball with standard Tekken attacks, which transfer damage into the ball. The ball can then damage the opponent if it hits him or the ground on his side of the court. The finals (embedded below via Level|Up's YouTube channel) feature commentary from MarkMan and AJ "PotatoHead" Papa and are quite exciting once the players switch from Gon to "business" characters.

She-Hulk and Zero Gameplay Videos

From the OfficialMvC3 YouTube channel:

Yet Another "Leaked" MvC3 Roster

This latest list has some credibility, because it predicted Jill and Shuma as DLC characters before they were announced. As reported on SRK (and found on NeoGAF), we might expect the following characters:

MARVEL SIDE:

• Galactus (Boss)
• Taskmaster (Unlockable)
• Sentinel
• Storm
• Phoenix / Dark Phoenix

CAPCOM SIDE:

• C. Viper
• Hsien-ko / Lei Lei
• Mike Haggar
• Akuma / Gouki (Unlockable)

Reportedly, Phoenix can perform a resurrection, ala Gill, if she is KO'd with a full super meter. When she comes back, she does so as Dark Phoenix.

MvC3 Coming Feb 15, Shuma and Jill Confirmed

Capcom has announced a February 15, 2011 release date for Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds. Additionally, Shuma-Gorrath and Jill Valentine (in her RE5 outfit) were revealed as DLC characters. Codes for the DLC will be included in the game's special edition, and the actual downloads should be available in mid-March. It is safe to assume that these will not be the only DLC characters and that all of the DLC will be available to owners of the standard edition, albeit for a price.

The Special Edition version contains a bunch of stuff you probably don't need, but it does look nice. The cover of the steel case is actually the art from a poster given out at NY Comic Con (given out in a contest on this very site). The comic cover from NYCC (also a contest prize) actually becomes an entire prologue comic written by Frank Tieri.

Judging by the availability of DLC characters, we may be seeing new characters announced throughout the game's life. It might actually pay off to keep bugging Capcom for your favorite characters over time. February 15th is only the beginning.