Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition discs will include codes to download the character DLC

A possible inconvenience for the future.

This news will not be an issue for most players, but a select few could get burned. Based on the Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition Japanese webpage, the physical edition of the game will include codes to redeem for the Season 1 & 2 character DLC, rather than having it included on the disc.

sfvae code site sample

Presuming this remains true when the game arrives in 2018, it’s not a real surprise: it makes some sense under a modern production/distribution standpoint to just pack in a “vanilla” copy of the game, and let the Arcade Edition upgrades get patched in when you launch it, and tying that content to a single CFN user. This has no bearing on new players picking up a digital copy in January, but it is something to watch out for if you’re a gamer that likes to pick up used games, as a resold copy of SFVAE would be no different than the basic original release of Street Fighter V, leaving a newcomer with a lot of DLC to catch up on. A potentially greater inconvenience: it will also prevent tournament organizers from swapping around up-to-date SFVAE discs, making it trickier to ensure each station has the full roster available at a given event.

Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition hits stores and arrives as a free upgrade to existing users on January 18, 2018.

SFV Arcade Edition

Thanks to NightmareSteam for the tip.

Sources: Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition (Japan); NeoGAF

Classic SNK fighting games for PC are 75% off this weekend at GOG.com

Classic fighting fans, here’s a chance to fill up your PC fighter collection.

Fans of SNK’s old-school library of fighting games — who like to play on PC — have a chance to grab some of SNK’s classic titles on GOG.com for a whopping 75% off this weekend. Head over to the SNK Fighter Pack page on GOG.com to check out the selection, each only $1.49 USD (down from $5.99)…

  • Art of Fighting 2
  • Garou: Mark of the Wolves
  • Real Bout Fatal Fury 2: The Newcomers
  • The King of Fighters 2000
  • The King of Fighters 2002
  • The Last Blade
  • Fatal Fury Special
  • Samurai Shodown II
  • Samurai Shodown V Special

… or grab them all for $13.41 USD, down from $53.91. Discounts of up to 75% on other SNK arcade titles are also available in the SNK Action Pack and the SNK Arcade Pack, as well.

These discounts will last until 3:00 PM PT on October 9th.

Source: GOG.com

Catch footage of the top BlazBlue: Central Fiction arcade player, Ronitta, using Es

As we’re well into “Season 2” of BlazBlue: Central Fiction, it’s interesting to see how the gameplay landscape has shifted. While the game generally feels more fair for the majority of the cast, one player in particular has risen to the top. The arcade rankings show Ronitta’s Es as the currently highest-placing fighter.

Though the rankings aren’t a clear correlation to a “tier list,” you can see Ronitta’s dominance in the footage compilation from Jourdal below. Es has a very balanced moveset, great range for normals, and zoning that’s actually difficult to deal with for a lot of characters. Ronitta shows how to handle Izanami, Mai, Azrael and Nine in the matches below.

Curious about the list of top arcade players? Jourdal also uploaded a video showing the rankings and wrote our their names and characters:

1. Ronitta (ES) Tentei
2. Koike (LI) Tentei
3. Itou Sae (CR) Tentei
4. Fenrich (JI) Meiou
5. Masa (MA) Meiou
6. Daiwa (PL) Meiou
7. Isa (IN) Meiou
8. Konan (TS) Meiou
9. Uma No Hone (VK) Meiou
10. Naoto (NI) Meiou
11. ??? (AM) Meiou
12. Grandia (TG) Meiou
13. Esuke (CR) Meiou
14. N-O (RC) Kishin
15. ??? (PL) Kishin
16. Mokemoke (RE) Kishin
17. Fumi (NI) Kishin
18. Matoi (KO) Kishin
19. J Anson (HZ) Kishin
20. Fukku (Bang) Kishin
21. Kikuchiyo (LI) Kishin
22. Poropiccho (SU) Kishin
23. Makki @Lin Hime (RC) Kishin
24. Aosame (AR) Kishin
25. Takahiro/Kuresu (ES) Kishin
26. Rikutoe (IN) Kishin
27. Yutta (RG) Kishin
28. Watagashi (Es) Kishin
29. DISA (NI) Kishin
30. ??? (HI) Kishin

Be sure to keep an eye on Jourdal’s channel for more BlazBlue footage.

Source: Jourdal

South East Asia Major will start touring around the South East Asia region, starting next year

For the longest time, South East Asia Major has been associated with the “Lion City,” Singapore. However, that wasn’t always the case: a couple of years back, there were plans to move the event around the region each year. This was first tried out in 2015 with the move to Bangkok, however the change in schedule to October last year saw the event move back to Singapore.

Now it seems that those initial plans to have the SEAM visit different countries every year will finally bear fruit. Beast of the East co-founder Yungtek “Cameraman” Koh formally announced during the GameStart-Asia press conference that South East Asia Major be branching out to other countries again starting next year.

The first of these will be South East Asia Major Philippines, which will be held in 2018. This will be followed up by South East Asia Major Thailand, and South East Asia Major Malaysia in 2019.

The South East Asia region has seen a lot of growth in fighting game tournaments, over the past few years. Aside from being the first region to get a regional Capcom Pro Tour qualifier in 2014, the region has seen a number of major tournaments pop up — such as Thaiger Uppercut, Manila Cup, and FV Cup. This new direction for South East Asia Major sees the region take a step that no other region has done before.

That said — before that, we still have South East Asia Major 2017, which takes place in Singapore next week.

Source: Spout360

See how Yamcha, Tien, SSB Goku and Vegeta play with these Dragon Ball FighterZ breakdowns from Game Informer

Continuing their month long coverage of Dragon Ball FighterZ, Game Informer have created special character breakdowns for new characters Tien and Yamcha, as well as Super Saiyan Blue Goku and Vegeta. While only short overviews, they give eager DBFZ fans a glimpse of the overall skill sets of each fighter.

For SSB Goku, he’s a more aggressive version of the full blooded Saiyan. He gains a handful of new specials which have him crossing the screen at great speed, including a divekick and a teleport which has him appearing behind the opponent and kicking them in the back. He also has an unblockable gut punch — perfect for breaking down an opponent’s defence but it has quite the lengthy start up. The heavy version of the gut punch puts opponents into a crumple state, allowing for a tag combo. Similar to Gohan’s Father/Son Kamehameha, SSB Goku can beef up his Level 3 Super, the Kaioken x 20 God Kamehameha, with a powerful uppercut if you have two spare Super bars.

Like Goku, SSB Vegeta is geared toward offensive play. He gains a jumping command grab which slams opponents into the earth, while his Dash Kick has morphed in a rekka. Vegeta can follow up the Dash Kick with two extra attacks, including a side-switch and a flip kick which allows the Saiyan to disengage if he hits a blocking opponent. His Big Bang Attack becomes his 236+Ki Blast while in Super Saiyan Blue, and his Level 1 Super now has him rushing his opponent down with a rapid flurry of punches and kicks. Vegeta’s Final Flash can also be enhanced by spending two bars of the Super gauge, adding a super-powered gut punch onto the end of it.

Yamcha has a special place in Arc System Works’ heart and it shows in their design for the desert bandit. Yamcha’s regular Wolf Fang Fist is a rekka, allowing Yamcha to mix up his opponent with highs, lows, side-switches and even a launcher. Players can control the trajectory of his Spirit Ball Super, so you can determine in which direction your opponent flies at the end of the attack.

Unlike the other three characters, Tien is still in active development, so things like his idle animation are still a work in progress. Tien’s moveset collects together techniques from the original Dragon Ball, alongside Z and Super, to make him a well-rounded fighter. His Volleyball Attack has Tien dashing forward with a low-hitting strike and punting his opponent into the air. You can either start a regular air combo after launching your opponent skyward, or you can simply smash the opponent back down to the ground with a powerful spike. He does have a diving knee attack as well, which acts as a fast-moving overhead.

Tien can summon Chiaotzu to freeze his foe in place for a short time, so he can move in to attack. Finally, both his normal and Shin Kikoho drain Tien’s health to balance the relative power of these Supers. His Shin Kikoho can be used multiple times in a row, with each consecutive use draining both his health bar and Super meter. It can be a worthwhile gamble, as four consecutive blasts of the Shin Kikoho can kill a full health enemy.

You can check out all the video breakdowns on the Game Informer website and stay tuned for more information over the coming month.

Source: Game Informer

Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden and Dragon Ball Fusions bundle coming to Nintendo 3DS in Japan

If you’re one of those who can’t wait until February to get some Dragon Ball Z fighting action, here’s some great news for you — if you’re a 3DS owner in Japan, or willing to import. Bandai Namco has announced that they will be releasing a special Dragon Ball Extreme Fusion Pack with both Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden and Dragon Ball Fusions for the 3DS in Japan, later this November.

Of the two, Extreme Butoden is the one of more interest to fighting game fans, seeing as it’s a fighting game worked on by Arc System Works — their previous Dragon Ball Z game, prior to Dragon Ball FighterZ, in fact. Dragon Ball Fusions, on the other hand, is more of an RPG based around custom character creation, and fusing different characters.

In addition to these, the Dragon Ball Extreme Fusion Pack will also come with a download code for the 3DS Virtual Console release of Dragon Ball Z: Kyoushuu! Saiyan for the Famicom. The Dragon Ball Extreme Fusion Pack will be available for purchase on November 30 for ¥4,800 in Japan.

Source: Gematsu

Comparing Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite with Dragon Ball FighterZ; How do the producers feel about it?

Tag is definitely back in vogue in fighting games. By the end of next year, we’re going to have three major tag games to choose from: Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, Dragon Ball FighterZ, and BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle. Whichever one you’re into, no doubt you’ve been comparing them in your mind.

Game Informer is continuing their Dragon Ball FighterZ coverage. This time, they’ve decided to see what the producers of two competing games think of one another.

“If I’m not mistaken, Infinite is designed with a two-on-two battle system, whereas our game features a three-on-three battle system. In that sense, the gameplay differs between the games. Heck, the release dates are different, too [laughs],” Tomoko Hiroki, producer of DBFZ, says. “In any case, I’m happy that our titles are each different in its own unique way. “Still, I have to admit, when I first saw Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite, I thought to myself, ‘Oh shoot!’ [laughs].”

Hiroki didn’t offer many thoughts on Infinite; she says that she hasn’t really had a chance to play it. The response on Capcom’s side has been pretty diplomatic.

“I haven’t played it yet, but the action in Dragon Ball FighterZ looks great,” said Michael Evans, a producer who is working on Infinite. “Personally, in the past, I haven’t put a lot of time into the anime fighters, but I’m looking forward to trying it out. All I can say is that it’s a great time to be alive for fighting-game fans!”

Sounds like neither side has done that much research into the competition, mostly sticking to their own work. Gotta appreciate that little “Oh shoot!” from Hiroki, however! Read the full interview over on Game Informer’s website.

Source: Game Informer

Feast your eyes on official — and unofficial — BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle footage

Can’t Escape from Crossing Fate!

We’re finally seeing more footage from BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle! The zany crossover is now playable at New York Comic Con, and we’ve heard some Cross Tag Battle first impressions from players. Earlier today, the official Arc System Works uploaded a “Play Movie” that shows battles in high quality.

The matches showcase all seven available characters — Ragna, Jin, Hyde, Linne, Yu, Yosuke, and Ruby — while playing their themes in the background, including one from the RWBY soundtrack (it sounds fitting!). There’s a couple of interesting things to note: for instance, you can pre-select who goes first during the loading screen. You can also spot a “Reject” mechanic where a player pushes the assailant back, à la Marvel vs. Capcom.

My favorite moments are right at 3:00, when Jin, while having Resonance Blaze, cuts through both opponents with an Overdrive Ice Fang, dealing a whopping 7000 damage to the off-character. There’s also a cool interaction around 6:18 when Linne is about to hit Ragna with a super, but Hyde activates his own in response, narrowly saving Ragna with a clash.

There are also some unofficial videos floating around on Twitter:

Sources: Arc System Works;@UnsafeonHit; @_AetherStar

Matt Dhalgren, Senior Product Manager for Capcom, leaves position after nearly a decade

In a piece of somber news, we’ve learned that Capcom’s Senior Product Manager of fighting games, Matt Dhalgren — who many may remember from his appearances as the host of  Cross Assault — will be departing the company after nearly a decade-long career.

Beginning with Capcom as an Associate Product Marketing Manager, “Matt Deezie’s” credits include assisting with the execution of marketing campaigns of various titles, such as MotoGP’08, Lost Planet 2, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, Street Fighter X Tekken, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers and Street Fighter V, as well as the company’s highest-selling game of all-time, Resident Evil 5 and its Gold Edition.

His final credit with the company will be as the Director of Brand Marketing for the recently-released Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite.

Speaking to EventHubs, Matt noted that, “It is difficult for me to leave, but [I] am extremely grateful for my time spent at Capcom, and [am] excited for the next chapter of my career. I look forward to rooting for Capcom’s success as a fan.”

Dhalgren also mentioned that he has “grown here tremendously, both personally and professionally, and have been given the opportunity to work with so many truly amazing people. I’m very proud of the projects I was able to influence, most particularly our fighting games and launching the Capcom Pro Tour.” Dhalgren also served as one of the main producers behind the CPT and Capcom’s e-sports endeavors, in addition to being a popular source of public relations between Capcom and the fighting game community.

We here at Shoryuken would like to wish Matt Dhalgren all the best as he continues onward towards a new career path.

Source: EventHubs; via NeoGAF

Ultra-bloody & ultra-goofy indie fighter GUTS launches October 31, has a free demo available now on Steam

You can now try dismembering opponents (on live TV) for yourself.

Flux Game Studio’s bloody indie fighter GUTS had an early showing back at Evo 2017, allowing attendees some hands-on time with the strange, gory, and goofy comedy fighting game. Now, all Steam users can give this unusual game a try via a free demo.

In GUTS, dismemberment is a central mechanic — but losing a limb seems to be little more than a minor inconvenience, as contenders continue to fight even as little more than bloody stumps. From Flux Game Studio’s description:

Set in the year of 2067, GUTS is a deadly reality TV show that feeds the blood lust of a dystopian Earth. Players compete in bloody arenas to earn fame and fortune as the world’s next fighting idol. In order to be the best, players must master special combination moves, learn the ropes of the different move sets that change according to how many limbs they still have left, time their severing attacks and evade their opponent’s deadly blades.

If you want to join in on this bizarre limbs-optional, blood-spurting splatfest, head over to the game’s Steam page to download your demo now. Playing the demo will apparently grant access to exclusive weapon skins and other add-ons in the release version. The game will launch on Steam on October 31, 2017, for $19.99 USD.

Sources: press release, Flux Game Studio, GUTS (Steam)