Category: News

If you haven’t had enough info on Street Fighter V newcomer Laura, Japanese site 4Gamer has even more. Below you’ll find the profile for the sexy Brazilian along with a bit of more detail on her moveset.

From 4Gamer:

Laura, the third newcomer to the Street Fighter series, joins the battle! This Brazilian female takes the opponent’s breath away with her looks and abundance of Jiu-Jitsu and electric techniques!

Laura, Passion Dancing on the Heat Wave

Laura is a free-spirited, thrill-seeking personality. She’s an expert in her own style of Matsuda Jiu-Jitsu. She quickly rushes down her opponents and immobilizes them with her signature holds.

Weight: 175 cm
Height: 72 kg
Job/Affiliation: Sean’s older sister/Matsuda Jiu-Jitsu martial artist
Likes: Her younger brother, meat, fights

V-Trigger: Baribari Spark (Spark Show)

As the name suggests, Laura’s hands become covered in electricity. Her V-Skill gains electric properties and Thunder Clap gains increased range.

V-Skill: Volty Line

A splash kick attack. With directional input she dashes forward or back, then unleashes the attack. If you release the buttons she simply executes the step, making it a good way to shake up the opponent.

Special Move: Bolt Charge

An elbow rush attack whose properties change greatly based on the button strength used. The M version of Bolt Charge branches into Split River or Rodeo Break on hit. It’s highly damaging, so be sure to incorporate the move in combos.

Split River

Rodeo Break

Special Move: Thunder Clap

Laura releases a current of electricity from both hands. Charging the attack increases the range and duration of the projectile. On defense you can use it as a defensive wall, while on offense you can use it in combination with other moves, giving it great utility.

Critical Art: Inazuma Spin Hold

Laura grabs the opponent and executes a high-speed electric shock roll! It’s a crazy move that crowds the stage as she rolls about.

Street Fighter V arrives on PlayStation 4 and PC in Spring 2016.

Source: 4Gamer

Oh, Sean. While the Street Fighter III cast member has his fans, many see him as an overall weak character due to the intense nerfing Capcom performed between 2nd Impact and 3rd Strike. Before today, his future in Street Fighter V was looking pretty grim, but some updated background information on the title’s latest character may just be what his supporters need to keep hope alive.

Before her official reveal, Laura was just…Laura. Like many Street Fighter characters, she was a single name and nothing more, but today that all changed. Her last name, if you missed out on this little detail earlier, is Matsuda, same as Sean. We were a little fuzzy on what that meant this afternoon, but Laura’s page on the official Street Fighter V website sets that all straight.

Laura is Sean’s sister. Not only that, but she’s his older sister, which explains why she’s the “next heir of the famed Matsuda Jiu-Jitsu fighting style” and Sean sticks to emulating Ken and throwing basketballs around.

All in all, this isn’t a huge reveal, but it’s great to see Capcom continue to flesh out the often confusing Street Fighter universe. Let’s hope Sean is hanging onto Laura’s coattails and appears later on down the road.

Street Fighter V is scheduled to launch for PlayStation 4 and PC sometime next spring.

Source: Capcom via NeoGAF

Square Enix and Team NINJA are currently working on bringing an updated version of the Dissidia Final Fantasy fighting series to Japanese arcades. So far, the game has been undergoing location testing at various game centers around Japan, and it seems as if it’s almost ready for release.

A notice spotted at the Playland King Nanajo game center in Kyoto indicates that the game is set to launch sometime this November.

お、ディシディア入荷するのか pic.twitter.com/WEe9txG53C

— WENZ (@WENZ_X) October 2, 2015

Dissidia Final Fantasy is a 3D arena fighter featuring characters from various games in the Final Fantasy franchise. The arcade version mixes things up by focusing on team battles, with players controlling a a group of three characters. Check out our previous coverage for more information on its system and characters, and stay tuned for more details about this upcoming release.

Source: WENZ via Games Talk

The folks at Radiant Entertainment continue to push out regular updates for Rising Thunder, and this week saw improvements across the board, from the online experience to character changes and everything in-between.

First off, online lobbies can now hold up to eight players and support spectating. While the developers are still ironing out the kinks, Rising Thunder’s netplay is definitely shaping up throughout these early testing phases.

On the gameplay side of things, Crow has received a brand new variant called Dire Sting, which sets up more juggle opportunities in the corner, while Dauntless, Edge, and Talos have had things like health and attack properties adjusted slightly.

The full list of changes included in this new build has been included below.

Rising Thunder is currently in open alpha; feel free to visit their official website for more details.

Source: Rising Thunder

UPDATE (1:27 PM PDT) – Laura was unlocked at New York Comic Con shortly after her announcement, and will apparently be playable at SoCal Regionals 2015 this weekend. Get hype!

During his visit to Brazil Game Show, Capcom executive Yoshinori Ono had the pleasure of finally showing off Street Fighter V newcomer Laura Matsuda, who may or may not have some connection to Street Fighter III debutant Sean Matsuda. Despite a couple of glaring leaks, we now have the opportunity to see previously low-grade screenshots in beautiful high-definition.

Click to view slideshow.

Laura’s reveal trailer can be found here if you’re in the mood for gameplay instead of still images.

According to new details from associate producer Peter “Combofiend” Rosas, this Brazilian newcomer is another “in your face” grappler that is capable of playing devastating mind games with her opponents. Laura’s V-Skill, Linear Movement, allows her to quickly move into or out of attack range depending on which direction is held. Players can also make use of the skill’s inherent overhead by staying at neutral.

Laura’s V-Trigger, Spark Show, is all about improving her already impressive set of techniques. Upon activation, she gains a ton of advantages, including increased travel with Linear Movement, additional stun on attacks and grabs, and more distance for her fireball, Thunder Clap.

Feel free to let us know what you think of Laura in the comments below.

Source: Capcom-Unity, Haunts, DaFeetLee via R.S. Black Rose

By now, the fact Street Fighter V will feature a Brazilian newcomer by the name of Laura is common knowledge courtesy of Famitsu early publishing of official assets. You know it, I know it.

While exciting for fans eagerly awaiting any scrap of information to drop about the upcoming title, one person was obviously upset by the outcome: Yoshinori Ono. A notorious troll when it comes to character reveals, the executive producer was apparently prepared to step up his game before Laura’s official reveal.

As many of you may remember, Ono’s past few hints have pointed seemingly towards one character before revealing another one entirely. For example, these screenshots had many convinced that Cody would be bringing his Criminal Upper to the world of Street Fighter V, but Rashid was revealed instead; a similar red herring pointed towards Dudley before Karin was confirmed.

Teasing for the upcoming Brazil Game Show reveal, however, got started much earlier. When first revealing Street Fighter V’s Brazil stage, Ono made sure to hint at a character announcement by donning a signature costume and adorning his work desk with numerous figures of the series’ resident electrical beast. The conclusion that everyone came to, naturally, was that Blanka was going to be featured in the launch roster.

Despite the aforementioned Famitsu leaks, Ono has soldiered on, releasing suspicious screenshots that, if we didn’t know any better, would have led us further down the Blanka path due to the shocking attacks they depict.

Not only that, but Ono was also planning to break out the Blanka costume at some point during his visit to Brazil, likely continuing the farce all the way up to Laura’s unveiling.

How folks in the community feel about this likely differs wildly. Some may like the speculation leading up to a character reveal, while others may want information as soon and as fast as they can get it. No one is entirely correct, obviously, but it speaks to the love fans have for Street Fighter that these kinds of tactics garner so much attention.

Fortunately, there might still be some hope for Ono’s missed trolling opportunities. Earlier today, he dropped a picture of a mysterious item hidden beneath a sheet, teasing that we can expect a “surprise gift” during the Street Fighter V stage show. Keep an eye out around 12 PM PDT, 3 PM EDT when the presentation begins for more details.

Source: Yoshinori Ono

While Street Fighter V newcomer Laura is likely to be revealed at Brazil Game Show this weekend, it appears as if Capcom has something in store for fans at New York Comic Con as well.

In footage captured on the show floor, we’ve caught our first glimpse of Street Fighter V’s New York City stage, and if reports from folks in attendance are to be believed, a notable American grappler can be spotted in the background.

Oh, hey Street Fighter V #SFV #NYCC2015 pic.twitter.com/xHcNb7fTzi

— Marcello (@Glacier928) October 8, 2015

Did you catch it? According to local player Jefford “Lil’ Evil” Castillo, Street Fighter III protagonist and Manhattan native Alex appears in this new stage, and you may even be able to make out his iconic green pants and bomber jacket in the video above.

Of course, this can’t really be construed as a confirmation or deconfirmation of Alex’s inclusion, but it does fall in line with the previous Siliconera leaks that mentioned he would appear in the game alongside R. Mika, Karin, and Urien, two of which have already been revealed.

Stay tuned for more details as New York Comic Con continues on throughout the weekend.

Sources: Marcello, Jefford Castillo via NeoGAF

The folks at Level|Up Series recently released a full list of bracket assignments and registration numbers for SoCal Regionals 2015, which will run this weekend in, you guessed it, Southern California. It’s no surprise that Ultra Street Fighter IV still brings in the biggest numbers, but Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U certainly drew plenty of attention as well.

Some of you may notice that Gundam isn’t on the list below; sadly the attendance numbers didn’t quite reach an acceptable level, so it had to be struck from the lineup. Otherwise, the competition looks to be healthy across the rest of the impressive selection of games; be sure to follow the links for a look at the current bracket assignments.

If you’re in the area and looking to sign up for competition, emergency onsite registration will be available on Thursday, October 8, from 7 PM until 10 PM, as well as Friday, October 9, and Saturday, October 10, from 8 AM until 9:30 AM. If you just enjoy watching others beat the pixels out of one another, you can pick up spectator passes daily from 8 AM until 8 PM.

SoCal Regionals 2015 is scheduled for October 9-11 in Ontario, California. More details can be found here.

Source: Level|Up Series

If you’ve been eagerly waiting to import Blade Arcus from Shining EX, you might want to turn down the enthusiasm a few notches. Sega’s home conversion of the Shining series fighting game spin-off is scheduled to hit Japan on November 26, but apparently it’s going to do so without netplay.

While online play has been a standard feature for fighting games for a number of years, Blade Arcus EX is breaking the mold in an unfortunate way. The title’s official product description page specifies that the game supports 1-2 players, but in offline versus only. You’ll still need a network connection if you’re purchasing the digital version or if you want to redeem the first-print product codes, but that seems to be about all you’ll need it for with this title.

If the lack of online play isn’t enough to deter you from purchase, you can grab Blade Arcus from Shining EX on November 26 for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4, available at 6990 yen (~58.30 USD) for the standard edition package or downloadable version and at 9990 yen (~83.30 USD) for the limited edition package.

Source: Blade Arcus from Shining EX

Back in August, Arc System Works announced that they would be working with Lab Zero Games to bring Skullgirls 2nd Encore to Japan. A new report from Dengeki Online has revealed that Skullgirls 2nd Encore will be landing on their shores in late January, complete with a brand new Japanese voice cast made up of industry veterans.

Some of the talent set to bring this title’s unique cast to life can be found below, along with previous roles you may recognize them from.

• Filia – Ayana Taketatsu (Persona 4 Arena’s Labrys, Sword Art Online’s Leafa)
• Cerebella – Toa Yukinari (BlazBlue’s Bullet)
• Parasol – Tanaka Rie (Marvel vs. Capcom 3’s Morrigan, Persona 4 Arena’s Mitsuru Kirijo)
• Peacock – Kaneda Tomoko (One Piece’s Boa Sandersonia, Bleach’s Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck)
• Ms. Fortune – Hanazawa Kana (Persona 4’s Marie, Daemon Bride’s Nina Sumeragi)
• Double – Mitsuki Nakae (Fire Emblem if’s Kinu)
• Painwheel – Kitta Izumi (WataMote’s Tomoko Kuroki)
• Valentine – Imai Asami (BlazBlue’s Tsubaki Yayoi)
• Squigly – Sawashiro Miyuki (BlazBlue’s Carl Clover, Persona 4 Arena’s Elizabeth)
• Big Band – Sugita Tomokazu (BlazBlue’s Ragna, Guilty Gear’s That Man)
• Eliza – Chie Matsuura (BlazBlue’s Kokonoe)
• Marie – Touyama Nao (Under Night In-Birth’s Vatista)

Much like its North American release, Skullgirls 2nd Encore will be available on both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita when it arrives in Japan.

Source: Dengeki Online via Psyblade