If the phrase: "You can't have too much of a good thing" were true in this case, then PlayStation owners do NOT deserve this! Critics will have to admit that this conversion is by far, the best 2D fighter on the system to date. Loading in seconds from the start, an exact arcade replica (with a sharper resolution) is well under way. With such quick load times, it's no secret that Capcom has demonstrated some of the finest compression techniques ever.

Forgoing the story line routine (as if any of us really care? It's Street Fighter!), we'll jump right into features bestowed upon the home version. For starters, you'll notice in the Main Menu, four modes that are not immediately accessible. These modes can only be unlocked through time release or fulfilling certain conditions. Arcade and Versus modes require no in-depth explanation. There are even adjustable speed settings, and the best tutorial in SF history included in the package! The one option I wished they did provide was to disable the high-strung announcer. Oh well, you'll get used to him...or perhaps not.

Capcom has blessed us all by giving us several new characters unreleased in the arcade. Dee Jay, Fei Long, T. Hawk are immediately accessible, while Guile (yes, Guile); Evil Ryu and Super Akuma bring the total to 34 characters. Many of the fighters in my opinion play much better than their previous incarnations. The fact the very fact that SSF2 cast has been integrated in Alpha 3 gives them an added depth that couldn't be discovered in the past. Pure bliss if you ask me. ^_^

Common questions have to be "What's the gameplay and control like?" and "How much animation does the PlayStation version sacrifice?" Starting from the beginning, the play is definitely on par with its arcade counterpart, (if not tighter). Without sounding like I am endorsing the Sony stock pad, it actually does handle quite nicely. Now it's true that those two aspects were converted well to the home version, but the animation is where critics scrutinize.

Truthfully, quite a bit of win pose frames are missing. This is something you may initially overlook; but personally, I grew tired of seeing the same win poses over and over again. Cody always goes into his 'oh well' routine, Mika jumps endlessly up and down, and Blanka goes into a rather annoying 'jungle jump'. Zangief (unlike the last PSX attempt) has retained more animation this time around, and no longer looks congested (though he still lost his dual walking animations which only applies to when he advances forward). The only way to 'restore' the missing frames is to play the same characters in a Versus match. Not the type of restoration players will be looking for, but at least you will know that they do exist!

In addition to the six extra characters, who also have their own complete endings, Capcom went a few steps further with the World Tour mode. Best be described as a character buildup in the same fashion as Pokémon, you begin by choosing a character and engaging fighters throughout different regions of the world. Each region requires you to defeat the opponent(s) with a predefined combo system. You'll have the option to select your "Ism" and proceed to the next bout. Each time you defeat an opponent your score is tallied and represents your experience points.

Along the way, you'll earn what is known as "Ism Plus". These enhancements allow you to combine certain effects with a selected "Ism" for a more powerful super art. In addition, your character will also earn a Power Balance feature that controls your Power and Defense settings. Upon completion of this mode, you can then used your 'powered-up' character in any of the modes available in the game (plus you can create up to 6 specially created characters that can be loaded from Entry Mode).

Missing from the last Alpha title is the Dramatic Battle. In its revival, Capcom not only included the option of choosing from the classic Ryu and Ken duo, but Juni and Juli are accessible as well. In addition, the Dramatic Battle has been expanded, now composed of 5 matches before engaging the diabolical M. Bison. Other modes included are Team Battle, Survival Mode and Final Battle, a mode allowing you to fight the last boss without engaging several fighters. Survival Mode has been expanded greatly beyond the Alpha 2 version. You can now choose to play Arcade, Original, Boss, or XX Battle. All these modes expand SFA3's replay value greatly.

As a Street Fighter fan, I found this game to be much more than I expected. Though Capcom has developed several versions of the SF franchise, Alpha 3 is truly one of the deepest fighters to date. Anyone that wants to avoid the arcade scene now and then in order to enjoy the game at home is urged to pick this title up.

· · · Bahn