Hyper Street Fighter II

**Zerodash** · 28 Dec 2003, 01:26 PM

Hyper Street Fighter II came out in late 2003 to celebrate the 15th anniversary of SF…which came out 16 years ago…um, OK.

Hyper SFII is essentially Super SFII X with the ability to select every version of every character that ever appeared in SFII. For instance, you could pit the domineering SFII Guile against his watered-down SSFIIX incarnation. Did you prefer Ryu with his 2-hit Shoryuken? Then just select his SFII version. As far as can be determined, every character version is accurate to their original appearance, from animations to commands to priority. Don’t look for five versions of all 17 characters, however- characters only get as many variants as games they appeared in. The character count: (8 * 5) + (4 * 4) + (4 * 2) + 1 = 65. The best thing about this number is that there is no excuse for anyone to bitch about a “watered down” version of their SFII fighter for they are all here.

One would think that making a 10+ year old game look arcade-perfect on the PS2 would be a no-brainer…one would be wrong. Graphically, Hyper is a slight disappointment, given that it’s displayed in high resolution- why Capcom continues to demolish their games this way is beyond me (compare SFIII to 3rd Strike on DC). In all fairness, however, this is one of the best looking low-to-high res conversions I have ever seen- Hyper looks immensely better than SSFIIX on Dreamcast, and lacks the washed-out colors and sprites found there. There are a few graphical glitches here and there which mainly involve background flickering (Cammy’s stage is the biggest culprit). It would have been nice to include every background from every SFII game, but all that exists here are the SSFIIX backgrounds with all the breakable stuff from past games (Ryu’s stage has the breakable signs that only appeared in World Warrior).

The sound presentation is utterly spot-on for this incarnation. There are three soundtracks to choose from: CPS-1 (original); CPS-2 (Super); and Arrange, which is the remixed soundtrack from the 3DO version of SSFIIX. What is really cool is the fact that the New Challengers and Gouki stages have their own remixes in CPS-1 mode. As far as sound FX goes, there is little to complain about. Characters have their voices and sound effects in accordance to their version type, and they are all sampled at high rates.

Gameplay in Hyper is excellent, and lacks any of the control issues that DC SSFIIX had (moves simply were hard and imprecise to execute). This is pure old-school SF control that feels the same as it did years ago. However, as with all Capcom 6-button fighters, the PS2 controller is a bit cumbersome due to its button layout, but it feels like a dream with a good joystick (I recommend the x-arcade sticks).

Hyper includes a surprising gallery mode. This mode includes a sound test, openings and end credits for all SFII games. However, the big surprise here is the fact that the ENTIRE SFII movie is included. The transfer quality looks to be less than a digitally remastered transfer, but its not too shabby. The sheer fact that this movie was included on the disc adds another $30+ value to the game. Unfortunately, if Hyper does get released in North America, it is highly unlikely that this feature will be included…

This is the sixth version of SFII, and by far the best. Capcom definitely made Hyper for the fans, who are the most likely to appreciate the differences (however subtle) between the different versions of the characters. Casual players may find the game to be a bit stale compared to more recent fighting games, and those who play 3D fighters exclusively will be out of their element. But if you like 2-D fighting games and/or was a gamer during the early 90’s, then this is the one to import.

It should be noted that there was also a limited edition of Hyper SFII that included a few nifty items. First, you get the box, which is large and of sturdy cardboard. There is a DVD (region 2) by Gamest that features videos of Japanese players pulling off feats in SSFIIX. It also contains footage of a Japanese player raping Final Fight in one credit- amazing. A 95-page full-color SF history book is included that features descriptions and all endings for every SF game (sans the EX series and the Movie) and also an encyclopedia of every character. It should be noted, however, that the content is taken DIRECTLY from the “All About…” book released a few years back, with one new entry for SF Zero 3 Upper. Rounding out the set is a commemorative mouse pad (featuring every SF gal) and a weird cell-phone strap. These extras are not must-haves, but nice nonetheless. I recommend the box set ONLY to die-hard SF nuts and collectors.

**Blinky** · 02 Apr 2004, 11:14 AM

Just want to say a cool review & you've inspired me to pre-order my copy. It's going for the bargain price of £17.99 on play.com.

One question if you get the time to answer (and it's a bit of an arsey question really) do you get to choose the backgrounds as well? Like there are the different music tracks for the stages (thank god cos the CPS-2 versions were awful IMO) I want to be able to choose between the World Warrior 'gold' Ryu stage and the Champ edition 'blue' stage.

**skelly** · 02 Apr 2004, 02:46 PM

Sorry! You'll choose nothing because the music choice is about the only nice bonus in the game. (And even that would be better if it let you choose stage by stage, rather than between 3 all-or-nothing sets.)

Hyper SF2 is not the love letter to an all-time classic that it should have been.

"The sheer fact that this movie was included on the disc adds another $30+ value to the game." Don't be goofy. The movie's not worth $5 nowadays.

**voltz** · 02 Apr 2004, 02:59 PM

Originally Posted by skelly

The movie's not worth $5 nowadays.

Yes it is if you include Chun-Li's shower scene.

**bahn** · 03 Apr 2004, 01:12 AM

Originally Posted by skelly

Sorry! You'll choose nothing because the music choice is about the only nice bonus in the game. (And even that would be better if it let you choose stage by stage, rather than between 3 all-or-nothing sets.)

Hyper SF2 is not the love letter to an all-time classic that it should have been.

"The sheer fact that this movie was included on the disc adds another $30+ value to the game." Don't be goofy. The movie's not worth $5 nowadays.

Ben, you need to get kawaks so we can have that match we never had in Vegas 2yrs ago.

**skelly** · 03 Apr 2004, 02:50 AM

Eh, I don't dig emulation. Even if I did I'd be playing with a keyboard, and that ain't right.

I would own you with my cheap-ass HF Chun, though.

Yeah, that was trash talk. ^_^