Line #39 YMMV/StreetFighterAlpha


1	See also:
2	* [[AwesomeMusic/StreetFighter Awesome Music - Street Fighter]]
3	* [[Memes/StreetFighter Memetic Mutation - Street Fighter]]
4
5	!!Index:
6	[[folder:Games]]
7	* [[YMMV/StreetFighter Main Page]]
8	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterI''
9	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterII''
10	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterIII''
11	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterEX''
12	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterIV''
13	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterV''
14	* ''YMMV/StreetFighter6''
15	[[/folder]]
16
17	[[folder:Other Media]]
18	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterTheMovie''
19	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterIITheAnimatedMovie''
20	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterAlphaTheAnimation''
21	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterAlphaGenerations''
22	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterIIV''
23	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterIVTheTiesThatBind''
24	* ''YMMV/StreetFighterTheLegendOfChunLi''
25	* ''[[YMMV/StreetFighterAssassinsFist Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist]]''
26	[[/folder]]
27	----
28	* AmericansHateTingle: [[VideoGame/CapcomFightingEvolution Ingrid]] is very popular in Japan, but has a significant hatedom in the Western fandom.
29	* BaseBreakingCharacter: Ingrid. Those who like her think she's cute and a decent fighter atop of that. Those who dislike her would rather pretend that her appearance in ''Alpha 3 MAX'' didn't happen. The fact that she's a crossover character from [[VideoGame/CapcomFightingEvolution a universally hated game]] along with her DeusExMachina storyline in ''Alpha 3 MAX'' didn't help matters at all.
30	* ComplacentGamingSyndrome: V-ism is why it just isn't as fun watching people play ''Alpha 3'' competitively. One of the best ''Street Fighter'' games, awesome to play... but without V-ism.
31	* ContestedSequel: The ISM System singlehandedly creates the massive split of opinion between ''Alpha 2'' and ''Alpha 3''. On one hand, it effectively means every single roster member has three versions between something more like ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'', the standard ''Alpha'' mechanics, and the option for a sheer amount of crazy custom ISM combos that are probably some of the most extensive player expression and freedom in the ''franchise'' at the cost of being DifficultButAwesome. On the other hand, V-ISM is so [[GameBreaker game-breakingly exploitable]] and the ISM System in general is so incredibly complex, daunting and hard to get a full grasp of that casual players were turned away, and competitive players tend to [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome stick to X- or A-ISM]]. The Guard Gauge, where you can only block so much before you break and get stunned, was also a bit of a controversial addition. In many ways, this made ''Alpha 2'' more consistent a title to play, and more competitively viable thanks to the lack of certain infinite combo techs as well; the fact that it was excluded from online play in the ''[[CompilationRerelease 30th Anniversary Collection]]'' resulted in major backlash.
32	* CrazyIsCool: Rolento is ''way'' fixated with military jargon and utopic dreams, but hey, he can dish it out pretty well.
33	* EnsembleDarkhorse:
34	** Charlie. The fact that's he's the [[WesternAnimation/SouthPark Kenny]] of the series only seems to have bolstered his popularity among the fanbase.
35	** Dan. He quickly became one of the series' signature characters despite being [[JokeCharacter little more than a joke]].
36	** [[VideoGame/FinalFight Guy]]. "[[MemeticMutation Real ninjas wear nikes]]." [[note]]A TakeThat directed at ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. Ironically, in ''SSFIV'', Guy received [[HighlyVisibleNinja an outfit just as bright and colorful]] as Naruto's.[[/note]]
37	** Sakura. [[BreakoutCharacter You don't get your own manga for nothing.]]
38	** [[VideoGame/FinalFight Rolento]], who was one of the most commonly requested characters for ''Super Street Fighter IV'' and even managed to show up in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' years after his last appearance (''[[VideoGame/CapcomVsSNK2MarkOfTheMillennium Capcom vs. SNK 2]]''), and eventually made it in ''Ultra Street Fighter IV''.
39	** [[VideoGame/FinalFight Cody]], thanks in part to [[PermaStubble his]] [[InstitutionalApparel appearance]] and [[DarkerAndEdgier new outlook]] [[SameCharacterButDifferent on life]]. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIL6K-oL760 His theme]] in ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV SSFIV]]'' just happened to be another nudge in the right direction, and he'd go on to return in Season 3 of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'' -- this time as the new mayor of Metro City!
40	** Karin. For a girl who had only appeared in ''one'' canonical game and two other games (''VideoGame/CapcomFightingEvolution'' and ''VideoGame/NamcoXCapcom'', where she's paired with Sakura no less) prior to ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIV'', she has a surprisingly large fan following, which naturally led to Karin being one of the most fan requested characters for ''SFIV'' (alongside Rainbow Mika, [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIII Elena]], and Rolento). This eventually reached the point where, in an [[http://www.eventhubs.com/news/2013/mar/29/results-capcoms-street-fighter-favorite-characters-popularity-poll/ official poll]] by Creator/{{Capcom}}, she was rated the #1 most popular character in Japan, even more popular than Ryu himself. Her popularity was likely a factor in her return in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV''.
41	** R. Mika reached this status in the years after ''Alpha 3'', if not after missing out on ''[=SFxT=]'' (and thus a long-awaited chance to [[HeroWorshipper team up with Zangief]]), then most certainly after being set up as the butt of a cruel joke alongside [[VideoGame/StreetFighterI Retsu]] for Decapre's reveal in ''Ultra Street Fighter IV''. She returned in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'', much to the delight of her fans.
42	** Maki was the darkhorse of ''VideoGame/FinalFight 2'', hence her appearance in the handheld versions of ''Alpha 3'' following [[UnexpectedCharacter a surprise appearance]] in ''[[VideoGame/CapcomVsSNK2MarkOfTheMillennium Capcom vs. SNK 2]]''.
43	** Ingrid in Japan. Despite appearing in few games, [[http://fb.namcobandaigames.com/fbtekken/statistics_user.php?sid=78423 she was one of the most voted characters]] by Japanese fans for ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken Tekken X Street Fighter]]''.
44	* EpilepticTrees: In ''VideoGame/RivalSchools'' (a series with loose ties to ''SF''), there is a character who goes by the name of Ran Hibiki. Given that Hinata learned how to fight by watching a video by Ken and Chairperson practices Saikyo, fans have left been wondering if Ran is a relative of Dan's (particularly, his sister). The CFN profiles for ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'' would canonize Dan's sister from his ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroesVsStreetFighter'' ending (and name her '''Yuri'''ko in what is yet another [[TakeThat jab at]] ''VideoGame/ArtOfFighting''), but the jury's still out on Ran.
45	* EvenBetterSequel: ''Alpha 2'' shows up the original ''Alpha'' in virtually every way. More characters, more stages, more mechanics, Dan and Akuma no longer being secret characters, [[EnsembleDarkhorse Sakura being added]], and all while reusing or upgrading the presentation from the first that makes the first almost seem like a barebones prototype setting up such a leap. It's to the point that ''2'' is considered the most competitive entry in the sub-series series to this day, and most revisit the first to see ''Alpha'''s roots or the original endings.
46	* FandomRivalry: A rare case of "Inner-Fandom" Rivalry, as this series developed a heated one with the ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' series. Both games were developed concurrently as follow-ups to the massively successful ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' (''Alpha'' serving as a prequel while ''III'' was the sequel), with two separate development teams working on the games. Naturally, this caused a heated debate over which sub-series was the superior successor to ''II''. Not helping matters is that ''Alpha'' -- which eventually [[TheBusCameBack brought back]] all of the ''II'' cast by the time of the home ports of ''Alpha 3'' -- was critically and commercially successful throughout its entire run, whereas ''III'' -- which [[PutOnABus jettisoned]] all but ''four'' characters from ''II'' (Ryu, Ken, Akuma, and Chun-Li) -- ultimately was something of an AcclaimedFlop, only being VindicatedByHistory thanks to high-level TournamentPlay in the following years (never mind the fact that the bulk of the ''III'' series' wider recognition comes from [[SequelDisplacement its third entry]]).
47	* FanNickname:
48	** [[Memes/{{Nasuverse}} GARlie]] for Charlie, due to him being as manly as Guile.
49	** Dan "The Man" Hibiki.
50	** Sakky, for Sakura.
51	* FranchiseOriginalSin: Many people criticize the early versions of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' as attempting to axe out the vast majority of the ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' cast in an attempt to focus on a new generation of characters, with the only exceptions being series mainstays like Ryu and Ken. This actually started with ''Alpha'', as it took until the home releases of ''Alpha 3'' to make Guile a SecretCharacter and complete the entire ''Super Turbo'' roster. The big difference is that ''Alpha'' didn't attempt [[PassingTheTorch a new protagonist]] like later entries did (being a prequel meant to set up events in ''SFII'' and flesh out the previously minimal backstory of the ''SF'' SharedUniverse), combined with very few actually new characters; ''Street Fighter III'''s controversial attempt to shift towards a roster of almost entirely new characters -- many of whom felt like rehashes of longer established and more popular characters -- was a large part of the game becoming a temporary FranchiseKiller, which is why the revision sequels would bring back the popular veterans Akuma and Chun-Li, and why every successive game afterwards would have most of the core characters of ''II'' at the minimum.
52	* GameBreaker:
53	** Guy in the original ''Street Fighter Alpha'' due to his fast and damaging chain combos. He actually cracks a pretty bad joke in ''[=SFA3=]'' about how he has his opponent "on a chain" in reference to this.
54	** The crouch cancel bug in ''[=SFA3=]'' (basically, being able to cancel longer move recoveries by crouching during a Custom Combo, which made it so that since the character using it never entered a neutral state, their opponent never got an opportunity to flip out of their combo) which made the already powerful V-ISM borderline broken by allowing players to kill their opponents [[DeathOfAThousandCuts in one long combo]].
55	* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: ''Alpha 2'' developed a large [[TournamentPlay competitive following]] in the United States, especially on the West Coast. This is in contrast to its native Japan where it wasn't received as well, especially compared to its sequel, ''Alpha 3''. It came to the point where it's generally accepted that the U.S. would hands down beat Japan if they ever competed in the game, a reverse of what usually happens. To this end, one of the points held by many American players against the ''30th Anniversary Collection'' was that ''Alpha 2'' was ''not'' one of the games that could be played online in spite of it being such a revered game in the West. (By contrast, the aforementioned ''Alpha 3'' was one of the four titles with online and training mode capabilities.)
56	* GoodBadBugs: On the SNES port of ''Alpha 2'', Rose can freeze time by performing an Aura Soul Spark right as a projectile hits her opponent. She is free to move around, and performing another Super Combo will return things to normal.
57	* HilariousInHindsight: The Biblical reference to Sodom's name, which was intended as a reference to the heavy metal band Sodom.
58	* IronWoobie: Rose. Kind of comes with the territory of [[spoiler:being the good part of Bison's soul expunged from his body]], but things seem to almost ''never'' go her way. Even so, she's completely dedicated to her mission of stamping out evil, no matter the toll it takes on her.
59	* LauncherOfAThousandShips: Although Guy is canonically married to Rena, at least by ''Final Fight: Streetwise'', he's been paired with Maki (Rena's sister, and thus his sister-in-law), Rose, and [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIII Ibuki]], among others. In particular, Guy/Rose reached FanPreferredCouple status, thanks in part to their interactions in ''Super Street Fighter IV''.
60	* MemeticBadass: Dan, Master of the Saikyo style, aka the Strongest Style. The king of taunting and the man in pink. He goes by many names, but you will call him "sensei" today. YAHOO!
61	--> "Dan isn't [[CharacterTiers God tier]]. ''[[BlasphemousBoast God is Dan tier]].''"
62	* {{Narm}}:
63	** [[BruceLeeClone Fei Long's]] FunnyBruceLeeNoises being typed out and written in ''[=SFA3=]''[='s=] Story Mode. Having him burst into "WA HOATAAAAAAAAAA!" and other screams is cool when you can hear them, not when you're reading what he says to others.
64	** The dialogue before Yun's final fight with Bison has a rather unfortunate mistranslation, where Bison refers to Yun's arrival and defeat by his hand as "the perfect ending for a third rate ''actress'' like Fei-Long."
65	* NightmareFuel: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0ZJwo2HuQw Bison's ending]] in ''Alpha 2''.
66	* PolishedPort:
67	** The Platform/SegaSaturn versions of the first ''Alpha'' and ''[[NoExportForYou Zero 3]]'' are just plain obscenely good at what they try to do. The former is only different with the color palette compared to the arcade, and otherwise was just about a perfect port with all the animations and gameplay unchanged. The latter required the Expanded 4MB RAM cartridge, but the trade off was the best home console version of the game ever released, even featuring unique content that couldn't be equaled up to until the release of ''Alpha 3 MAX'' for the Platform/PlayStationPortable, which itself was an excellent port above and beyond the rest. This also includes the two flavors of World Tour, with Saturn (and Platform/PlayStation) carrying a more in-depth and complex version of the mode while the PSP (and Platform/{{Dreamcast}}) would streamline it a fair amount, adding a meaty amount of solo content to the game.
68	** The ''Alpha 2 Gold'' ports on Saturn and [=PlayStation=], included as part of the ''[[CompilationRerelease Street Fighter Collection]]'' package, were the best home ports of ''Alpha 2'' without a doubt. Cammy using her ''VideoGame/XMenVsStreetFighter'' sprites was added in, extra modes and features as well as more EX Characters, and the [=PlayStation=] version getting a faithful recreation of the intro instead of a crummy, pre-recorded video file of it. The port was also noticeably just improved in general over the base ''Alpha 2'' port the systems got. This title by itself warranted the purchase of the collection singlehandedly, even if it does suffer LoadsAndLoadsOfLoading for the individual stages.
69	** ''[[CompilationRerelease Alpha Anthology]]'' for the [[Platform/PlayStation2 PS2]] not only contains arcade-accurate ports, but also the aforementioned ''Alpha 2 Gold'' and the option for CPS-1 or CPS-2 soundtracks for the first ''Alpha'', as well as ''VideoGame/SuperGemFighter'', and the ''Alpha 3 Upper'' release that has additional console-only characters added. It even completes Cammy's early inclusion in ''Gold'' with an actual (albeit non-canon) story, ending included. While it lacks things like World Tour mode, it makes up for it with couch-competitive content galore via the unlockable ''Hyper Street Fighter Alpha''; much like ''Hyper Street Fighter II'', it lets you play as every version of every ''Alpha'' character around, all the [=ISMs=], and plenty of extra customizable options like recreating ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' parries or the like. This makes it '''the''' definitive collection of ''Alpha'' titles if you're itching for arcade content perfected.
70	* PortingDisaster:
71	** The [[Platform/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]] version of ''Alpha 2'' is a textbook case of a port that's impressive insomuch as it exists at all, but simply ends up not being worth it. The graphics retain an impressive amount of detail compared to the arcade original, but the controls are unresponsive, there's LoadsAndLoadsOfLoading, the frame-rate can tank badly when certain special moves are used, and the sound quality is poor, with most of the soundtrack getting a bland remix, and half of the sound effects being missing. There does exist a patch that can fix the loading issues and replace the soundtrack with the arcade version's, however, which can make the port ''far'' more tolerable and easier to appreciate.
72	** The [[Platform/GameBoyAdvance GBA]] port of ''Alpha 3 Upper'' is similarly impressive for what it manages to do, cramming the ''entire roster'' and almost all of the stages. But having to deal with what amounts to a four-button control scheme is rough, the endings had to take an obvious hit by all being replaced with a single ending of Bison being defeated, various animations were chopped up and especially background animations being simplified, and the game audio took a ''massive'' hit with all the music being butchered by the GBA's lack of a proper sound chip and countless character voice clips gone or compromised. Were it not for the sheer number of hits taken to even get it to work, this would almost be a PolishedPort and certainly more comprehensive than the SNES port above, but ExecutiveMeddling resulted in an [=8MB=] cartridge compared to larger possible cart sizes and having to shove Eagle, Yun and Maki into the game from ''VideoGame/CapcomVsSNK2MarkOfTheMillennium'', which resulted in such severe compromises and a necessary development delay -- which ended up being a CreatorKiller for developer Crawfish Interactive despite critical acclaim when Capcom cut all royalties due to said delay.
73	* RetroactiveRecognition: The voice of Chun-Li (and Rose prior to ''Alpha 3'') in this series is Creator/YukoMiyamura, who is probably best known for voicing Asuka Langley Soryu ([[Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion and later]] Asuka Langley ''Shikinami'') in the ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' franchise.
74	* ScrappyMechanic: Losing to [[ThatOneBoss Final Bison]] in ''Alpha 3'''s original arcade mode is an immediate trip to seeing Bison's ending but with him sacrificing your current character to power his ambitions. There's no permission whatsoever to continue, meaning that the entire run got scrapped at the very end. Notably, this would end up being the only game in the series to be this utterly cruel about it; every title before and after allows you to retry the FinalBoss or even the {{Superboss}} (if you reached it in the first place) readily.
75	* StoicWoobie: [[TragicHero Cody]]. [[DullSurprise He barely bats an eyelash at anything]] since he's been incarcerated, and though he ultimately will continue to fight the good fight against wrongdoers, [[ImNotAHeroIm Cody believes]] [[FallenHero he's no longer the hero from his Metro City glory days]], to the point he tells Guy in his ''Super Street Fighter IV'' ending that he thinks jail is where he belongs. It takes until the events of ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'', where he (at Haggar's suggestion) becomes the new mayor of Metro City, that Cody ''finally'' [[EarnYourHappyEnding gets out of his funk and turns his life around]].
76	* ThatOneAttack:
77	** Birdie's Murderer Chain. Go to Heaven!
78	** [[SNKBoss Final Bison]]'s Final Psycho Crusher from ''Alpha 3''. It does ridiculous amounts of damage whether you block it or not and [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/streetfighter/images/4/4b/Final_Psycho_Crusher_Hitbox.png has a hitbox]] ''spanning nearly the entire vertical length of the screen''. It's also completely invincible, lacking the regular Psycho Crusher's hurtboxes. The only way to avoid it is to use a high-priority move (i.e. {{Shoryuken}}), WallJump, or, if you're Akuma/Evil Ryu, Ashura Senku it out of there. The first two require critical timing and ''a lot'' of luck. On top of that, Bison's boss-exclusive Shadaloo-ism allows him to build meter incredibly fast, meaning he can abuse it multiple times per round [[AIRoulette if he's feeling nasty]]. Making matters worse is the fact that if you lose to Bison, that's it. You don't get a chance to continue and try again; it just goes straight to the [[DownerEnding bad ending]][[note]]This only applies to the arcade version, as home ports that aren't a direct emulation usually allow rematches.[[/note]]. It's even worse at the end of the World Tour in the Dreamcast and PSP versions where you fight ''two of him '''with infinite Super Gauge''''', meaning you're bound to take many defeats to the sheer prospect of two Final Bisons spamming their Final Psycho Crusher ''ad nauseam'' at you. Fortunately, his A.I. can be read like an open book as you're given cues to when the CPU will throw that attack at you so you can try and react accordingly.
79	* ThatOneBoss:
80	** Final Bison in ''Street Fighter Alpha 3''. Aside having [[ThatOneAttack the aforementioned Final Psycho Crusher]], early versions of the game didn't let the player continue if they lost to him.
81	** Shin Akuma. He's Akuma without [[GlassCannon his usual drawbacks]]: he has very high recovery, his moves have high priority, and the psychic A.I. will make sure to combo the hell out of you. In fact, you might actually ''learn to play as Akuma just by getting your ass handed to you by the boss version''.
82	* TooCoolToLive: Charlie, according to WordOfGod, [[TheAce does everything Guile does but better]] (sure, he taught Guile everything he knows in the first place), demonstrated in-game by his being able to throw Sonic Booms one-handed (or even out of his feet). And we can't have one of ''Street Fighter''[='s=] poster boys being overshadowed, can we? [[DoomedByCanon Bye bye, Charlie.]] He eventually [[BackFromTheDead came back]] in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterV'', though. [[spoiler:Only to die ''again'' in a HeroicSacrifice so that Bison could be weakened enough for Ryu to finish the job.]]
83	* UnpopularPopularCharacter: Dan. Story-wise, he isn't taken seriously as a fighter. In reality, he's popular due to his JokeCharacter status.
84	* SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome: ''Alpha'' wasn't the first ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' game on the Capcom Play System II, or CPS-2 for short, as that honor goes to ''Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers''. However, it was the first game of the series made for scratch on the hardware, and the smoother character animations, bright anime style, and higher background detail came together for a tour de force of how far Capcom had come at the time, holding the bar alongside games like ''VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}}'' and the early ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'' entries. It would take three more years to truly up the ante with the CPS-3 and ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' to a legendary degree. It's also commendable that in Japan, you could get the first ''Zero'' game for the CPS Changer, a short-lived home system version of the CPS-1 board as a failed competitor to the Platform/NeoGeo. While some animation frames were missing and both the music and sounds were lower quality, this backported version was otherwise a PolishedPort that had ''everything'' on inferior hardware.
85	* TheWoobie:
86	** Charlie, who has the terrible luck of dying in his ending ''[[TheyKilledKennyAgain in every single game]]''. Only his final fate in ''Alpha 3'' [[HeroicSacrifice has any semblance of hope and dignity to it]], but that's of little consolation. Twisted further in ''V'', where it's revealed that [[spoiler:it was his ''Alpha 2'' ending that was actually canon all along, with Charlie's betrayal by fellow Air Force members (implied to be Shadaloo moles), death, and subsequent revival having turned him into a much darker and far more jaded character, compounded by the fact that he's LivingOnBorrowedTime and later ends up dying for good in a different HeroicSacrifice]].
87	** Rose, who's constantly being owned by Bison in some way, despite her power. [[spoiler:Until ''SSFIV''.]]
88	** Juni and Juli from ''3'', exemplified in Juni's [[TearJerker/StreetFighter heartbreaking ending]]. [[spoiler:Double for Juli(a), when you see [[EmptyShell what]] [[EmotionlessGirl happened]] [[TraumaInducedAmnesia to her]] by the time ''SSFIV'' happens. ''V'' sees her back under Bison's thumb via brainwashing, possibly rendering T. Hawk's ending in the previous game non-canon, though Juli and the rest of the Dolls do ultimately get a happy ending when Rashid destroys the device F.A.N.G was using to control them.]]
89	** Though it might not seem so because of his mannerisms and JokeCharacter status, Dan. Even long after, he still sheds tears for his dead father.

Context YMMV / StreetFighterAlpha