PS3 Fanboy

Lots of funny faces in this new screens update for Street Fighter IV. Now that we think of it, we're sure you'd be holding a silly-looking expression on your face if you too were kicked in the stomach as hard as E Honda is. Poor guy, it just had to be Chun-Li too -- those legs are deadly. Catch the rest of the screens below.

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Ben Judd, a producer of Bionic Commando: Rearmed, has revealed to PlayStation.Blog the nature of the "VERY cool surprise" Capcom mentioned early last month for the PSN version of the game. It seems to be "an exclusive challenge room" that will "make for bragging rights" due to the difficult nature of the stage.

The post also unveils another medal, called Faster than a Speeding Bullet. To achieve this medal, the player must block 100 projectiles using the Bionic Arm. Like the last medal revealed, these medals seem to correspond to this list of Achievements. Most likely, when the game is patched with Trophies, that list won't look too different.

Finally, Capcom mentions that Street Fighter Alpha will also be available today on the PSN. For those of you who felt that this wasn't the Street Fighter surprise you were hoping for, there might be something else planned for us. "Some of you may be asking, 'Come on John D, was that's it?' Um, if I say more, the PR team will kick my a$$, so I'll leave it as a definitely, maybe." What could this mean? Oh, Capcom! You are such a tease!

Most of us know that there are so few PS One titles on the North American PS Store and we're all wondering when the next wave of PS One games would be coming. While this isn't particularly a 'wave' per se (insert Hadouken jokes here), it is quite a powerful title with a lot of influence in the fighting-genre arena. We're talking about Street Fighter Alpha -- the first one. It was a title that prequeled the main Street Fighter series, fleshing out some of the world warriors' back stories.

If you missed it back in the day, then your chance to give the classic a try is coming. This Thursday, during the weekly scheduled PS Store update, Street Fighter Alpha will be available for download onto your PS3 or your PSP. Capcom hasn't officially revealed the price yet, but we imagine it shouldn't be much different from other PS One classics. Update: It will be $5.99.

[Thanks Eduardo!]

Capcom is offering this pretty rare opportunity, especially for Westerners like us, to vote for who we want to see in the console versions of Street Fighter IV. You can pick from the following list of fighters: Cammy, Hugo, Dee Jay, Ibuki, Fei Long, Sakura, T. Hawk or Dan. Though there are characters from Alpha all the way to Street Fighter III, we can't help but wish we could fill in our own vote. Anyway, what are you still reading this for? Head for to Capcom Unity to cast your vote now!

Capcom's blog has posted some art from the earlier anime trailer -- it includes old favorites like Ryu, Ken, and Akuma (Gouki). Gouken is also shown here, described as the master of Ryu and Ken, and the older brother of Akuma, though we are not sure if it is a literal brother or something else. Finally, Capcom teases about animation that will feature Chun-Li around July 24th. Take a look at all the pictures here.

[Via Kotaku -- thanks, Danny!]

From the moment the first fireballs are shot, your mouth will drop and you will say "wow." This anime clip for Street Fighter IV looks absolutely epic. Too bad there's no subtitles, though. Thankfully, the dialogue mostly consists of explosions and kicks to the face.

Enjoy.

[Via Joystiq]

These posters are such beauties, and we want them. Unfortunately, they are in Japan. A black one with an orange IV logo features Ryu with new characters Crimson Viper, Abel, El Fuerte and Rufus. An orange one with a black IV logo features old favorites Guile, Ken and Chun-Li. Capcom-Unity blogger Kramez has two pictures of the Street Fighter IV posters held up by SFIV producer Yoshinori Ono. Another one after the jump. Check them out and drool.

[Via Capcom-Unity]

Have you ever wanted to star in a video game? Well, this may not be stardom, but it's something. You can become an avatar in the background of the upcoming Street Fighter IV. Capcom-Unity, the cleverly named official Capcom blog, is offering a number of fans to have digital clones of their likenesses injected into the console versions of the fighting game. You'll have to send in "pictures, video, dissertations, limericks, daguerrotypes, singing telegraphs" by next Wednesday, June 18th to be eligible. Check out all the details here.

Some PS3 fans were angry at Capcom when they announced Commando 3 on XBLA will include a free beta for Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix ... but not on PSN. In Capcom's attempt to prove their loyalty to the PlayStation community, they're releasing Commando 3 on PSN one week before the XBLA version. That means ... today.

With the addition of Commando 3 to today's lineup, this is going to be one of the best (and most expensive) Store updates ever. The downloadable title will be available for $10 when it launches in but a few hours.

Also, Capcom's John Diamonon promises PlayStation fans that there will be some "cool stuff" for PlayStation fans of Street Fighter. What that entails, we don't know quite yet ... but it may very well be the key to earning some street cred amongst PS3 fans (read: this bonus better not be another port of Lost Planet).

It turns out that online play and new characters are not the only exclusive content to appear on the home console versions of Street Fighter IV. First and foremost, new content like the introduction of fully animated cut scenes will help flesh out Street Fighter IV's story. The story explaining why M. Bison is alive and kicking will be addressed in these anime sequences. The second major content addition is the possibility of bonus rounds making a comeback. Remember all those barrel busting and car demolishing mini-games back in SF II?

Lastly, an arcade joystick is said to be in the works for all those arcade enthusiasts that can't settle for a d-pad. It's also possible that this arcade controller might come in a bundle with the game. Check out Kotaku for more pics of the anime cut scenes.

It's the "epic return" of Street Fighter, according to Capcom's newest TV spot. We don't know how we feel about the use of Faith no More's appropriately-titled "Epic" as the trailer music, but using any popular music does seem to make a game more appealing to the mainstream. There isn't any new footage to be found in this brief trailer, but it makes us happy to finally see the PLAYSTATION 3 logo at the end of anything SFIV-related.

All right, what have we got here? It looks like we're seeing more Street Fighter IV characters. The guy on the left, named Rufus, is morbidly obese and obviously training in the same dojo as Tekken 6's Bob. The fact that he is holding a tub of popcorn could mean one of either two things: he loves movies so much that after watching the new flick (and ogling over Kristin Kreuk) he plans on becoming a street fighter himself, or they just want to exude the fact that this guy is carrying a few extra pounds.

The other guy, Seth, seems to be a mysterious mix of the Silver Surfer and a Buddhist monk. Or so it seems due to that Yin Yang for an abdomen. Throw in his Hebrew name and then he's an even bigger enigma to figure out. Perhaps you'll just have to see more of these characters to understand who they are. You can catch some more pics over at Famitsu's website.

Capcom has confirmed that the next installment in the confusingly-numbered Street Fighter franchise will definitely be made available on PS3. This announcement comes after months of silence regarding a home-console version of Street Fighter IV and fears that it would be made exclusive one way or the other. This isn't the case, however, as the game will be made available on the 360 and PC too, with only the Wii missing a piece of the action.

There's no word on a release date or details of any differences between the console and arcade versions, but all that info will no doubt come in time. Until then, it's nice to know that at some point in the future we'll be fighting it out on the streets in HD. From the comfort of our own home.

[Via Press Release]

Heresy! Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix will rebalance a few of the characters from the original game, and many fans have been angry that such a classic is being altered. In an interview with GameCyte, Backbone Entertainment's David Sirlin explains why they're rebalancing the game, and how he hopes not to disappoint the hardcore by doing so. He doesn't want to change how the game plays. Rather, he wants matches between certain characters to be more evenly balanced. Will he succeed? He better, or else a mob of angry Street Fighter fans are going to spin kick him to oblivion.

Bison is one tough guy. He cannot be stopped, can he? Like a cockroach (on steroids) that can't be stomped out he's survived numerous close calls. Think back, he's toughed out Ken and Ryu's dual hadoukens in the animated movie. Even more devastating, he went through the horror of Jean-Claude Van Damme's butchery of Guile. But now, the criminal overlord somehow miraculously survived Street Fighter II and will make a return to Street Fighter IV.

The pupil-less baddie isn't the only old school boss making a comeback. Balrog, Vega, and Sagat are all in the new game, completing the four horsemen of yesteryear's fighting glory. We're sure that the inclusion of all classic bosses and characters will bring back all those good memories; however, we're still in the dark about what system this gorgeous title is going to. When are you going to let us know Capcom? While we ask that question, you can check out some pics in our gallery below and many more over at Capcom's blog.