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Arika |
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Capcom |
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Fighting, 2v2 |
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Playstation 2 |
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| Release Date |
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Japan - 03.04.00
USA - 10.24.00 |
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Street Fighter EX3 (PS2)
Review by: Eugene Huang (01.12.04)
<< PREVIOUS - Intro // Sound & Presentation
Innovation:
Most fighting game players are unaware that SFEX3 boasts an incredibly versatile tag
system, some would say better than any fighting game made to date. For evidence supporting
this claim, download any of the EX3 match or combo videos that are available on the Net. At
the time of this review, ShinjiGohan has just recently released a 7-minute long
video based entirely on innovative tag combos executed off of just throws alone,
and the strange thing is that tag -> throw combos probably make up less than 5% of
the untapped potential that is offered by the game's unique tag system. The
standard tag, however, usually results from the formula (universal for every
character) of standing/crouching MK/MP -> tag -> simultaneous attack. What each of
the two characters do during that simultaneous attack is totally up to the player,
which is what makes the system so diverse and potentially limitless.
Innovation Score: 9 / 10
Gameplay:
Brace yourself or grab a cold one. This might take a while.
Reasons to play and/or own EX3:
1. As far as 4-player multiplay goes, EX3 reigns supreme. Not many fighting games
offer the option of having 4 player-controlled characters, but those that do can't
possibly hold a candle to the amount of fun that is made available to 4 skilled
SFEX3 players. Due to the game's innovative tag system, teamwork is absolutely
paramount to success, so teammates who are on the same page with each other in
terms of tag combos are rewarded the most often with victory.
2. EX3's engine is clean. The game doesn't offer all that many unfair bugs or
hit-detection glitches that hinder gameplay because it features 3-dimensional
character sprites restricted to a 2-dimensional plane. This combination results in
a physics engine that's more realistic than the average 2D fighter without any of
the random and mysterious hit detection that tends to appear in most 3D fighters.
3. Despite any reservations regarding the Excel system, EX3's engine is a vast
improvement over EX2+. The existence of momentary combos adds a totally new
dimension to the game in which precise timing resulting from diligent practice is
richly rewarded. Plus, the fact that throws are performed by a strict button
command guarantees that they are always executed deliberately and never
accidentally. And lastly, making Surprise Blows into overheads instead of
unblockables (without the use of a super meter) gives the game a new dangerous
edge in terms of both offense and defense.
4. For a modern fighting game with a fair amount of bells and whistles, EX3 is
very evenly balanced. No one character clearly stands out against all the others
- at least not as much as a V-ism Akuma/Sakura in Alpha 3 or Jin in Tekken 4.
Sure, there are still flaws and unfair advantages in the engine (like Garuda's
Critical Parade), but apart from those few examples, the game tends to offer
victory based on the skill of the player rather than the character.
5. There is no slowdown! Early reviews of EX3 reported the existence of a rather
unbearable slowdown problem, but this premature judgment was based on the
reviewers' experiences with the Japanese version of the game rather than the
superior American version. After the Japanese release, the programmers quickly
discovered ways to combat it, and it was more or less eradicated by the American
launch date.
Reasons NOT to play and/or own EX3:
1. Hardcore 2D gamers, or anyone already set in their Alpha or 3rd Strike ways,
might not appreciate this game nearly as much as those starting with a fresh
palate. I know this for a fact because I still find it difficult to adapt back
to Alpha 3 and CvS2 timing with Sagat due to all of my years playing EX. Any
gamers totally against learning a new system may not wish to invest the time to
re-learn Street Fighter basics for EX3.
2. Apart from Ace (who is almost never used), EX3 offers no characters that
weren't already available in previous EX games. In fact, Hayate, Blair, and Allen
are still nowhere to be found, and will most likely never surface again. The poor
character selection in EX3, however, most likely stems from the fact that Arika
became Capcom's sacrificial lamb, since Sony was most likely hoping to have a
Capcom-made 3D fighting game for their much anticipated PS2 launch. So, since most
of their other development teams don't work in 3D, Arika had only three months to
work on the release of a full-fledged sequel after EX2+ was ported to the PSX. But
for three months of work, EX3 was unquestionably a pretty damned good effort.
3. If you are not within the vicinity of any good EX competition or if none of your
friends are interested in becoming good EX competition, then this game is
absolutely useless on its own. In all honesty, this game offers one of the worst
and most boring one-player modes for any fighting game made after 1999. The key to
enjoying this game lies in the quality of human competition that you find, and if
that happens to be scarce, then your time spent with this game will be scarce as
well.
The importance of willing human opponents for the enjoyment of this game can not
be stressed enough. In simple numerical terms, if you happen to live in an EX
hotspot or have a group of friends willing to try a new fighting game together,
go ahead and add one whole point to the gameplay score below.
Gameplay Score: 8 / 10
NEXT >> Extras, Lifespan, & Summary
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