LGF 08: Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Hands-On

We've lost track of the number of different Street Fighter II variations, but like other fans of the series, we're always keen for another take on this classic brawler. Announced late last year and now approaching the end of its development, Super Street Fighter II HD Remix was on show at the Eurogamer Expo this year. With the game supposedly in near-finished form at the show, we wasted no time sitting down at an Xbox 360 to play it in crispy high definition.

The first thing that grabs you about SSFIIHDR is, of course, the remixed graphics. Hitting you like a fireball to the face, Capcom have updated the detail, appearance, and animations of its classic characters while collaborating with anime artists at Udon to overhaul the levels and menus. It certainly isn't the complete graphical overhaul that Street Fighter IV offers, but it's a fresh take on a classic game's look. Some fans may baulk at the prospect, but the costumes, characters, and stages all remain faithful to the series, even if Ken's eyebrows look a little too overgrown.

All of the characters and stages from Super Street Fighter II were playable at the show for the first time, and from what we could tell, the game seems to be finished. Of course, a playing session wouldn't be complete without trying Street Fighter's signature players Ryu and Ken. If you're familiar with their abilities, it's as easy as ever to pull off fireballs, dragon punches, and hurricane kicks, including the special SSFII varieties. Animations looked smooth and fluid, and the frame rate held up without problem. Although the menus have also been reworked, anyone familiar with the series will recognise the format.

Though we would have a hard time trying to find a less-responsive D pad than the Xbox 360 controller, it was still up to the task of handling the quarter-circle and back-forward combos we're used to performing. We look forward to getting our hands on an arcade stick to give the game a real workout, and maybe even the 16-direction green pad that was released for Pro Evolution Soccer 2009. However, fans should be assured that we had no problem pulling off special moves with Ryu, Ken, Vega, Guile, Honda, Bison, and Blanka using the standard game pad.

Street Fighter IV is only a few months away now, but Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is still an enticing proposition. Capcom has yet to reveal an exact release date, but given the build we saw, it hopefully won't be too far away.