Daigo jumps on the Street Fighter IV hate wagon

[jfrost]

I thought that this was interesting enough to share. There was a pretty extensive interview on Eurogamer with Daigo Umehara. In it, the guy says some pretty interesting stuff, boasts about being the best fighting game player ever or something, and bashes Street Fighter IV a little bit.

About SFIV:

And what about Street Fighter IV in particular? "To be honest, though it was visually great, I didn't get an impression that it was very different to what had gone before; I didn't get a sense that it was brand new. I had imagined that the game would be well done, but it wasn't sensational when I actually saw it. It didn't drive me wild with excitement. Rather I only picked it up because it was the latest Street Fighter, and that's what you do."

I ask Umehara if there's anything he'd want to change with the game. "I miss the Guard Clash system. I believe it should be revived. And the throw tech system I think adds to a slower defensive pace. And the new saving system, too, should be tweaked. The addition of the saving system is not harmful as such, but it needs an adjustment because the range of uses is narrow.

"Also, the back-dash is very strong in Street Fighter IV, and the saving, from which a character in defence position throws a move, allows the character to cancel into a back-dash. Too much back-dash slows down the speed of the game, and irritates players. I feel the game should be exciting, but there are too many defensive systems, preventing players from doing damage. The Guard Clash was there to solve that problem. It was such a good system, but for some reason, it got removed.

"I know it sounds harsh, but to be honest, if SFIV hadn't come out at this time when fighting games were booming, I don't know if it would have been as successful as it has been. Compared to other Capcom games, I find it a little unrefined. Still, gamers were dying for a new Street Fighter, and it fell on their laps at the right time. I think that the developers were too focused on making a bug-free and character-balanced game.

"Rather than thinking about where to improve, they focused on eliminating the problematic elements. Their intent was not to do something brand new but to avoid creating a bad game. I wanted to see a bit more; a little more of adventurous attitude towards development."

Here: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/daigo ... -interview

[t0yrobo]

I don't play at even remotely a high enough level to care much about most of what he's saying. But I've been put off from the beginning that they've pretty much ignored everything that made SFIII one of the best SF games. I really don't care for the pandering to nostalgia either, but as much as it bugs me I understand it being a business decision.

[HellHammer]

I can't help but agree.

As much as SFIV was 'for the fans', it just plain doesn't stand up to the sheer quality and build of Third Strike. SFIV was a neat game, and visually it was great, but dumbing down the gameplay and character moves only served to make the game seem shallow and cause everyone I know to grow tired of it quickly.

Third Strike, on the other hand, is still played on the reg.

[Bootaaay]

I'm not a competant enough player to explain exactly what it is about the games mechanics I don't like, but somthing just doesn't feel right and I became quickly bored after just a few short months, while on the other hand both 3rd Strike & HDremix remain constants among my weekly playlist and have been since they released. Looking at the new characters announced for SSFIV I was initially excited, but quickly realised there'd be little point in buying it as the core game remains the same as in SFIV.

[emwearz]

So the current World Champion in Street Fighter IV does'nt seem to like the game that much, awesome.

[elvis]

How is this "hate"? All of his criticisms are valid (and no, I'm not some salivating Daigo fanboy).

IMHO SF4 is good, but not the best. That doesn't mean I hate it.

The developers and producers said at the beginning that the whole point of SF4 was to bring Street Fighter back to the masses. They felt that Third Strike was far too technical and alienating for anyone but the most hardcore of SF players. For the semi-casual players, that means SF4 is good news. For someone like myself who's played Street Fighter games since their debut, it means things have gone backwards a little. Again, there's no hate. It's just a commentary on the direction the franchise has gone.

It seems these days if someone has valid and constructive criticism to offer, they're suddenly "hating". I don't understand when it all got so black and white, where your choices were either gushing fanboy or angry ranting hater.

For the record, I own SF4 and will be buying SSF4. I much prefer Third Strike and ST, but that won't stop me playing SF4 as long as the popularity is there, and with it the competition.

[Veno]

I'm with elvis on this one. But I happen to just like SFIV. Me and my friend stayed at Best Buy for 2 hours straight hogging SFIV. I don't think that it's a revolutionary, amazing game, but it's fun, and to me, it's good. Not the best, but good. Of course, it's not my favorite, because I'm more of an ArcSys fighter.

[jfrost]

How is this "hate"? All of his criticisms are valid (and no, I'm not some salivating Daigo fanboy).

IMHO SF4 is good, but not the best. That doesn't mean I hate it.

The developers and producers said at the beginning that the whole point of SF4 was to bring Street Fighter back to the masses. They felt that Third Strike was far too technical and alienating for anyone but the most hardcore of SF players. For the semi-casual players, that means SF4 is good news. For someone like myself who's played Street Fighter games since their debut, it means things have gone backwards a little. Again, there's no hate. It's just a commentary on the direction the franchise has gone.

It seems these days if someone has valid and constructive criticism to offer, they're suddenly "hating". I don't understand when it all got so black and white, where your choices were either gushing fanboy or angry ranting hater.

For the record, I own SF4 and will be buying SSF4. I much prefer Third Strike and ST, but that won't stop me playing SF4 as long as the popularity is there, and with it the competition.

I was being hyperbolic. It was a joke...

[MrPopo]

How is this "hate"? All of his criticisms are valid (and no, I'm not some salivating Daigo fanboy).

IMHO SF4 is good, but not the best. That doesn't mean I hate it.

The developers and producers said at the beginning that the whole point of SF4 was to bring Street Fighter back to the masses. They felt that Third Strike was far too technical and alienating for anyone but the most hardcore of SF players. For the semi-casual players, that means SF4 is good news. For someone like myself who's played Street Fighter games since their debut, it means things have gone backwards a little. Again, there's no hate. It's just a commentary on the direction the franchise has gone.

It seems these days if someone has valid and constructive criticism to offer, they're suddenly "hating". I don't understand when it all got so black and white, where your choices were either gushing fanboy or angry ranting hater.

For the record, I own SF4 and will be buying SSF4. I much prefer Third Strike and ST, but that won't stop me playing SF4 as long as the popularity is there, and with it the competition.

I was being hyperbolic. It was a joke...

You were two asymptotic curves?

[jfrost]

How is this "hate"? All of his criticisms are valid (and no, I'm not some salivating Daigo fanboy).

IMHO SF4 is good, but not the best. That doesn't mean I hate it.

The developers and producers said at the beginning that the whole point of SF4 was to bring Street Fighter back to the masses. They felt that Third Strike was far too technical and alienating for anyone but the most hardcore of SF players. For the semi-casual players, that means SF4 is good news. For someone like myself who's played Street Fighter games since their debut, it means things have gone backwards a little. Again, there's no hate. It's just a commentary on the direction the franchise has gone.

It seems these days if someone has valid and constructive criticism to offer, they're suddenly "hating". I don't understand when it all got so black and white, where your choices were either gushing fanboy or angry ranting hater.

For the record, I own SF4 and will be buying SSF4. I much prefer Third Strike and ST, but that won't stop me playing SF4 as long as the popularity is there, and with it the competition.

I was being hyperbolic. It was a joke...

You were two asymptotic curves?

Almost. I was overstating, making a hyperbole, not a hyperbola.