Interviews

Das Interview: Street Fighter IV Producer Yoshinori Ono, Part 2

In part one of his interview Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono covered the challenge of simultaneously keeping the hardcore crowd happy while pulling in Street Fighter rookies and casual players into the new game. Ono-san also lowered the odds on a Street Fighter versus Mortal Kombat mash-up. Try not to cry too hard in your Kano mask, he left the possibility open for Capcom vs. MK.

Hit the jump for part two of the interview where Ono-san reveals his stance on DLC characters, insuring that the licensed joysticks are up to snuff and why gamers shouldn’t count on Cammy making it into the game just yet. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Capcom, interview, Mortal Kombat vs. Street Fighter IV, Street Fighter IV, Yoshinori Ono | No Comments »

Interviews

Das Interview: Street Fighter IV Producer Yoshinori Ono, Part 1

When old school gamers think fighting games, they immediately go back to the Street Fighter franchise. Since the original coin-op debuted in 1987, Street Fighter has developed a beyond-hardcore fan base. And Capcom fed their zealots with complex SF titles such as Alpha and Third Strike. Even with power of the brand and a ravenous audience, a lot of core gamers gave up after Street Fighter II. According to Capcom that’s all about to change. Yoshinori Ono (above), producer on Street Fighter IV, believes the latest installment in the series will deliver a rich and deep experience that hardcore Street Fighter fans to chew on. But Ono hopes the accessibility of the game will pull in the casual crowd, everyone from gamers to grandmothers looking to deliver a casual Sunday afternoon beat down. He’s not kidding.

Originally joining the company as a music composer over 15 years ago, Ono-san is no stranger to working on major Capcom franchises including Street Fighter Zero, 2 and 3, as well as Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams. I caught up with Ono-san to find out about what took so long to get this sequel to market, the challenge of online play (the answer could lie in the upcoming election) and what he thinks about collaborating with Ed Boon on a Mortal Kombat vs. Street Fighter game. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Capcom, interview, Mortal Kombat vs. Street Fighter IV, Street Fighter IV, Yoshinori Ono | 2 Comments »

Web Video

Captain Morgan Emerges As Only Clear Winner In Age Of Booty Tournament

Game developers, they’re just like regular gamers. They too play head-to-head matches with penalties that involve forced alcohol consumption. Jeff Gertsmann from Giant Bomb took a camera crew over to Capcom to partake in an Age of Booty tournament with the developers, notably director of production, Adam Boyes. Things seem to deteriorate in the later rounds with footage of the guys breaking up ice with economy-sized packs of Duracells and getting scolded by Xbox Live for trying to rename a game level with banned words. Check out the video after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Age of Booty, Capcom, Captain Morgan | No Comments »

Hardware

Did You Say $80 Grand For Street Fighter IV Cabinets?

That’s right people. If arcade and bar owners or anyone who wants to trick out their basement shitter with a new Street Fighter IV cabinet has to fork over somewhere in the neighborhood of $80K. Technically each unit goes for roughly $22,000 according to a story on MTV Multiplayer. But Capcom requires all purchasers to order a minimum of four units. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Capcom, sticker shock, Street Fighter IV cabinets | No Comments »

Web Video

Street Fighter IV Video Features The Russian Bear Versus The Mexican Cricket

Street Fighter IV does not yet have a console release date as the coin-op version creeps its way into a few select arcades. Capcom continues to whet the appetite for the latest in their long line of fighters with video clips. This particular clip features Zangief versus one of the new guys, the masked and nimble El Fuerte. Check the video after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Capcom, El Fuerte, Street Fighter IV, Web Video, Zangief | No Comments »

Game Trailer

Get A Look At The Next-Gen Bionic Commando Trailer

Nathan “Rad” Spencer will make a comeback in the next-gen update of Bionic Commando from Capcom. The only bad news is that the release date is a solid “when the game is effin’ ready.” The build I saw prior to even E3 looked solid. The game combines some Spider-Man-esque swing mechanics with Gears of War-style shooter action. If you’re wary of death-by-platformer games you’ve got little to worry about. “There’s no penalty for falling,” Capcom PR rep Tim Ng told me during my demo, “Unless you drop into water. Bionics are kind of heavy.” Hey if Star Trek scientists can’t cure male pattern baldness why should futuristic cyborgs be able to do the breast stroke? Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Bionic Commando, Capcom, Game Trailer, Nathan Spencer | 1 Comment »

Das Contests

1942 Joint Strike And Bionic Commando Rearmed Caption Contest

What’s not to love about a little free DLC? This week’s giveaway features a pair of upgrades to classic series in the Capcom family: 1942 Joint Strike and Bionic Commando Rearmed both for XBLA. All you have to do to enter to win is caption the photo after the jump. The best caption wins. And yes, “best” is a very, very subjective term.

Congrats to Modded for winning a copy of Top Spin 3 for last week’s contest.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 1942 Joint Strike, Bionic Commando Rearmed, Capcom, Das Contests | 84 Comments »

News

Abel Ranks As The Fan Favorite Street Fighter IV Character At Comic Con

Patrick Klepek over at MTV Multiplayer posted some comments by Capcom’s producer on Street Fighter IV, Yoshinori Ono stating his surprise at the choices gamers were making while playing SF IV at Comic-Con. Of the four new characters Abel was the hands down favorite. “With all due to respect to him, he’s a great character, but honestly we thought Crimson Viper would be a big hit here,” said Ono. “We got a lot of marketing data and a lot of advice from our US branch in creating that character. She was kind of custom tailored for the States and we thought people would like her.” In other words, Capcom figured a female character with a massive rack would test well. And they’re right, she probably does. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Abel, Capcom, mixed martial arts, MTV Multiplayer, Street Fighter IV, Yoshinori Ono | 1 Comment »