Super Street Fighter IV is an odd commodity. Not a true sequel, but also not merely a game of the year style repackaging, the release begs the question, ‘Is it worth it?’. In short, absolutely. Everything that I loved about Street Fighter 4 is back in Super, and many aspects have been made better. The new characters are the highlight of the package, and ultimately render last year's release obsolete. These guys are a blast to play, and there's no reason to go back to the shorter roster. To top it all of, Super is appropriately priced at $40, the perfect price for a small yet stellar update.
With Super, it once again becomes immediately apparent how perfect this fighting system is. Street Fighter IV had just the right balance of accessibility and depth, and this update does nothing but improve upon that meld. Rather than nerfing top characters, Capcom boosted the skills of some of the stragglers, establishing a well-rounded stable of fighters. Each character also has a new Ultra combo, selectable before every match. Most of these are zany and cool looking, solidifying Super's added layer of fun.
Surprisingly, the ten new fighters don't disrupt the established balance whatsoever. In fact, the newcomers add a level of pizzazz and style to the game, each playing very uniquely. Now with 35 characters, it's incredible that each can feel so distinct. There are virtually no clones nor carbon copies. Every move set is memorable, and you'll never have trouble identifying your opponents intended playstyle.
Even more refreshing is that the ten additions themselves are all drastically distinct. They’re fun to play, and full of flashy attacks. You've got Ibuki with her knives, Cody with his rocks, Hakan with his oil, and Adon with his obnoxious voice, each contributing a dose of flair to what was already a charming game. For me, the highlights on the awesome end are Juri and the aforementioned Ibuki, while T.Hawk and Deejay bring up the rear (haven't those guys always stunk?). As a small aside, Super comes with a thick full color manual detailing each characters move set. While it only lists the basics for familiar faces, it's a really nice quick start guide to guys like Hakan and Makoto.
Besides new characters, Super adds new stages and new modes, most of which are pretty impressive. Some of the added environments are gorgeous, and the art style continues to be one of my favorites this generation. For as good as the mechanics are, the visual presentation continues to be the biggest standout for me. An artistic mix between 2D and 3D, Super looks so damn good. From the grimacing facial animations to the colorful array of costumes and stages, the graphics are nearly perfect.
In terms of online play, Super boosts the entire experience. Over the course of all of my online matches, I only experienced lag once; the system seems to do a much better job of finding strong signals, and subsequently placing you in smooth fights. There's now double-blind character selection, and a whole Replay Channel for serious competitors to sift through, but my favorite addition is the Endless mode. While kind of boring with strangers, this mode shines with friends, allowing what is essentially quarter matches with up to eight players. Just as you'd expect, the winner stays and the loser goes to the bottom of the ladder. If you can't have your opponent sitting next to you, this is the next best thing. Team Battle rounds out the online offerings, pitting teams of two, three, or four against each other (winner stays to fight the next player from the opposing team). The promise of the upcoming Tournament mode is icing on the cake for what is probably the most stable and fun online fighting system.
Unfortunately, the single player didn't receive as nice of an upgrade. All of the characters start off unlocked, and while this is incredibly convenient, it sort of destroys the point of Arcade mode. Without any worthwhile reward (the anime cutscenes are embarrassingly cheesy and short), fighting through solo just isn't half as fun, especially with the return of Seth, the stupidly hard end-boss awaiting all challengers. Bonus Stages have been thrown in for nostalgia, but sixty seconds of car bashing or barrel smashing doesn't really justify the single player slog. Similarly, the Trials seem to have taken a step backwards as well. It's no longer possible to view the inputs while practicing, and this makes combo-training all the more frustrating. Nonetheless, Trials is a good way to pickup a few higher level techniques, though the gap between being a solid Street Fighter player and being a superb one still seems quite vast.
In Super Street Fighter IV, Ken still plays like Ken, but you really get a sense that Capcom wanted the experience of playing each character to be an awesome one, and in from that standpoint, they've achieved their goal. Your repertoire is large, but my favorite part of Street Fighter 4 was how competent you could become with just a little practice, and that instant reward continues to be available here. Sure, if you still can't pull of a fireball, Super won't do much for you. But for everyone else, it's a must-have upgrade to what was already this gen's best battler.