Street Fighter IV Preview

The Ultra Combos are some of the most spectacular fighting game moves we've ever seen

The Focus attack gets interesting once you realise you can cancel from it and into it. So, for example, Ryu can perform his traditional Hadouken fireball (quarter circle forward and punch) and cancel it with the Focus, cutting the special move animation short. Or he can perform a Focus then dash (double tap left or right) out of it before the animation finishes, opening up some cool combo and escape opportunities.

Yes, Street Fighter IV feels a lot like Street Fighter II, especially during the first hour or so of play. Many classic combos and strategies still work, and fights can often feel like a blast from the past when playing against fellow lapsed Street Fighter II players. There's the now standard Super Combo meter, which enables players to perform Super Combos (now simplified, like in the upcoming HD Remix of SSFIIT), as well as Ex Special Moves (press two buttons simultaneously when you do a Special Move for a more powerful version). In fact, some might say that Street Fighter IV is poorly named - it might be better described as Street Fighter Refined, a coming together of all the best bits from the Street Fighter games down the years rather than a true revolution in gameplay.

We'd go along with this assessment, but qualify it by saying the new Focus attacks do mix things up. It's intended to reduce the reliance on jumping in - a strategy that has been a corner stone of the Street Fighter series from the very beginning - and make ground attacks more viable in Street Fighter IV. It works, too. Dashing in and out of Focus attacks keeps your opponent on their toes, and stunning then following up with an Ultra Combo to finish your opponent is hugely satisfying.

The Ultra Combos are governed by the new Revenge Gauge, which can only be built up by taking hits. Once it's at least half full (the attack power of the Ultra Combo is determined by the amount of energy in your Revenge Gauge) you'll be able to unleash on your opponent. The Ultra Combos are designed to be one off finishers, used sparingly by players as round enders. But they can actually be strung onto the end of combos, if you're good enough, and are quite possibly the best bit about the whole game.

Playing SF4 is like going out for dinner with your childhood sweetheart, except now she's all grown up and can 'teach you a few things'.

You can get a much more detailed run down of the four confirmed new characters in video form here, with voice over from Seth Killian himself. What we will say here is that they are completely different to what's gone before, at least in terms of the Street Fighter series, and that's a good thing, because we're bored to tears by endless derivative Ryu knock-offs. American special agent and single mother Crimson Viper (she complains about being late for her daughter in her win quotes) has a dirty Burning Kick (quarter circle back and kick) that can hit behind your opponent when performed in the air. Abel, a Frenchman with no past, is a sort of mix between Fei Long (from Super Street Fighter II) and Russian monster Zangief. Rufus, a fat, Jack Black-esque character with mesmerising belly physics, has great anti-air potential and can absorb fireballs, and opponents, with the Ex version of the Galactic Tornado (quarter circle forward and punch). And El Fuerte, a luchador in the lucha libre style of Mexican wrestling, isn't quite as refreshing as the other new characters (there's a Mexican wrestler in every fighting game these days) but has great top tier potential.

So, we return to the burning question - just how good is Street Fighter IV? Is our enthusiasm for the game blinded by nostalgia goggles? Are we ignoring the fact that, actually, in terms of fighting game innovation, Street Fighter IV is a little shy? No. We're not ignoring it. We're accepting it, and we still think it's bloody great. We want to feel 12 years old again. We want new Street Fighter characters to learn. We want Guile to be overpowered, Ryu to Hadouken and Ken to Dragon Punch with those flaming fists of his. We want all of this in 60FPS 'next-gen' glory not because it's particularly new, but because it never gets old.

Could Street Fighter IV be the best Street Fighter game ever released? That certainly would be something, wouldn't it? The answer to that question, the most important of all, is going to have to wait. Until then, feel safe in the knowledge that this game will be a positive addition to the greatest fighting game series known to man. That, surely, makes the wait worthwhile.

Street Fighter IV is out in Japanese arcades now. The Xbox 360, PS3 and PC versions are TBC.