Super Street Fighter IV Preview

At any point, a Dragon Punch motion and a kick will trigger the Oil Shower, which sees Hakan pour oil all over his body. This changes the properties of many of his moves, granting him longer reach, increased stamina and damage, and higher priority. He's a close quarters character, and has trouble against those with fast projectiles and good keep away. But he has quite a few counters in this regard, and a great anti air Ultra, namely, the Oil Combination Hold, a move destined to go down in Street Fighter history as the most mental.

Down, down, down and all three kicks. That's all it takes. Hakan lies on his back and, if an opponent is silly enough to jump on him, they slip off his oily body onto his belly. Hakan then turns them around, spins a bit, then... er... shakes. You get a close up of both characters' faces - Hakan with a cheeky grin, his opponent desperately struggling. Then, the unfortunate victim is... shot out of Hakan's combination hold, sent tearing towards the stage wall. We see their face as it's happening - an expression of complete humiliation. Then bang.

It's mental. Proper mental. It looks like Hakan shoots his opponent out of his arse. Actually, it looks worse than that. It sounds disgusting, too. The oil makes a horrible noise as characters slide along Hakan's body. His damage and high stamina will make Hakan useful for expert players, but, really, nobody wants to see the Oil Combination Hold. Ever.

There's so much more to the game, of course, including new online modes (team battle, winner stays on, and replay support) as well as 24 brand new challenge trials for each character. The animes have been redone, but in truth they're still crap. What else? Have I mentioned Guile's Sonic Hurricane? I have. Oh.

Some believe SSFIV should be a downloadable expansion, rather than a retail release. Some believe, even at 30 quid, it's not worth the money. Really, though, at 30 quid (you'll get it cheaper online) it's great value, and an essential purchase for all Street Fighter IV fans. It's still Street Fighter - if Hadoukens and Sonic Booms make less sense than hieroglyphics, Super won't make them suddenly click. But for everyone else... well, Guile's got a Sonic Hurricane.

Super Street Fighter IV is due out on the PS3 and Xbox 360 on April 30.