Review: Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams

Platform: Playstation
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: December 1995
Genre: Fighting

Street Fighter Alpha will serve as an interesting history lesson to Street Fighter Purists, but will offer little else.

I enjoy 2D Capcom fighters more than any other fighting games. However, the original Street Fighter Alpha (known as Street Fighter Zero in Japan) came off as a disappointment to me. Much of what made most of the Street Fighter games so well-known in the first place (addictive gameplay, a varied and interesting cast of characters, memorable music, awe-inspiring backgrounds) is missing here, resulting in a mediocore experience that only a true Street Fighter fan could get any enjoyment out of at all.

While the gameplay found in the various versions of Street Fighters are easily distinguishable (who can get Street Fighter II mixed up with Street Fighter Third Strike, or any of the later games in the Alpha series?), Street Fighter Alpha’s seems like a mixture of Street Fighter II’s and Street Fighter Alpha 3’s. While this may sound good in theory (two of the best fighting games of all times gameplay into one package?), in reality it’s prevents Street Fighter Alpha from having a true flavor of its own, and it’ll come off as a disappointment to anyone expecting something new from the series.

One of the key factors in what made Street Fighter II so popular was its well-balanced, varied and colorful cast of characters. That is a huge flaw in Street Fighter Alpha: this game’s characters simply seem too boring and generic for their own good. While there are some new faces appearing in Street Fighter Alpha for the first time, they will forever be remembered in later version of the series as the characters no one ever picks.

Street Fighter Alpha does not impress in the visuals department, either. One of the best things about the Street Fighter series are the game’s exciting backgrounds that add personality to the game. Sadly, the backgrounds are sub-par here, and the pixilated character models are nothing to write home about, either.

Street Fighter Alpha was obviously rushed to the market as a quick cash-in. As it stands, it’s just a mediocre beginning to a series that would go on to greatness in later ill iterations. Street Fighter Alpha will serve as an interesting history lesson to Street Fighter Alpha purists who haven’t already given this game a try, but it won’t really appeal to anyone else other than them.

Rating: 5.8 (out of 10)