Camping For The Weekend...

The site will temporarily be put on the back-burner for the next three days. I'm heading up North to go Camping and wont have any access to the nets. Maybe...just maybe a remote update might happen. Until then...

-game hard-

Memorial Weekend Community Events

Here's a breakdown of the events going on this Memorial Day weekend. Shout outs to Eventhubs for the list!

• Sunnyvale, California: Super Norcal Regionals, May 29 - 30. This tournament will feature some of the best players on the west coast and a live stream by IPlayWinner.com. Additional coverage of this competition will be provided throughout the weekend here on EventHubs.com.

• Sydney, Australia: EVO Asia-Pacific Tournament, May 29 - 30. Daigo Umehara will be attending this tournament, top two finishers win flights to EVO 2010 in Las Vegas.

• Jersey City, New Jersey: The Monthly Beatdown, May 28. This will be streamed live here. Event gets underway at 5:30 p.m. EST.

• Dublin, Ireland: SSF4 EVO 2010 Irish Qualifier, May 29.

• Cologne, Germany: SSF4: Fight Club NRW IV, May 29. This will be streamed live here.

• Laredo, Texas: SSF4 May Beatdown Tournament, May 29.

• Fredericksburg, Virginia: Super Street Fighter Fridays at Gamepad, May 28.

• Chicago, Illinois: CGL SSFIV Qualifiers, Week 3, May 29.

• Astoria, New York: Gaming Charitably, May 30.

• Cincinnati, Ohio: PowerUp 2010 and Raging Storm, May 28 - 30.

• Upland, California: SSF4 RanBat 1.1, May 30.

• Brooklyn, New York: The Digital Underworld - Grand Opening, May 29.

• Virginia Beach, Virginia: CSM #4 at Club Relevant, May 29.

• Simi Valley, California: Denjin Arcade Ranbat 3.4, Third Strike, May 29.

• Orlando, Florida: SSF4 Tourney at Gamers Inc., May 29.

• Overland Park, Kansas: KC Maxout Season 3 Premiere, May 29.

• Oxford, Mississippi: Mississippi Madness, May 29.

• Jacksonville, Florida: North Florida Bi-Weekly Tournament #6, May 29.

• Anderson, South Carolina: Planet Comics Anderson Tournamen, May 29.

• Longwood, Florida: SSFIV Tournament, May 29.

• Los Angeles, California: SSF4 Tournament in Little Tokyo, May 29.

• Hagerstown, Maryland: Aftershock 2, May 29.

• Oslo, Norway: Insert Coin 2, May 29 - 30.

• Portland, Oregon: SSFIV Tilt Tourney, May 29.

• Baltimore, Maryland: Wednesday Night XanBats, June 2.

• Naugatuck, Connecticut: Friday Night Blackout, May 28.

• Gainesville, Florida: SSF4 Tourney, May 29.

Community!

Daily SSFIV Video: East Coast Throwdown 2

Just as an FYI: This video has been turning heads...seeing as though DMG Inthul (the player) is using the D-Pad! Not only does he take out just about everyone in the tournament but he knocks out Sanford (one of the top ranked players in the world). Enjoy!

3rd Set of DLC Costumes for SSFIV Released

The third set of alternate costumes has been made available. The "Super Femme Fatales" Pack includes costumes for:

• Chun-Li
  
• C.Viper
  
• Sakura
  
• Rose
  
• Cammy
• Robocop
  

Cost: 320 Microsoft Points on Xbox Live Marketplace for 360 owners and $3.99 on Playstation Network for PS3 owners.






The remaining costume pack release schedule is as follows:

June 8: Super Challengers Pack 2 (Juri, Ibuki, Cody, Adon and T.Hawk)

June 15: Super Brawlers Pack (Zangief, E.Honda, Rufus, Abel and El Fuerte)

June 22: Super Shadaloo Pack (Vega, Sagat, Balrog, Bison and Seth)

June 29: Super Classic Pack (Guile, Blanka, Dhalsim, Gen and Fei-Long)

July 27: Super Complete Pack (All 35 costumes in one package)

DLC SSFIV Characters on Their Way?

Simplistic Cut and Paste from Eventhubs.com:

Ryan "Gootecks" Gutierrez posted on his Twitter account that he heard from a "strong source" that downloadable content (DLC) characters will be added to Super Street Fighter 4.

This backs up earlier statements made by the title's producer, Yoshinori Ono, where he mentioned it was possible the game could see downloadable characters added in the future.

Ono specifically mentioned that Hugo would be considered, although he personally pushed for R. Mika and Rolento to be included in Super Street Fighter 4's original line up.

The SSF4 arcade development team is considering adding new fighters into the line up when they release that version further on down the road, but nothing is concrete yet. It's a logical assumption that if any fighters are added to the arcade release, it's likely those same fighters will be added to the console versions as DLC.

Thanks to Tonyle for pointing this out.

Marvel vs Capcom III Information Released

Nothing here is going to knock you on your ass for "breaking" news. In fact, most of it is superfluous. However, if you are hardcore on getting all the little news snippets on MvC3 then take a look-see at these random leaks given to us straight from Seth and Sven from the Capcom Community Boards:

Will Marvel vs. Capcom 3 be playable at this year's E3?

Seth: I'm pushing very hard to make sure people get a chance to play MvC3, whether that be at E3 or otherwise. Part of the issue is that (as has been repeatedly mentioned), there are many non-final aspects about the game. This should be obvious given where it is in the development cycle, but the concern is that if we show something that isn't 100% done, everyone will still treat it like this was the final product rather than a game that's not coming out until 2011.

At any rate, trying to get MvC3 into your hands soon, and as usual, regardless of MvC3, we WILL be getting a bunch of Unity members into the show :D

What's the top priority for MvC3 character selection? Is it popularity or how well the characters will fit into a fighting game?

Sven: It's a combination of those things.

Sure we have to have some of the fan favorites (e.g. popular characters). Then there are some characters that were selected just because they would have cool abilities that fit the gameplay well (which are often a bit more obscure or at least lesser known).

With as many popular characters as both companies have, inevitably, some people will be disappointed that character X, Y or Z isn't in it, but as Niitsuma-san has said, we're trying to get as many in as we can in the development time we've had.

Will MvC3 use GGPO for its online play?

Seth: Nothing has been decided yet regarding MVC3 online.

How come we haven't heard about more new characters for MvC3 yet? You guys need to hurry up and put out more information, I need to know!

Sven: There's a set schedule for which we'll be showing/announcing new characters that leads all the way up to launch. Totally appreciate the passion though.

What are some of the details concerning your agreement with Marvel? Also, since you guys are working on MvC3, can you release your older Marvel titles too and create more games based on that franchise?

Sven: I negotiated both the MvC3 and MvC2 contracts and I'm really not at liberty to share details of significance in those agreements.

But in the name of setting your expectations I will say, both are separate agreements that were negotiated at different times. In the MvC3 contract's case, it only grants us the rights to create MvC3. It does not grant any rights to release older titles from past agreements.

EC Throwdown & Battlefield Arcadia 15 Results!

East Coast Throwdown Results:
$3,770 pot - 277 players
1st $2,639, 2nd $754, 3rd $377
1. Justin Wong (Rufus)
2. Flash Metroid (C. Viper)
3. DMG Inthul (Fei Long)
4. "Sabin" Sanchez (Seth, Rose)
5. IFC YipeS (Abel)
6. Sanford Kelly (Sagat, Cammy)
7. Skye Thompson (E. Honda)
8. KDZ (Rufus, Abel)
9. Wolfkrone (C. Viper)
9. Eduardo "vVv Scrub" Perez (Balrog)
9. Cyborg Cop (Dhalsim)
9. Ryder (Abel)
13. Adnan (Dhalsim)
13. Josh Wong (Zangief, Dudley)
13. RicoSuave (Abel)
13. Martin "Marn" Phan (Dudley, Rufus)

Battlefield Arcadia 15 Results (and Vid):

1. Sanford Kelly (Cammy, Sakura, Sagat, C. Viper)
2. Arturo "Sabin" Sanchez (Dhalsim, Seth, Rose)
3. Martin "Marn" Phan (Dudley, Rufus)
4. Andre "Twisted Jago" Lambert (M. Bison)
5. Adnan (Dhalsim)
5. Evil Rahsaan (Blanka, E. Honda)
7. AuLord (Cammy)
7. Break John (Chun-Li)

Hidden EX Titles Appear in SSFIV

So, this image showing some of the hidden "EX" titles in Super Street Fighter 4 just surfaced a few hours ago. These might be (emphasis on "might be") the titles that can be assigned to players by winning in Tournament Mode, the brand new (and free) DLC releasing for SSF4 on June 15, 2010. Speculation? Rumor? Fabricated? I don't think so...

-game hard-

Street Fighter Gets it's Very Own...HDTV?

Say what now? Is Street Fighter really getting their own line of HDTV's? All sources point to...yes!

• Link Courtesy of Gamespot

Breaking: SSFIV Patch Coming June 15th with Tournament Mode

According to the new Saikyo Blog, there is an update coming for Super Street Fighter IV on June 15th. The update will not only include the upcoming Tournament Mode, but will patch certain elements of the game as well that have been voiced by the community. Thanks to AndriaSang(com) for the full translation!

• Certain Fei Long combos turning into an endless combo
• When you unleash an Ultra Combo and time freezes, your guard input cancels out. This, Ayano admitted, is actually something that was known prior to the release, but they left it in as an interesting play mechanic. After the game's release, they realized that there were a number of characters that ended up in being able to unleash their Ultra Combos with no risk.
• The effect of Sagat's Angry Charge move does not reflect on his EX Tiger Uppercut in some circumstances.
• Counter damage against Bison's Ultra Combo II Psycho Punisher move is too low
• When Ibuki attacks a ducking Chun-Li, the second hit of the attack will not register
• When Ibuki rises from the ground in certain instances, she'll retain her invincibility for a long time.

-game hard-

Option-Select.com Gives Us a Makoto Tutorial!

If I could sum up Makoto in one word it would have to be: complicated. Not only is she regarding as one of the hardest characters to just "pick up and play" but her weak attacks and slow movement ability hinder her already high level of entrance. Luckily we have Option-Select.com video tutorials to help guide those wanna-be Makoto players who think she truly is the "messiah" of SSFIV. Enjoy the crotch-punches!

In Depth Details on Hit Box Detection for SSFIV

Though a good portion of this information has been afloat around the "nets" for the past few weeks, an in-depth breakdown on SSFIV's hit-box detection has just recently been released by the community. Images/Breakdown provided by eventhubs.

click for larger image

Solid Yellow boxes: This represents the physical space that the character is occupying. These do not represent hittable boxes. It is there so the characters, when both are pressing forward, they cannot pass through each other. Moves that can pass through the opponent, for example, Akuma's teleport, that yellow area will completely disappear so he can pass through the opponents yellow area.

Solid Yellow long horizontal boxes: This is the blocking distance box. If your opponent is within this range, they will block rather than walk backwards if holding back.

Solid Red boxes: This represents the attack's active hitbox. If this box collides with the opponent's vulnerable box (explained further down), it will register a hit. The data that is shown inside the red hitbox.

Solid Green Boxes: This is considered a Projectile Active hitbox. Same rules apply as the red hitbox when it comes to registering a hit.

Solid Blue hitbox: This is a throw's active hitbox. If this throw collides with a throw vulnerable box (explained further down) on the opponent, a throw will be triggered.

Green lined boxes: This represents the character's vulnerable hitbox. If any attack's solid red hitbox or projectile's solid green hitbox collides with the green lined box, a hit will be registered.

Blue lined boxes: This represents the character's vulnerable "throwable" hitbox. If a throw's Solid Blue hitbox makes contact with A blue Lined box, a throw will be triggered.

Red lined boxes: This represents the character's vulnerable hitbox, just like the green lined boxes, but it is invincible to projectile attacks (solid green hitboxes).

Daily Vid: Sonic Hurricane Day 19 Combo Video

EVO2010 Tournament Rules Posted

This years Evolution 2010 Tournament rules have been posted by Mr. Wizard. Here's the shortened version of the newly implemented rule set (Thanks to eventhubs):

• If one of the players asks for a blind pick, then Player 1 must tell the judge his character and ultra selection. Player 2 then must pick his characters, and after that Player 1 must pick the characters he told the judge. Everything is blind pick.

• As far as the winner switching ultras, since ultras can counter the other player's ultras, the winner [of a match] will NOT be allowed to switch up any ultra. There should be no advantages given to the player that already is up a game in the set.

• A perfect example of ultras countering ultras, is Seth vs. Chun-Li, if Seth picks Ultra 1, Chun-Li can punish Seth's Ultra 1 when blocked from full screen away, even though in many player's eyes, [her] Ultra 2 is way better.

-game hard-

SSFIV Character Spotlight: Ibuki

OK, so it's kind of a known fact that Ibuki is currently regarded as one of the strongest characters in Super Street Fighter IV. Her cross-ups are incredible, her speed is superb and her ability to link attacks is second to none. However, what a lot of new-comers to the scene don't know is that her execution barrier is so high and incredibly hard that it may deter newbies from picking her up. However, Rushdown TV recently released an insane vid. tutorial on how to use Ibuki properly...so that you may pull off that dreaded cross-up vortex she's known for!

iPlayWinner's SSFIV Tier List Finally Unveiled!

So here it is, iPlayWinners very own top tier list for Super Street Fighter IV. Not much to say about the breakdown except for that its extremely professional, looks great and serves up some extremely deep details for the fighters! Here's the simple cut & paste from iPlayWinner:

"This whole project was directed by Ryan "Filipino Champ" Ramirez as he contacted many top players across the country (Justin Wong, Floe, Marn, John Choi, Ricky Ortiz, Keno, Tatsu -- the list goes on and on, it really does) to get their input on certain match ups -- so rest assured this isn't just one players opinion! We finished punching in all the data and getting it organized a couple days ago and here it is for everyone's viewing pleasure!"

click for larger view

----------------------------------
Here's the quick breakdown:

A: Rufus, Akuma, Abel, Dictator, Boxer, Ryu, Chun Li

B+: Ibuki, Zangief, E. Honda, Blanka, Sagat, Guile, T Hawk, Juri

B: El Fuerte, Dhalsim, Cammy, Fei Long, Ken, Seth, C. Viper

C: DeeJay, Adon, Dudley, Cody, Gouken, Claw

D: Rose, Gen, Hakan, Guy, Makoto, Sakura, Dan

Daigo, Mago and Others: Video Showcase!

First Video is Daigo vs Mago and the ones below that are other top players from around the world. As pointed out by eventhubs...please do not spam the players with friend requests on XBL seeing as though their handles are in plain site!

Alex Valle Gives us an Extensive Adon Tutorial

The video's below were recorded live at a recent Wednesday Nights Fights event. Key word: Live...so to further back up what our boys over at iPlaywinner said, give Alex a break on a few of the comments he drops. Anyways, enjoy!

This Weeks Famitsu Images!

This weeks Famitsu Images showcase non other than the highly anticipated Marvel vs Capcom 3. Initial thoughts: graphics look much better than Tatsunoko vs Capcom (Wii). Not much else to say except we apologize for the grainy screen shots!

click image for larger size

-game hard-

A Brief History of Street Fighter

An excellent video doc. done by Gamespot!

Alternate Costume Pack - Set #2 Available Now!

Simply titled: The Super Shoryuken Pack, includes costumes for Ryu, Ken, Akuma, Gouken, and Dan. The pack costs 320 Microsoft Points on Xbox Live Marketplace and $3.99 on the Playstation Network.

-game hard-

Sonic Hurricane's SSFIV Combo Vid: Day 11

More Marvel vs Capcom 3 Details Arise

The latest edition of GameInformer (yes, the way too expensive gaming magazine) has thrust upon us yet another minor plethora of MvC3 news/details. Can you say Deadpool? I Thought so. Heres the simple cut and paste from our buds over at iPlaywinner.

NEW CHARACTERS:

• DANTE from Devil May Cry
• CAPTAIN AMERICA
• FELICIA from Dark Stalkers
• DEADPOOL

According to SRK, Dante will be of his DMC3 form, and uses his Devil Trigger in battle, along with juggling his opponents with dual pistols. He can attack with his guitar, Nevan as well.

Captain America has a shield projectile and cartwheel dash.

Felicia can summon a cat-girl partner in battle.

Apparently Deadpool can beat his opponent with their own life bar and his teleportation device will "spaz out" if you over use it.

Chris Redfield can attack with an assortment of weapons from Resident Evil 5 such as Sub-machine Guns, Grenade Launcher and even the Satellite Laser. He cannot summon zombies and whatnot.

GAME PLAY DETAILS:

• Tatsunoko vs Capcom controls combined with classic Marvel vs Capcom 2 type game play in an effort to make the game accessible to a larger audience.
• 3 on 3 Tag Team combat with Alpha, Beta and Gamma assists and Hyper Combo cancels.
• EXCHANGE Button allows for simplified launchers across the board for all characters. Also allows players to slam opponents down to the ground to extend combos but can be countered with the correct counter inputs similar to throw "teching" in Tekken. Press the EXCHANGE button in mid-air to tag in other team members.
  

-game hard-

Street Fighter IV: BlizzKid's Picks

I did have a chance to play Super, but with my limited time with SFIV, I have found success with two characters (Ryu and Sagat), and a weak third option (Sakura). Looking for a 4th will be hard, especially from Super, given the fact that I dont own a console, and therefore get no serious practice time. I think my Ryu game is my strongest, especially with his new Ultra, cause I hated the fireball, and feel it was the main reason I veered from making Ryu my main. I also feel very strong with Sagat, but know he was overpowered in SFIV. He actually seems nerfed in Super, but who knows, he might have stayed the same while others got better. Either way, I would barely call him dominating in Super, but feel he was best overall character from SFIV. With that said, I still like his defense, and his counter ability, so he remains a solid #2 for me.

Now as for a third, I have to rethink my position. I like Sakura, but she is too weak. Her defense is low, and her most powerful offensive move is easily blocked. She has weak air defense, and even weaker air entry attack. She is used best when you wait for your opponent to make a mistake, and while noobs do it often, the competition rarely does, making her a bad choice for serious play. I could go the easy route and choose Ken, cause he seems a mirror of Ryu, but that's just "bad form", gamers know you either like Ryu or Ken, but you don't use both. Enough said.

My best character play will have moves based on down to forward action with a punch, and down to backward motion with a kick. That's Ryu and Sagat. I need to find characters that have move sets based on these actions, and they need above average defense. Any ideas?

Picking a 4th is Hard Work!

"Smell my Finger"

For the past two weeks (or so) I have really been focusing in on using/finding a 4th fighter in Super. The process has been a hard one to say the least. However, Ive honed in on at least three new characters that I feel could fill the spot. My time frame for choosing my "set in stone" fourth spot is May 14th, next Friday. Hopefully by then I feel comfortable enough to announce the winner. As for now, here's the short stack of potential 4th spotters and some thoughts on each one.

-------
Cody
-------
PROS:

• Excellent Mix-Ups
• His Zoning Structure is Phenomenal
  
• Good Defense
• Solid Speed
• EX Criminal Upper is Brutal (Light140,Medium150,Hard160,EX180)
• The Ruffian Kick is a phenomenal Armor Breaking Tech.
  

CONS:

• Jump Speed
• Bad Stone Has No Distance/Weak
• Ult1 & Ult2 Could Be a Little Stronger
• His Whistling Gets Annoying

-----------
Dudley
-----------
PROS:

• Fast
• Great Combos
• Excellent Cross-Ups
  
• Great Counter Attack (Cross Counter)
• Extremely Powerful
• If He Puts You in A Corner...You're Done.
• Jet Uppercut is a Steroid Version of the Dragon Punch

CONS:

• For Some Reasons His Attacks Almost Seem Delayed
• His Range Could Use Some Extension
• Dart Shot is Useless
• His Hair Cut
  

-------------------------
M. Bison [Dictator]
-------------------------
PROS:

• New Ultra Combo is Straight Nasty
  
• Fantastic Jab to Double Knee Press (Scissor Kicks) Combo
• Plays like his Super Turbo and Capcom vs. SNK 2 counterparts
• His EX moves are very good
• Zoning Game is Near Flawless
• Dizzies other fighters fairly quickly
• Powerful, does good damage when he hits

CONS:

• Multiple jump ins and cross up attacks can give him trouble
• Focus Attack Range
  
• Psycho Crusher has limited use
• Bait Tactics is his Strong Game - Relies Too Heavily On This
• Doesn't do a lot of damage in punishment situations

So there you have it. My Top three to try and fit in as my 4th Fighter is under way and going well. If your wondering who the front runner is it's Dictator. Yet, I've found myself going back to Cody over and over again. It's going to be a rough decision to have to make by next Friday but I am sure I can do it! My the best fighter prevail!

Dj-B13 Showcases an Impresive Combo Video!

While watching this combo-video I noticed something: My jaw on the ground. Watch in amazement then wipe the drool off your chin - as Dj-B13 showcases one of the most impressive combo vids I've seen since the inception of...well, combo vids. Enjoy!

Daily Vid: Grand Final @ Battlefield Arcadia 14

Starcraft II: Release Date Confirmed

Here it is. After a very successful second beta run, Blizzard has officially announced the release of its sequel, which will be late this July, to the monster title that sparked a large portion of the gaming community earlier this decade. It is still to be seen what effect the infamous Blizzard will endure after a painful, and now common, excessive waiting period. Blizzards claim is that they demand a premier product before allowing release, so we should expect insufficient information during any title's production cycle.

I think they can make an effort to better update the public, especially dedicated gamers that want to adjust their lifestyle for the upcoming gaming sessions they predict based on a personal hype for a favorite title. The balance awaits, and the jury will be curious. If Starcraft II does not blow us away, Blizzard will pay. Die hard Starcraft fans have no choice but to indulge and cherish the prolonged effort, but everyday gamers will be critical. The original Starcraft game formed one of the largest followings in PC gaming history. If a fraction of those players like the game, they will profit, but profit is not what they should be worried about. They should worry about the name Blizzard becoming labeled as profit hungry, and that will be the tag if this game does not deliver above expectations.
With this release, Battle.net II should be in full swing. Increased multiplayer options should help the matchmaking system, but most of the Battle.net players have moved on due the excessive wait, so I doubt many will even notice the difference from the original Battle.net. What more interesting is that they also stated that World of Warcraft: Cataclysm will be releases later this year, and Diablo III will release in 2011. Both of those releases do NOT have official dates, so expect the usual push backs. It makes sense that Cataclysm would drop near Christmas, but that would make Diablo closer to a late 2011 release. I can't say I'm surprised. My expectations for Blizzard are so low right now, I wouldn't even notice if either game delayed even further. I will just wait for an official statement from Blizzard.

I would have loved to get this game, for the single player campaign, which looks excellent, but not worth 50$ in my book. This game is based on the multiplayer engine, so be prepared for that to be the focus of updates and maintenance. If anyone has played the game, I would love some feedback. Although I do have a grind with Blizzard, I wish the game best of luck. I say that for the gamers, because there is a huge population that has been waiting for this game to release. Just be glad it's finally here. And as always....

-GAME HARD-

Seth Killian Gives The Lowdown on Being Community Manager for Capcom!

Excellent interview found over at EventHubs:

• Seth Killian Interview
  

RushdownTV Showcases Dee Jay ...

SSFIV Walking Comparisons

Here's the list everyone has been clamoring for. EventHubs did a fantastic job compiling this "walk speed" comparison for Super. Top to bottom equals best to worst. Have at it folks!

Here's the quick jump to the picture comparisons: EventHubs

1. Akuma, Chun-Li, M. Bison, Vega

2. Cammy, Dee Jay, Gen (Crane)

3. Balrog, C. Viper, Dudley, Guile

4. Adon, Blanka, Sakura

5. El Fuerte

6. E. Honda, Gen (Mantis), Gouken, Rose, Rufus, Ryu

7. Fei Long

8. Guy

9. Ibuki

10. Dan, Ken

11. Abel

12. Cody, Zangief

13. T. Hawk

14. Hakan, Juri

15. Dhalsim, Seth

16. Sagat

17. Makoto

Option-Select.com Selects Cody!

This video, which shows how to play Cody in Super Street Fighter 4 is a solid way to "get to know" your fighters a little better. With a minor plethora of short stacks and epic combos, Cody looks to up the anti and showcase what he (and his Final Fight counterpart Guy) have to offer the series as newly implemented fighters.Enjoy the video!

EVO2010 Registration Extended

So, it looks as though the deadline for the early bird registration for the 2010-EVO Championship Series ends Sunday at Midnight PST. This just happens to be your last chance to save $20 for the year's biggest tournament. Head on over to the evo2k.com website to register before time runs out!

As a precautionary heads up:

• Registration is MANDATORY.
  
• No in-person sign-ups will take place at the event.
  
• The deadline to register is July 5, 2010.