Fans got their first look at full Street Fighter V match in action at the recent Capcom Cup tournament, and the publisher has since posted the video online. Capcom USA Community Manager Peter “ComboFiend” Rosas squares off against tournament regular Mike Ross as series mainstays Chun-Li (whose legs appear to grow more muscular with every game) and Ryu, respectively, in two matches of the upcoming PlayStation 4 and PC exclusive fighting game. Announcers David “UltraDavid” Graham and James “jchensor” Chen provide live commentary.
Both characters have an EX meter at the bottom of the screen, which charges up to allow them to electrify themselves for new moves. Notably, Chun Li has three potential bars of EX to Ryu’s two. We don’t know whether this is always the case for the respective characters, or if it is the result of unseen customization choices. The Revenge meter from Street Fighter IV also looks to be back, charging up to unlock powerful special moves.
The environment is dynamic, demonstrated in the first match when Ryu slams Chun-Li into a restaurant on the edge of the arena, opening up new play area that remains active through the following match. The feature is somewhat reminiscent of the destructible and expandable arenas of Injustice: Gods Among Us, where powerful attacks on the edge of areas can sometimes throw characters into entirely new spaces. The quirkiest moment of the video comes during the second match when Ryu knocks out Chun-li by hadouken-ing her into a wall in the restaurant’s kitchen. A bowl of noodles falls down onto her head, which remains there like a hat through the following round.
Fighting game luminary “LI” Joe Ciaramelli posted this extensive, frame-by-frame analysis of Capcom’s video if you are hungry for some informed speculation about the upcoming fighter.
No release date has been given yet for Street Fighter V, but it will likely be coming to PlayStation 4 and unspecified PC platforms in 2016, as indicated by a recent Amazon listing that gives the date as March 31, 2016. While that exact date is probably a placeholder, the year at least seems plausible.