Ok, I know the title is a stretch (were they ever *reeeeally cool?*) but hear me out:
I've been exacerbated recently, like many of you, in reaction to all of the new content rolling out for Street Fighter 5 missing the mark. The new characters are blah, the music is completely generic, and the game is still missing some major features. But what really bugs me about this new Street Fighter is just how... uncool it feels.
I was not a big fan of Street Fighter 2 back in the day. I played it on and off on Super Nintendo, but the graphics and characters didn't really grab my attention. It wasn't until much later- Marvel vs Capcom 2 to be exact, that I really started paying attention. One major element that set SF2 apart from MVC2 for me, though, was in its presentation and music.
Though dated to most today, the fusion soundtrack and crazy presentation immediately lept out at me. It just felt so
different. Perhaps it was because fighting games were on the decline in popularity that Capcom felt the need to take so many chances with their series, injecting strange characters and constantly changing up the music, but it gave those games a serious edge in presentation over their competition.
In other words it felt 'cool'- at least to this small town farm boy.
Then you look at that particular game's contemporaries, like
Street Fighter 3 and
Capcom VS Snk 2. These tracks just are simply more fun, and more hype, than the current OSTs.
And that's just the music. Comparing the current Street Fighter and MVC art styles to their past games also showcases just how far they've fallen. SF3 has the GOAT cast, but even ignoring that not everyone loves the departure from the World Warriors how did we go from the classy simplicity of this:
to these over designed monsters:
Everything got bigger, more serious, and more cringy. The music is distorted electronic with no soul, the game is a muddled mess of design and UX, and the story is awful. Plus, it seems that in transitioning to 3D, Capcom felt it necessary to also blow everything up to 11 and forget the classic design philosophies that used to direct their sprite work.
Frankly, at this point I think Capcom has lost the plot. They don't know what makes Street Fighter cool outside of the name Street Fighter. They lean on the worst of the series' elements and aren't taking any more chances with character or identity.
There's a genuine hole in the 2D space for a game like Street Fighter 3 or Capcom VS Snk2 but Capcom has felt the need to push for simpler, stupider games. Fanservice heavy costumes and F2P elements feel desperate when Capcom should have been reclaiming their throne and creating a polished, hip title that actually resonated with people outside of loyalty to Guile and Dhalsim. Their new titles just don't make me want to sit down in play or get invested outside of a desire to compete in the newest fighting game arena.
So I ask you, Neogaf, why is that? Am I just imagining things? Have fighting games ever been cool? Am I cool?
