GameSpot has posted an updated
hands on impression of
Street Fighter II Hyper Fighting for
Xbox Live Arcade from a recent
Microsoft showcase event.
SFII:HF is the trailblazer for all 2D twitch fighters being adapted for online play over
Xbox Live Arcade. The success of the experience created by
Capcom will set the bar for future 2D fighters, most importantly
Midway's Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. While the single player game was functionally sound at the event, the online modes were unavailable for demoing after the lack luster build that debuted at a
Capcom event in Las Vegas back in February.
Like other Xbox Live Arcade games, you'll be able to earn achievement points for fulfilling certain requirements. Some are easy, like simply playing a game with each character. Other single-player achievements include beating the game without losing a round, and so on. Online, you'll earn points for playing in 250 matches, winning 100 matches, reaching the top 10 leaderboards, and so on. Overall, there seems to be a good balance of easy and difficult points to earn.
So, what's the hold up? Well, presumably there's still work to be done on the online side of things. Considering that a fighting game is useless without a steady stream of competition, the online play will either make or break this one. Last reports put this game on for a March release, but we'll have to wait and see what Capcom is up to.
Although the impression states the game is still set for March, an accompanying
video interview with
Capcom producer
Albin Pedroso stated that the game will be available in "
Q2" of this year, which puts the title out to
June at the latest.
Pedroso states that the team working on the game are still hard at work trying "to optimize the code to recreate the best online experience for all users."
