January 30th, 2010 by The Grey Ghost
??? as Elena from Street Fighter III
I’m ashamed to say that I struggle to find the identities of the cosplay models that I showcase in the column. Among I feel shame more especially, is this lady costumed as Elena from Street Fighter III. If anyone can supply a name, that would be awesome sauce.
I appreciate this case because it is a steep challenge for an Asian person to pull off a convincing portrayal of an African person who practices Capoeira. The high heels are a bit curious, but then she may have feet too tender to risk harm against sharp river stones.
Posted in Cosplay of the Week, Street Fighter | No Comments »
December 10th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
Just a couple weeks ago, Capcom confirmed the addition of new characters to its upcoming Super Street Fighter IV. Included in the mix are Final Fight heroes Cody and Guy. It’s a shame that Mike Haggar couldn’t complete the Final Fight reunion, but I suppose we’ll have to make do with Zangief’s alternate costume.
What’s somewhat curious is the Capcom’s decision to continue using Cody’s “Alpha” costume, which portrays him as an escapee from a 1920s chain gang. Unless Cody’s just a huge fan of O’ Brother, Where Art Thou?, I can only assume that the current installment of the Street Fighter games is just as much about time travel as it is about punching with fire. This may also explain why Sakura hasn’t aged a day in the ten years that take place between Street Fighter Alpha 2 and Street Fighter IV.
Fortunately, the developers of Super Street Fighter IV have saved me a call to Doc Brown, giving explanation for their design choices in a recent interview. Mad props to SRK member Azrael for the translation, BTW.
The short answer for Cody’s prison garb in SSF4 is basically this: Kids today are probably too young to remember what arcades are, let alone the original Final Fight. The most recent version of Cody that gamers might be familiar with is the design used in Street Fighter Alpha 3, just a decade ago. You kids… You just don’t know the guilty pleasure of a good arcade beat-em-up.
The inclusion of Cody also meant revisiting one of the features that made his character unique in Alpha 3: The knife. Despite it being a painful hurdle for the games programmers, the dev’s believe that Cody’s ability to pick up and throw a casually discarded knife adds an additional layer to the gameplay. More than just chipping away at each other’s lifebar, his opponents can now take part in a “keep away” meta game, with the knife as a MacGuffin.
In a Cody mirror match, only one knife will be available. If both Cody’s reach for the knife at the same time, only one will receive it. The other better start making some distance. More than just a knife will be available… Other Final Fight melee classics will appear, such as pipes and wrenches. No word yet on finding meat in oil drums.
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December 3rd, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
This is a cool sketch comedy recreation of Street Fighter Alpha 2. Whomever directed it must have been a genuine Street Fighter fan, given the level of detail applied. There’s no way that any TV show in America would clear the sweet use of pyrotechnics, especially the ones used in the Chun Li Vs. Bison fight. Also notice Sodom’s Engrish intro.
My personal favorite special effect was Sakura throwing a pie in the face of the superimposed fanboy. The effect of Sakura’s fireball can easily be done using a fog machine, an Airzooka, and a stage light.
Posted in Humor, Street Fighter, TV & Movies | No Comments »
September 30th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
Ever since the announcement of Super Street Fighter IV, I’ve been surprised to hear the Street Fighter community rife with complaint. The bulk of them by jaded gamers aggravated by the idea that Capcom has found a way to dupe us into paying full price a second time for little more than an expansion on a game they already own.
Destructoid published an article very close to my own response.
Here’s the facts on Super Street Fighter IV: The game will be released to disc with a price tag leaning toward $35. In addition to new characters on the roster, there was enough changes to the game’s mechanics and new bonus features that Capcom felt a separate release was in order, rather than a downloadable add-on.
Initially, it’s understandable that loyal fans and early adopters might feel swindled. However, newcomers that may not have bought the original release of Street Fighter IV will be able to take advantage of a sweet deal; a $25 drop in shelf price on a superior product. This will continue to draw in new blood to the fighting game community, which has dwindled to near-extinction prior to Street Fighter IV’s introduction.
Those who bought the first release are perfectly able to sell or trade in their original game to pick up “Super” for next to nothing (and should consider the past year of fun, challenging play experience a bonus). Capcom also took into consideration their loyal fanbase and plans to show gratitude for that support. According to a GameSpot interview with Yoshinori Ono, the developers have added content in Super SF4 that will interact with the original release, making it worth keeping SF4 disc.
You know who should be pissed? Competitive players who won’t see an arcade release of Super SF4. This makes it more difficult to meet new players outside of the tournament scene.
Posted in Business, Games, Street Fighter, rants | No Comments »
September 12th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
Moya Dawson IS Cammy
Long-time Cammy fan that I am, I first learned about Moya through her old site, CammySite.com, before it expired. She’s quite the Australian cutie with strong passions for anime, comic books, and video games. Moya continues to work on her fantastic costumes as well as write comic book reviews for PaperbackReader.com.
I tried to interview her for Alpha Counter, a video game podcast I did a few years back. She replied to my request, but well… Let’s just say it would have been impossible for a radio interview. Maybe if I’m lucky, she’ll agree to one for either here or a future installment of Robot Punch!
As awesome as her Delta Red Cammy costume is, I’ve always been more partial toward Cammy’s Shadaloo uniform. Moya has said that a Shadaloo costume from her is well under way!
Posted in Cosplay of the Week, Street Fighter, cosplay | No Comments »
August 8th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
Phoenix Kasai as Crimson Viper
It’s not so easy to find cosplay of Street Fighter IV’s new hotness, Crimson Viper. This is strange, since C. Viper’s costume design just about begs the attention of the cosplay community! The best that I’ve found is the creation of a girl known only online as Phoenix Kasai.
Not only does Phoenix Kasai fit the mold, but she also answers one of my biggest questions: How the hell do you get your hair to look like that??
Posted in Cosplay of the Week, Street Fighter, TV & Movies, cosplay | No Comments »
July 17th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
Filed under “Well THAT didn’t take long,” there is already a mod to make Cammy nude, just days after Street Fighter IV’s release on PC.
I do appreciate that it was Cammy that was chosen for this mod, being a Cammy fan myself. Though there isn’t much to brag about, since Cammy’s costume is a form-fitting leotard. This mod just replaces the leotard texture with skin tones, nipples, and pubes. Alas, her breasts still look compressed against her torso, rather than swaying freely in liberation.
Had they stripped C. Viper down to her birthday suit, I might be more impressed. Though I suppose I should thank my lucky stars that it wasn’t Sakura. Instead, Sakura was given an ape face with Zangief’s moves.
Observe nekkid Cammy in battle below:
Posted in Games, NSFW, Street Fighter, Uncategorized | No Comments »
June 15th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
A couple months ago, I picked up the C. Viper action figure (pictured above), made by Neco. I have so many figures of Cammy, I felt it time to begin building a collection of the new hotness. While there are plenty of nit-picks to be made for Neco’s Street Fighter IV figure line, I’d say it’s not a bad first rendering of her.
Though I do have one complaint…
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Posted in Humor, Street Fighter | No Comments »
April 18th, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
The man, the legend.
Daigo Umehara, the Michael Jordon of Street Fighter, was honored with a fan-run website ( BeastDaigo.jp ) as a tribute to his influential role in the fighting game community. Daigo has been a noteable Street Fighter competitor for years, but it wasn’t until this video that his name became world-famous.
Nicknamed “The Beast” because of his unstoppable skill, Daigo had previously retired from the tournament scene due to a lack of competition. Fighting games no longer held their charm for him once his mastery of the games offered him no new rivals to challenge him. It wasn’t until the recent release of Street Fighter IV, that the competitive fire within him sparked anew.
The website itself is currently in Japanese only, though you can still enjoy streaming videos captured from some of Daigo’s matches. Daigo has been an inspiration and role model to competitive fighting game players all over the world. This new site is the community’s show of appreciation for his achievements in the community.
If you’d like to learn more about Daigo, he’s mentioned heavily in David Sirlin’s competitive gaming book, Playing to Win: Becoming the Champion, and is extensively interviewed in Brian Ashcroft’s Arcade Mania!, a book dedicated to Japanese arcade culture.
UPDATE: Daigo has just
won the
Street Fighter IV International Title!
Posted in Books, Games, Street Fighter | No Comments »
March 1st, 2009 by The Grey Ghost
Just a warning, this review is full of spoilers. I’ve added a cut to keep from ruining the movie for people who have not yet seen it. Though I use the term “ruin” lightly.
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Posted in Reviews, Street Fighter, TV & Movies | No Comments »
