Case Cover
Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX
Case Cover
Game File
Publisher: Capcom
North America Release Date: February 07, 2006
Number of Players: 1 - 8
Wi-fi Mode: Ad-Hoc
With so many versions of this game available out there, Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX is another 1 of those cash cows that Capcom is milking out of from the Street Fighter franchise. Already having a copy of the PS1 version, I decided to get this game anyways since it was portable & the 4 new characters drew me in. I brought the game a day after it was released.
About the game
As mentioned, this is another variation of Street Fighter Alpha 3. Aside from the 4 new characters, many people stated that this is a port of the Dreamcast version of the game. It's packed with a lot of different modes to keep you busy for awhile, which is important since fighting games tend to have low replay values. If you have played any Street Fighter 2 based games, you would know what to expect from this game. If you haven't, I don't know where you have been all these times since the early 90s as Street Fighter 2 was a popular hot game at the time. The firmware version required to play this game is 2.60.
Graphics
It's the same as all the past SFA3 games. The only thing different are the still portraits & sprites of the 4 new characters: Eagle, Ingrid, Maki, & Yun. Other than that, the game's graphics has been modified to fit the PSP's widescreen. Although they aren't as stretchy as Darkstalkers Chronicles: The Chaos Tower, there is still signs of it but not very bad. You can adjust the screen to 4:3 aspect with some wallpapers for the sides if you find the characters to be too stretched out for your taste.
Music & Sounds
Thanks to Capcom's Q-Sound technology, the game was loud, crisp, & clean. It really gives off that arcade sound quality. All the hitting sounds are the same as past SFA3 games.
For the voices, for some reason I felt some of the characters are different. I'm not sure if they are new voices or I've forgotten how they sound like. Nevertheless, most of the original voices (including that announcer) are all here. Also, the voices for the new characters aren't too bad. They really fit their characters well.
The music is somewhat different from the other SFA3 games. It's like a remix of a remix of some of the original songs. They aren't that bad, but I didn't like them that much as the past ones.
Gameplay
A lot of modes here, but most of them are all the same thing: 1 on 1 fighting. The World Tour mode is here & the best thing about it is that you get to use those characters in most of the other modes in the game. You can even edit character stats & use them on other modes as well. The modes you can't use them in our the Arcade, Final Battle, & World Tour (if it's not an edited character from there) modes. The mode I like the most is the Dramatic Battle mode. I like teaming up with the computer to go against a computer controlled opponent. The best thing about it is that the matches aren't the same every time. It's random. However, the lineups are preset & the last 5 matches are preset to certain characters as well. The Reserve Dramatic Battle mode is a nice change of pace as well. However, all the pairings & matches are preset. All other modes found from past SFA3 games are here too.
There are new modes for this game such as the Variable & VS 100 Kumite modes. The Variable mode is like the Tag Team modes in other Capcom fighting games. However, it's not true tag team as it is 2 Vs 1 in your favour. You are the only side that can change characters. The VS 100 Kumite is basically seeing how many matches you can win out of 100 battles which seems kind of pointless. For the Final Battle mode, you get to see the character's ending if you beat M. Bison. This is really the lazy way out if you want to see the character's ending that badly.
For the multiplayer modes, it's mainly 2 players at once. The Variable mode for the 2 player mode is interesting though. You can switch turns even though you are on the sidelines. This can have its advantages & disadvantages. The advantages of it is the player fighting is too occupied fighting than switching, leaving the sidelined player to jump in to cover his/her butt. However, the sideline character can jump in anytime & may piss off the player fighting & ruining his/her fun. The Tournament mode is the only one that allows up to 8 players to connect. However, it's still 2 player playing at once. So the other 2 - 6 players will have to wait their turns. You don't get true 8 player action from this.
One thing to note about the game is it's difficulty. For some reason, difficulty level 4 gave me a lot of problems. In the PS1 version, I didn't have that much problems with it. Difficulty level 1 in the PSP game was just my level. Keep in mind that I'm not 1 of those SF pros. It was later that I discovered that the PSP version uses the Arcade's AI commands, which explains the difficulty level.
Pulling the moves in this game is not hard. If you have problems with the D-pad, you can use the analog nub instead. For myself, I can pull the moves with the D-pad 98% of the time. I have more problems with the nub though. It's probably because of it's shape, position, & the fact that I play fighting games with a D-pad all my life. From what I've read, it seems a lot of people don't have problems used the nub. But I use it to pull those 360 moves since it's more easier for me that way.
Story
Everything is the same here. If you played past SFA3 games, you won't see anything new. The only new ones are the 4 new characters & their storylines are written very well in terms of linking them to M. Bison. However, they are still cheesy like the others with M. Bison getting his body exploded from overdose of Psycho Drive power. You would most like play this game for the action than the plot anyways.
Extras, Bonuses, & Secrets
Past secret characters are virtually all unlocked here. The only ones you need to unlock are the other Shin characters such has M. Bison. Technically, there's nothing you can unlock since everything is all exposed. Even the alternative Chun Li costume is easy to get by using codes.
Replay Value
With so many modes, characters, & multiplayer options, this game should last you for quite awhile. If the AI doesn't last you long enough, the multiplayer modes should.
Overall Conclusion
If you are a die-hard Street Fighter fan, you should pick Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX up. If you haven't own a Street Fighter Alpha 3 game, you should get this one over the rest. The game is fun & the difficulty level has risen up the bar to arcade level. The main problem of this game is it's overuse too many times. Some people will probably overlook this & probably won't bother with it since it's an old 2D fighting game.
Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX scores a 8/10 from me. The game is the same as how I remember it, despite the new difficulty level. Although the game has a lot of modes packed into it & 4 new characters, the game may not be worth picking up or playing since it's been overused too many times. And with 3D fighting games pretty much dominating the fighting game world, this game does lack some attention in drawing new fans into this game.
Last updated on June 28, 2007
All images shown on this website are copyrighted to their respective companies & owners.fs