| paleface [sys=DC; cat=Fighting; reg=JPN] |
| | | The subtitle is "Grand Master Challenge."
This is a port of SSFIIX, or Super Street Fighter II Turbo, with options to play like SSFII and internet multiplayer support for Japan. I never got to try the internet part, of course, so I'll just be covering the non-internet stuff.
I like this port better than the recent Street Fighter Anniversary Collection for PS2 for two main reasons: VGA support (Anniversary Collection looks extra blurry on my VGA projector for some reason--did they put it in high-res and then scale down for cheap anti-aliasing?) and hidden option menus.
After fulfilling certain requirements, such as beating the game with every character (there is nice memory card save support, fortunately), you get the ability to access hidden options menus with certain key combinations. See GameFAQs.com for the full details, I'll just cover the ones I particularly like.
In the "EX" menu, you can enable the bonus (car punching) rounds for Arcade mode, yay! And you can Versus mode things like a handicap adjust meter and the ability to have COM control either or both players--so you can watch the computer fight itself, a thing I always enjoy for a break now and then. Also I can mention here that in Versus mode it tracks Player 1's wins vs Player 2's wins match after match, so you can see a running total for real bragging rights.
The DIP switch menu gives you real control. You can for one thing automatically set the game to play just like any of five released arcade versions of SSFIIX. But the real fun comes in the Manual DIP adjustments.
The very best one for me is the ability to turn off the slowdown effect when using fireballs. Yay! That alone really makes the game feel a lot more responsive and brisk than the arcade version did, it's a must as far as I'm concerned. Such that, Ken and Ryu!
You can also switch the language to English, so win quotes and so forth are in English. Rah! Option menus will still be Japanese for the most part, but that's what a FAQ is for.
There are also various options in these bonus menus for enabling different versions of Akuma, tweaking the Super meter, accessing the SSFII versions of the characters, and so forth that some folks might care about, I suppose.
Oh yeah, and there's a Training mode where you can play against an adjustable AI opponent. Woo!
So, best SFIIX port ever? Well, best I've played, at any rate. Oh, and you can put the speed up to Turbo 6, which is absolutely insane.
Now, as for the game itself, I like it. I am also really, really bad at it, and struggle just on the one-star difficulty (you can set it up to like six or seven stars, which sort of boggles my mind), especially against DARN KEN AND RYU. Ahem. But the there was a reason for the game's longevity: it plays really well once you get used to the "limited" controls--by which I mean it doesn't have hyper super combo-isms and that kind of thing. X/Turbo does have a Super meter, although sometimes I like to turn this off to be even more old-timey. Anyway, the game is really all about mastering the three punches and three kicks for each character, and playing very strategically. I think. Well, I only win when I'm strategic in this game, anyway. Just a few hits can deplete someone's health meter and maybe dizzy them for a back-breaking throw. This game doesn't mess around.
The sprites may look a little funny to modern eyes but they have a muscular, realistic look to them that you don't really find in the anime-style stuff that you see these days. Zangief, for instance, looks like a real burly guy with huge thighs, a hairy chest, and bunched up shorts. You go, big fella. |
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| | | https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/564435-super-street-fighter-ii-turbo/cheats
You don't need to clear the game for the EX menu, it's just a button code: "Highlight Options, hold Z + L, press A"
Dip switch menu is "Finish the game with Turbo and Super versions of all characters, then highlight Options, hold Y and press Start"--but a save from GameFAQs should have that covered.
Probably not going to turn off slowdown in the dips. But I think I WILL use their English language toggle and "Survival mode," which makes Arcade mode pit you against all 16 characters, instead of just 12. https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/564435-super-street-fighter-ii-turbo/faqs/13799
Oh wait, https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/564435-super-street-fighter-ii-turbo/faqs/13811 says
'In Arcade Mode, you fight 16 opponents in a random order, then you fight Gouki. This repeats until you lose a round, at which point you cannot continue and the game ends. It's sort of like "Survival Mode" from the KoF games (the main difference being that you get a full life gauge at the start of every round.'
So I guess I probably don't want that--keep the Kings of Shadaloo at the end. : PP (Also, not clear from that if the round loss game over is just vs Gouki, or anyone.)
Will probably NOT turn the bonus stages on with the EX menu. Probably WILL use it to enable VS CPU. : ))
I've seen a few mentions that this version is "harder" than others. Than other Japanese versions? Tried lv 8 and first match was pretty easy (easier than US version I think), 2nd was hard.
Preliminary test suggests Flycast (see entry 1615) can run this with just 1 frame of input delay. : ) This version is expensive now, but that's two less frames than the previous fastest version I had, the PS1 version (see entry 1366). |
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| | | | Disc illustration is from a Kinu Nishimura sketch: https://streetfighter.fandom.com/wiki/Kinu_Nishimura?file=SSFIIX_Cammy.jpg |
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1 frame of delay matches the other Dreamcast fighting games I've dumped with DreamShell and the DC SD Adapter V2 and am currently playing in Flycast. : ) It beats, by at least two frames, the other ports of Super Turbo I tested just a few days ago: https://youtu.be/vr-g2rONCRg
Super Street Fighter II X for Matching Service: Grand Master Challenge is the Japanese version of Super Street Fighter II Turbo with a lot of extra options--these options were the basis for the extra options in Super Street Fighter II HD Remix and Ultra Street Fighter II. It supported online play through a Japan-only dial-up network.
I had Vsync off in Flycast, and other various optimal settings set; you can find more on those in the description of this input lag video comparing other DC fighting games I've dumped and run in the emulator: https://youtu.be/OJGXqyIx_r8 |
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| | | Download added: 02_title.jpg (72262 bytes)
"Title"
0:00 - intro
4:41 - NETWORK
7:30 - TRAINING
12:14 - TURBO 0
12:47 - TURBO 6
14:10 - ARCADE
18:04 - OPTION
24:07 - EX OPTION
33:26 - failing at VS COM (haven't activated 2P controller)
52:29 - VERSUS (COM)
1:04:51 - SECRET OPTION
1:15:39 - SSF2 dip pre-set
1:20:00 - FAQ dip definitions
1:30:38 - slowdown off
1:34:53 - "Survival" & SC screen darkening
1:48:49 - Gouki (Akuma)
1:53:35 - Shin Gouki
2:06:20 - Ten Gouki
2:19:33 - English & T.Hawk (Arcade)
2:49:28 - Chun Li
3:21:18 - VS - T.Hawk
3:35:05 - Ken
3:45:50 - Gouki
4:00:17 - Shin Gouki
Auto Save (last yes/no toggle in OPTION - GAME; On is the two-character setting) seems to work but is highly disconcerting as it never gives any indication that it is saving. Don't think I've ever played another DC game that didn't always tell you on the game screen when it was saving. Ah! I can work around this w/ Flycast's "Video - Show VMU In-game" option, sweet.
Used Kao_Megura's guide ( https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/dreamcast/458569-super-street-fighter-ii-x-for-matching-service/faqs/13811 ). But the Cheats page ( https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/dreamcast/458569-super-street-fighter-ii-x-for-matching-service/cheats ) had a clearer explanation of button inputs to pick Gouki (HOLD Start, THEN hit other buttons), & correctly named the dips for enabling Ten Gouki (Ten Akuma) (3rd row, 8th & 9th switches); FAQ gets that wrong in 1 of 2 spots.
VERSUS doesn't show on the main menu until there's a 2nd controller (which in Flycast means having a DC controller type set for that port (ie Device B: ASCII Stick)). (My capture didn't capture Flycast's menu captions, so you can't really see what I'm setting in the emulator.)
(1P v 2P challenge matches if for instance 1P presses Start while 2P plays Arcade are 1-off, don't get VS-mode-specific dip settings (COM can't fill in for 2P, etc), & go back to Arcade after (it's an old way to bypass a tough Arcade fight, although apparently not when "Survival" is enabled in dips).)
VERSUS w/ 2P as COM (in EX OPTION menu: highlight OPTION, hold HP, press START) varies in difficulty per opponent: Ken whiffs uppercuts & is often easy to beat, but T.Hawk still murdered me. Finally SF2 VS CPU mode!! (They say SF Collection 2 on PS1 has it but you have to 1cc to unlock. : p)
SECRET OPTION (beat game w/ all chars & Super chars--or DL save from GameFAQs like I did--then highlight OPTION on main menu, hold MP (maybe for a few seconds 1st), press START) AUTO SETTING:
"1993/10/05 ver":
SSF2, I think. Still have to use codes to select Super versions of the characters, & set Turbo 1 in the OPTION-GAME menu (Turbo O here is an extra-slow one w/ "all the frames," apparently)--& CPU always plays as ST/SX.
"1994/02/23 ver":
Super Turbo / Super X settings, I think.
"1994/05/29 ver":
Tweak of ST/SX adding charge option to two Chun & Honda specials. Huh.
"2000/12/22 ver":
Default settings for this Dreamcast version--lots of probably fix/balance tweaks to specific moves & other tiny fixes.
"????/??/?? ver":
??? Lots of unknown settings, & swapping specific move HP/MP SFX or Arcade point values. ???
I'm using the ST/SX preset, then enabling Shin Gouki & Ten Gouki (3-8, 3-9), & English game text (3-11), fixing characters freezing if they try a SC in attract mode (4-1), letting you skip the "pause on 4 chars" part of picking Gouki (4-2), & enabling SX colors for the character display in the 1cc ending I'll never reach (1-5).
"Survival" Arcade mode (dip 2-15) throws the 4 Kings in randomly w/ the other chars: I got Claw in match 2. No continues.
Slowdown off (dip 2-10) used to interest me but I'll original speed now.
Difficulty 8/8 feels at least as hard as 4/8 US ST.
I couldn't get CPU to play Ten Gouki in VERSUS--Ten Gouki select resulted in CPU Shin Gouki (no super).
"Ten" is the symbol that appears after his "Raging Demon" Super Combo (SC) KOs, says https://streetfighter.fandom.com/wiki/Ten_Akuma#Trivia .
Gouki: 3P+Start (3P+K for blue?)
Shin Gouki: dip 3-9, Hold Start, 3K (3K+P for blue?)
Ten Gouki: dips 3-8 & 3-9, Hold Start, 2M+2H (MP+HP+3K for blue?) |
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| | | | Displays at 1.39, slightly wider than 4:3. |
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| | | | ^ In Flycast, anyway. : P |
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| | | Download added: 22_ryu_tat_guile.jpg (106131 bytes)
"Ryu tatsus Guile"
Man see I didn't play this game back in the day; I played other games with much more forgiving inputs instead and now I gotta learn how to do uppercuts and super motions clean, as Soopa-X demands!!!
Can't show inputs in Training, that's too bad, guess I'll just have to feel it out though. |
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| | | Download added: 24_ryu_chun_sprs.jpg (110016 bytes)
"Chun's super goes through Ryu's"
Chun's super went through Ryu's super, but not through his regular fireballs.
Standing Heavy Kick worked well as an anti-air vs Chun, and a get-off-me vs Blanka and maybe a bit against T.Hawk. Tatsus after jump-kick seemed to pressure T.Hawk usefully.
Ryu's heavy sweep looks like it has a lot less range than his medium--but it actually has more range than it looks like, and those surprisingly long-range cHKs ended up being key against Blanka.
In fairness to SF6, it was happening to find Super Turbo on the virtual arcade cabinets in that game's online "Battle Hub" and spending like 90 minutes or so of my first SF6 session obsessively trying to beat T.Hawk in ST that got me back into ST/SX in the first place. ^ _^ (And it must have been fate because those virtual cab games rotate every few days and I don't think I ever managed to find ST there again--maybe once?) |
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| | | Download added: 25_cpu_cam_zan.jpg (331411 bytes)
"CPU Cammy vs CPU Zangief--Cammy wins a round!"
Oh yeah so it is just tatsus vs Fei Long, at least in the early matches.
CPU VS is a lot of fun to watch. ^ _^ Poor Cammy just kept getting crushed by big Zangy! = oo That 74% life face crush kill, DANG.
That stunned face Zangief made when Cammy won that round (just the second in the whole bit I think--by that time I'd forgotten she'd won one earlier ; )) was so funny. 8 O ; D
Oh say wait doesn't DC KOF 2000 have a Watch mode? Hm. |
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| | | Download added: 26_ryu_v_cam.jpg (66040 bytes)
"Well, I got to Cammy~!"
0:00 - start
0:58 - Fei Long (tatsus)
3:06 - Zangief (fbs, lucky tatsus)
19:51 - T.Hawk (long range jks)
58:19 - E.Honda (fbs)
59:56 - Blanka (fbs, sweeps, blocking)
1:41:30 - lil' Cammy
1:47:48 - wrap!
Here's that Daigo vs CPU Zangief video--Daigo was trying to beat the game without losing a single round (required for a secret ending)! https://youtu.be/zAv1lxVEFDU?t=245 (He reaches the secret ending here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ysq4FuKuKWY ) |
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| | | Download added: 29_ryu_v_claw.jpg (283733 bytes)
"Ryu v Claw"
Can beat a surprising number of CPU characters with tatsu spam. : P Like Dhalsim, Dee Jay, and Guile! And Fei Long, of course.
Ken's kind of fun I guess 'cause he's so wild and sorta unpredictable, also takes a lotta fireballs to the face.
So Claw! Realized watching back after that if he's crouching--and he'll tend to crouch when blocking a fireball--then tatsuing at him is usually pretty safe; and on his wake-up, 'cause he'll wake into a crouching block--unless you're too close when you launch the tatsu, in which case he may counter with that multi-hit flip kick of his. I was fireballing on his wake-up if I was in the clear but probably tatsuing again would be better. So fireball at the start and if he's back at the far wall, hopping; after the fireball, tatsu; if he's down, tatsu; if he's doing just about anything else, gotta block and wait until you might be able to slip in a sweep, or jump up/back and kick if he tries to swoop in, or walk backwards to see if you can get him to reset back to hopping at the far wall--then fireball and start again. Or something like that. Maybe. If I actually had reactions and execution maybe I could uppercut or something as he came in, but pretty disastrous at that so far. |
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