Puzzle Fighter HD gets balancing changes
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Game designer, book author and all-around know-it-all David Sirlin has posted some details about the gameplay changes he's making to the upcoming XBLA/PSN version of Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo. Sirlin said he was tired of high-level matches in the original always coming down to two characters -- Ken and Donovan -- so he gently tweaked the drop patterns for some other characters' attacks to give them a fighting chance. Don't worry purists, Dan still sucks just as much as ever.
Sirlin also said that the HD version will add quick drops (using the up button) and fix a glitch that significantly overpowered the color-clearing diamonds. That's all well and good, but it ignores the only question we really care about -- how will a super-deformed Chun Li's helicopter kick look in high definition?
Reader Comments (23)
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:12PM foxhound said
I like Puzzle Fighter and all, but... where's Street Fighter 4? :\
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:23PM Burritoclock said
Don't you mean Omega Super Street Fighter II Turbo Extreme xtreme ACE edition super remix 2.0 redux SE?
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:24PM (Unverified) said
If we've played this game, will these colored grids make sense then?
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:37PM foxhound said
Those grids display the gem bricks that fall when heavy damage is taken. For example, if you were given a diamond, which allows you to clear all gem bricks of the colour it touches below(for this example, I'll say it was blue)... then not only would all of your blue gem bricks be removed from the stack, but the grid of colours mentioned would fall on your opponent's side, piling them closer to the brim. Sort of like an attacking version of Tetris(or more recently, Lumines). So if you were playing as Dan, then a bunch of solid red bricks would fall.
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Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:30PM hotpuck6 said
my only concern is that if the up button causes a quick drop, hopefully the D-pad won't screw things up on the 360, every time i play fear and i try to peak around the corner(L and R on the D-Pad) it sets off my flashlight(Up on the D-Pad) and i get detected.... damn that thing needs fixing.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:32PM BPMOmega XBL PSN Steam said
Poor Dan... No love for the guy, Joystiq?
"how will a super-deformed Chun Li's helicopter kick will look in high definition?"
Same as before, just blurrier. They're not redrawing the character sprites (sadly), just everything else (mugshots, backgrounds, interface, etc.). So, the character sprites are just being resized and filtered. What a shame...
"how will a super-deformed Chun Li's helicopter kick will look in high definition?"
Same as before, just blurrier. They're not redrawing the character sprites (sadly), just everything else (mugshots, backgrounds, interface, etc.). So, the character sprites are just being resized and filtered. What a shame...
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 6:03PM (Unverified) said
FAIL.
http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/20/ps3-fanboy-interviews-udon-about-super-street-fighter-ii-hd-remi/
All of the sprites are being redrawn.
From that interview:
"Our art crew was asked to redesign each character sprite based on the artwork of Edayan, one of Capcom's most respected artists. Our job is to create character model design sheets for the sprite animators to follow.
The game is an exact port of SSF2T, so the hit boxes and poses must be identical, even while the detail and resolution are increased to approximately 4.5 times the original. Along with character sprite designs, we're redrawing and painting each stage background to match the enhanced resolution."
Even if Udon isn't personally redrawing every sprite, every sprite is being redrawn.
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http://www.joystiq.com/2007/07/20/ps3-fanboy-interviews-udon-about-super-street-fighter-ii-hd-remi/
All of the sprites are being redrawn.
From that interview:
"Our art crew was asked to redesign each character sprite based on the artwork of Edayan, one of Capcom's most respected artists. Our job is to create character model design sheets for the sprite animators to follow.
The game is an exact port of SSF2T, so the hit boxes and poses must be identical, even while the detail and resolution are increased to approximately 4.5 times the original. Along with character sprite designs, we're redrawing and painting each stage background to match the enhanced resolution."
Even if Udon isn't personally redrawing every sprite, every sprite is being redrawn.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 6:11PM (Unverified) said
No Matt_M, you fail.
The article is about Street Fighter 2 sprites being redrawn, not Super Puzzle Fighter 2.
Regardless, wouldn't it make sense to redraw the Super Puzzle Fighter 2 sprites? I mean if the devs are going to the trouble of updating it at all to begin with.
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The article is about Street Fighter 2 sprites being redrawn, not Super Puzzle Fighter 2.
Regardless, wouldn't it make sense to redraw the Super Puzzle Fighter 2 sprites? I mean if the devs are going to the trouble of updating it at all to begin with.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 6:48PM (Unverified) said
Actually, Justice, the SPF2T sprites and backgrounds are kinda sorta being redrawn. They're being scaled and smoothed so they don't look like crap on HDTVs. I don't like the way they look, but that's just me.
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Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:49PM ShinAntonio said
Interesting idea. I always knew the game was unbalanced, but I never knew Ken was top-tier.
I hope they leave in the option for no quick drop and the old attack patterns. You know how these purists are.
I hope they leave in the option for no quick drop and the old attack patterns. You know how these purists are.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:53PM (Unverified) said
well see, I don't remember the original pattern (other than Dan's), so hard to say how much better it is.
And yes, please play this game. Go buy it now for PS1 and enjoy!
And yes, please play this game. Go buy it now for PS1 and enjoy!
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 2:55PM NintendoFanbot said
HEY! Dan is the MAN!
He was supposed to be in SFIII, but you know Capcom.
*shakes fist*
He was supposed to be in SFIII, but you know Capcom.
*shakes fist*
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 3:17PM (Unverified) said
I have no fucking clue what I'm looking at.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 3:43PM (Unverified) said
also, how is this news? could you guys start doing news on the Guild Wars balance changes that happen about once a month?
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 4:26PM BPMOmega XBL PSN Steam said
Puzzle Fighter >>>>>>>> Guild Wars
TRUTH
Plus, this is a BLOG, not a NEWS SITE. Every nugget of gaming-related info is fair game here.
Reply
TRUTH
Plus, this is a BLOG, not a NEWS SITE. Every nugget of gaming-related info is fair game here.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 3:49PM (Unverified) said
Remember folks, if you buy Puzzle Fighter for PS1, keep in mind that it does not work on the slim PS2! I think it works on PS3, though.
I really like this game and I love Dan. Beating someone with Dan was the ultimate slap in the face. Sweet, handicapped victories are what make multiplayer fun for me :)
I really like this game and I love Dan. Beating someone with Dan was the ultimate slap in the face. Sweet, handicapped victories are what make multiplayer fun for me :)
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 6:55PM (Unverified) said
Are you kidding me? Crap! I recently upgraded to the slim PS2, but haven't tried Puzzle Fighter on it yet. This is one of my favorite games and I will be heartbroken if it doesn't work on there.
Are you people serious about Ken being one of the top-tier players? I've never been impressed (or threatened) by his drop pattern. Donovan and Akuma always kick my ass.
As an aside, I hope Capcom plans on releasing this game (minus HD of course) as WiiWare or whatever the non-VC download service will be called. I haven't yet made up my mind on 360vsPS3 and have no intention of owning both.
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Are you people serious about Ken being one of the top-tier players? I've never been impressed (or threatened) by his drop pattern. Donovan and Akuma always kick my ass.
As an aside, I hope Capcom plans on releasing this game (minus HD of course) as WiiWare or whatever the non-VC download service will be called. I haven't yet made up my mind on 360vsPS3 and have no intention of owning both.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 7:20PM (Unverified) said
victor, It's sad, but true. Put it into a slim PS2 and it'll play the Capcom logo movie and stop working beyond that. It's even on Sony's "Software Compatibility Alert" list:
http://www.us.playstation.com/News/ConsumerAlerts/softwareTitles_75001.html
I'm with you on Akuma and Donovan's patterns.
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http://www.us.playstation.com/News/ConsumerAlerts/softwareTitles_75001.html
I'm with you on Akuma and Donovan's patterns.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 4:18PM (Unverified) said
Looks like ryu doesn't look so good with 3/4 reds on the left, but these patterns look awesome. I'm sure they played it to death for testing. Vertical rows of all one color were terrible.
Posted: Aug 7th 2007 6:24PM (Unverified) said
Lies! Nothing is more fun than a good Ryu-Ryu match between high level players. Man, they better have an option for the old drops added in--or better yet, new characters with the old drops. Variety is the soul of wit.
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Posted: Aug 7th 2007 8:35PM (Unverified) said
The changes look interesting. Felicia and Ryu actually looks playable now, and the damage bonus to Chun Li could help counter an awful drop pattern. Hsien Ko's pattern is also intriguing as it has obvious weaknesses in the 2 solid columns and strengths in the centre. Sakura's pattern still sucks, though.
In the original, Ken was always top tier because once you worked out how to make unload huge drops, it was the hardest to recover and counter from (aside from Akuma and Devilot) . Of course, if small drops would only produce red making him as bad as Dan. Donovan was similar, except you could get away with making smaller drops to disrupt your opponent.
In the original, Ken was always top tier because once you worked out how to make unload huge drops, it was the hardest to recover and counter from (aside from Akuma and Devilot) . Of course, if small drops would only produce red making him as bad as Dan. Donovan was similar, except you could get away with making smaller drops to disrupt your opponent.
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