Street Fighter Alpha 2, known as Street Fighter Zero 2 (ストリートファイターZERO 2 Sutorito Faita Zero 2?) in Japan, Asia, South America, and Spain, is a 1996 fighting game originally released for the CPS II arcade hardware by Capcom. The game is an iteration to Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams.
The game featured a number of improvements over the original, such as new endings, stages, moves and gameplay systems. Some character's endings were retconned from the original, overwriting their prior story (i.e. Akuma's), or tweaked.
Summary[]
- "What started with Alpha...extends into infinity. With Alpha 2 original high-schooler Sakura leading the way, this furious brawl welcomes five newcomers into the fray and even sees the return of M. Bison, Akuma, and Dan for a grand roster of 18 characters! With more refined mechanics than ever before, Street Fighter has never been more accessible or tactically deep! Explore the Custom Combo system—the ultimate evolution of the Super Combo—and create custom combination attacks all your own! The stage is set. Will you become it's star?"
- —Game Center description in Street Fighter 6
Story[]
In terms of plot and settings, both Street Fighter Alpha 1 & 2 are sub-sequels that are set six months after the events of the original Street Fighter, but also six years before the events of the Street Fighter II series and thus the game features younger versions of established characters, as well as characters from the original Street Fighter, the Final Fight games and a few who are newcomers to the series.
Gameplay[]
Street Fighter Alpha 2 retains most of the new features introduced in the original Street Fighter Alpha, such as the three-level Super Combo gauge, Alpha Counters, Air-Blocking and Fall Breaking. The game has a thinner and longer health bar as well. Every character has two Alpha Counters; one for the kick and one for the punch button. Previously, characters only had one, and it was with either the punch or kick button.
The main new feature in the game is the Custom Combo system (Original Combo in Japanese versions), which replaces the Chain combos from the first Alpha. However, it is not available in regular attack as chain combos; if the Super Combo Gauge is on Lv.1 or above, the player can initiate a Custom Combo pressing two punch buttons and a kick simultaneously, or vice versa. The player can then perform any series of basic and special moves to create a Custom Combo until the Timer Gauge at the bottom of the screen runs out. The only characters that can still perform Chain Combos in the game are Guy and Gen, but only to a limited extent. As such, the game has less combos and gameplay is generally slower, which balanced out most characters.
Likewise, proximity normals from older games have been removed for this title only, though a number of pre-existing normals have buffed properties to compensate.
The single-player mode, much like the original Street Fighter Alpha, consist of eight matches with randomly computer-controlled opponents, including a fixed final opponent whose identity depends on the player's selected character (some have two or three fixed foes, as in the case of Ryu). Each character also has a secret rival whom they can face during the course of the same mode after meeting certain requirements, in which then the rival will interrupt one of the player's regularly scheduled matches and exchange dialogue with the player's character, like the final opponent. With Akuma now debuting as a regular character, a more powerful version of the character dubbed Shin Akuma, replaces him as a secret opponent. Unlike Super Turbo and the original Alpha, Shin Akuma challenges the player before the player's final opponent, rather than the hidden final boss.
However, in spite of these gameplay changes, and the game itself was quite successful during release, Alpha 2 is often notorious for the fact that a number of attacks end up being very unsafe on hit or somehow have various dead-zones in their intended hitboxes in comparison to previous titles.
Characters[]
All thirteen characters from the original Alpha return, with previously secret characters M. Bison, Akuma, and Dan now part of the immediate roster. There isn't a "Random Fighter" option in this title, however. The graphics for all of the returning characters' home stages, cutscenes and endings have been completely changed to new ones. In addition, returning character's voice recordings have been made higher or deeper pitched, or removed and replaced completely. Sounds and background music in general have been noticeably changed in pitch. Damage inflicted by normal and special moves has been reduced as well. In spite of the changes, the audio and general gameplay are mostly identical.
Five additional characters are featured, extending the selectable roster to eighteen. The new characters include Zangief and Dhalsim from Street Fighter II; Gen from the original Street Fighter; Rolento from Final Fight; and Sakura, a new character who is a Japanese schoolgirl that idolizes Ryu and emulates many of his fighting techniques.
Street Fighter Alpha 2 also features an alternate version of Chun-Li in her Street Fighter II outfit as a hidden character, as well as Shin Akuma, a more powerful version of Akuma who appears as a secret computer-controlled opponent in the single player mode. The North American version of the arcade game also features three additional hidden characters who were not present in the Japanese version: Evil Ryu, an alternate, corrupt version of Ryu who uses the same raw power as Akuma; as well as extra versions of Zangief and Dhalsim who play like their counterparts from Street Fighter II: Champion Edition, including the omission of gameplay features such as super moves and air blocking.
Name | Location | Appearance | Summary |
---|---|---|---|
Adon | Chao Phraya River, Thailand |
Adon is back after his defeat in the original Street Fighter. His story revolves around him setting out to challenge his old master, Sagat, for the title of God of Muay Thai after Ryu's triumph over him in Street Fighter. | |
Akuma | Gokuento, Japan |
A deadly warrior in the arts of Satsui no Hado, Akuma searches the world for worthy opponents. In his travels, he is confronted by Gen. In a fierce battle, Akuma uses his Shun Goku Satsu on Gen, but it fails to kill him as he empties his soul in time. However, during that battle, Akuma notices that Gen was mortally ill with leukemia and storms off, looking for a fair fight. Ryu eventually finds Akuma's island and challenges him. Akuma tests Ryu's strength and later on destroys his own island with one punch, telling Ryu to train further for their next encounter. | |
Birdie | London Station Grounds, England |
A street thug from England who is interested in joining Shadaloo, he sets out to prove his strength to Bison and gain membership, which he successfully does. | |
Charlie Nash | Detroit Highway, USA |
Charlie is a first lieutenant of the USAF, and is given an important mission by his superiors to find and arrest Bison for his past crimes. Charlie eventually tracks down M. Bison in Venezuela, leading to a swift and intense battle between the two of them, with Charlie emerging victorious against Bison. However, Charlie's victory is short-lived, for when Charlie seriously interrogates Bison about his alleged connection to a potential corruption in the U.S. Army, Charlie himself is shockingly and unexpectedly gunned down by one of his own backup helicopters, leading to not only Charlie's horrific plummet down a waterfall and presumed death, but also confirming Bison's own control over corrupt officers within the U.S. Army as well. | |
Chun-Li | Beijing, China |
Chun-Li is an agent of Interpol and is searching for information regarding the death of her father. It turns out that M. Bison, leader of Shadaloo, is responsible. She successfully tracks down Bison, but gets overwhelmed by his Psycho Power and vows vengeance towards him as Bison immediately escapes from Chun-Li's own anger and wrath. | |
Dan Hibiki | Temple Street, Hong Kong |
Dan is the son of Go Hibiki, the man responsible for taking out one of Sagat's eyes; out of rage, Sagat killed Go. After training with Gouken for a short time, Dan develops his own fighting style, Saikyō-ryū, and sets out to avenge the death of his father. | |
Dhalsim | Bank of the Ganges River, India |
Dhalsim gets involved in the recent events to raise money for his poor village. By doing so, he gains his fellow villagers' respect and in the end, Dhalsim himself becomes a "Great Yoga Master". | |
Gen | Shanghai, China |
Gen, a martial arts master and former professional assasin, suffers from leukemia and enters the fighting scene once again to find a worthy opponent that can finish him off. During his travels he helps Chun-Li with clues about Bison's whereabouts. Ultimately, Gen encounters Akuma, who spares him because it was not a fair fight. | |
Guy | Metro City, USA |
Guy is a modern-day ninja, the newest heir to the Bushinryu style. Before claiming the title, however, Guy is warned by his master of an emerging threat to the world, so he seeks out this new mysterious evil, who is none other than M. Bison. | |
Ken Masters | San Francisco Bay, USA |
Ken wins the U.S. Martial Arts tournament during the events of the original Street Fighter and goes to tell his master Gouken the good news. When he arrives at the dojo, he witnesses his master being killed by Akuma. Ken tries to step in but is easily knocked down and Akuma leaves. Ken vows to get stronger and avenge his master. During his travels, he encounters Ryu, who is having doubts about his power, and after a fight, helps him regain his senses. | |
M. Bison | Atop the VTOL, Brazil |
M. Bison is the leader of world criminal organization Shadaloo. His actions involve drug trafficking and arms dealing, among others. As a result, he and his organization have gained a lot of notoriety. | |
Rolento F. Schugerg | New York, USA |
Rolento is an ex-Mad Gear Gang member who wants to create his own utopian nation. He encounters Sodom, who tries to recruit him into the new Mad Gear, and Guy, who attempts to stop him. In the end, he leads an uprising within Metro City, intending to achieve his idealistic dream. | |
Rose | Genova Harbor, Italy |
Rose is a beautiful yet mysterious psychic from Genoa who senses that doomsday is slowly approaching, being caused by Bison. She goes out to find and defeat Bison. While she manages to defeat him, Bison was not truly dead. | |
Ryu | Suzaku Castle, Japan |
After winning the first World Warrior Tournament, Ryu goes back home to Japan, only to discover that his master Gouken had been shockingly murdered. Ryu sets out to find Akuma, though Ryu hasn't felt like himself since his victory over Sagat. He encounters both Ken and Sakura during his travels, who help him regain his focus. Later, he manages to locate Akuma on his island, where they fight. Having tested his skill, Akuma sinks the island, telling Ryu to become stronger. | |
Sagat | Ayutthaya Ruins, Thailand |
After Ryu won the title of World Warrior, Sagat trains to get better, developing the Tiger Blow in the process. After severely injuring his student Adon for mocking him, Sagat is approached by M. Bison and joins Shadaloo under the promise of getting his rematch against Ryu. | |
Sakura Kasugano | Setagaya-ku Ni-chome, Japan |
Sakura is a Japanese schoolgirl who idolizes Ryu, whose fighting style she has imitated. Hoping for a match and an autograph with him, she cuts classes and goes on a journey around the world. | |
Sodom | Arizona Desert, USA | Sodom is looking for recruits to join his new Mad Gear Gang. After losing Rolento, who had lost sight of the gang's ideals, he sets his attention on Japan's Sumo wrestlers, leading to a humorous Sumo match between Sodom and E. Honda. | |
Zangief | Bilsk Ironworks, USSR | Zangief is a Russian wrestler who travels around the world showing the strength of "the Great Motherland". Gaining notoriety, he becomes acquainted with Gorbachev and returns to his country as a national Russian hero, nicknamed the "Red Cyclone". Zangief is then sent to train in the freezing Siberian wilderness, wrestling bears as he vows to improve himself greatly while also remaining quite very resolved and determined to show and prove Russia's own almighty power and strength to the world itself. |
Non-Playable Characters[]
- Andore (in Guy's stage)
- Cody (in Guy's stage)
- Jessica (in Guy's stage)
- Simons (in Guy's stage)
- Bill Bull (in Guy's stage)
- Abigail (in Guy's stage)
- Two P (in Guy's stage)
- Edi. E (in Guy's stage)
- Mike Haggar (in Guy's stage and Rolento's ending)
- J (in Guy's stage)
- Damnd (in Guy's stage)
- Poison (in Guy's stage)
- El Gado (in Guy's stage)
- Axl (in Guy's stage)
- Lord Raptor (in Ken's stage (human form))
- Hsien-Ko (in Ken's stage)
- Mei-Ling (in Ken's stage)
- Unknown Soldiers 1P and 2P (in Ken's stage)
- Morrigan Aensland (in Ken's stage)
- Biff Slamkovich (in Ken's stage)
- Victor Ortega (in Ken's stage)
- Eliza Masters (in both Ken's stage and ending)
- Ginzu (in Ken's stage)
- Captain Commando (in Ken's stage)
- Michelle Heart (in Ken's stage)
- Strider Hiryu (in Ken's stage)
- Linn Kurosawa (in Ken's stage)
- Felicia (in Ken's stage)
- Pure the Mage (in Ken's stage)
- Kenzo Tsujimoto (in Ken's stage)
- Tsukushi Kasugano (in Sakura's stage)
- Sally (in Dhalsim's stage)
- Fei Long (in Dan's stage)
- Zeku (in Guy's ending)
- Gorbachev (in Zangief's ending)
- Kei Chitose (in Sakura's ending)
- E. Honda (in Sodom's ending)
- Vega (in Sagat's ending)
- Balrog (in Sagat's ending)
- Senoh (in M. Bison's ending)
Arcade Versions[]
Street Fighter Alpha 2 was released under the title of Street Fighter Zero 2 in Japan, Asia, South America and Spain. The American and European versions of Alpha 2 features three additional characters who were not in Japanese version: Evil Ryu and the EX versions of Zangief and Dhalsim.
Capcom released an updated version of Zero 2 titled Street Fighter Zero 2 Alpha only in Japan, which features all the additional characters from the inital Alpha 2, as well as other changes to the game. In addition to Zangief and Dhalsim, Zero 2 Alpha also features EX versions of Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, Sagat and M. Bison, all whom were characters from the original Street Fighter II': Champion Edition. Custom Combos are now executed by pressing a punch and kick button of the same strength simultaneously and now require half (1½ level) of the Super Combo gauge filled to perform them. Some of the characters have gained new moves such as Ryu's Shakunetsu Hadoken and Dhalsim's Yoga Tempest. Zero 2 Alpha also features a Survival Mode, as well as a 2-on-1 Dramatic Battle Mode similar to the hidden "Ryu and Ken vs. Bison mode" in the original Alpha. In this version, Evil Ryu has different dialogue exchanges and a different ending from his regular counterpart. The game also features an arranged version of the Alpha 2 soundtrack.
Home Console Ports[]
PlayStation & Sega Saturn[]
The original Alpha 2 was ported to the PlayStation and the Sega Saturn in late 1996. The PlayStation port features an arranged soundtrack, in the form of XA-Audio, while the Saturn version uses an arranged soundtrack in a streaming ADPCM format (which looped properly like in the original arcade version). Both versions feature Shin Akuma as a selectable character via a secret code (which differs between the two versions: the PlayStation port requires the players to move the cursor in a Z pattern (from Street Fighter Zero), while the Saturn version requires an X pattern (from Super Street Fighter II X — Grand Master Challenge, Akuma's debut game), in addition to the classic-style Chun-Li. The Saturn port is the only one of the two versions to feature the characters of Evil Ryu, EX Zangief, and EX Dhalsim from the American arcade version. Additionally, the Saturn version also features an exclusive Survival Mode, as well as an Art Gallery.
A home version of Street Fighter Zero 2 Alpha was released under the title of Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold in North America, Street Fighter Alpha 2′ (Prime) in Europe and Street Fighter Zero 2 Dash in Japan (promoted as Street Fighter Zero 2′). The game was released as a component of Street Fighter Collection, a compilation that also includes Super Street Fighter II and Super Street Fighter II Turbo. Alpha 2 Gold features most of the same changes, features and game modes as the arcade version of Zero 2 Alpha, omitting only the 2-on-1 Dramatic Battle mode from the arcade game. In addition to all the characters featured in previous versions of Alpha 2, Gold features a version of Cammy based on her rendition from X-Men vs. Street Fighter, who appears as a hidden character selectable only in the game's Versus and Training Modes. Alpha 2 Gold also features an "Akuma Mode", where the player can fight against Shin Akuma immediately.
Super NES[]
An SNES port was also released in 1996. Street Fighter Alpha 2's release on the 16-bit console was unusual, as the original Alpha was never released (nor will be for Alpha 3), unlike the PlayStation and Saturn, and was late in that console's lifespan. This version of the game, although widely regarded as a technical marvel for its time and is the most advanced Street Fighter title for the system (as well as the last), makes use of the S-DD1 chip for graphic decompression rather than upgrading. According to community member Gizaha, who reverse-engineered the game in early 2020 and created a patch implementing a number of enhancements, slow audio uploading to the Super Nintendo's' audio management chip (SPC700) and generally unoptimized/inefficient code by the developers cause the game to have several loading delays when entering and finishing matches (which is highly unusual for cartridge-based consoles), though its load times are still faster than the CD-based PS1 and Saturn versions. The Super NES port suffered a number of changes due to hardware limitations and censorship:
- Charlie's ending was changed; in the original version, he fights M.Bison in an unique location near a waterfall. Since the waterfall stage does not exist here, the fight takes place in Bison's default stage.
- In the North American & European versions of the game, Sodom's name was censored and changed to Katana, echoing what happened in the western versions of Final Fight.
- The beginning portion of Rose's ending where she is taking a bath was removed.
- Most characters' endings have their cutscenes altered, shortened, or have a few details missing.
- Several dialogue edits were made, one of them correcting a grammar error while facing off against Shin Akuma.
- Exclusive to this version is the ability to activate Custom Combos at any time with at least one level of the Super Combo meter available.
Notably, for over two decades after the game's release, it was widely believed that classic-style Chun-Li was the only hidden character, and that Shin Akuma was relegated to being only a secret computer-controlled superboss who deals double damage, thus requiring the use of cheat devices (Game Genie) to allow players to select him. However, in early 2020, aforementioned community member Gizaha completed his reverse engineering of the game and discovered an apparently developer-exclusive method to legitimately unlock Shin Akuma in this version. The method has been verified in original console hardware, and, if used in Arcade Mode, leads to "garbage characters" being loaded during the conversation in the final stage VS Gen (lending further credibility to the theory of the method being intended to be developer-only). Otherwise, the character is 100% playable, although strangely, he does not have an alternate color (if both players pick him in Versus Mode, both characters will have the exact same color palette).
Windows PC[]
A Windows PC port was also released in 1997, based on the PlayStation version, but using the arcade soundtrack in 22kHz WAV format. This version was sold as a bundle with the original Alpha in Japan.
PlayStation 2[]
Ten years after the original release, the 2006 PlayStation 2 compilation Street Fighter Alpha Anthology features a version of the original Alpha 2 based on the arcade game, as well as a revised version of Alpha 2 Gold which features Cammy as an exclusive selectable character in the game's Arcade Mode (with her own storyline and ending). Both games feature Survival and Dramatic Battle modes in addition to Arcade, Versus and Training. The Japanese version of the compilation, Street Fighter Zero: Fighters' Generation, features the arcade versions of Street Fighter Zero 2 and Zero 2 Alpha as regular games, with the US version of Alpha 2 and the revised version of Zero 2 Dash as hidden games.
Trivia[]
- This game is the highest-grossing arcade of 1996 in Japan.
- Story-wise, Street Fighter Alpha 2 marks the debut of the Satsui no Hado, as well as the first appearance of Shin Akuma as well as Evil Ryu (though the latter isn't canon).
- During screen transitions between matches, in all versions, a beam of light travels across the screen to create a "Z". This is likely a reference to the game's Japanese name of Street Fighter Zero 2.
- Among the Alpha series of Street Fighter, this title remains a fan-favorite, likely due to the canon stories of certain characters, specifically Ryu, Ken, and Akuma, as well as being a considerable improvement over the first.
- Interestingly, although unrelated to the Street Fighter, the Japanese release date of the arcade version is the same as the debut of the multi-billion dollar Nintendo Pokemon franchise: February 27, 1996.
Gallery[]
Promotional Art and Packaging[]
Official Art[]
- To view all official character artwork, see: Official Art.
Screenshots[]
Wii U eShop (SNES version)[]
Videos[]
Audio files[]
External Links[]
- Wikipedia article
- Capcom Database article
- Sega Retro article for Street Fighter Alpha 2
- Sega Retro article for Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold
Street Fighter Alpha Characters | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Alpha | Adon · Akuma · Birdie · Charlie · Chun-Li · Dan · Guy Ken · M. Bison · Rose · Ryu · Sagat · Sodom | |||
Alpha 2 | Original | Dhalsim · Evil Ryu · Gen · Rolento · Sakura · Zangief | ||
Console | Shin Akuma | |||
Gold | Cammy | |||
Alpha 3 | Original | Balrog · Blanka · Cody · E. Honda · Juli · Juni · Karin · R. Mika · Vega | ||
Console | Dee Jay · Fei Long · Guile · T. Hawk | |||
Upper | Eagle · Maki · Yun | |||
MAX | Ingrid |