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esports
Street Fighter 6 a Year Later
EVO 2024 came and went with a historic NA victory in Street Fighter 6. Let’s take a look back at the amazing first year of this entry in the legendary franchise
Seven years after losing to Tokido for 2nd place in Street Fighter 5, Punk won EVO 2024, defeating Red Bull Kumite champion Big Bird in the grand finals. With 5000+ SF6 players and a historic number of entrants, EVO 2024 was wildly successful for the new entry in the Street Fighter franchise, and it didn’t come out of nowhere.
Amazing Launch
A new Street Fighter is always an exciting opportunity for Capcom, but it doesn’t come without a high standard. They didn’t just meet expectations, they knocked them out of the park. Upon release in June 2023, Street Fighter 6 amazed the FGC and broader consumer base not only with nitty gritty mechanics, but also with the increasingly important features intended for newer players.
The impact of World Tour mode and Battle Hub Avatar battles is impossible to overstate. A common failing of fighting games is not having much to do outside of versus modes, and SF6’s wildly successful launch proves that players new and old are receptive to changing up the formula tastefully.
Another huge addition was the introduction of Modern controls. Accessibility is a pivotal topic in today’s FGC. Developers are clearly on board, but some players fear the train has no brakes, wondering, where does it end? Capcom delivered the best of both worlds by not touching regular controls at all, leaving the more seasoned players the Classic setting, but adding Modern style to lower barriers.
The new mechanics tie in perfectly with the Drive System, which creates a backbone of constant meter management that makes SF6 a game where you have to stay on your toes. The importance of the Drive Meter adds a new strategic element and an array of strong tools that have to be considered at all times.
Burnout is also one of the most game changing states in the genre. Using all of your meter is so punishing, players are forced to carefully consider when to spend resources.
All of that is key, but Capcom also reimagined the roster with stunning visuals and refreshing gameplay. Since SF6 is, chronologically, the latest game in the franchise, characters have a great mix of many of their historic tools.
Capcom’s Support
Throughout the season, Capcom supported the game with content through DLC and Battle Hub events. Capcom Cup (CC) was a wildly successful circuit, partly due to crowning Uma the first FGC millionaire after he won the million dollar prize at CCX. They’ll continue this practice with the winner of CCXI also set to win a million dollars.
Capcom consistently worked on the game itself, with a few small patches here and there, and one large patch a year later. The balance wasn’t bad in Season 1, as many characters saw success at high level, but Capcom has done a great job bringing other characters up to speed while not hamstringing top tiers with nerfs.
Capcom also clearly gives thought to World Tour and Battle Hub players, as they’ve consistently added fun content such as raid boss battles and cosmetics for players to express themselves with. This includes collaborations such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Most importantly though, SF6 has nailed the DLC side of things. Aki is a great newcomer addition to the roster, and the 3 returning characters (two of them coming from SF5) were perfectly touched up to be compelling, fun characters. Rashid was an inch away from winning Evo this year!
After a great first season of DLC, people expected another repeat of 1 or 2 newcomers to the universe and some great returning picks. What they did not expect was a mind blowing crossover with SNK. At Summer Games Fest, Capcom announced Terry and Mai will be part of the Season 2 Pass, along with Elena and Bison.
Guest characters are nothing new in the genre, but Capcom working with SNK again signifies the possibility of re-releases, touching up older games like Capcom vs SNK 2 with rollback and hitbox viewers, like the upcoming Marvel Vs. Capcom Collection.
Like clockwork, at EVO 2024 SNK announced the rerelease of SvC Chaos, one of the earlier Capcom and SNK collaborations. This is just the first few steps in what some of the FGC views as a new golden era of fighting games, with Capcom going back to their roots and working with SNK and Marvel (one can dream).
Tournament Success
SF6 released immediately before Red Bull Kumite and EVO of 2023. Red Bull Kumite 2023 was won by Big Bird, who showed off oppressive Marisa gameplay. Red Bull Kumite highlighted the intense international competition that SF6 is going to bring for years to come.
SF6 at Evo 2023 was by far the biggest fighting game tournament ever, with 7000+ entrants. EVO’s open bracket format created a daunting mountain for competitors to scale, and the two who made it to the top gave us a moment the FGC will never forget. During grand finals, MenaRD’s pad disconnected, but AngryBird elected to simply continue after the pause, instead of taking a game and letting the technical difficulty ruin the moment. AngryBird went on to win the set, taking home the EVO title.
Capcom also had the Street Fighter League going throughout the season, which culminated in the SFL playoffs. Players that once competed for EVO championships were now on the same teams, trying to beat out other stacked teams.
The Capcom Pro Tour had many stops, both offline and online. Players had the opportunity to make it to Capcom Cup through online World Warrior events in their region. All of these efforts lead up to an electrifying final, with Uma taking home the million dollars.
Overall, the first year of SF6’s competitive life was beyond successful. SF6 once again was the most entered game at EVO 2024, with Punk finally getting his EVO title. SF6 is in a great spot a year later, and people across the community are genuinely excited for the future.
