Capcom’s Street Fighter franchise has been knocking out the competition since the ’80s, remaining the king of 2D fighters despite the best efforts of franchises like The King of Fighters and Guilty Gear. Its latest iteration, Street Fighter V, has wrapped up its run, leading many to wonder what’s next for the iconic series — and the answer may be coming to gamers sooner than they think.
Street Fighter 6 is officially on the horizon, with new elements introduced in SFV paving the way for the future as Capcom prepares the next generation of fighting. There’s still a lot under wraps about the game, but what’s been shown so far promises to take gamers for a whole new kind of world tour.
Street Fighter 6’s Trailer
The first teaser trailer for Street Fighter 6 was shown at the tail-end of the Capcom Pro Tour Finals, marking the end of a countdown many predicted would announce the game. Showcasing Ryu and Luke facing each in a much more realistic and detailed artstyle than before, the game seems to be ditching the “paint” aesthetic of the previous two games. The revealed footage is only a teaser, however, so any changes to the gameplay and fighting mechanics are still unknown.
The next trailer for Street Fighter 6 shown off at Sony’s June 2022 State of Play gave a much closer look at the game. Seemingly learning from the mistakes of Street Fighter V, which launched with a barebones at best single-player, the new game will feature a stunning World Tour mode. This will be a 3D adventure where players traverse the world of Street Fighter in Metro City (the setting of Final Fight). There, they’ll throw hands with strangers around the block, all of whom are apparently encountered randomly throughout the city. Four characters (Ryu, Chun-Li, Luke, and newcomer Jamie) were also revealed in this trailer. Fan-favorite Guile was revealed the following week during Summer Game Fest, with more sure to come.
What Will Street Fighter 6 Be About?
Though info on Street Fighter 6‘s story is scarce, it does seem that Luke from Street Fighter V is the new protagonist of the series. This is backed up by his being touted as the franchise’s future when he debuted in the previous game. Likewise, Jamie is described as looking up to Street Fighter III characters Yun and Yang, suggesting that this game finally goes beyond that one in the series’ timeline.
The now-bearded Ryu also further backs this theory up. The fact that he might not be the main character anymore could repeat the mistakes of Street Fighter III, but given that he still has a prominent role, Capcom may be averting that. A recent leak has supposedly confirmed the initial roster, which includes several classic World Warriors and quite a few new fists and faces.
What We Know About Street Fighter 6 So Far
Street Fighter 6 has long been rumored, especially as DLC for its predecessor started to wind down. Its existence was first “confirmed” by a leaker, who claimed Street Fighter 6 was meant to come out in 2021, but was delayed due to poor testing. This stemmed from a new “team-based” mechanic which was focused on too much in the gameplay, suggesting that a tag-team element was to be introduced into the mix. The events of the game’s development saw longtime series director Yoshinori Ono leave the project, with someone else now in charge of “fixing” the game.
When Will Street Fighter 6 Release?
Street Fighter 6 is currently set to be released sometime in 2023. This contradicts previous intel asserting the game would release Q3 2022, with Super and Ultra updates planned for the Q4 of 2023 and 2024, respectively. If some version of this plan is implemented, the revisions will likely be available as DLC and include new seasons of playable characters.
The game will release on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. This moves the series beyond its PlayStation exclusivity from the previous generation, and through multiple platforms, will involve an even larger world of warriors.