GOTD 7/17/2016: Street Fighter Zero 3 (Sega Saturn)

[bb_hood]

Street Fighter Zero 3 is very much a game where the more you play it, the more you WANT to play it. SFZ3 puts the previous two Saturn Street Fighter Zero games to shame. This game is fighting perfection on the Sega Saturn. The controls are super tight and the animations are not just well done but they are awesome as well. The music is also top-notch. Everything about this game is just perfect. SFZ3 also requires the extra 4mb of ram, so the Saturn version is most likely superior to the PlayStation version. I have read people online state that the Saturn version is better than the Dreamcast version, but I have not played the DC version at all.

Street Fighter Zero 3 has 33 characters to choose from while Street Fighter Zero 2 has 18 (not counting hidden characters). Also SFZ3 does include Cammy; and she is missing in the two previous SFZ games. I played SFZ2 for a little bit to compare the two games, and SFZ3 is a much nicer game overall. SFZ3 is also a really colorfull game, if you have an RGB setup you want to check this game out (the above pics are using regular AV cables).
This is definitly a game you want to play with a good arcade stick (although the regular controller works just fine). The Sega Virtua Stick is an excellent controller, and is perfect for any Capcom fighting game.

[shadowman]

Alpha/Zero 3 on the Playstation has load times and lots of missing frames of animation - those two reasons alone make the Saturn version the better version. Not that I'd say the Playstation version is bad, I still played the heck out of it when it was released (I had no way of importing or playing JPN Saturn games in '99).

World Tour Mode is still the best thing about the game for me. It blew me away at the time - a fighter having an awesome RPG mode that gave you different objectives to clear, and all the characters were there to fight, including hidden areas with Guile, Evil Ryu and Shin Akuma/Gouki. It still amazes me that no other series, bar the early Soul Calibur games ever took this mode. I'd love it if later Street Fighter and King of Fighters games included a mode like this (SFV is so bare bones, it'd have instantly made it more attractive). Best we've gotten is the Mortal Kombat/Injustice challenge modes which are pretty extensive, but aren't exactly what I'm looking for.

Zero 3 itself was THE game that got me back into fighters. After SF2 the only fighter I touched was Marvel Super Heroes, and that was because I was a big Marvel fan (and to this day it remains my fav fighter), but I'd just fallen out of love with the genre otherwise. I remember reading the previews for Zero 3 in the official Playstation mag, and was instantly hyped since they were bringing back so many classic fighters from SF2 (like Blanka, my fav). I remember the game getting delayed many a time in Europe thanks to Virgin Interactives incompetance (they managed to do even better with the Dreamcast version, which was delayed for even longer). But I played the heck out of this game when it was released, apart from the World Tour mode I remember really enjoying all the survival/Kumite modes alongside the cool dialog clips each character got.
The soundtrack was excellent as well, I love the final Bison boss music, Akuma's music, Charlie, Honda, Fei Long etc. Its not quite as classic as SF2 music wise, but it'll remain one of my favourite fighter soundtracks.

The Dreamcast version isn't as revered as the Saturn one because its apparently less arcade perfect. Not sure why that is, but until the PS2 version was eventually released, the Saturn version was THE version to get for those wanting the best version. Its worth noting that the DC version has a completely different World Tour mode, so in my opinion its worth owning for that reason alone (completely different challenges).

Also, I can't not mention the handheld versions here. The GBA version done by Crawfish was amazing - it somehow manages to cram all the characters and moves onto a GBA card. Its missing much of the music and soundbites, and the world tour mode but otherwise everything is present. Its a miracle of programming. The PSP version gives you even more modes (World Tour is back, and a tag team mode is also in!) and both handheld versions give you 3 more characters - Yun from SF3, Maki from Final Fight 2/CVS2 and Eagle (SF1/CVS2). Play the game on the Vita as it has a superior D Pad, even with the stick on D Pad the PSP version doesn't handle quite as well.

So yeah, Zero 3, no matter the port remains one of the best games I've ever played!

[Edmond Dantes]

Just saying, that is one sweeeeet arcade stick in that first picture.

The only version of SFA3 I've played is the PSP one. The Alpha series is odd to me as it seems more "story-oriented" so sometimes I feel like I need to play Alpha 1 and 2 first.

But unfortunately I think for me the Alpha/Zero games in general fall under the classic problem of... actually, I'm not sure how you would describe this problem in few words, but its like... okay, as a kid all I knew was Street Fighter II, including the four new characters from Super SF2 and some animated spinoffs. When Alpha was a thing, I saw the name in magazines and such, but by then I had moved on (I was, in fact, in the middle of a nerdish "only RPGs are worth playing!" phase) so I knew very little about it.

Now, I sometimes have this issue where I don't like a specific direction or permutation of a franchise, and while this can sometimes happen when I'm following a franchise as it happens (like Spoony I didn't like the direction the Final Fantasy series was going during the PS1/2 era) most of the times this happens to me when I "backtrack" and go back and play games I missed in my childhood. So a few years back I decided to go back and play all the Street Fighter games after the second which I had been unable or uninterested in playing as a kid.

And to be honest, well... a lot of things turned me off about the post-SF2 incarnations of the series. Most notably, I hate the character designs. Everyone is so stupidly bulky now. It's like Capcom saw a bunch of Rob Liefeld drawings and took it as a dare. Probably the best example is Chun-Li, who had believable proportions in SF2 but now...well, watch the Game Theory episode "Chun-Li's DEADLY Helicopter Kick" since he shows her through the eras in that and you'll see for yourself how stupid she looks now, particularly her legs, which are now both bigger than her waist area.

And another issue I started to have was.... the story.

Yeah, I know, but consider this: When I saw the terrible movie Street Fighter: the Legend of Chun-Li and got to the part where the character Rose was actually Bison's "good side" exiled and manifest into a completely different person, I assumed that was stupid bullshit made up specifically for a notoriously bad movie.... and then I found out that something like that is actually game-canon. -___- Yeah, call me crazy but I was actually much happier with thinking he was just some random guy who wanted to conquer the world via a martial arts tournament. But now IT ARE CANON and can not be undone, so when I play a modern SF game I always subconsciously remember that... Capcom approved this, and probably other stupid crap.

I long for the days when they were all just random people going to this one tournament for their own stupid reasons.

That said though, I have very little to say on the games themselves, as when I finally got some of the Alphas, I was far more into SNK's fighters and thus played them more often.

[celerystalker]

I've played the various versions, and the Saturn is probably the most complete package, though the Dreamcast version is perfectly fine. I prefer the controller on Saturn, but I just use an X-Arcade stick on Dreamcast anyway.

Truthfully, though, I prefer Alpha 2, which is my favorite Street Fighter iteration. It just feels a little more well-rounded to me, and it has my favorite timing in a Street Fighter. After that, I stuck mainly with Guilty Gear and Guilty Gear X. I think my favorite fighters are probably Guilty Gear X, Street Fighter Alpha 2, and Real Bout Fatal Fury.

I do like the Virtua Stick. Very much the feel of a candy cabinet. Much better feel for fighters than the Happ style stuff in the X-Arcade.

[bb_hood]

Thanks for all the replies!

Zero 3 itself was THE game that got me back into fighters. After SF2 the only fighter I touched was Marvel Super Heroes, and that was because I was a big Marvel fan (and to this day it remains my fav fighter), but I'd just fallen out of love with the genre otherwise. I remember reading the previews for Zero 3 in the official Playstation mag, and was instantly hyped since they were bringing back so many classic fighters from SF2 (like Blanka, my fav). I remember the game getting delayed many a time in Europe thanks to Virgin Interactives incompetance (they managed to do even better with the Dreamcast version, which was delayed for even longer). But I played the heck out of this game when it was released, apart from the World Tour mode I remember really enjoying all the survival/Kumite modes alongside the cool dialog clips each character got.
The soundtrack was excellent as well, I love the final Bison boss music, Akuma's music, Charlie, Honda, Fei Long etc. Its not quite as classic as SF2 music wise, but it'll remain one of my favourite fighter soundtracks.

Marvel v Capcom 2 was the game that got me into fighters, I played it alot in the arcade. Then I became obsessed with all the other Capcom fighting games on Saturn and Dreamcast. I havent played SFZ3 as much as the Marvel fighters, but the more I play SFZ3 I kinda feel like its a better game.

Truthfully, though, I prefer Alpha 2, which is my favorite Street Fighter iteration. It just feels a little more well-rounded to me, and it has my favorite timing in a Street Fighter. After that, I stuck mainly with Guilty Gear and Guilty Gear X. I think my favorite fighters are probably Guilty Gear X, Street Fighter Alpha 2, and Real Bout Fatal Fury.

I do like the Virtua Stick. Very much the feel of a candy cabinet. Much better feel for fighters than the Happ style stuff in the X-Arcade.

I hear ya, SF Alpha 2 is a great game also. It has a more classic feel to it.
Yeah I love how the virtua stick comes with nice buttons in it. Its a really good controller.

Just saying, that is one sweeeeet arcade stick in that first picture.

The only version of SFA3 I've played is the PSP one. The Alpha series is odd to me as it seems more "story-oriented" so sometimes I feel like I need to play Alpha 1 and 2 first.

But unfortunately I think for me the Alpha/Zero games in general fall under the classic problem of... actually, I'm not sure how you would describe this problem in few words, but its like... okay, as a kid all I knew was Street Fighter II, including the four new characters from Super SF2 and some animated spinoffs. When Alpha was a thing, I saw the name in magazines and such, but by then I had moved on (I was, in fact, in the middle of a nerdish "only RPGs are worth playing!" phase) so I knew very little about it.

Now, I sometimes have this issue where I don't like a specific direction or permutation of a franchise, and while this can sometimes happen when I'm following a franchise as it happens (like Spoony I didn't like the direction the Final Fantasy series was going during the PS1/2 era) most of the times this happens to me when I "backtrack" and go back and play games I missed in my childhood. So a few years back I decided to go back and play all the Street Fighter games after the second which I had been unable or uninterested in playing as a kid.

And to be honest, well... a lot of things turned me off about the post-SF2 incarnations of the series. Most notably, I hate the character designs. Everyone is so stupidly bulky now. It's like Capcom saw a bunch of Rob Liefeld drawings and took it as a dare. Probably the best example is Chun-Li, who had believable proportions in SF2 but now...well, watch the Game Theory episode "Chun-Li's DEADLY Helicopter Kick" since he shows her through the eras in that and you'll see for yourself how stupid she looks now, particularly her legs, which are now both bigger than her waist area.

And another issue I started to have was.... the story.

Yeah, I know, but consider this: When I saw the terrible movie Street Fighter: the Legend of Chun-Li and got to the part where the character Rose was actually Bison's "good side" exiled and manifest into a completely different person, I assumed that was stupid bullshit made up specifically for a notoriously bad movie.... and then I found out that something like that is actually game-canon. -___- Yeah, call me crazy but I was actually much happier with thinking he was just some random guy who wanted to conquer the world via a martial arts tournament. But now IT ARE CANON and can not be undone, so when I play a modern SF game I always subconsciously remember that... Capcom approved this, and probably other stupid crap.

I long for the days when they were all just random people going to this one tournament for their own stupid reasons.

Yeah I agree, the Street Fighter storyline(s) are just dumb. I never really paid attention.
I really wouldnt consider them 'story orieneted' games, I always considered the story just filler.

[Mr Mort]

This is seriously my favourite video game of all-time. Specifically the Sega Saturn version. I have literally poured HUNDREDS of hours into this game. It's arcade perfect. Better, in fact with the added characters and stages that are unlocked right from the get-go. The only thing I lament is the fact that you're stuck with P1's background when in versus mode, where the other versions let you select (or randomize) the backgrounds in versus mode. Beyond that, it's perfect. 2 second load times, full animation (characters & backgrounds), great color, correct-sized sprites, control, everything is spot-on.

I've played every version of Alpha/Zero 3 extensively, and the Saturn port is still the best out there IMO.

-The PSP port is the next best IMO. It looks great on the PSP's screen, and looks drop-dead gorgeous on the Vita. It controls flawlessly, has more characters (Maki, Eagle, Ingrid, and Yun) than any of the other versions. It's biggest drawback is that it's stuck on a portable (outside of playing it on the PSTV), and the controls are not that comfortable for extended playing . This is a great version!

-Alpha anthology on the PS2 is another great version, tho you have to beat the arcade version of Alpha 3 to unlock Alpha 3 upper. IMO, this is the next best console version next to the Saturn. The sprites are just as detailed & animated as the Saturn, although the sprites are a touch smaller. For most folks, this is the only Street Fighter Alpha game you need if you want it all high-quality in one package. Play it with an arcade stick or the Sega Saturn controller that was released for the PS2 for best results.

-I'm not a big fan of the GBA version due to the sacrifices made in the animation and the lack of 2 action buttons, but it does have some extra characters.

-The Dreamcast one is pure trash in my opinion. The sprites were scanned at a low resolution, and the Dreamcast stretches them out before displaying them on-screen, and looks like garbage as a result. It is also still missing a few pieces of animation (like T. Hawk's backwards walking animation) that are present in the Saturn version. Never mind the standard Dreamcast controller is atrocious for fighting games, so you'd need a proper fight stick anyways. There was no reason for this port to be so horrible. It was even released before the Saturn version.

-The Playstation version is competent for what it is, but can't hold a candle to the Saturn version obviously. It's missing a fair amount of animation among other drawbacks.

I'll end my tangent here, but man, I LOVE this game. It's not the best or most balanced fighting game ever made, but it's easily my favourite. The 3 fighting styles, the animation, the music, and the depth of the gameplay have kept me hooked for well over a decade.


One question tho, what version is that in the first photo, on the right hand side? Looks like some kind of holo-foil cover. Is that a custom cover?

[bb_hood]

One question tho, what version is that in the first photo, on the right hand side? Looks like some kind of holo-foil cover. Is that a custom cover?

Its the soundtrack cd. Thanks for the reply!

[PatBoy785]

This is just awesome!! You sure are one lucky fan!!

The Saturn version of the game does sound better than the other versions of the game.I always wanted to play the Street Fighter Alpha games (especially 3 it was actually the one I was looking forward to try out), but I've always had a hard time getting which version of the game since I don't own a Saturn, or a Dreamcast, I own a PS1 b̶u̶t̶ ̶a̶ ̶l̶o̶t̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶p̶e̶o̶p̶l̶e̶ ̶s̶a̶y̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶C̶a̶p̶c̶o̶m̶ ̶2̶D̶ ̶f̶i̶g̶h̶t̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶g̶a̶m̶e̶s̶ ̶s̶u̶c̶k̶ ̶o̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶r̶e̶.

Seeing the price of the Saturn version, I'll just get the Alpha Anthology one because at least it's cheap, and the games on there are Arcade perfect.

̶

[Tanooki]

Saturn version likely is the most impressive from the period, but in all fairness to how I feel I HATE Alpha 3 and prefer 2 by far the most and like 1 more than 3 as well. SFA3 to me is where it went off the rails. The game got a very overly bloated roster. The combat got more convoluted. They added the style choices to complicate things even further. I didn't much care for how the AI felt kind of unbalanced depending on stages or certain characters to me. It felt like this weird swiss army knife of a fighter with just too many damn tools on the frame. I've tried to like it in the 90s and then again in the earlier 00s on the GBA release too, I just can't. I like my fighters more tactical, smaller rosters (but not too small), generally a single fighting style but in rare cases 2 if it's not an entire new move set, and things just more straight forward.

[eskobar]

I still haven't played the Saturn version of SFZ3, I played a lot in the Arcades and spent many hours on the PSX version, the DC is also good but I am not really fond of that port, I preferred the PSX port for some reason.

I am not very good at fighting games but I'm ok on Street Fighter Zero and that makes me enjoy much more the game than any other fighter where I suck at, hehehehe.

Thanks a lot for the thread, I have been on the hunt for the Saturn version, hope I can get it soon without spending too much on it

[bb_hood]

Saturn version likely is the most impressive from the period, but in all fairness to how I feel I HATE Alpha 3 and prefer 2 by far the most and like 1 more than 3 as well. SFA3 to me is where it went off the rails. The game got a very overly bloated roster. The combat got more convoluted. They added the style choices to complicate things even further. I didn't much care for how the AI felt kind of unbalanced depending on stages or certain characters to me. It felt like this weird swiss army knife of a fighter with just too many damn tools on the frame. I've tried to like it in the 90s and then again in the earlier 00s on the GBA release too, I just can't. I like my fighters more tactical, smaller rosters (but not too small), generally a single fighting style but in rare cases 2 if it's not an entire new move set, and things just more straight forward.

I hear ya, SFZ3 is a game that takes practice.
Personally I think the Street Fighter games went off the rails after SFZ3, then returned to being awesome on the ps3/xbox360.

Thanks a lot for the thread, I have been on the hunt for the Saturn version, hope I can get it soon without spending too much on it

Welcome. I just checked ebay and I was kinda shocked to see how much its going for now, its kinda expensive. I regret not buying the version with the cardboard box.
You can always play it on Mame though.

[Tanooki]

I think they just put too much in, it was well beyond the point of wanting me to bother practicing much with it. Even with characters I knew well from Alpha i wasn't enjoying it. SF2 of various varieties, SFA1 and 2, and then also SF3 I've enjoyed a lot, just not that one much, though I really loathe the damage they did to the franchise with how SF4 was setup. I hear they made 5 a far superior package, but I've not bothered as of yet because it came out lacking a solid single player mode which I prefer and even if it was fully there now I got too much crap on my plate as it is -- plus dozens of fighters on that 161in1 multicart that came with my neo-geo cabinet.