What’s up Street Fighter fans!

The February 16 ^th  release date for Street Fighter V is just around the corner, and a ton of news just dropped yesterday at a special pre-launch event in Japan. Never fear because I’m here to fill you all in!

First off, we officially revealed all the different Character Story Mode costumes! Each Character Story sheds light on the background and motivations of each individual fighter. As these stories take place in the past, you’ll see that everyone has a different look compared to their new threads in SFV!

See MORE SFV Story Mode Costumes on our Facebook page!

By completing each Character Story, you’ll be able to unlock their corresponding Story Mode costume for purchase in the in-game store, once it launches in March.

Next, we revealed new details about Survival Mode. In this mode, your health and EX Gauge carry over between each match against the CPU. You are able to earn points with each victory, which can in turn be used to purchase special power ups, such as health or attack or defense increases, etc., to help you last longer. Purchasing more power ups reduces your overall score though, so there is a trade-off. By clearing the four difficulty levels of Survival Mode, you’ll be able to earn new colors and in-game titles for your character!

Continuing on, details about Challenge Mode were also announced for the first time. Challenge Mode consists of 4 sub-modes, each of which has been designed to help you improve your skills and gameplay:

1. Battle Tips

• Learn the ins and outs of Street Fighter V through helpful demonstration and tutorial content. Contains content for each of the 16 characters, as well as advice geared towards all levels of players.
• Available March 2016

1. Trials

• Put your skills to the ultimate test with combo trials for all 16 characters, ranging from basic to pro combos.
• Available March 2016

1. Targets

• Complete daily renewing goals to earn fight money, in-game titles, and other cool content.
• Available soon after launch.

1. Extra Battle

• Fight against special CPU bosses in the ultimate challenge. Earn in-game rewards upon completion.
• Available soon after launch.

Finally, some news tidbits: online battle lobbies will support two players at launch, but eight person lobbies as well as Spectator mode will be patched into the game as part of the March 2016 update. We are happy to officially confirm that legacy PS3 fightsticks will work with Street Fighter V at launch! A big thanks to Lab Zero for making this a possibility.

And one final thing (I promise), some of you may have heard the news that Alex will be available to all Street Fighter V players in March 2016 as well, and I’m happy to re-confirm that news here. At launch, playing through most of the single player content (in fact, just the Character Stories) will give you enough Fight Money to get Alex for free! We’ll have more information to share on Alex and the other post launch characters soon, so stay tuned.   

That’s all for now, until next time!

Love is in the air… like the proverbial Rathalos, circling the skies waiting for the right time to strike with its deadly lovely talons. Except in this case, that time is Valentine’s Day, and the talons are adorable Monster Hunter Valentine’s Day cards!

Ginder Factory, who also made awesome Half-Monster/Half-Hunter posters and Monster info posters, has collaborated with artists Adrian Melster and Melissa Nhan to deliver the cutest cards for Monster Hunter lovers. These come in packs of 10 cards (per artist) offering different styles to show your love to that special someone.

Adrian Melster’s collection focuses more on Monsters featuring clever puns and references to some of their attacks, status and even older titles. Here are my favorites:

Melissa Nhan’s collection is the perfect match for the Poogie lovers out there. Can’t go wrong with her adorable hand-drawn style and unique Poogie costumes. Here are the ones that won my heart:

Valentine’s Day is this Sunday so hurry over to Ginger Factory to get your card sets today.

We’re very happy to announce that the PSP version of Breath of Fire III is now available on the North American PlayStation Store!

Starting today, you’ll be able to digitally download the turn-based RPG classic, compatible with PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita and PlayStation TV for just $9.99 USD! Keep your eye on those Zenny-to-USD exchange charts.

For those unfamiliar, the PSP version of Breath of Fire III was previously exclusive to Europe and Japan, but we’re super excited to finally bring it to you! This version of the game boasts a number of upgrades over the original PlayStation version, including widescreen support, a redesigned logo, a standalone version of the fishing mini-game, and a few other updates.

Breath of Fire III is a title unlike any other. It was the series’ first foray onto PlayStation, which brought with it superior sprite-work and animation, and a fan-favorite iteration of blue-haired main protagonist Ryu’s dragon transformation abilities. It innovated with its unique, lovable cast of characters, a deep storyline that features a great mix of humor and morally ambiguous elements, and a vibrant pop / jazz soundtrack.

Special thanks to our great friends over at PlayStation and YOU, the fans, for the continued support for this game and series.

Finally, before you delve into Breath of Fire III’s fantastical world of long-lost dragons, bird-like clanspersons, swindling horsemen and mutated onions, here are some tips to get you started:

• Search every nook and cranny by holding down the ‘R’ button and shifting the camera! That includes the world map, fields and towns. You also might want to examine the two poor saps you burn to a crisp within the first few minutes of the game.
• Use “Examine” often in battle! By examining enemies, your party members can learn certain enemy skills as soon as they are unleashed upon you!
• Snatch up every enemy’s possessions by using “Pilfer,” a skill honed by your tiger-like Woren thief buddy, Rei.
• Seek out the Masters! You can greatly alter character stats and gain unique skills by putting a character under the tutelage of various NPC Masters inhabiting the world.
• Fish! Breath of Fire III has a “VERY good… GREAT!” fishing mini-game that can net you lots of items you can’t nab anywhere else.
• Camp often. Not only does this allow you to save your game, rest up and customize your skills, but Ryu’s entourage might have something interesting to say!
• Save your weaponry! A little Eye Goo once told me that one of the Masters you can apprentice under likes it when you keep 15 of your unused weapons.
• Soak up that wonderful pop/jazz soundtrack, composed by Capcom alumni Akari Kaida and Yoshino Aoki. It’s too good.
• That’s all we’ve got! Get the game via PlayStation Store and enjoy.

What’s up Street Fighter fans!

We’re about one week away from the release of Street Fighter V and to celebrate this new era of fighting we wanted to share the full length CG trailer for the game! This features gorgeous animated sequences for all 16 characters from the initial roster and even offers some hints as to what roles they will play in the upcoming story !

Street Fighter V releases on February 16th in North America on both PlayStation 4 and PC for $59.99. Pre-order today to receive an exclusive costume for Chun-Li, Cammy, M. Bison or Ryu! More details at streetfighter.com .

While the calendar new year may have already passed us by, the Lunar New Year is just around the corner – and that means it’s time for another one of Steam’s awesome sales! There’s a bunch of great Capcom games in the mix, including the Dead Rising Collector’s Pack , DMC + DMC4SE Pack , and a special offer on Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen – when you buy the game, you get a digital copy of Dragon’s Dogma Official Design Works, the Dragon’s Dogma art book, absolutely free! We’ve got more info on the DDDA bundle and a list of sale prices for you right after the jump!

Curious about that bundle and want to know what you’re in for? The Official Design Works art book is 313 pages of content chronicling all sorts of development artwork, including characters, lore, creatures, weapon designs, rough sketches, and key visuals. You might say the pages are – say it with me now – masterworks all, you can’t go wrong. A print edition is available for $44.99, but the digital version is included completely free during the Lunar New Year sale!

We also have a ton of other games on sale, and some great bundles to boot:

Comic aficionados out there might be familiar with both the Street Fighter and G.I. Joe series of comics that have been available for a while now. Well, we’ve got some cool news to share with you today – IDW has been working on a crossover comic that looks absolutely amazing, and brings the world’s most popular fighting game and the real world military action of America’s fighting elite together in the aptly named Street Fighter X G.I. Joe, which will start hitting stores this month. We’ve got a couple pages for you to sneak a peek at and more info on the six-issue series right after the jump!

Let’s get right into the plot:

On a hidden island in international waters, 16 combatants enter a secret tournament… one that pits Street Fighter vs. G.I. Joe! M. Bison and Destro have joined forces, and taking them down will require the world’s finest warriors: Ryu, Snake Eyes, Guile, Scarlett, Chun-Li and Duke.

And the people working hard to bring this comic to you:

New challengers Aubrey Sitterson (Hulk, Superman, Tech Jacket, Worth) and Emilio Laiso (Hack/Slash: Son of Samhain) bring the visceral combat of the world’s most popular fighting game series and the real world military action of America’s fighting elite together for the first time!

You’ll see fiery fights between C. Viper and Snake Eyes, Rufus getting roughed up, and enough hadokens to make you wonder why anyone needs a gun that shoots blue lasers – and that’s just the first issue alone!

The first  issue of the six-part series drops later this month, with a trade paperback expected by the end of the year – so if you want in on the ground floor, now’s the perfect time to see just what M. Bison and Destro have planned for our heroes! Each issue will run for $3.99, and will be available at all comic book shops across the country, as well as IDW’s online shop , starting February 24 ^th!

We’ve got some exciting news to share with you today – no, it’s not that you’re a wizard – Street Fighter V will be joining Wizard World Gaming events throughout all of 2016, with the first stop being at the Portland, Oregon Convention Center this coming February 19 ^th through 21 ^st ! Not only will SFV be playable at Wizard World events throughout the year, but they’ll be hosting one of the first post-launch tournaments for the game, with cash, prizes, pride, and maybe a little bit of salt riding on the outcome.

Tournaments aside, attendees can check out the Capcom free play area at the show for a more casual Street Fighter V experience, or watch the tournament unfold at the event’s main stage. Wizard World itself brings together thousands of fans to celebrate everything from pop culture, cosplay, sci-fi, anime, art, and more – but if you can’t make it to Portland for the event, don’t worry. It’s just the first stop of many throughout 2016, with additional stops in St. Louis, Minneapolis, Sacramento, Chicago, and beyond. Check out the Wizard World Gaming site for the full list of stops and admission information!

Hey everyone, just wanted to shoot out a quick note that the final beta for SFV is now live and will last until January 31st, 7pm PT. 

Continue on for details on what to expect and also see what’s new for this beta.

Characters

15 of the 16 characters will be available for play. We wanted to include F.A.N.G as well, but he’s to busy plotting at the Shadaloo base to take on the Street Fighters. Guess we’ll have to wait a few weeks to see him in action!

Improved Matchmaking

Player Connections

Players can set their connection preference from 1 to 5 in the connection settings option, which will ensure that optimal connections. Placing the setting to “1” will yield the widest range of opponents, yet may result in unstability, whereas placing the setting to “5” will give players the smallest range of opponents, yet will result in the best connection. Players should adjust this setting as they see fit for the best online experience.

Matchmaking

Players who successfully climb up the ranks during the beta will progressively be paired up with players closer to their skill level automatically. So keep doing your best to climb to the top of the leaderboards.

Updated Battle Balance

For our more seasoned players, take note that the characters have received a battle balance update. This means that they may or may not do the same things they were able to do in the previous betas. Experiment around and see what you can find.

Alright guys, that wraps this up. Have fun with the beta and we’ll see you in a few weeks once Street Fighter V officially launches. Rise Up!!

Just revealed on stage at the Taipei Game Show, take a look at all the different Game Modes you can expect at launch for Street Fighter V!

Remember, we’ll have tons of free content updates for the game post-launch as well, including the awesome looking Cinematic Story Expansion  that we just revealed on Monday!

Hope you enjoyed this quick update. Back to playing the online beta for me!

We’re all pretty familiar with Ryu at this point – the Shotokan student who always looks for the answer in the heart of battle. One of his best-known representations is in Street Fighter III, where his introduction had him holding his white bag (probably full of spare gis and gloves) on screen before setting it aside for the next fight. Now you, too, can imitate the Eternal Wanderer when you take your arcade stick to tournaments and more! ARCADESHOCK and SPLITFRAME LLC have teamed up to create a (very) limited edition Street Fighter V bag reminiscent of Ryu – the RYU FS Traveler Fight Stick Bag ! They’re offering pre-order special pricing of $84.98 (USD), and quantities are extremely limited, so grab one while you still can!

Message from Dr. Light. Headphones completed! While we’ve talked about the wearable Mega Man helmet in the past, maybe you said to yourself “I like the design of this helmet, but I really want it to be able to play music. Maybe some Rock and / or Roll. I also like Blues, and adjusting the Bass and Treble so I can hear the Beat of my favorite band, Rush, better.” Well, hypothetical person I just made up, you’re in luck! EMIO is now taking orders for their crazy-cool Limited Edition Mega Man headphones , retailing for $99.99 USD! With a design based on the Blue Bomber’s iconic helmet and glowing LEDs built in to the sides, you’ll be looking good and listening in style. We’ve got more details for audiophiles after the jump!

General Info:

High quality neodymium magnet speakers deliver unmatched sound performance. These headphones are compatible with any standard 3.5mm audio jack, and an optional, removable audio cable allows the headphones to be used either as audio headphones or a decorative light-up helmet. The headphones themselves are comfortably padded with a lightweight design and adjustable headband, and built-in rechargeable lithium-ion cells power the LEDs on the sides.

Audio Specs:

Driver Unit: 50mm Neodymium

Impedance: 32 Ohms +- 15%

Frequency 20Hz-20KHz

Sensitivity: 120dB +-3dB (at 1KHz)

Max Input Power: 3W

Input Connection: 3.5mm Plug (Removable)

Cable Length: 1.8m +-3%

We had a chance to sit down with Series Producer Kawata-san and Producer James Vance to get to the bottom of Umbrella Corps and what it means for the crew to work on a new title based in the Resident Evil universe. Learn how the Brainer came to be, the focus on closer quarters combat, and see what the vibe is like in the office. Hit the jump to check out the video!

Umbrella Corps is set to hit PlayStation 4 and PC in May! Check out some more info about the newly released Village and Tricell organization HQ maps along with the new game mode “The Experiment” in our previous blog post .