Free Street Fighter 4 Championship Mode download arrives April 24th

21 April 2009

Posted by:Josh

Street Fighter 4 is a getting a free new Championship Mode update on April 24th for both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions.

The mode seeks to expand on the fighting game fun and competition by offering players the chance to compete in tournaments as well as watch replays of the best tournament matches. This will help intermediate players learn how to fight like the pros and learn additional strategies.

There are 5 different “grades” of tournaments players can compete in, allowing for players of any skill level to get in on the action. As you win tournaments you’ll gain “Grade Points” (GP) which will allow you to enter more exclusive tournaments. In addition to GP you’ll also accrue Championship Points (CP). CP is like prize money that you can earn by winning tournaments. The higher the GP level of the tournament the more CP you will win.

Here is the breakdown:
–SG Championship (SUPER GRADE): 5 rounds long. The highest grade championship in which only top players can participate.
–G1 Championship (GRADE 1):? rounds long, for advanced players
–G2 Championship (GRADE2 2): 4 rounds long, for intermediate players
–G3 Championship (GRADE3) 3 rounds long, for beginners
–FREE Championship (Free Grade): 4 rounds long, open to anyone regardless of their level.

Matches are double blind meaning you can’t see who your opponent is choosing. You’ll also be automatically matched up with players of your same skill level through a dynamic automatic system. You can also play in tournaments in the same way as the “arcade request” feature which means that in between tournament bouts you can continue to play Arcade Mode. It also rewards you for PARTICIPATION, not just winning. You can only lose GP at the higher levels and then you only lose 5GP for first-round loses max.

Capcom has also guarded against disconnecters. If you disconnect during a match the system will dock your progress in the tournament. This means that “pullers” and other con artists will not be able to progress very high in the tournament. In addition, every disconnecter will have a percentage showing how much they’ve disconnected, and this will be available for all to see.

As far as the Replay Mode is concerned, the top 5000 CP leaders are given the option to upload replays of their matches, which are then available for anyone else to watch. Anyone can watch replays from either system, but there are a few system specific features.

On the PlayStation Network, you can rate matches while you watch according to characteristics such as “awesome” or “funny.” Replays are then ranked based on these vote ratings.

On Xbox Live, instead of rating the matches, you can choose to download and save your favorite replays to study the players’ techniques. You’ll also be able to turn on the input commands from both players to be able to review their button and joystick motions in precise detail.

Why they didn’t just make both features available on both consoles is beyond me, seems a bit wrong to make people choose. Especially given that most people have already bought the game so are forced to have one or the other. Regardless, it’s still a nice upgrade particularly given that is free. However I wish they would add the ability to record replays of matches for everyone, given that anyone who plays is bound to want to record certain matches.

Via Capcom Unity