Collection essentials #334: Street Fighter Zero 3 (Saturn)

“Street Fighter Alpha” is called “Street Fighter Zero” in Japan, and the Saturn version of the third entry only came out in Japan, hence the name difference. The reason this version stayed in Japan is because it was a very late Saturn release, coming out after Sega’s NEXT console was already on store shelves, way after the Saturn was completely and totally dead and gone in the West. There was also a version of this game that came out for Sega’s next console, which actually came out before this Saturn version, and the funny part is that the Saturn version is generally considered better as it has more features (notably a “reverse dramatic battle” mode where you try and fight two opponents simultaneously).

Alpha 3 continues building on the strong foundation of the previous two games. There are some changes from Alpha 2’s mechanics, so it’s not a strictly better game and some actually prefer Alpha 2. But 3 definitely has more content and modes to offer, with lots of characters and a single-player “World Tour” mode where you choose a character and pick from a series of challenge fights that will let you power up and customize your fighter as you keep winning them. The most obvious big difference in the actual fighting this time is the “ism” system. When you choose a fighter in this game, you pick from three different fighting styles called “isms” which have different pros and cons. Some give you better offensive or defensive capabilities and they affect the types of super moves that you can use.

It may seem like a small and frivolous thing to compliment, but the announcer in this game is great and adds some nice extra flavor. He doesn’t talk during fights, but he has a series of lines that he enthusiastically gives before, between rounds and after. It’s very memorable and easy to quote with someone else who’s familiar with the game for some amusement.

Story usually isn’t terribly important to fighting games, but can be a nice little bonus. It’s easy for players to just want to skip or ignore the story stuff and get to the actual fighting. And story is certainly not the first thing that comes to mind when I think of reasons why Alpha 3 is good, but one thing I appreciate about the game is that when you select a character in single-player arcade mode, you get some words about who your character is and what they want to accomplish with their fighting. I just think that’s a really cool touch that gives the game more personality and makes a player want to try out more characters. Most fighting games already have an “ending” for a character when you defeat the boss of arcade mode to let you know what the character accomplished when they won, but this game is one of few that gives you bits of story when you start the mode too, and I appreciate that.

There’s not much else I have to say about Alpha 3. It has a reputation as one of the best old-school fighting games and for good reason. It’s arguable what the best version is to play, and eventually I’m going to be covering another version of this game too with its own merit, but this Saturn port is certainly in the conversation.