If you wanted to keep up with new characters and game balance changes following the 2009 console release of Street Fighter IV, you had to open your wallet for two additional full retail releases, 2010's Super Street Fighter IV and 2014's Ultra Street Fighter IV. Capcom won't put players through the same process for the PS4 and PC exclusive Street Fighter V, offering free updates and a steady stream of new playable characters that can be earned through gameplay alone.
In announcing the change during this weekend's EVO fighting game championships in Las Vegas, Capcom said it had learned from the staggered, bundled releases of expansion content for Street Fighter IV:
While these one-time updates did revive interest in the series every few years, it was difficult to keep players engaged for long periods of time unless they were competitive. This also punished players who took a break from playing the game, because if they wanted to start again in a few years, they would be forced to purchase an upgrade to join the existing player pool who had already moved on to a new version. On top of that, this old method also forced players to purchase all of the new content, even if only a few characters may have appealed to them.
This time, rather than adding to the initial roster of 16 characters through large standalone expansions, Capcom will instead introduce new fighters to Street Fighter V on a "continuous basis." That should "ensure that there is always new content to look forward to in the short term, and it prevents the competitive environment from ever becoming stale" the company said. Balance and system upgrades will be available to download for free for the life of the product, without any "forced" expansion purchases.
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