In other news, I wanted to briefly touch on the differences between Super Smash Bros. Brawl and TMNT: Smash-Up. I’m moderately active on Smash Boards, and I know many competitive Smash Bros. players are looking at TMNT and comparing it to both Brawl and Melee.

While I can’t give too much away at this point, and there’s a section in the General Strategies chapter of the guide that covers this slightly more in-depth (I say slightly because this is a TMNT guide, not a guide on transitioning from Brawl to TMNT), but I can say that the game does not play like Melee. It’s much closer to Brawl, but it’s still quite a bit different. Knocking players out of the stage (referred to as ring outs in the game) is not the focus of combat like it is in Brawl. Some stages have easier ring outs than others, but there aren’t recovery attacks (Up+B in Smash) in the same way they’re presented and used in Smash. Smash Attacks also perform differently and must be setup differently.

The stun system in TMNT will add a new level of depth to competitive Smash, but overall I think Smash players will have to view TMNT as a brand new game and not an extension of the Smash series. It’s also important to look at TMNT as the first game in a series and not the fourth Smash title. Having three previous games allowed Brawl to advance the characters and refine the gameplay (although I know a lot of competitive players would have rather seen Melee 2 instead of Brawl). If you want to compare TMNT to Smash, it would be best to compare it to Smash 64 since that’s the first game in the series. You can’t expect the refined gameplay you’d find in the fourth installment in a series. For example, the number of characters in TMNT is far less than the number of characters in Brawl, but if we see three more games in the TMNT series, I’m sure the characters count will meet and possibly exceed that of Brawl.

Now I’m not saying that there’s anything wrong with TMNT. I think Turtles fans will enjoy it and it does have some depth for possible competitive play. However, I don’t want reviewers and competitive Smash players to immediately write the game off without taking into account that it’s the first in the series. It’s difficult not to directly compare TMNT to Brawl, but I don’t feel it’s a fair comparison given the history of the two franchises.

Getting back to the gameplay, I’ve read some comments on Smash Boards about how some players feel the game lacks depth and will cater to novice players without offering much for competitive play. This is not a review, so I won’t offer a definitive opinion on the matter, but as a competitive player I feel that this game is focused on TMNT fans as opposed to the tournament scene. Aerial combat takes a back seat, and ground combat at higher levels of play is more about evasion than anything else. There’s down falling and other high level techniques from Brawl, but many of them can’t be used in the same way you’d use them in Brawl. Essentially, you can’t play TMNT at high levels like you’d play Brawl at high levels. There are no chain grabs, and the combo system is very different, etc.

I will be keeping a close eye on the reviews for TMNT as well as looking at what the competitive Smash community thinks of the game. I think reviewers will try to compare this too much to Brawl, which shouldn’t happen, but inevitably will. I also think that competitive players will try to play TMNT like Brawl instead of looking at it as a brand new game. I look forward to seeing what the competitive community can do with it though. You’ll have access to complete frame data in the guide, providing a lot more knowledge at release than you got with Brawl or any other Smash game.

I’ll keep an eye on the Smash Boards thread for TMNT and try to post another blog answering some high level questions before the game releases. However, the frame data in the guide should give competitive players a lot of insight into the game.

P.S. The glow around the characters is not an issue. There’s no reason to complain about it.

When it comes to fighting game guides, I can spend weeks on a single character and still not be satisfied, so it’s more of a personal issue than anything else. My time at Capcom was limited, but luckily I had plenty of time with the arcade version before I headed up to San Mateo.

I think anyone who is just getting into Street Fighter will get a lot out of the guide, and the tournament-level players have frame data in the back of the book that they’ll certainly appreciate.

I don’t know what my next guide will be, but hopefully I get something else soon. I’m already starting to get bored… ^_^

The Hint Book is a very bare bones introduction to the four new characters introduced in Street Fighter IV. These include Crimson Viper, El Fuerte, Abel and Rufus. Within the pages of the Hint Book you’ll find one combo for each, as well as a few special moves, all wonderfully drawn by Udon (the people behind some of the SF comic books).

As a collectible, the Hint Book is a must have for SF fans. The artwork is very nice and it has a comic book feel that you won’t find in the Official Strategy Guide (although you will find plenty of artwork). However, it’s in no way a replacement for the Strategy Guide. You won’t find any frame data, character strategies, general strategies, or anything remotely similar to these assets.

Hopefully that helps to clarify the difference between the two for people on the fence about choosing between them. Collectors will probably want to pick up both, while people looking to take their game to the next level, or simply learn the basics should opt for the Strategy Guide.

Now that I’ve covered that, I’m off to do some Soul Calibur IV training. I just came off of a displeasing 5th place finish at a regional qualifier over the weekend, so I need to ensure I do better at the next regional qualifier in San Diego this coming weekend.

Don’t forget about the $2,000 DEVASTATION Street Fighter IV tournament in June, or Evolution in July.

The layout is looking phenomenal; huge props to Jody for hooking up a stellar layout and using the high resolution Capcom artwork perfectly. I’m generally not a big fan of game artwork, but the SF4 art is really nice. In addition to the artwork scattered throughout the guide, there’s a small art section in the back with a few character montages.

I think this guide should appeal to the new players and the returning veterans. Coming from a Tekken and Soul Calibur background, I had to change the way I think about high level play. Playing a 2D fighter at high levels is very different from how a 3D fighter is played. But while I learned the differences (playing on a local SF4 arcade machine before heading to Capcom), it helped me develop the early chapters of the guide, informing newcomers about the intricacies of SF4.

For the advanced players, there’s a frame data index in the back of the guide. It only covers the 17 arcade characters, but it’s more than you’d find in most US-based strategy guides and the first time I’ve been able to include frame data in one of my fighting game guides. I ask for it every time because it’s something that high level players use regularly and something that I personally use religiously, but I always have to import a Japanese guide to obtain it. Now the SF players have it in the US SF4 guide.

The guide should be heading to the printer very soon to release alongside the game on Feb 17th. I’ll be gracing the Capcom Unity blog later this week with info on the new characters, along with another Prima blog next week.

For you tournament goers, keep in mind that there will be a $2,000 SF4 tournament at DEVASTATION 2009 in June. In addition, Evo 2009 was just announced to include SF4 when it takes place in July.