A newStreet Fighteris just around the corner, and many players think that it looks great so far.Street Fighter 6will release on all current consoles save the Switch, but that shouldn’t impact its technical or artistic performance too much. Capcom has finally revisedStreet Fighter 5’s flawed rollback netcode, and everyone who’s tried it inStreet Fighter 6’s beta was impressed. After years of issues, it feels like Capcom’s fighting game division is finally back to reclaim its throne.
Fans are hopeful thatStreet Fighter 6is going to be a step-up in almost every way. The World Tour mode looks more in-depth than not only every pastStreet Fighter’s singleplayer, but the entire fighting game genre.Basic gameplay was expanded with the Drive system, and every character is benefiting from their largest move pool yet. Even the online modes are more diverse, allowing players to mess around with their custom avatar, old arcade games, and gimmick match types. Last but not least areStreet Fighter 6’s visuals, which have been upgraded to be the best in the franchise yet.
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Street Fighter 6’s Colorful Effects Surpass Past Efforts
An anime aesthetic has accompaniedStreet Fighter’s battles since the very beginning, and even withStreet Fighter 6’s more realistic look, that touch of style isn’t entirely gone. SinceStreet Fighter’s jump to 2.5D visuals in 2008, the series has incorporated various additional visual mediums into its special effects. InSF4, this manifested as ink smears coming off of characters, often during their Focus Attacks. There were some other painterly styles used in the opening cutscenes, but in gameplay it was rather subdued. InStreet Fighter 5, this was changed to clay-like paint blobs that swirled around fighters during V-Trigger activations and win screens. It was a minor thing, but every character having their own colors was appreciated.
Now, however,Street Fighter 6is doing so much more than that.SF6is the first to go for outright photorealism, but that’s also a benefit of running on the RE Engine, which has alreadydone wonders forDevil May Cry 5,Resident Evil, andMonster Hunter Rise. That said, those other games look drab compared to how colorfulStreet Fighter 6is. Every Drive mechanic has at least one universal color that flares around the user upon activation. Characters still have associated colors for their Drive Impact, and finishing a match with a level 3 super paints the screen with those colors and a stylized design that resembles graffiti. Great pains were taken to ensure that even whenStreet Fighter 6was being played at a low level, players would still have something cool to look at.
The Use of Color in SF6’s Assets is Sublime
Then, there’s the character models themselves.Street Fighter 6shows more ofStreet Fighter’s world and charactersthan past entries, even allowing players to create their own combatants. On a whole, the environments ofSFhave become more diverse and colorful than ever before. From the dimly lit backstreets of Metro City to the seemingly blood-splattered Coliseum in Italy, every part ofStreet Fighter 6pops. Even the presentation reflects this, with lighting and texturing techniques being used in environments also appearing in menus.
This goes double for the characters, who are all visually distinct and use the most vibrant colors yet. It’s such an extreme case that basic palette swaps like thepre-order bonus palettes turning Ken’s hair silverand his coat red stand out, making it look as if he’s wearing aDevil May CryDante crossover costume. EvenMortal Kombat 11, which attempted to recapture its classic colorful aesthetic after the darkerMortal Kombat X, isn’t as lively asStreet Fighter 6can be. All of this focus on increased vibrancy reaches its zenith with Kimberly, the new ninja fighter who actually uses paint cans as a resource for her attacks. All the colors may seem overwhelming sometimes, but Capcom has done a great job of makingStreet Fighter 6a feast for the eyes.
Street Fighter 6will be released on July 16, 2025, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
