Street Fighter II

Street Fighter II is a landmark fighting game developed and published by Capcom in 1991. It serves as the second installment in the Street Fighter series. This game was a massive pop culture phenomenon that changed the video game industry. Many people consider it one of the greatest video games ever made. It is widely cited as the most important and influential fighting game in history. Its launch helped popularize the fighting game genre during the 1990s. This popularity inspired many other producers to create their own fighting series.

The gameplay follows specific rules of one-on-one, close-quarters combat. Players engage in timed matches to win rounds. To win a round, a player must drain the opponent's health bar completely. A player can also win by having more health remaining when the timer expires. If both fighters have equal health when time runs out, no one wins the round. If they knock each other out at the same time, it is also a draw. The first fighter to win two rounds is declared the victor. In single-player mode, a second player can join for head-to-head matches. After every third match, players enter a bonus stage. Here, they can earn extra points by smashing cars, wooden barrels, or metal oil drums.

Players control their characters using an eight-directional joystick and six attack buttons. The joystick allows for jumping, crouching, walking, and blocking. The six buttons are divided into three punch buttons and three kick buttons. These buttons offer a tradeoff between strength and speed through light, medium, and heavy attacks. Players also perform special moves using specific directional and button-based commands. A famous feature is the combo system, which involves linking attacks together. Interestingly, the designers did not intend for combos to exist. They discovered that certain moves naturally flowed into others by accident. This system became a standard feature for future fighting games.

The original roster features eight playable fighters from around the world. Ryu is a Japanese martial artist seeking to perfect his Ansatsuken Karate skills. His friend and rival, Ken, is a fighter from the United States. E. Honda is a sumo wrestler from Japan aiming to prove his legitimacy as an athlete. Blanka is a beastlike mutant from Brazil searching for his origins. Guile is a former United States Air Force operative seeking revenge against M. Bison. Chun-Li is a Chinese martial artist and Interpol officer. Zangief is a professional wrestler from the Soviet Union. Dhalsim is a fire-breathing yoga master from India.

The story is set two years after the events of Street Fighter Alpha 3. M. Bison, the leader of the criminal organization Shadaloo, organizes the Second World Fighting Tournament. He uses a temple in Thailand as his base of operations. Bison's goal is to retrieve Ryu's body and exact revenge on those who hindered his plans. He wants to achieve global domination by defeating fighters in his tournament. The tournament features powerful CPU-only opponents called the Grand Masters. These include Sagat, a Muay Thai kickboxer from Thailand. Other bosses include the American boxer Balrog and the Spanish bullfighter Vega. The final opponent is M. Bison, who uses a mysterious power called Psycho Power.

Street Fighter II achieved incredible commercial success worldwide. By 1994, an estimated 25 million people had played the game in the United States alone. More than 200,000 arcade cabinets were sold globally. Total software sales reached more than 15 million units across all versions. On the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), over 6.3 million cartridges were sold. This made it Capcom's best-selling single software game for the next 20 years. It also became the highest-selling third-party game on the SNES platform. These numbers made it one of the top three highest-grossing video games of all time.

Beyond sales, the game shifted the entire culture of arcade gaming. Before this, players mostly competed to achieve personal-best high scores. Street Fighter II moved the focus toward head-to-head competition between people. This shift stimulated the declining arcade business market during the 1990s. It also inspired grassroots tournament events where players gather to compete. These events eventually culminated in the Evolution Championship Series, known as EVO. The game's legacy continues through its many updated versions, such as the 1992 Champion Edition, and its major successor, Street Fighter III.