Is Street Fighter 6 Evolving In The Right Direction? Here’s What We Know About The Sequel

Street Fighter 6 was one of the highlighted titles showcased during this morning’s PlayStation State of Play showcase this June. There’s a ton of gameplay and also some explanation of the game’s new Drive Gauge system and new characters in a separate PlayStation Blog post.

Here’s a video from myself, KKP’s resident fighting game fan and expert, as well as loremaster of all things Street Fighter, talking about the trailer’s easter eggs, references, and gameplay bits. Enjoy!

If you love videos like these, do subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit that notification icon to support us!

What We Know About Street Fighter 6 So Far

Confirmed Roster

Here’s the roster so far:

• Ryu. Shoto OG character with the Hadokens, Shoryuken, and all-rounder moveset. Has a Hashogeki follow-up after block strings and combos, and a Denjin charge for his fireballs; adds juggle properties.
• Chun-Li. Ex-ICPO agent who is now taking care of Li-Fen and teaches kung fu to the local Chinese community. Has her Tensho Kicks from the previous games and a Serenity Stream stance where her normal attack buttons are different.
• Luke. Back from SFV, he teaches mixed martial arts to anyone interested. Has his Sand Blast, Flash Knuckles, and uppercuts from the previous game. Can use a DDT follow-up from an OD Flash Knuckle or a Fatal Shot follow-up from his OD Sand Blast.
• Jamie. He’s a peacekeeper in Chinatown who knows drunken boxing kung fu style. Can take a swig from his drink to open up new moves for each new Drink level.
• Ken, who looks like he’s fallen on hard times. His wife and kid left him, and he’s struggling to get his Shoryuken fire out.
• Cammy
• Dee Jay
• Guile
• Zangief
• Dhalsim
• E.Honda
• Blanka
• Juri
• Ed
• Rashid
• Akuma
• Lily (New)
• Kimberly (New)
• Marisa (New); she’s the fighter on the billboard at the start of the new trailer on June 2022.
• JP (New)
• Mimi (New)
• A.K.I (New)

Other characters teased include Li-Fen and Damnd from the Final Fight series, as well as the guy on the billboard at the start of the trailer. So far, that makes it 24 characters on the main roster so far; they might be more characters planned for launch.

World Tour Mode

There’s going to be a single-player campaign in SF6 called World Tour, where you play one nameless custom character(?) to explore an open-world Metro City (and other locales hopefully), uncovering secrets, breaking stuff, and picking fights.

The Game’s HUD

It’s basically the same but a tad more futuristic. Health bar is at the top (left is Red, right is Blue) while the green Drive meter is just below the Health bar. Your Super meter is at the bottom of the screen.

Drive Gauge System

Street Fighter 6 has a new fighting system involving the Drive Gauge, where you can use a part of it to either absorb opponent attacks and counter it with your own wall splat attack, or parry oncoming moves, or just do an Overdrive Art special move which is basically an EX move from past SF titles.

Takayuki Nakayama Is Returning As The Game’s Director

The man who made Street Fighter 5 great over time, Takayuki Nakayama, has earned himself a spot in being SF6’s game director. Other developers involved with the sequel include Yusuke Hashimoto (Bayonetta 2 director) and Kazuhiro Tsuchiya (Mega Man 11 producer).

"Luke has had quite the experience after the events of SFV. He's someone who would rather fight others than focus on becoming stronger. Let's see how his mischievous personality has changed over time. His offensive fighting style remains intact."

-Game Director, @takaNakayama pic.twitter.com/04dneoDYKc

— Street Fighter (@StreetFighter) June 5, 2022

Street Fighter 6 Might Feature A 2v2 Mode

The game’s new trailer showcased a Luke and Jamie VS Ryu and Chun-Li tag team match, signalling a 2v2 mode for the game. That hasn’t been seen since Street Fighter X Tekken, though the trailer probably just rolling pre-fight intro sequences. In any case, a 2v2 mode with the game’s 24+ character roster might do the series some much-needed fresh air in the esports scene.

New Control Types For Old And New Players

Players can switch between classic control mode (for veteran SF folks) or even a new Modern control mode. Here’s a look at Ryu’s controls in Modern Control Type, which involves a simple directional input and up to two face button inputs.

Real Time Commentary Feature

Street Fighter 6 will have a new real time commentary feature where well-known FGC commentators are incorporating their voices directly into the game. So far the confirmed commentators are Jeremy “Vicious” Lopez and Aru.

Rollback Netcode & Crossplay

Yes, Street Fighter 6 will have rollback netcode and will also feature crossplay among all platforms. This was confirmed during a Summer Games Festival 2022 SF6 event in Los Angeles on 10th June.

Release Date & PLatforms

Street Fighter 6 will be out in 2023 for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series, Xbox One, and PC. No specific date has been announced as of yet.