Street Fighter IV/Gameplay

The game has the same feel as Super Street Fighter II Turbo, with several features from Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike. Pressing both light attack buttons is still for throwing, and both heavy attack buttons are for the personal action or taunts. Both medium attack buttons are for the saving strike. Dashes and quick standing are also in the game. At the moment, C.Viper is the only character who can perform a high jump.

Saving system
The system that has been referred to as "Saving" for the time being is a new system that is being introduced in SFIV. The system features a four-segment "Revenge" gauge that builds up as the character takes damage. A player can use one segment of the gauge in combat by simultaneously pressing both strong punch and strong kick to unleash a special attack that will deal instant damage and render the opponent immobile for a short time. The buttons can also be held down and charged to unleash a devastating unblockable attack at the cost of 3/4s of the full "Revenge" gauge. The gauge can also be used to fuel EX Specials — stronger versions of regular special moves — at the cost of one stock of the gauge. Both the Saving move and EX Specials can be "canceled" by dashing towards the opponent (the move will still be performed and will still do damage however), this dash can again be "canceled" by performing another EX Special or Saving move, this however will require pinpoint timing so that only skilled players may execute this kind of combo.

Ono has stated that this system was incorporated in order to shift the emphasis away from combos and toward a more realistic system he has compared to boxing, in which "the skill is in reading your opponent's move before he starts moving … We haven't forgotten about combos and linked moves, but saving makes it so that you have to read your opponent." The system aims to make ground attacks as viable a way of approaching opponents as jumping was in previous games. The saving system is a core part of Street Fighter IV's gameplay and will continue to evolve as the game is developed.

Super and ultra moves
Super moves will return in Street Fighter IV, however, the team is still undecided on how to implement them. Currently, the team is considering three options, the first being similar to Super Street Fighter II Turbo where each character has one set super, the second is based on the Street Fighter Alpha series where characters have multiple supers (but without the Alpha series' multilevel chargeable supers) and the third follow Street Fighter III where the players choose which super they want to use for their character before the match.

In addition to the series staple (since Super Street Fighter II Turbo) Super Moves, the game will also feature "Ultras". These are performed by performing a characters Super move but executing it with 2 attack buttons. The Ultra is a long and cinematic move featuring a lengthy combination of punches, kicks, etc. Along with the regular Super moves, the Ultra will be the only time wherein the camera will break from its normal fixed position to offer a more dynamic, cinematic view of the action.

Online play
Street Fighter IV will feature online gaming and is the fifth game in the series to do so (the first four being Super Street Fighter II X for Matching Service which was only released in Japan for the Sega Dreamcast, the Xbox version of Street Fighter Anniversary Collection, the Xbox Live Arcade version of Street Fighter II Turbo and the latest being Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3). Unlike other games such as Virtua Fighter 5 or Tekken 6, Street Fighter IV will reportedly not feature any item collection or customization. Producer Ono is also looking into the possibility of utilizing microtransactions for future downloadable content updates which might include new characters and stages, however, he stated that the final decision for that would be up to the Capcom as a whole.

Bonus Rounds
It is intended that the car-smashing bonus rounds from earlier Street Fighter games will return. Ono has claimed, "They'll be in there if I have to program them myself!" although he noted that there may be problems if the game's vehicles resemble models by real-life manufacturers.