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Profile
General: Also known
as Street Fighter Zero 3 Upper Upper in Japan, this is Capcom's
first Street Fighter project for the Sony PSP! And as expected, they nailed
it. Finally, a handheld Street Fighter that is "arcade perfect," (and then
some)!!! SFA3 was no doubt one of the best arcade
and home Street Fighter games ever, and in many opinions, one of the best
2D fighting games ever.
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Capcom tried valiantly once before to bring SFA to a handheld with Street Fighter Alpha 3: Upper for Game Boy Advance, but it lacked arcade quality due to the GBA's control pad and graphics limitations; however, it did add the characters Yun, Maki, and Eagle to the line-up, which are also found in SFA3: Max. Now, with a handheld up to the task, Capcom has a better system to work with. Along with near arcade perfect gameplay, they also threw in some cool new modes, and with a snap of their fingers, they threw in Ingrid from Capcom Fighting Evolution. Capcom is certainly loyal to their fans, and will most likely create some new ones with this title, because it rocks.
ALL the classic
features from the console versions of SFA3 are back: Arcade mode, Training
mode, Survival Mode, Dramatic Battle (1 player & 1 AI VS another AI),
Reverse Dramatic Battle (2 AIs VS 1 player), World Tour mode, Edit mode,
etc. 
And if that's not
enough for you, Capcom went ahead threw in a brand new mode, exclusively
for the PSP, called "Variable Battle." AKA... Tag mode. When you're close
to your opponent, you hit LP and MK, or LK and MP to tag. Your partner
will jump in with a flying kick, similar to that of MvC2.
I thought this mode was gonna be 2 vs 2, which would have been great, but
unfortunately it can only be done 2 VS 1... 
Grrrrr.
However, 3 people with
3 PSPs can play at the same time, in either Dramatic or Variable Battle.
Very cool indeed, and fun if you have friends with different skill levels.
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The 2 VS 1 battles are intense... Having 3 street fighters on the screen at the same time is always entertaining, and quite a challenge if you're going up against 2 decent computer AIs, or perhaps two skilled human opponents. An awesome mode, and much more complete than the "limited" Dramatic Battle found on the original Playstation version of SFA3.
The graphics
are as sharp as ever on the PSP's sharp and bright screen. All the background
and character details that you might have missed before are now more vibrant
than ever. As the fighters move around, they also create "trails," a common
trait of the PSP's graphics when certain colors/contrasts blend together.
This creates an exceptionally cool effect... some bonus eye candy to an
already beautiful work of art that is SFA3: Max. The transparent-like trails
also allow for a better appreciation of the smooth animation in this game
(and they look especially cool when you're buzzed).
So how are
the controls, you ask? Well... I can pull off perfect 360s, shoryukens,
hadoukens, and double hadouken movements with absolutely no trouble at
all... And can nail my custom V-ism combos consistently. 
Diagonals take some getting used to, but you can find a replacement D-pad
for the PSP if the default pad bothers you... It doesn't bother me a bit.
Don't judge the control the first couple times you play the game, it takes
getting used to.. AKA Practice!!
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"But I'm
used to a 6 button controller!" I can hear the excuses for your losing
already... 
Well, most
likely the problem lays within your fingers, not the buttons on the PSP.
Arcade sticks and 6 button controllers are fun, but there's no reason why
you can't play the game using the shoulder buttons as MP and MK as I do...
It works for me anyway.
Throwing might
be difficult for some; since by default you have to hit two buttons at
the same time to throw... but that all depends on how you set-up your buttons.
You can either make it easy or hard for yourself, it's not the games fault
if you cant get a throw off, you're just special... Ohh, but forget
about hitting 3 buttons at once. It's quite hard to get a PPP or KKK off
consistently, but you can assign that command to one button, so theres
usually no trouble there... And don't forget, you can always use the select
button if you need to. Heh.
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The load times are quick, and sometimes nonexistent! Thanks Capcom. All in all, SFA3: Max is definitely among the best Street Fighter games ever... and that's saying a lot. With the most characters and modes EVER in a Street Fighter game, this title has substance and style. A solid solid effort from Capcom... The "Capcom" that us Street Fighter vets remember. This is a game that many of us will NEVER really get bored with. Now we can play Street Fighter all day, anywhere, and make up new combos on the run... or on the pot. Wherever.
Another cool thing about Street Fighter on PSP.. is if you don't have time to finish all 8 stages in Arcade mode for example, you can turn your psp off... Do what you have to do, then turn it on a few hours later, and you're in the same spot you were when you last played. F*ing awesome.
Manufacturer: Capcom
Platforms: PSP
Release: February
2006
Characters:
Ryu,
Adon,
Chun-Li,
Guy,
Ken,
Dhalsim,
Gen,
Sakura,
Rolento,
Zangief,
Charlie,
Birdie,
Rose,
Sodom,
Sagat,
Akuma,
Bison,
Dan,
E.Honda,
Cody,
Karin,
Vega,
Blanka,
R.Mika,
Cammy,
Balrog,
Juli,
Juni,
Guile,
Fei
Long, T.Hawk,
Dee
Jay, Yun, Maki, Eagle,
Ingrid
Related Games:
Street Fighter, Street
Fighter 2, Street Fighter 2 Champion Edition,
Street
Fighter 2 Turbo, Super Street Fighter 2,
Super
Street Fighter 2 Turbo, Super Street Fighter
2 Turbo: Revival, Super Street Fighter
2 Turbo HD Remix,
Street Fighter 3: New Generation,
Street
Fighter 3: Second Impact, Street Fighter
3: Third Strike,
Street Fighter 4,
Street
Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Street
Fighter Alpha 3, Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper,
Street Fighter Alpha: Anthology,
Street Fighter Anniversary Collection,
Street Fighter EX,
Street
Fighter EX 2, Street Fighter EX 3, Street
Fighter: The Movie,
Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo,
Super
Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix, Pocket
Fighter
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Closing Comment:
Along with mp3s, movies, videos, internet, and porn; now arcade perfect
Street Fighter is in the palm of your hands. So if you don't have a Sony
PSP, it's definitely time to buy one. It's also a great way to practice
up those Street Fighter skills... Just like the crazy announcer in this
game says, "It all depends on your skill!" ~F.Yagami,
Webmaster
of TFG