Welcome again to the GammaSquad DLC Report, where we give you the lowdown on the latest additions to your favorite games. We’ll break down what the DLC includes, if it’s fun and whether it changes the opinion we rendered in our original review of the game.
As we’ve covered extensively, Street Fighter V was badly lacking in features and content at launch. Back in March, the game added a Challenge Mode and new fighter Alex, but it wasn’t enough to fundamentally change our opinion of the game. Now, more than three months later, Capcom has delivered a new cinematic story mode and three additional fan-favorite fighters. Are these new additions enough to make Street Fighter V the must-have fighter it ought to be?
Street Fighter V Story Mode Update (PC & PS4)
What’s Been Added
The new cinematic story mode “A Shadow Falls,” and three new characters (Ibuki, Balrog and Guile).
What You Pay
The story mode is free, while the new characters cost $6 or 100,000 in-game Fight Dollars apiece.
Is the Street Fighter V Story Mode Update Fun?
From a gameplay standpoint, A Shadow Falls is somewhat lackluster. Basically, you sit through cutscenes for a couple minutes, play a single-round fight that’s usually over in 30 seconds, then it’s back to the cutscenes. It’s not terribly interactive. It’s also not very challenging until the very end, which is kind of necessary, since you’re jumping from character-to-character, and nobody but true Street Fighter fanatics master the entire roster.
All that said, I kind of love the bonkers-ass story Capcom tells. Yes, it’s completely, unabashedly ridiculous, but crazy isn’t necessarily a bad thing when it’s done in a heartfelt way. This is a story that begins with a zombified Charlie Nash facing off against a menacing sheep, which melts down into a gelatinous ooze, then reforms as a soul-sucking dreadlocked demon. Things continue on a similarly absurd note from there. Roughly speaking, A Shadow Falls revolves around a Shadaloo plot to shut down the world’s electrical grid and defenses using a series of Death Star-like weapons called “Shadow Moons.” These Shadow Moons can only be activated by certain special chess pieces, because sure, whatever, and three factions, led by M. Bison, Karin and Street Fighter III boss Urien, fight for control of them.
The story is actually more coherent than you might think, and it treats the lives of its massive action-figure men and R. Crumb-proportioned women with a sometimes-hilarious level of sincerity. It even scores some legitimate emotional moments, like the bit where Chun-Li and Cammy observe Ken playing with his kid, or when Ryu, Ken and Chun-Li share a meaningful huddle before the final showdown. The story also adds some extra color and depth to some of Street Fighter V‘s new characters – the previously-overlooked Rashid and FANG may now have a shot at becoming fan favorites. I’d take Street Fighter‘s goofy tale mode over a dozen grim ‘n’ gritty Call of Duty-style storylines.
As for the new characters, they’re all solid additions. Guile and Balrog are simple, easy-to-use fighters that bring that Street Fighter II nostalgia, while Ibuki is a unique-feeling character for advanced combo masters. At this point, it feels like there’s a fighter for pretty much everybody in Street Fighter V‘s 20-character roster.
Does It Change Our Verdict?
A Shadow Falls doesn’t change the way Street Fighter V is played in any major way, but it provides the game with something more important – a heart. Before this story mode arrived, Street Fighter V just felt like a dry collection of fighters, basic modes and mechanics. Now we have some context, and a better sense of what the game’s new fighters are all about.
Between A Shadow Falls, the individual character vignettes and Challenge Mode, Street Fighter V now packs a solid dozen hours or more of single-player content. The game’s underlying mechanics were always rock solid, and now, six months after launch, Street Fighter V finally feels like a full game. If you’ve been holding out until now, feel free to join the fight.