Developer: Capcom Publisher: Capcom Released: September 1990 Genre: Action
A year before I had ever heard of Street Fighter I played Street Fighter 2010. It seemed like a fairly innocuous release at the time and I thought nothing of it. Then a certain sequel took the arcade by the storm and featured a character named Ken. The same Ken who traveled through outer space in an action platformer a year ago. In all the confusion surrounding whether or not the game was really part of the series people forgot to actually play it. Although it has a few flaws the game is actually pretty good when judged on its own.
Set in the year 2010 the game stars Ken, a retired martial artist turned scientist. He invents an alloy called cyboplasm to help the world. But Ken’s invention is stolen and his best friend Troy is killed before it can be used. Ken outfits himself with cybernetic implants to bring Troy’s killer to justice. The confusion all stems from an overly zealous marketer within Capcom who decided to change the story for its western release. In Japan Street Fighter 2010 stars Kevin, a cyborg policeman on the hunt for intergalactic criminals. And with that the game’s setting makes sense.
Ken is an agile protagonist, able to leap, climb, and hang from any environment. Your primary attack is a short range fireball that can be shot forward and upward. Using simple button combinations you can back flip, fire powerful curved shots, and kick a shot diagonally. The timing and angle of these attacks need to taken in to account as enemies rarely come in a straight line. Power capsules scattered around the environment increase the strength and range of your attacks up to five levels. Unfortunately every hit drops it one level which is harsh. Later you can find an option like attachment and a flip shield.
It’s hard to classify the game to an extent. For the most part this is an extended boss rush along the lines of Alien Soldier. But even that description doesn’t do it justice. While they aren’t plentiful there are a number of scrolling stages that feature a good bit of platforming. The object of every level is to defeat the designated target and enter the portal in order to move on. In most cases it is a single boss but sometimes there are multiple.
Variety is the game’s greatest asset. Most encounters take place in a single multilevel arena. Sometimes there are fodder enemies to also deal with but most of the time it is you against a single creative boss. These bosses range in design, from humanoid to mechanical creations with varied attacks. It’s almost like a game consisting of nothing but robot masters from Mega Man in that regard. The few times the game decides to throw a longer traditional level in the mix allows it show of. Ken’s agility is put to the test as you try to stay one step ahead of the scrolling screen. It can be annoying but is a welcome diversion.
Street Fighter 2010 is a bit long, consisting of five planets with multiple levels each. One moment you are leaping through a futuristic city and the next you are surfing down a lava waterfall. The pacing of the game can be a bit weird at times. After defeating a mutant in a bar you might end up in a single psychedelic room to kill a few enemies and move on. These interludes are a regular occurrence; sometimes they are there to offer power-ups after a grueling fight. Due to the game’s setup passwords or battery backup aren’t necessary although they would have been appreciated due to the high difficulty.
This is not an easy game and that is mostly due to the stiff controls and design. Ken latches onto the closest object at the worst times and is sometimes slow to respond. The game has an aggressive time limit that is annoying. Even worse you have ten seconds to enter the portal after beating each boss. Power-ups are placed in the worst spots and aren’t plentiful. Even worse than that, life orbs are rare and they do not restore health between levels. The game is difficult from its opening level and only rises from there. Even with unlimited continues you’ll have to work for it this time.
At least you’ll have pretty graphics to admire. Street Fighter 2010 is a beautiful game, packed with detail and diverse worlds. Every planet is unique with its own set of enemies and few bosses are recycled. The animation is fantastic for the system and the only real drawback is some ugly slowdown at times. It’s rarely happens however. The game also has a great soundtrack as well. For a low profile release Capcom really went all out and it shows.
In Closing
Forget about the nonsense connection to Street Fighter and judge the game on its own merits. Street Fighter 2010 is a solid game with plenty of variety throughout. If the controls were tighter it would be even better despite its high difficulty. I wouldn’t recommend it over the truly great action games available but it does make for a nice second pick.
