Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact - Giant Attack (ストリートファイターⅢ セカンドインパクト GIANT ATTACK Sutorīto Faitā Ⅲ Sekando Inpakuto Jaiantsu Atakku?) is a fighting game which was released by Capcom on October 1997. It is the second installment of Street Fighter III. A third version, titled Street Fighter III 3rd Strike - Fight for the Future (ストリートファイターⅢ サードストライク?), was released for the arcades in 1999.
Gameplay[]
2nd Impact introduces a few new features to the Street Fighter III series. In addition to a Super Art, the player can also perform slightly more powerful versions of their Special Moves called EX Specials. By using a certain portion of the Super Art gauge (usually after the filled portion begins to flash), the player can power-up certain Special Moves when performing the command by pressing two or three attack buttons instead of just one. A similar type of special move was featured in the home version of Street Fighter: The Movie (Super Special Moves). Other new abilities added to the game are "grap defense", the ability to escape from a throwing attack, and "personal action", a character-specific taunt. Each character's personal action is also accompanied by an additional benefit if completed successfully; for example, Ryu's personal action will lower his stun gauge. If a second-player interrupts the gameplay to challenge the other player, then the first player will be allowed to change the Super Art of their selected character.
The single-player mode was changed slightly from the first game. The player faces against series of eight opponents, including a character-specific final opponent, who will exchange dialogue with the player's character before the match. If certain requirements are met, then the player will also face a rival character during the course of the single-player mode and exchange dialogue before a match. If certain other requirements are met, the player will also face against the CPU-controlled Akuma instead of the character's usual final opponent in the single-player mode and depending on the player's performance in their fight against Akuma, then a match against a more powerful version of Akuma know as "Shin Akuma" will also take place. 2nd Impact brings back the concept bonus rounds, which was last seen in Super Street Fighter II. At the end of the third CPU match, then the player will participate in a minigame dubbed "Parry the Ball", in which the player can practice their parrying skills against a series of basketballs thrown towards the player by Sean.
Story[]
The storyline in 2nd Impact is considered a retcon which overwrites the events of Street Fighter III: New Generation. A third World Warrior Tournament (retroactively, the fourth) is held throughout the globe, but new faces appear as it has been years since the last Second World Warrior Tournament. Though many fight with their own motives and ends, word has spread urban rumors of an elusive secret society since the fall of Shadaloo, and some seek to investigate its legitimacy, to which all evidence points to the Third World Warrior Tournament.
- Sean challenges Ryu at Ken's instruction and is defeated.
- Ibuki infiltrates the Illuminati headquarters to obtain files about the G-Project, and Gill hands it to her, unconcerned since the project is already underway.
- Necro confronts Gill about what the G-Project did to him, and Gill traps him in a warehouse and attempts to blow him up. Effie saves him just in time, however.
- Ryu is defeated by Oro, who takes him on as a student. Then Oro drops out of the tournament because he has found what he had been looking for, and Ken drops out because he can no longer fight Ryu.
- Alex goes on to win the tournament, defeating Gill.
- Urien challenges Gill for the presidency of the Illuminati and succeeds; however, Gill is promoted to "Emperor."
In 1999, Capcom released a sequel entitled Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, which loosely covers the events after the tournament of 2nd Impact.
Characters[]
2nd Impact brought back all the characters from the first game and introduced two new ones: Hugo and Urien. Yang, who was an alternate version of Yun in the first game, became his own character with his own set of special moves and super arts. Akuma also returned as a secret computer-controlled challenger and selectable character. Thus the playable character roster increased to fourteen. In addition to the regular Akuma, a non-playable computer-controlled version named "Shin Akuma" also appears in the single-player mode.
Returning characters from New Generation[]
| Sprite | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
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Alex | The lead character of the Street Fighter III games. He fights with close-range wrestling and quick rushing attacks. His goal is to avenge the defeat of his friend Tom at the hands of Gill. Voiced by Michael Sommers. |
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Dudley | A dandy British boxer who is trying to retrieve an antique car that Gill has stolen. Voiced by Bruce Robertson. |
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Elena | An African princess who uses the fighting style of capoeira. She seeks to make new friends. Voiced by Hotaru Fujino. |
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Ibuki | An aspiring ninja whose fight in the tournament to obtain the G-Files for the Glade of NInjas. She is very quick and agile but has low health. Voiced by Yuri Amano. |
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Ken Masters | Knowing that Ryu has entered the tournament, Ken enters to test his strength against his old friend. Voiced by Koji Tobe. |
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Necro | A Russian man who was kidnapped and experimented on in the Illuminati's "G-Project". In 2nd Impact, he finds a companion named Effie who follows him and mimics his actions. Voiced by Michael X. Sommers. |
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Oro | A hermit who seeks a fighter worthy to inherit his fighting style. He binds one arm while fighting, to keep from accidentally killing his opponent, except when performing specific special arts. Voiced by Kan Tokumaru. |
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Ryu | As usual, Ryu enters the tournament to better his skills and find worthy opponents. Voiced by Wataru Takagi. |
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Sean Matsuda | A young Brazilian fighter who is being trained by Ken, Sean wants to improve his skills and prove his ability. Voice by Isshin Chiba. |
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Yang Lee | Yang is a Kung Fu expert from Hong Kong, and the twin brother of Yun. In New Generation, Yang is selectable only as a "palette swap" of his brother Yun. In 2nd Impact and 3rd Strike, Yang is a separate character, with his own unique set of Special Moves and Super Arts. Voiced by Wataru Takagi. |
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Yun Lee | A cocky fighter who, along with Yang, protects his hometown in Hong Kong. He's a happy-go-lucky person who likes to do things his own way. Voiced by Koji Tobe. |
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Gill | The leader of the secret organization known as the Illuminati, he desires to restore balance to the world, to which he sees is near its apocalypse. He can manipulate fire and ice. He is the final opponent for all the characters in New Generation and 3rd Strike, and for most of the characters in 2nd Impact. He is a playable character only in the console versions of the games. Voiced by Bruce Robertson. |
Introduced in 2nd Impact[]
| Appearance | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
|
Akuma (Gouki in Japan) | Appears in 2nd Impact as a secret character and has a non-playable "Shin Akuma" version which can be selected in the Dreamcast version of the game in Double Impact. He is a regular character in 3rd Strike while his "Shin" version was removed, though in the arcade game this version is present as a near-complete character, including a recolored stage. Voiced by Tomomichi Nishimura. |
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Hugo Andore | A professional wrestler who wants to find a strong tag team partner. He is often accompanied by his manager, Poison. Based on the Andore enemy character from Final Fight, also a direct nod to late professional wrestler André the Giant. Hugo was planned to be in the first game, as evidenced by his mobile character with unfinished sprites, and the presence of his stage in New Generation. Voiced by Wataru Takagi. |
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Urien | Gill's younger, bitter brother who wants to forcibly take the Illuminati from him. He can manipulate electricity and metal. Voiced by Yuji Ueda. |
Home versions[]
In 1999, Capcom released Street Fighter III: Double Impact (Street Fighter III: W Impact in Japan) for the Dreamcast, a compilation containing the original game and 2nd Impact. The compilation features an Arcade, Versus, Training and Option Mode for both games, as well as a "Parry Attack Mode" in 2nd Impact, where the player gets to test their parrying skills in the game's bonus round. This compilation also allows players to use Gill (in both games) and Shin Akuma (in 2nd Impact only), who were exclusively computer-controlled characters in the arcade version.
Gallery[]
Official Art[]
- To view all official character artwork, see: Official Art.
Screenshots[]
See Also[]
Video[]
Trivia[]
- The game's subtitle, Second Impact, also is the name of the near extinction level global catastrophic event of the Christian religious material themed breakout mecha anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. This was an intentional choice by producer Yoshiki Okamoto, who was both a fan of Evangelion and also noted that producer Tomoshi Sadamoto was a cousin of the anime's character designer Yoshiyuki Sadamoto.
- The secondary subtitle, Giant Attack, is a reference to the playable debut of Hugo.
- The arcade version of 2nd Impact has a widescreen mode available in the operator menu. This option was removed in 3rd Strike, making 2nd Impact the only CPS III game to officially support widescreen, while others do not have this feature or has incomplete implementation.
- This game is the first to introduce the concept of dubbing the deciding round of a match as the Final Round, which has been previously used in tie-breaking a match-up, when two players are in a stalemate. In the SF3 games, stalemates are usually settled by Judgment Girls. Many modern fighting games, not limited to those produced by Capcom and even the remakes of SF2 games now dub the deciding round as such.
- The arcade version of the game may be the most prevalent CPS-III arcade board around, as its security encryption uses the base encryption normally found in security cartridges that are already in "suicide" state due to expired batteries. The game will be available in perpetuity even if the security cartridge for the game eventually expires.