The wait has been long and many questions have been asked, but fans of Street Fighter V have finally got the update they have been hoping for with the announcement of Street Fighter V: Champion Edition. This latest update for the game, scheduled for a February 2020 release and a $29.95 price tag, will unlock all previous content, implement new game modes, and include two new characters at launch.

Capcom’s Yoshinori Ono came on stage after the conclusion of the North American Regional Finals, which featured a thrilling showdown between Du “Nuckledu” Dang and Victor “Punk” Woodley, to debut the game and new character Gill. Gill previously served as an antagonist for the Street Fighter III series; this marks the first time he’s appeared as a playable character. A second character was teased, with speculating increasing that Seth from Street Fighter IV or Rose from Street Fighter Alpha will be next, and additional information is set to be revealed at the conclusion of the Capcom Pro Tour next month in Los Angeles.

Following Gill’s reveal, the trailer for Champion Edition gave players a glimpse of new features to come. A second V-trigger, team battle modes and new stages as well as the promise of an additional character to bring the roster to 40 characters highlighted the trailer. It was later clarified that current owners of Street Fighter V will not have to buy this new release in order to continue playing as the updated mechanics will be free in February, but a $24.95 price tag to “upgrade” to Champion Edition grants current owners all available DLC and a new color for every character.

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After a lackluster year that began with a six-month drought of announcements causing many to wonder if Capcom was ready to abandon the game, the seminal fighting game franchise is looking to pick up the pace with a flurry of new updates. Fan reaction to Gill and the teased updates have been positive, which is a good sign being that Street Fighter V has been trying to move passed its troubled launch and seemingly impossible-to-please player base.

What is yet to be seen is if Capcom addresses the biggest community complaints such as the netcode and balancing the more oppressive characters in the game such as Akuma, Karin, Rashid and G. Beyond that, it is hard to find anything to hate about this forthcoming update, which reaffirms both Capcom’s commitment to the game and its presence as an esports mainstay for at least one more year.

Source: YouTube

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