The executive producer behind Street Fighter V has shared some insight into the tough selection process behind the upcoming fighting sequels’ extensive character roster.
Speaking with the latest issue of OPM UK, Yoshinori Ono admitted, rather humorously, that things get quite heated with his fellow teammates at Capcom when considering the various characters that will appear in Street Fighter V—everyone’s got a favorite, after all.
Asked to elaborate on how the team decides who makes the cut, the perennially cheerful Ono-san replied:
“It’s a very tough process, believe me. People around this table (points to other team member) have almost been physically fighting over what characters to put in. Basically, whoever wins the fight gets to make the decisions, so you can read into that however you want (laughs)!
“But I can use my influence, of course. I’m not as physically big as the Western guys are! I won’t win in a physical fight with them, but I’ve got my position and I can influence the director and stuff to put my favorite character in the game. Like, I’m a fan of R Mika and I get to say, ‘I know they weren’t in the plan, but do me a favour….’ (laughs).”
Street Fighter V is due out on PlayStation 4 and PC in February. The game will remain a console exclusive to Sony’s current-generation console indefinitely; in fact, Ono-san advises you to save up for a PS4 if you want to pay the game. 16 characters will be available at launch, with more being rolled out throughout 2016. However, there has been some criticism directed at Capcom for the omission of classic fighters such as Blanka and Sagat.
Interestingly, Ono-san commented late last year that Capcom has a five-year plan in store for the latest entry in its multi-million selling fighting series. The previous game, Street Fighter IV, was supported by a number of expanded editions, such as Super Street Fighter IV and Ultra Street Fighter IV.
Source: OPM UK Issue 119 – February 2016