Outside of story, you have your Survival, Versus (local, online, ranked, Battle Lounge), and training. Survival will be the biggest draw for players looking for a challenge, as you face off against a series of enemies with only a single life bar. You have the opportunity to purchase upgrades with points you earn, but the challenge intensifies as you move upward through four tiers.

Versus mode and training are just what you’ve come to expect from the series – pure, solid, one-on-one action. It’s Street Fighter V’s strong suit and will be where many players will spend the majority of their time.

An Arcade mode is noticeably absent, which is unfortunate. Each character’s story presents as entertaining but incredibly short, so having a ladder of opponents with a boss fight at the end would have been a worthwhile addition. Ultimately, it’s unclear why this classic mode was omitted, and those looking for more in the way of single player content outside of Versus against the AI and Survival may be disappointed.

Capcom is aware of these empty spaces, though, and has plans to increase the offerings of the base game. There is a planned update that will introduce a new Challenge Mode, as well as open up the Shop so players can start spending Fight Money on things like costumes and characters.

The developers are taking a different approach to DLC, allowing players to earn that extra content by playing game. It brings the series back to classic days when investing hours of fun, not dollars, got you cool rewards. You can still unlock content with cash, though, if that’s what you prefer.

Street Fighter V itself runs extraordinarily well, but the online component is suffering from launch-time server woes. While I was able to get online and do as I pleased, there were a couple of times when I was kicked off of the server, and it took a while to sign back in. Capcom is currently looking into the issues, and with the series’ history of solid online play, it seems unlikely to continue for much longer. Still, fighting games are primarily about the competition, so not being able to get into the game and rank up is a deal-breaker for many players. I was able to log on at the time of writing, but the risk of existing complications are worth taking into account if you’re looking to purchase the game.

Even with the lack of an Arcade mode and temporary server issues, though, Street Fighter V manages to shine. At its core, it is a top-notch fighting game with tight mechanics, crisp visuals, and a well-balanced roster. It builds upon everything that has made the franchise a mainstay in the fighting game genre and manages to impress with every single punch, kick, and Hadoken thrown. If you can forgive its short story and wait for the servers to stabilize, you’re in for a real treat with Street Fighter’s latest.

Score: 4.5/5