9. Street Fighter EX2 (1998)

Most players will agree that Street Fighter EX2 was the pinnacle of Arika’s 3D EX subseries. It added a little much-appreciated depth to the first outing’s solid but simple game systems, welcomed some new faces, and continued building out one of the best OSTs in fighting games

The main gameplay addition came in the new excel combos, which were similar to the “custom combos” from Street Fighter Alpha 2. Spending one meter put you into a brief, special state during which you could chain any attack to any other one to create free-form barrages. While they’re still pretty powerful like in Alpha 2 and Alpha 3, I don’t mind them as much here for some reason. (I guess I don’t take the EX games as seriously.)

On the roster front, Blanka, Sagat, Area, Sharon, Vulcano Rosso, Nanase, Shadowgeist, and Hayate joined the cast. There were a few departures too, but only Sakura and Blair Dame were worth fussing over.

You know how early sequels often hit a sweet spot, when they add enough extras and refinements to the original concept that they finally feel well-rounded and complete? That’s EX2. It’s colorful, easy to pick up, and lots of fun to try and master. Like I said before, the Street Fighter EX games are spin-offs done right. If you enjoy them, Arika’s 2018 Fighting EX Layer for PS4, Switch, and Windows is a neat sort of spiritual successor. — Alexandra Hall

Revisions:
Street Fighter EX2 (1998)
Street Fighter EX2 Plus (1999)