This post has not been edited by the GamesBeat staff. Opinions by GamesBeat community writers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff.
Seth Killian knows his Street Fighter so well, some Japanese guys asked him to help develop their games. Killian, Capcom's manager of community, is now also the company's "Special Advisor to Street Fighter 4 and Super Street Fighter 4" — yes, that's all part of his business-card-busting title — because he can talk frames, discuss priorities, and shoryuken with the best of them.
Although he failed our 5HP quiz miserably, he's still more qualified to talk about SSF4 than we are. So this week, we're going to get his thoughts on the newly revealed cast so far (what he likes about them, what World Warriors they'll have trouble going up against, etc.), starting with a giant fighter we haven't seen in a while….
On what he likes about T. Hawk:
Seth Killian: My favorite thing about him is his jab pile driver, which doesn't do quite as much damage as the fierce but leaves you almost right next to [the opponent] as soon as he gets up — he's in danger.
Usually when you land a pile driver, [the opponent] sort of bounces away and the tension is gone for a moment. With T. Hawk, he can do a jab pile driver, and he's right next to you, and you're like, "Oh crap, I'm going to be pile driven again!" [Laughs]. The pressure's really on, and I like that sense of danger in a character.
On the troubles T. Hawk might face:
SK: I'm always very interested in grapplers, because they're a really delicate balance. Grapplers are really dangerous up close and less of a threat at distance, usually. In terms of balancing, they're always fun characters to work on.
So right now, T. Hawk actually has a problem with [SSF4 addition] Juri, in part because T. Hawk is so tall. He has that disadvantage which makes him easy to hit in the head, especially with high projectiles. Think Sagat's high Tiger shot…Juri's roundhouse fireball-ish thing also gives him a really hard time because he has no move that will allow him to duck under those and shoot forward. He has a Hawk Dive that will allow him to get over some projectiles, but he's so physically large, he has trouble getting around some of them.
Also see: T. Hawk, DeeJay, Juri, Cody, Guy, Adon, Ibuki, Makoto, Dudley, Hakan
Note: Killian's comments are based on Super Street Fighter 4 as it stands today in its development cycle. Keep in mind the game may go through balancing tweaks leading up to its April 27, 2010 release, so his opinions are subject to change.