head to head

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition cover artvsUltra Street Fighter IV cover art

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online EditionvsUltra Street Fighter IV

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition leans Execution (Competitive PvP); Ultra Street Fighter IV leans Execution (Grand Arena).

EXECUTION9 /10READS9 /10VARIANCE1 /10OPTIMIZATION5 /10
Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online EditionUltra Street Fighter IV

Axis by axis

Execution9 vs 9

Even - both lean on execution about the same.

Reads9 vs 8

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition leans harder on reads: Parries force constant prediction wars against an adapting human

Variance1 vs 1

Even - both lean on variance about the same.

Optimization5 vs 6

Ultra Street Fighter IV leans harder on optimization: Frame data, matchups and option-selects form deep studied theory

Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.

full breakdown

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition

full breakdown

Ultra Street Fighter IV