We know. It's hard. Street Fighter IV is out in Japan, and it's not out everywhere else, and that just burns you up inside. So tons of determined/cashed up enthusiasts across the world have been importing the game boards directly from Japan, despite the fact those boards won't be officially supported. They break, you're screwed. Adding to the weight on the importer's shoulders today is this gentle reminder from Capcom that not only is importing a SFIV board risky business, it's technically illegal. Capcom's Chris Kramer:

Technically, what they are doing is illegal and could get them in legal trouble from both Capcom and several different branches of the federal government.

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Face it, asking for fighting games with online to have zero to no lag is a tall order. Replicating that versus arcade experience is hard. Heck, when Virtua Fighter launched on the PS3 back in early 2007, it didn't have online. (Well, neither did the PS3, really.) Even Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono even admits that lag will be problematic for the home versions. Up front and honest, he tells the Official Xbox 360 Magazine:

Obviously lag will be a huge problem for online play. We're working on it. Compared to other games such as Virtua Fighter and Soul Calibur, they've got replay functions and so forth. It's quite difficult for 3D Street Fighter at the moment.

In order to prevent the lag we're thinking about trying to balance it up at user interface level and input timing by using joystick or something like that. We still haven't got a complete plan as yet. We're still working on it. That's all we can say at the moment.

Here's hoping they figure something out.

Street Fighter IV interview [OXM via Joystiq]

There have been sightings of Street Fighter IV arcade cabinets popping up over the last week in North American cities. We received a few tips from people claiming the Chinatown Fair arcade in Manhattan got their very own cabinet, too. So since I never have anything to do on the weekend, I figured I'd take a stroll over there to see for myself. Well, sure enough, they did! It certainly wasn't official looking, but nonetheless, it works and I got a chance to sit down and get a few rounds in. So how does it play? Let's just say it'll make your eyes orgasm.

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For a while now, we've been hearing that developer Dimps, not Capcom, was doing the heavy lifting for Street Fighter IV. The Osaka-based Dimps is best known for the Dragon Ball Z: Budokai games and Rumble Fish. The company was founded by former employees of two other Osaka game companies, Capcom and SNK. SFIV producer Yoshinori Ono addresses the issue, which we believe is the first time for Capcom to do so:

Well, it wasn't that we were necessarily hiding that fact, but it's that we didn't really view them as an external developer in the traditional sense. Takashi Nishiyama, the guy who started Dimps and still runs the studio, used to work at Capcom years ago, and he was actually one of the developers on the original Street Fighter. After he did that game, he left Capcom and set up that studio. He still totally has Capcom blood in him, though, and we still view him as one of the team. The same goes for some of the others there.

In fact, Nishiyama was one of the guys who helped make the Street Fighter 4 project happen. So the way it works is that we handle all of the art, characters, and game design within Capcom, and they handle the programming and balancing. But it really is a true Capcom game through and through, no matter how you look at it.

...Street Fighter is entirely our property, so we have all the say and can control its quality. It's all in our and their hands to make a really great game. It really does feel like we're working with people from within the family — again, a lot of these guys used to work at Capcom — and it doesn't hurt that they're only a quick 20 minute train ride away.

Yeah, the Capcom and Dimps offices are fairly close, so that takes care of those concerns. They're both in the same city, no biggie. Though, we've heard chatter that producer Ono is not — rumour has it that he's based at Capcom's Tokyo branch office and not in Osaka, where the game's being developed by Dimps. If that's true, why? (Know: However the hell Capcom made SFIV, it did a solid job — the arcade version is great.)

Street Fighter 4 Producer Talks Wii, Dimps, and Sheng Long [1up]

While we've known that the character was on the roster since earlier this year, Capcom has announced that from today Akuma has entered the Street Fighter IV arcade fray. The boss character is limited to popping up in the single player mode apparently when there's a "strong" arcade player. Sounds like he's here to kick arse and take coins.

Hit the jump for another pic.

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It's been known for a while that the console edition of Street Fighter IV would feature a few extra bells and whistles the arcade version would not. Biggest and best being extra characters. But just who are those extra characters going to be? Well, why don't you decide. Yes, in a surprisingly generous act of fan service, Capcom are letting fans vote for which Street Fighter characters not yet already in the game should be making the jump over to SFIV. Hit the link below to add your Cammy pick (from a choice of 8) to everyone else's Cammy pick.

Vote for New Street Fighter IV Characters! [Capcom]

As we previously posted, the Japanese arcade version of Street Fighter IV will feature Taito's NESYS Card System to save and track data — plus a mobile phone site, too. During arcade play, players can win and save "Battle Points" on their NESYS Card. The Battle Points are weighted, so, for example, if you defeat a player with a high ranking, you'll get more Battle Points. Besides BP, players can also earn "zeny" when winning and then take that saved zeny to the SFIV cell phone "Zeny Shop" where players can purchase outfits and different coloured costumes like Chun-Li's new threads (pictured). What's more, players are able to receive a stamp at the mobile phone contents shop (one stamp a day), and those stamps can be traded for ringtones, ring voices and mobile phone pics at the "Stamp Shop".

春麗に待望の新コスチュームが！？ [Famitsu]

Starting July 18th, Street Fighter IV will be playable in Japanese arcades. To save your arcade achievements, the game will use Taito's NESYS Card System. (Makes sense as the game runs on the Taito Type X2 arcade system board!) The NESYS Card will come in four patterns, all of which are pictured. This saved player data contains the player name that appears on-screen in versus mode. The player data can also be accessed individual cell phone SFIV player webpages, which feature stats and ranking as well as news about SFIV events. Via the mobile phone site, it's possible to create and name SFIV guilds. Players can then collect "guild points" and compete with other SFIV guilds to improve their ranking to boot!

Street Figher IV Arcade Data Cards [Famitsu]

Unless you're a die-hard fighting game nut (and British), you probably weren't planning on popping round to the Battle of Destiny fighting game tournament next month. Shame. Because by not attending you're not only missing out on a chance to play Street Fighter II HD early, but you're missing out on a chance to play the arcade version of Street Fighter IV early as well. Oh, so you've changed your mind? Fancy that. It's on July 26 & 27, at the London Metropolitan Uni.

The Battle Of Destiny [via Capcom]

Speaking with Famitsu, Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono has revealed that when the game hits the 360, PS3 and PC (whenever that is), it won't be a port. Oh no. It'll be more than a port. How much more? For starters, the home versions will feature online play. You'd kinda expect that these days, but still, official, online Street Fighter is good news. It'll also feature new characters. New new characters, because there'll be some who are exclusive to the home versions, and won't be available in arcades. If you're worried how these characters will affect the game, Ono says they'll be "watching the overall balance" when implementing them, if that helps any.

New Characters Planned for SFIV Home Version [Famitsu, via IGN]