No one was calling SF4 shallow at this point in time.
5 is lacking content, no doubt, but i dont get the complaints about poor gameplay
Basically this: (Image removed from quote.)
Capcom systemically reduced walkspeeds, the range of normals, the effectiveness of specials and the ability to whiff punish at mid range. The V-trigger system also ended up being little more than a combo extension mechanic rather than a tool that could change the shape of the neutral game like focus attacks, parries, etc did in past SF titles.
They went to great lengths to homogenize character playstyles. SFV greatly restricts you in the ways you can play your character when compared to older SF games.
SFIV was deemed shallow its entire run because people could punch out lights on wakeup, focus attacks were dubbed as a poor replacement for parries, the game had an execution barrier never before seen in Street Fighter which has always been pretty lax on that compared to other fighters, you had a ridiculous number of option selects, gimmick characters like El Fuerte, Ibooty, and U2 Elena, in hindsight original SFIV was pretty terrible and everyone in the community agrees and the game didn't get good until Super. Before V's release, people were heralding it as a return to form after casualization that was SFIV, in that the game stressed fundamentals over gimmick systems and option selects. When SFIV came out, many people went to 3S six months later. I've played more fundamental thinking games with bronze players in SFV than I ever did with people online in Super ranked, or even Ultra ranked. The reason Mika is so hated is because of her mixup loop, which is as anti-SFV as it gets and is the closest the game has to an SFIV esque gimmick character. SFIV had a whole slew of oldschool dogs who couldn't hang. SFIV was considered a shit game by many and many of those same old guys are back in V.
The reality is every major Street Fighter has its audience. When SFIV came out many considered it inferior to 3S and went back to that. Many never came back and only play 3S and V. SFIV is going to have its own audience. People who prefer that will stick to that. People still play Super Street Fighter II Turbo to this day.
I'm pretty sure you have no idea what you're talking, and citing PR Rog before he gets his character (Balrog) is ridiculous. The best you could possibly come up with regarding "homogenized playstyles" is that it's usually safer to do a target combo, so you'll see people use the same combo. But if you watch Infiiltration's Nash and compare it to LI Joe's Nash or Yukadon's Nash and you think the game has "homogenized play styles" then you have effectively no idea what you're watching, how to dissect it, and it should probably stop talking about SF seriously.
Saying V-trigger is only for combo extension is illogical. V-trigger's main value is for punishing. If someone whiffs and you've got trigger, a good crush counter -> v-trigger -> combo -> CA will keep you ahead. It's used as a purpose to keep you alive just like v-reversal. This is obvious because not every characters v-trigger is the same. For example, Nash's v-trigger is his savior because Nash lacks a good wake up option and is a sitting duck in the corner. So it's wise to use v-trigger over v-resersal because v-trigger will get you out of the corner. Saying Nash's v-trigger is nothing more than combo extension, or Dhalsim's which creates space, or Fang's, or Guile's which gives him endless pressure options as merely combo extension makes it makes it obvious you have probably spent all of two hours playing Street Fighter V.
Walk speed depends on the character. Bison has I think the slowest walk speed in the game but the fastest dash. This is true for a reason. Ryu's walk speed is way faster than his USFIV walk speed. Also his dash is way faster. Cammy's walk speed is fast as always. You say Paralax isn't high enough level, but you're not considering the disparity between walk speed and dash as options. Why do you think Infiltration uses dash so much? Nash has one of the fastest Dash's in the game and it's supposed to be utilized as weapon of weaving in and out to win out footsy skirmishes. The range of normals too, depends on the character. Karin st.MK has a great range one of - if not the best - normal in the game.
The effectiveness of specials? What? They're the same they've ever been.
