Usual leaker stuff: Can't reveal my sources (quotes are from various people), believe it or don't, details are subject to change, some things may incorrect, some things may just be ideas that were simply suggested by somebody and never considered seriously, etc. etc.

Document has 6 sections so scroll down to see what you want to see:

Personnel
Basic Info
Content
Mechanics
Monetization and Financial Strategy
Reveal and Release

Personnel:

- Yoshinoro Ono, the producer of the Street Fighter series since 2008, has seemingly had his role significantly reduced in the development of the new game. He will still represent the game publicly to a large degree to "avoid people asking questions", but his actual influence on the product has been "almost entirely nullified".

- Capcom USA has been given a "more significant part in deciding the game's direction" this time around.

- A wide variety of new people from different sectors of the video game industry, including mobile gaming and more Western companies, have been brought in to give the series a "fresh perspective". 

- Some of these people were around during SFV, but in comparison to that game's development where they were still subordinate to Ono and other senior Japanese employees, this time they have been given "free reign".

- It's unknown who is actually finally in charge of the product. There is apparently "a confused chain of command", with different entities and individuals "staking out personal fiefdoms". Despite this, the combined vision of the "most powerful players" is supposedly "mostly clear and unified, with disagreements mostly only about details".

- Though Japanese game companies are well-known for being loyal to their senior employees and providing them with significant creative freedom and executive control over their child series (for better or worse), Capcom executives nevertheless demanded the staffing changes due to the lagging performance of its fighting games in comparison to games from franchises like Resident Evil and Monster Hunter. 

- They apparently "took lessons from Konami" in "reining Ono in", a reference to how Konami treated storied game designer Hideo Kojima (which was widely derided by gamers) in relation to its "Metal Gear Solid" series.

- Ono is apparently "deeply unsettled" by the direction things have taken, but "blames himself for not reversing course on Street Fighter V and fighting Capcom more on simplifying the series when he had the chance" and will "stay loyal to Capcom and perform his duty". 

- The prior drive to "heavily monetize" the series and make the franchise appeal more to casual players instead of traditional fighting game audiences apparently came more from higher-ups than Ono himself ("despite whatever ideas fans might have gotten"), who tried to "contain the damage", which is partially why he's being removed. (This is also apparently why beta/prototype/demo versions of SFV had more advanced features, as they were added into the game by Ono and then later simplified at the request of higher-ups.)

- Thus, now Ono's been "reduced to a figurehead" as they feel he is too "attached to old ideas", particularly due to his proposed Street Fighter 6 plan which suggested "a more careful balance of offense and defense", "a more nuanced positioning system with greater options", and "more depth, creativity, and input precision". These ideas were considered "regressive, irrelevant throwbacks" by Capcom higher-ups that would push the series in an "even more closed-off, traditionalist direction". They were particularly disturbed by his lack of mentions of "social features" or "modern trends".

- If you couldn't tell by now, Capcom is doubling down on appealing to more casual players with the new game. Most of the higher-ups at Capcom "no longer believe in traditional fighting games" after the poor performance of both SFV and MvCI, which they believe were "not as simple as hardcore players complained" and "still had plenty of depth" but were also "still too complicated for most video game players, particularly mobile gamers" (the recent viral success of "Flappy Fighter", a simplified Flappy Bird parody fighting game for mobile, seems to have only reinforced this idea). 

- They blame traditional fighting game players for "abandoning" them and "forcing their hand", a narrative particularly pushed by the newcomers to the company.

- Capcom's lack of communication recently about SFV is at the behest of these newcomers, who strongly push the idea that Capcom "owes nothing" to its core audience anymore. These newcomers feel it is unimportant to worry about SFV instead of focusing on the new game. 

- Many veterans in the company completely disagree with this narrative and strategy, but they are being ignored as they can't compete with the "slick presentations and jargon" of the newcomers. Executives are being promised "credible numbers that they just can't ignore". These veterans find it awkward as well to publicly communicate about SFV as they know what is replacing it is even less in the direction that dedicated players want the series to move toward.

- Not everyone considers the increased plurality of perspectives on the team to be a good thing either. Some think the new game's development is "a mess" with "too many cooks in the kitchen pursuing too many often contradictory agendas".

Basic details:

- The game will be called "Street Fighter Connect" in an attempt to avoid "dating" the series as "old and from the past" with a "large number" and to emphasize the "social themes" of the game. 

- The game will be free to play with microtransactions, with China as a "key market" that Capcom hopes to "more heavily expand into".

- "We want it to be less like a traditional fighting game and more like Fortnite where it's just a giant neverending online party." is apparently the overarching attitude. 

- Sony is again funding the title as a PlayStation timed console exclusive. They will collect an unspecified portion of its revenue, more for purchases made on PlayStation (the game will also launch on PC, mobile, and maybe Switch pending a Smash Bros. partnership (details below in multiple sections)). Because SFV was "a bit of a dud", Sony is "demanding more influence this time" in return for their money.

- Capcom has taken some criticisms, particularly of SFV's launch, to heart though. The team hopes to make SFC more "expansive" and focused on "more than just fighting". "Plant many trees." is a motto being used.

- Most at Capcom are well aware that many aspects of the game will be "somewhat controversial to some audiences", but feel that they must "push ahead to move forward" and "not be bound by the past".

Content:

- The starting/default (free) characters at launch will be the player's choice of either Ryu or Sakura/Chun-li (in China only, as they felt Chinese players would be offended by a choice of only Japanese characters), which is the team's attempt to promote gender inclusiveness (as suggested by Sony of America), Alex (again in the hopes of evoking Third Strike nostalgia/credibility as a mild appeasement of core players suggested by Ono), and Dante from Devil May Cry as a crossover character, intended to drum up interest due to the success of DMC 5 (as suggested by Sony Japan and part of a potential crossover with the proposed new Marvel vs. Capcom game). The last two will be temporarily free only (as elaborated upon in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section). (Dante was originally slated to be removed from the Chinese version under the notion that "Chinese censors frown upon depictions of demons." until the team was made aware that a mobile Devil May Cry game has already been published there.)

- The team plans to have "at least 20" characters available for purchase at launch in addition to the free-to-play characters, with "possibly up to 50" available by the end of the game's first year (though some feel that this is a "fake number" being promised to executives that won't happen). Because each character other than the starting characters must be purchased separately, there is "less financial pressure to reduce the size of the launch roster than there was with SFV".

- With the characters, the focus is apparently on quantity over quality. Heavy reuse of assets from SFV and SFIV and "economization" are being prioritized. 

- Capcom executives feel that most players are more impressed by seeing a large number of characters on the character select screen than "absolute polish" and that they tend not to notice "quibbles" like animation errors, particularly on smaller mobile screens, a form factor they're greatly prioritizing this time around.

- Much of the basic work, animation in particular, is being outsourced to Chinese and Korean studios, as the premium cosmetics are considered a higher aesthetic priority. Capcom is hoping to make heavy use of contractors to meet its ambitious roster size targets.

- Many of the female characters have had their costumes redesigned for "social reasons", as suggested by Sony of America. 

- In particular, Sakura has been significantly changed as newcomers to the company called her existing schoolgirl-based design "pedobait" (apparently unaware that she is intended to be college-aged now) and consider it "highly inappropriate for a default character". 

- Somewhat skimpier costumes may still be available, but only as premium options. 

- Female characters have also been remodeled to exhibit "greater body type and size diversity" and "minor realistic flaws, such as slight acne scars or asymmetric *******" to "avoid promoting unrealistic appearance expectations", as suggested by an outside consultant. 

- (However, premium "makeup", a system that Capcom higher-ups feel will appeal particularly to "teen girls who love to buy skins and cosmetics in mobile games", is also apparently being considered as a feature to allow those flaws to be covered up, though this is opposed by most of the game's artists who feel that such a system "misses the point". Premium "body sliders" and "plastic surgery" to modify the bodies and faces of the characters have also been proposed, but mostly only speculatively by higher-ups, making them unlikely to be available at least at launch.)

- Due to the positive reception of "Hot Ryu"/bearded Ryu from SFV, more of the male characters have been further redesigned to appeal more to women. The team believes that women like "well-groomed facial hair", "toned and muscular but not bulky" bodies, "broad shoulders", "strong jawlines", and "expensive hairstyles". 

- Additionally, due to the widespread influence of the Korean boy band BTS, some in Capcom are suggesting that the characters, particularly the canonically Asian ones like Ryu, should be given more of a "Korean fashion look". (It's unknown how much serious influence this idea has, but BTS apparently has some voracious fans on the development team, particularly at Capcom USA.) Broadly, the team wants the men to be "soft but strong".

- Certain characters such as Guile and Zangief will have adjustments made to their aesthetics, personality, and presentation to avoid "promoting toxically masculine ideals or behaviors" and "militarism and imperialism" (as suggested by an outside consultant). The behavior/presentation of the male characters is designed to promote the idea that "male strength need not be only physical, without emotion or sensitivity, or used only to hurt or dominate others".

- Overall the content is being shaped to "shed the gruff, hypermasculine image of fighting games" and in particular the "toxic reputation of the FGC".

- For the Japanese, Chinese, and "other developing region" markets, the characters will have designs closer to their originals and without features such as realistic appearance flaws. Capcom expects the redesigns to be most significantly appreciated in Western markets like the US, Canada, and Europe.

- In certain Middle Eastern markets, the female characters will "dress more in line with traditional notions of modesty" but "lean more toward conventional attractiveness".

- "More inclusive" characters such as Rashid and Balrog will be preferred for return, but new characters (with proportions and fighting styles similar to old characters so that animations can be reused) are being prioritized, especially guest characters as detailed later below. Balrog and other black characters are expected to have a wide variety of "#BlackLivesMatter" and other "racially progressive" cosmetics available, with Capcom promising "racially progressive messaging" throughout the game.

- Ryu and Sakura (not Chun-li, as Capcom feels that Chinese players would find the notion of changing her race/ethnicity in particular to be "especially offensive"), as the game's default characters, have been reenvisioned as "semi-custom characters" that can be "retextured" on demand for free to allow players to choose an African, Latino/a, Indian, or Arabic (with more options likely to be made available on demand) appearance for them, with multiple natural hair colors (unnatural colors like pink are premium-only), hair textures (though not variant hairstyles, which are also premium content), and skin tones available, in order to "promote inclusiveness and celebrate the diversity of Street Fighter's fanbase", as suggested by a Capcom USA employee. The team "doesn't want to cede the issue to Mortal Kombat".

- This feature will be disabled in certain markets such as China and Japan, who will always see the default Asian versions of the characters (who, for the Chinese market, have apparently been altered to look "more Chinese instead of Japanese") even when playing against customized versions of them.

- Ryu and Sakura will have "very similar properties and strengths" to avoid "emphasizing gender differences", "exploiting gendered tropes", or "causing players to restrict themselves from expressing their gender identity to gain a competitive advantage", as suggested by an outside consultant.

- The game may try to have an exact 50:50 ratio of male to female characters available at all times (as pushed by Capcom USA).

- At least one new character may be canonically transgender (though not in China and certain other markets), but in a "more mature and legitimate way than Poison", as suggested by an outside consultant.

- "Guest characters" from other franchises inside and outside of Capcom are being heavily pursued. In particular, many in Capcom USA are advocating for the game to add "striking, bizarre, and memeable" characters like Shrek (due to his existing meme status), WWE's John Cena, and characters from the popular anime "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure" to emulate the "crossover appeal" of Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. series and earn the game articles on sites like Kotaku and "chatter on social media". (Capcom is taking an unconventional approach to marketing this time, as detailed in the "Marketing" section.)

- The team has apparently been "enlightened" by games like Call of Duty, Mortal Kombat, and Red Dead Redemption when it comes to a new story mode that they expect to be a key feature of the game (though not an entirely free one as detailed in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section) in order to counter the rampant criticism of SFV's single player features.

- Cutscenes with QTEs will be a "key element" of the story mode and players will likely have the option of skipping the actual fights, though this is still being debated.

- The canon has been entirely rebooted, with the team pursuing a "more realistic" approach to the story and characters (with any potential wackier guest characters likely left out of at least the main story). More Western game writers have been hired to contribute. 

- "Modern political themes" will be explored, but in a "wholesome and appropriate way, without excessive violence" as Capcom executives are pushing the writers to keep the story "family friendly, like a Pixar movie". The team also wants to "keep content warnings to a minimum" and "avoid making people feel unsafe".

- Internally, the story is being compared to and measured up against properties like Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Movie or television tie-ins are "certainly not being ruled out".

- Arcade mode will return, but probably with no specific final boss. Instead, the final boss will likely be a "shadow version" of the player character. There is only one bonus stage for now, based on the game Fruit Ninja, and each character will have 2 possible endings at launch. There will be no custom paths or ladders as in SFV, but there will be online leaderboards. Expanding the mode after launch is being considered.

- No training mode will be available at launch, as the team feels that the concept "discourages new players". They want to encourage players to "train through playing with others". 

- There will be an "extensive" interactive tutorial mode available however, which will also teach players about the game's lootboxes and how to navigate the in-game shops and even lead them through making their first "purchase" (actually free, as it's only a tutorial, though players get to keep them) of Fight Gems (as explained in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section). Despite it being a fake transaction, players will be encouraged to enter in their real financial information at this time though.

- Local versus mode will be available, but playing against the CPU in said versus mode may be limited to around five matches per day (to prevent players from using it as a pseudo-training mode), though this is still being debated. The team wants to "push people online" instead. Local matches against another person will be unlimited, though both players must be signed in online and players can only use their own premium content. The team is considering a feature where online players can "interrupt" local matches, similar to the "invasions" featured in the Dark Souls series.

- Online versus, both ranked and casual, will also of course be available, but the primary online mode promoted will be a new Battle Royale mode featuring up to 50 players at a time. The details are scarce on this, but the gameplay in this mode will continue to resemble the core fighting gameplay of the Street Fighter series and not be a shooter like most entries in the Battle Royale genre (elaborated on in "Mechanics" section).

- The other mode that will be heavily pushed is a 5 on 5 teams mode inspired by League of Legends (though it again still has fighting and not MOBA gameplay), but not many details are known.

- There may also be a Battle Royale mode where players are sorted into 3 player teams as in the recently popular "Apex Legends".

- A "fighting game-style minigame"-based mode inspired by the recently popular Fall Guys and an "impostor spotting" mode based on the also recently popular Among Us are also being considered, though the details are as of yet undetermined.

- There will also be online "non-competitive party lounges", but it's unknown exactly what this means.

- Survival mode will return, but primarily as a way to grind Fight Money for those who have no battle tickets/lives to go online with (as explained in "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section). It may reward battle tickets and lives directly at times.

- Fight Spirits (explained in the "Mechanics" section) will have their own minigames, though the details aren't quite clear yet on exactly what they are. Capcom executives apparently hope that some of them will become popular "like Flappy Bird". A kart-racing game reminiscent of Mario Kart is another popular idea, with multiple monetization plans already formulated.

- A minigame or arcade bonus stage based around "punching Nazis" is also a "common joke in the office" (apparently mostly at Capcom USA), though some have actually advocated for including it, perhaps "disguised as an April Fool's Day joke", saying it would be "a riot" that would "piss exactly the right people off".

- The artstyle is apparently more reminiscent of "Western preferences", with the Japanese art-like themes of the prior games toned down. The characters are "less anime" and have "more realistic faces".

- Cooperation with Chinese government censorship will be built into all versions of the game, meaning that motifs and content banned in Chinese media will not be featured. In comparison to the "neutered" Chinese version of Street Fighter V, Capcom would like the Chinese version of Street Fighter Connect to be "fully featured" and allow Street Fighter "complete access to the Chinese market".

- The Chinese version of the game specifically may also contain "patriotic" and "pro-Chinese" content.

- Some members of the team consider carefully scrutinizing the game according to the standards of the Chinese government to be "gross", "cooperating with totalitarianism", and "ridiculous", but Capcom executives are demanding that the game be "fully China approved".

- In order to facilitate this, the development team is going "above and beyond" their interpretation of the "strictest criteria of Chinese censors" to "guarantee no problems". This includes ensuring that the game does not feature "time travel, skeletons, anything that's been rumored to cause an issue".

- The game overall seeks to evoke more of a "regulated sport-like feel", apparently taking inspiration from EA's UFC series of video games, instead of being reminiscent of an actual street fight (which supposedly may actually concern Chinese regulators). Redesigned character outfits will likely incorporate more realistic protective gear reminiscent of what actual participants in combat sports like boxing or MMA wear, for example.

- As another example of this theme, when "KOed", characters will soon recover to a kneeling position and look disappointed (similar to what happens in an existing game when a player loses via timeout) instead of lying motionlessly to avoid accusations of excessive violence, which the Chinese government has cracked down on in gaming extra heavily lately. The team is considering having the other character help them up and shake their hand or otherwise "practice good sportsmanship".

- (As an aside, apparently when two players are playing on two different screens, such as during online play, the losing character looks "more beaten up" on the winner's screen than the loser's, to "avoid hurting the loser's feelings too much while also invigorating the winner". The team is also considering making this into a premium feature.)

- This is similar to the death animation in battle royale game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (recently renamed to "Game for Peace" in China), which was changed in China to feature the defeated character dropping a lootbox, waving, and non-violently disappearing.

- Additionally, the game may feature in-game "MMA-style commentary", with "different commentary voices being made available as premium content". If implemented, the team would "like the default voice to be a woman's or gender neutral", with "Q, the world's first gender-netural voice assistant", a technology that received publicity a while back, being cited as an inspiration.

- A proposal to bring back the bloody "loss portraits" from earlier games has been dropped as a result of these concerns.

- Other potential content plans include a step counter/fitness tracker tie-in to promote "Fight Fitness", an in-game TikTok-style editor to make "Street Fighter mini-music videos", and an in-game Tinder-like platform to partner up players for "matches or more" (the team would reveal this as an "April Fool's joke" but hopes that players would actually like it and demand it stick around, as Capcom executives think that Silicon Valley investors might be interested in the concept), but these will likely not be available at launch.

- The mobile version may feature "augmented reality features reminiscent of Nintendo's Pokemon Go", allowing characters "to fight on actual streets" and players to "encounter Fight Spirits all around them".

- The game will have other unspecified "social features", including likely social media integration with platforms like Twitter, Facebook, etc. and also a possible CFN-specific social media network inspired by Nintendo's Miiverse.

- These social features will completely cooperate with local law enforcement, particularly in China, where Chinese government-mandated censorship of certain "politically sensitive" terms and ideas will be "fully enforced".

- Standards of behavior on the social platforms of the game will be high overall. "Any amount of toxicity, bigotry, or inappropriateness" will "not be tolerated in the slightest". "Inappropriateness" will also include "screenshots of the female characters in compromising positions, even if taken during normal gameplay".

- A user's "out of game conduct [such as on attached social media profiles apparently] may be considered when evaluating the status of their account", but the exact details are unknown. The primary goal is "maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for everyone".

- However, an account's "history of support and engagement [apparently a euphemism for how much money they've spent on and made the game] may be considered in relation to account closures", as suggested by Capcom higher-ups.

- These restrictions will be bolstered by an account verification system (detailed in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section) that is also intended to protect the game's "introductory offers for new players" from "piracy".

- CFN's infrastructure and functionality will overall be "vastly expanded", with the hopes of "locking players in" to Capcom's ecosystem for a wide variety of functionality. The system will "depend less" on other networks like Sony's PlayStation Network (except on PS5) and Steam in order to "optimize for mobile". CFN will also be updated to support "custom pronouns" for player accounts and other "cultural sensitivity" features inspired by Facebook.

- The game will require a persistent online connection to play, even locally, except in "developing regions". The PC version will be protected with Denuvo and/or CrackProof (the DRM solution already used in SFV) and "multiple anti-cheat solutions".

- Sony wants to include anti-gaming addiction features in the game such as time and spending limits, but Capcom is "resisting" the idea. The Chinese version of the game will include such features (particularly for minors) as mandated by law.

- Many members of the team believe that the soundtrack should take cues from more modern musical genres like trap music, k-pop, and even "Soundcloud rap", and this is apparently being at least somewhat adhered to.

Mechanics:

- As explained in detail below, the team hopes to further simplify the combat from SFV in order to encourage the participation of newer and more casual players and "those who tend not to enjoy traditional fighting games". Despite these hopes of making the game easier, the combat also apparently has some "inspiration from Dark Souls and The Legend of Zelda", though it is unknown what this means. The game also takes inspiration from Nintendo's "Super Smash Bros." series of games as elaborated upon later below.

- Those at Capcom know that their radical redesign of the game's fundamental mechanics will be even more controversial than SFV, but again they (particularly the newcomers and executives) feel like the "hardcore fighting game base" is "mostly a dead end" that "already abandoned us for other games during Street Fighter V anyway". 

- They believe that they can "crack the casual fighting game nut" but that it will require "entirely ignoring convention" and that they can't let "fat guys on message boards" (actually spoken aloud apparently) stop them. 

- Some staffers have expressed sentiments of wanting to "punish" core players for not responding positively to SFV or MvCI and supporting them.

- Despite the "broad agreement on which direction to proceed in", the mechanics are "in constant flux" and "still being majorly tested and tweaked". Some on the team are nervous about making things "a little too mindless" whereas others feel that the game is still too complex.

- Most statuses and rewards from SFV (except for some Fight Money as detailed in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section) will not carry over to the new game. Capcom wants everyone "to start on an even footing".

- For one thing that's stayed the same, the game is still primarily a 2D fighter from a side view, featuring characters moving left, right, up, and down only, though Capcom is "considering a role" for "3D features" as "potentially inspired by Pokken".

- The game is based off of the SFV engine, but runs at around 85% of its normal speed so that newer players don't get "overwhelmed". The team wants the rounds to be quick but the action to not be "too hard to follow". The speed is still being adjusted.

- Mentioned briefly earlier, Fight Spirits are non-cosmetic equippable items that change the competitive properties of a character's moves or characteristics (such as their health, walk speed, etc.), their specials or supers, etc., similar to the controversial "Gems" system from Street Fighter X Tekken, as represented by cute, Pokemon-style characters (which Capcom hopes will make "even core players" appreciate them, as "all gamers love Pokemon"). A player can have up to 15 Fight Spirits in their "active deck". Fight Spirits can also potentially modify the properties of the opponent's character, not just the player's. (More info about purchasing Fight Spirits is in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section.) 

- This "active deck" is used for a minigame played mandatorily before each match, a match three/versus card game hybrid that is being called "30-second Hearthstone meets Pokemon meets Candy Crush" (with heavy RNG apparently), that allows players to counter, disable, or weaken their opponent's Fight Spirits with their own, potentially preventing that opponent from taking them into the actual match. Fight Spirits have Pokemon-style types and "type strengths and weaknesses", adding a "rock-paper-scissors flavor" to the game.

- The team hopes that this system will "broaden the skillset" required to be good at the game, making legacy players less dominant, and also draw in card game audiences who many at Capcom feel are "hungry for a faster paced type of game" after the failure of Valve's Artifact. 

- They will not be able to be disabled in any mode at launch, and Capcom will "resist as strongly as possible" calls for any option to play without them in the future. 

- As for them main game, as the team believes that apps like TikTok, Twitter, and Vine have reduced players' attention spans, the game is balanced around the idea of rounds lasting no longer than 15 - 30 seconds. 

- If a round goes longer than 30 seconds, a "fight scramble" will activate wherein both players' remaining health is converted into meter and the player who lands the next hit automatically wins. The overall time limit (at which point the player ahead in life wins) is 50 seconds. 

- A match in the Battle Royale mode (mentioned previously in the "Content" section) is supposed to last no longer than 7 minutes, with a similar "fight scramble" activated for it at the 10 minute mark.

- As far as having a variety of playstyles goes, the team feels that the characters should be "different enough that players want to buy all of them" but "not so different that it confuses people'.

- Consequently, the game is heavily rushdown-oriented, which the team feels is "really the only non-boring way to play a fighting game". 

- With that being said, they also feel that the "pressure must be balanced between players" so that "neither player gets overwhelmed" and "both get a turn to play and do combos". This notion has apparently been derided by some as "turn-based unga bunga", though the term "unga bunga" is banned around the office now as some team members found it "potentially racially offensive".

- Characters walk toward their opponent automatically, to ensure that nobody "acts like a little [obscenity] and just sits there in the corner", as one Capcom focus group member put it. Walk speeds are apparently "robust", increasing based on how long the game goes without a landed attack and how far apart the players are currently to encourage "magnetic action".

- Pushing back will slow your walk and pushing forward will hasten it, allowing for a degree of spacing. 

- Ducking can be used to temporarily prevent automatically walking, but you aren't allowed to duck for more than 2 seconds or so (modifiable via Fight Spirits) before your character automatically gets up (which locks you out from ducking again for another 2 seconds or so, again modifiable via Fight Spirits).

- When you are close enough to your opponent, you can backdash as a mixup, but only once every 3 seconds or so (modifiable via Fight Spirits). Forward dash can be done once every 2 seconds or so (modifiable via Fight Spirits) when you are far enough away.

- There is a DBFZ-style "super dash" mechanic, though the exact details aren't known.

- A counter below your character counts down from 5 (modifiable via Fight Spirits and still being tweaked) constantly. If you do not jump before it gets to zero, your character will jump automatically. This was apparently partially inspired by a recent indie Smash clone called "Indie Pogo", which some newcomers to the team are fans of. Focus groups also agreed that the game is "more exciting when there's more jumping".

- If you're ahead, the jump counter will count down more quickly based on far ahead you are. 

- This will be promoted by Capcom as a quirky skill-based mechanic that requires players to "deal with a wider variety of situations" and "embrace verticality".

- Jumping is achieved by pressing a button instead of using directional inputs. Allowing for "legacy" directional inputs to also be used is being "debated".

- Jumping backwards is governed by and will also reset your backdash counter to "avoid people using jumping too defensively". 

- If characters collide without either player attacking or throwing the other, it will initiate a "power struggle", which is won by tapping your attack buttons more quickly than the other player. The winner of the power struggle gets a free combo. This can also happen in the air.

- The game has two normal buttons: punch and kick - the exact variation that comes out is auto-selected for you based on your opponent's range (basically a universal proximity normal system) and your character's position (ducking, in the air, etc.), meaning you'll need to use spacing to get the right attack to come out. 

- An "attack counter" similar to the "jump counter" is being considered, with characters being forced to attack periodically no matter what. The team hopes that the game's mechanics "encouraging aggression naturally" will "make this unnecessary".

- Specials have their own dedicated button with Smash-style inputs. Specials must recharge and can only be used once every 2 seconds (modifiable via Fight Spirits), or 3 seconds in the case of projectiles (again modifiable via Fight Spirits), to avoid what focus groups termed "spamming". 

- The game will "not respond to legacy inputs" such as QCFs, DP motions, etc. to "avoid disadvantaging new players".

- The team is looking into ways to "counter the effects of" specials such as hurricane kicks, flying headbutts, etc. that can be "used for movement purposes to circumvent the game's mobility restrictions".

- Crush counters randomly happen on 30% (modifiable via Fight Spirits) of all counter hits. Instead of allowing for extra combo opportunities, they now simply cause an attack to do more damage, similar to Pokemon's "critical hit" mechanic. Super crush counters (new mechanic explained below) randomly happen on 5% (modifiable via Fight Spirits) of all counter hits. 

- Super crush counters extend combos dramatically and often win the round outright. The team envisions them as the "blue shell" of Street Fighter, a mechanic that is "frustrating when you're affected by it but is balanced out by the satisfaction of catching an opponent with it". Some testers and staffers feel they are a bit too powerful and they are being constantly tweaked and reworked balance-wise.

- There is some sort of normal priority system, which seems to affect the likelihood and strength of crush counters and super crush counters, but the exact details are "still being tweaked".

- As casual players tend to be "unaware of the existence of counterhits", the team is considering applying the crush counter and super crush counter systems to every hit and not just counterhits, "despite the names".

- Hitstop is "substantial" to give players "a really meaty feel on hits" (which is apparently not a reference to the word "meaty" in fighting game terminology as the speaker was unaware of it) and make the game "as legible as possible". 

- Online, hitstop and hitstun will be more visually flashy with more drastic animations on the attacker's screen and less on the victim's as "people don't like to watch their own characters get hit as much as the other guy's". The time spent in hitstop/stun will be the same for both players to avoid desyncs though.

- On the victim's screen, their character will look like they are "brushing off attacks". On the attacker's screen, the character being attacked will look "severely wounded" (though the amount of health lost will be the same in either case). (As mentioned previously, the team is considering making this into a premium feature.)

- All hits, if the attacker is close enough, can be followed up by randomly-generated autocombos that are achieved by tapping the attack button (no particular timing is required), always ending in strong hits that send the player around half-way across the stage to "reset the situation and prevent oppressive pressure". (It used to be wall-bounces that went all the way, but that "slowed down the game too much").

- Autocombos are no longer than 7 hits (unless they're off of a super crush counter, in which case they can go up to 14 with increased damage, or if the player has certain Fight Spirits that allow you to add 1 or 2 hits) to guarantee that "the other player has to actually fight instead of just hitting you with a bunch of attacks while you do nothing", as suggested by a focus group member. Autocombos do a variable level of damage which can be generally increased or decreased by Fight Spirits. 

- Combos via other means are not possible, as players in hitstun are invincible (similar to how it works in old platformers and beat-em-ups) unless they are hit by an autocombo to "give people a chance" as one focus group member put it. This is one of the most controversial new mechanics internally, as hitstun-based combos are a staple Street Fighter feature that originated with the series, but as those with influence approve of it, is it likely to stay.

- Autocombos experience quick proration/damage scaling (potentially modifiable via Fight Spirits, though some on the team consider it "too technical to mess with"), with the primary intention being that they "not significantly affect who wins" despite being easier to perform.

- Special moves cannot be used to start autocombos (though a Fight Spirit might change this), but do significantly more damage than in prior games.

- There is no real oki, as knocked down players are invincible for a long while after they get up, and there are no particular wake-up options like rolls, delayed wakeups, etc.

- Blocking is an automatic and random psuedo-comeback mechanic - you will randomly block X% (up to around 40%, potentially more with Fight Spirits) of incoming moves based on what percentage behind your opponent in life you are (further behind = more blocks). If the blocker is in an autocombo, it won't block the attack fully but will reduce the damage they take from it, similar to "not very effective" hits in Pokemon.

- To add at least some skill-based component back into the system, pressing an attack button again quickly after your opponent blocks a move will cause them extra chip damage (which still can't kill), with the amount determined by Fight Spirits. 

- The game has no air blocking (though a Fight Spirit might change this). 

- All moves are automatically neutral on block regardless of their frame data, as the team considers this "the most fair and exciting" outcome, creating a "scramble for the next hit".

- Capcom is still considering a role for manual blocking, but it's unlikely to be incorporated at this point.

- Blocking may be visually represented by "Super Smash Bros.-style bubble shields" to "reduce confusion".

- Throws still exist but are basically irrelevant due to the blocking changes. You will throw automatically when you press punch while close enough to your opponent.

- In the event you somehow throw a blocking opponent anyway, the throw will whiff, as focus groups considered throws countering blocking to be "cheap". "If I'm blocking, nothing should be able to hit me," one respondent offered. 

- The damage throws do can be changed via Fight Spirits, potentially making them worthwhile.

- Overheads kind of exist (if your opponent is ducking) but only do more chip damage (modifiable via Fight Spirits). 

- Crossups are gone as blocking is automatic. A few crossup systems were played with, but none were seen as adding much to the game and focus groups found them frustrating and confusing.

- The game has only one meter so far, a super meter, which refills automatically at a faster rate the more behind you are in life (modifiable via Fight Spirits). 

- You activate a super by double tapping the special button. The super move you get (out of two possible options per character) is random, but it can't be blocked (except with certain Fight Spirits). In some cases they can be evaded.

- If a player has a super available, they will use it at the end of their autocombo automatically unless they discontinue it before it finishes. 

- If two supers collide, there is a 10% chance (modifiable via Fight Spirits) that it will initiate a "final fight scramble". The supers end and both players appear with red auras surrounding them. Their movement and attack speeds are increased by 30% (modifiable via Fight Spirits) and all attacks and actions become cancellable into each other. The player to get the next hit automatically wins the whole match, even if it's not the last round. The visual details of this mechanic are still being tweaked, but it's intended to be an "automatically hype moment".

- No actions such as attacking or blocking influence meter gain. 

- The team is split on adding some kind of second meter but likely will not before launch (to reduce player confusion).

- Some have advocated for "borrowing" the GRD system from recently popular indie fighting game Under Night In-Birth, which many at Capcom think has been "stealing" their "thunder" lately. Others consider it too complicated.

- Damage is somewhat high in general, but it globally scales to be lower or higher based on how equivalently both players have been able to attack each other in the present round. Per their philosophy detailed above of both players "getting a turn", the team believes that "a round shouldn't end until both players have gotten good opportunities to get hits in". 

- Perfects are intended to be rare and rounds are designed to always be close to "maximize player engagement, that 'one more match' feeling".

- A mechanic similar to Guilty Gear's "Guts" system has also been implemented to make the lifebars misleading and promote "frequent 'just one more combo' excitement". The last 33% of the lifebar visually represents about as much actual health as the other 67% does visually, and the last 30% of that 33% actually has 60% of its total health in it.

- There is a burst mechanic called "fresh start". Each player starts the round with one and gets a new one around every 14 seconds (lower for the player that's behind dependent on how far behind they are and modifiable via Fight Spirits). They used to be much more frequent, but they slowed down the game too much and frustrated players.

- A "fresh start" will slightly replenish the user's health too, though it's mostly a "visual effect to soothe frustrated players" as the replenished health is actually much less than a visually equivalent amount of normal health would be. 

- The frame data of each character is randomized by around 20% (potentially modifiable via Fight Spirits, though the team is also considering "just hiding the feature") at the start of each match. "It's a fighting game. It should be about fighting, not memorizing numbers," as one focus group member put it. The randomization is apparently "fair" and "evenly buffs and nerfs each player". The exact amount of randomization is still being debated.

- Capcom is still tweaking the visuals on the above effect to ensure that algorithmically modified attacks don't look "too awkward", but this is made easier by using 3D models with "automated frame interpolation and tweening techniques" instead of 2D sprites with hand-drawn frames that would make the feature "likely impossible".

- The frame data is being designed around an idea implemented by Ubisoft's "For Honor" that all moves should be reactable.

- If a player hasn't landed an attack in a while, their attacks' frame data will gradually speed up, with the reverse happening for their opponent.

- Stages have been significantly shortened to "promote interaction".

- If a player is trapped in a corner for more than 5 seconds (modifiable via Fight Spirits), their position and their opponent's position will "swap", trapping their opponent in the corner instead. The pressuring player will have to "back off" (via backdashing or jumping backwards) and "give people some room to breathe" beforehand to prevent this.

- Capcom is "seriously considering" some role for Super Smash Bros.-style "knockback physics" in the game, either as a variant mode or part of the game's core systems. In particular, they are likely to implement this either with Nintendo's permission or in the event Nintendo refuses to partner with them to co-promote the game with Super Smash Bros., as otherwise they are worried about souring their partnership with Nintendo with an "unlicensed ripoff".

- In the event this goes through, the game could "get rid of lifebars entirely", which is a suggestion that has already been made many times but was dropped for confusing focus groups too much.

- A system similar to Super Smash Bros.'s items, where random powerups and moveset alterations periodically appear physically on the stage's ground, is also likely to be implemented. Their exact frequency and type is still being debated, though the system may interact with Fight Spirits as well. They are planned to take a "Mario Kart-style form" where the exact item the player receives is only decided by random selection after a basic "item box" is picked up (by walking over it).

- The items are intended to "add variety to the game" and "create memeable moments".

- No implementation of platforms or more complex forms of ground terrain as featured in Super Smash Bros. is being considered, as the team feels it would "unnecessarily complicate movement" and "discourage interaction" (unlike the shorter stages).

- There is a 0.25% chance (modifiable via Fight Spirits) every second of a "random jump" happening. This is intended to "mix things up" and "make players expect the unexpected" and also as a "satire of common player behavior in past fighting games" to appeal to those "in the know" as a "meme" (based on Capcom's marketing strategy detailed in the "Marketing" section).

- Every second (except when your character is idle), there is a random 0.5% chance (modifiable via Fight Spirits) of your character tripping, even in the middle of attacks, which puts them in a knockdown state. The designers hope that this will appeal to players' "comedic sensibilities" as the animations are apparently "quite amusing" (more info about this is in the "Marketing" section).

- The designers are aware of this mechanic's controversial inclusion in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and included it for that reason as "the Wii and Brawl were both incredibly popular". It is also apparently intended to some degree as an "intentional snub" against "tryhard players who want to take the fun out of the game" and "have an unreasonable hatred for any randomness".

- Every input has between 2-6 frames (random per input) of enforced extra input lag (less for autocombos) by default, both to reduce the importance of reaction time for less skilled players and with the hopes of potentially opening up new markets in remote parts of Africa, China, the Middle East, India, and South America where players might be using satellite Internet, IP-over-radio, or other high latency links. 

- This is on top of the 6 frames of input lag the engine they're using has "naturally", meaning the final input lag will be 8-12 frames on each input.

- The new designers of SFC in particular feel that the "gamer tantrum" over the lag in SFV was "overblown" and that the lag was "not that noticeable". They "regret that the lag was lowered at all in SFV" and raising it in SFC is seen among some as a "sly way to punish" players for mocking SFV's lag so much. They see the lag as way to "correct inequalities" between those who are "rich" enough to afford good Internet connections and those who aren't and those who have quick reaction times and those who don't.

- The lag will "cycle" as in SFV, slowly lowering toward the end of rounds to make them more "exciting". 

- Some team members have suggested hiding longer lag by showing the characters "powering up Dragon Ball Z-style" (which looks somewhat similar to a focus attack in SFIV) before the player's inputs process to attract DBFZ players.

- The netcode is apparently "highly improved" and incorporates "possible blockchain compatibility" and an internally-developed rollback system that many in Capcom are calling "better than GGPO", based off of the similar system in SFV. Another narrative among some is that the netcode "doesn't matter anyway" because the input lag will mask it no matter what.

- In order to promote "accessibility", each player can choose to reduce the game's speed (similar to ST's turbo functionality, but in reverse) from the default in the options menu. Online matches will play out at the average of both players' set speeds, and at the average of all players' set speeds in the Battle Royale mode. 

- Capcom executives believe that they will garner significant positive press from gaming outlets upon revealing this feature, which outside consultants suggested. 

- The team is still slightly struggling with its implementation, which often causes certain glitches, particularly when two speeds must be averaged.

- The Battle Royale mode, due to having more than one-on-one action, will feature slightly different fighting mechanics (automatically approaching the closest player instead of only one other player always is a difference for example) than the main modes, but the details aren't entirely known.

- In the Battle Royale mode, every player's active deck of Fight Spirits are put into an "active pot" that must be looted by the players during the match, potentially allowing them to equip others' Fight Spirits and even "steal" them if they win with them equipped.

- The game's mechanics were partially simplified to guarantee that an appropriate mobile-ready control scheme could be devised. For PC, the team is considering including only the mobile-based control scheme (with clicking on the screen replacing tapping) and not supporting peripherals such as controllers, fightsticks, keyboards, etc., in order to attract the "League of Legends audience" that they feel "prefers clicking on things".

- Despite the team's general antipathy for "legacy players", there are still some that advocate for eventually adding a "legacy mode" that plays more similarly to past Street Fighter games. The idea is to use Ono's original project plan, creating a core mechanical system that "appeals to hardcore players so much, fixing all of their complaints about SFV" that they are "forced to play the game even though they dislike the monetization" and other aspects. This would also fit into Capcom's marketing strategy based on "playing both sides of every issue" (detailed more below in the "Marketing" section).

- This is guaranteed not to be implemented at launch, as Capcom does not want to promote at all the idea that the core SFC gameplay is an "easy mode" or "casual mode". If implemented, it would be a variant mode promoted only in the FGC that would require digging deeply into menus to enable.

- In spite of all the mechanical changes, "the better player, the one with more legacy skills and fighting game fundamentals" apparently still tends to win more often against other human players than the team would like, "certainly not as much or as dominantly as in past games but still around 60-70% of the time if they're really good, sometimes even in spite of the Fight Spirits being against them", which "continues to frustrate" the team. 

- The team is still "looking into ways to make things more fair and even" so that "tryhards and fanatics can't dominate the game and make everybody else quit".

- Per their "game economy designer" (mentioned below), it is "scientifically proven that human beings respond more saliently to probabilistic rewards than to deterministic ones" meaning that "ideally the game should be less of a fighting game and more of a coin flip disguised as a fighting game" with "premium items, luck, and predetermined results [explained more in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section] making the difference".

- Some on the team disagree with this reasoning, feeling that the game is and should be "still reasonably competitive and skill-based" despite its simplifications and elements of luck. 

- Others have said that following suggestions to introduce more randomness into the game "to their logical end" is akin to "exploiting gambling addicts by tricking them into thinking they're not", though this kind of talk has been discouraged by higher-ups.

- Nevertheless, most team members are still optimistic about the core gameplay, feeling that the system "has enough depth to sink your teeth into" while also being "fair, fun, inviting, and exciting". They consider the game "highly replayable", encouraging "all day binging".

Monetization and Financial Strategy:

- As mentioned previously, the game will be free to play with microtransactions, with China considered a key market (mostly for the mobile version) this time.

- Playing Ryu/Sakura (or Chun-li) will always be free, but after a month or so, Alex's slot will rotate to a different character. The free character will then change every week. Dante will become premium and his free slot will simply disappear. (Rotating Ryu/Sakura out as well has been considered to "force players to pay if they want to keep what they're used to" but it's unlikely to be implemented.)

- The player can change from Ryu to Sakura (or Chun-li) or vice-versa (or change their modifiable characteristics such as race and hair color as previously mentioned in the "Content" section, except for Chun-li's) up to once a month or simply purchase the other character outright to use both at the same time. 

- Costumes, colors, characters, accessories (such as hats, different hairstyles, dyed hair, wrist accessories, makeup, etc. for characters), emotes (Fortnite-style dances are being prepared), stages, extra features, "Fight Spirits" (equippable items that change your character's properties, specials, etc. as mentioned earlier in the "Mechanics" section), consumables, and various other digital assets and cosmetics will also be available for purchase, either with Fight Gems (a premium currency that can only be acquired with actual money) or Fight Money (at a heavy additional surcharge compared to buying with Fight Gems). 

- The name "Fight Gems" is apparently a "subtle swipe" at the negative reception of Street Fighter x Tekken's Gems system.

- The first 3 chapters of the previously mentioned single player story mode are free, but the remaining ones must be purchased, either separately or in 3 chapter packs. The last 3 chapters can only be purchased with Fight Gems, not Fight Money, so players wishing to see the conclusion of the story will have to shell out real cash.

- The training stage will be the only starting stage, in the hopes that players will "quickly get bored of the monotony" and "open up their wallets soon for a change of scenery", without Capcom being blamed for withholding anything "essential to the core gameplay". Apparently this new training stage may not have a grid though, to "discourage veteran players from playing it too much", with the grid being a microtransaction addon.

- Capcom is considering a Valve-style resale market for the digital items, though with Fight Gems as the only currency. However, Capcom has also contacted Facebook about a potential partnership with their upcoming cryptocurrency. They apparently received a form e-mail for media inquiries back by mistake and are working to make further contact.

- A respected "game economy designer" has joined the team to guarantee that the game's incentives and rewards are perfectly balanced to guarantee maximum profits.

- The game will implement an "energy" system common to mobile games that prevents using certain game features when the player does not have enough of a certain consumable resource (in this case, battle tickets and lives).

- Every new player starts out with 15 lives and 25 battle tickets. A battle ticket is used whenever you participate in a match online, whereas a life is only lost when you lose. 

- Battle tickets regenerate at a rate of one every 3 hours and lives regenerate at a rate of one every 7 hours. The "history of the account" will affect these numbers as part of an "engagement curve" crafted by their game economy designer (a form of pseudo-price discrimination perhaps).

- If a player does not have at least one life and one battle ticket, then they cannot play online. Lives and battle tickets can be purchased using Fight Gems or Fight Money.

- The life/battle ticket system will not be in operation for the game's first month or so, and accounts 2 weeks old or less can always play for free without lives or tickets and as Dante and potentially other "guest characters" that Capcom hopes to use as "lures" to convince people to stick around.

- To prevent abuse of these free introductory **** of accounts, CFN will lock their benefits behind "KYC" (know your customer) procedures similar to those used by Facebook to verify suspicious accounts. 

- The verification system will be introduced only after launch, once they think players are beginning to abuse duplicate accounts, to avoid immediate controversy.

- Users will be required to verify with a valid phone number from the country their IP address is connecting from or a unique credit card number (single-use cards, prepaid cards, and gift cards will be blocked). Unverified accounts will earn significantly reduced amounts of Fight Money, have no introductory privileges, and can be closed at will. Old accounts will be pressured to convert to the new system.

- Users marked as "possible duplicates" or "engaging in suspicious or harmful activity" will be additionally required to submit a picture of themselves holding up a valid government photo ID of theirs to Capcom, which claims it will then delete the picture after the user has been marked as verified. Duplicate accounts will not be allowed. 

- The team hopes this system will also "reduce toxicity online".

- (Speaking of toxicity, an increasingly lengthy temporary ban is the penalty for ragequitting online, but it can be bypassed by increasing amounts of Fight Money or Fight Gems (cheaper with Fight Gems of course).)

- Capcom is also considering allowing players to skip the verification system by paying with Fight Gems. The verification system will be disabled entirely in certain developing regions, or, in regions such as South Korea and China, integrated with government verification systems.

- The previously mentioned Fight Spirits (cute, Pokemon-style characters that change a character's properties (such as walk speed, specials, etc.) when equipped to them and cannot be disabled in any mode, as detailed in the "Mechanics" section) have Tamagotchi-style mechanics where they will grow "hungry", "bored", "unhappy", etc. over time (reducing their effectiveness or even preventing their use), requiring the player to use either purchasable consumables, loootbox discoveries, and/or an investment in time to maintain/care for them. 

- They will also grow "attached" to particular characters over time (enhancing their stats when used with those characters), meaning that optimal use of the system with multiple characters will require multiple versions of the same Fight Spirit.

- Fight Spirits can be combined, upgraded, fed to each other, and so on in a gacha-style system where luck (or money) will be a heavy factor in acquiring the best little monsters. (Some aspects of this system may be modified in the Japanese version due to its local laws against "kompu gacha".)

- Fight Spirits will also have their own (purchasable, of course) cosmetics to be dressed up in and even toys to play with. The MonHun team is apparently working on some of this system. 

- Capcom is hoping to Fight Spirits as mascots for many purposes, such as stuffed animals and Funko Pops.

- Certain Fight Spirits may randomly reward you "extra" lives and battle tickets if their happiness is high. Battle tickets/lives may also sometimes pop out of the ground in place of crops on your "Fight Farm" (see below).

- Capcom has also created a new "Fight Farm" minigame (which features chibified versions of a wide variety of Street Fighter characters) inspired by Farmville and Animal Crossing that must be played in order to generate any reasonable amount of Fight Money through gameplay (by "selling crops" grown on the farm). 

- Playing the regular game will allow players to find items like Fight Seeds, Fight Soil, Fight Tools, etc. in lootboxes (generally awarded after completing matches or other objectives, online and in some cases in the single-player modes) that can then be used on their Fight Farm to more effectively harvest crops that can then be sold for Fight Money. 

- Your Fight Spirits can visit your Fight Farm and be fed by its crops and maintained in other ways on it. The "Chao" virtual pet characters from the Sonic the Hedgehog games were apparently another inspiration for the system as a whole.

- Capcom, having apparently been dissatisfied with how many players acquired SFV's DLC characters for free, wants to reduce the flow of free currency to players with this system, but in a way that they find "invisible" and "enjoyable". Other mobile-inspired minigames to earn Fight Money may be added later.

- Premium lootboxes (with better drop rates) of various types can also be purchased directly with Fight Gems/Fight Money. Capcom higher-ups are hoping that the Fight Farm minigame becomes independently popular and appeals to groups that typically don't enjoy fighting games, making the lootboxes that provide items necessary for your farm's functioning also independently popular purchases. (In China, the lootboxes will be offered as "free bonuses" with purchases of Fight Gems, a loophole devised by Blizzard's Overwatch to avoid certain local laws there.)

- SFV Fight Money will be able to be transferred to SFC via a "Transfer Roulette" (actually visually more like a slot machine) that will determine how much of it exactly the player gets to keep. Though 100% is a visible option, the algorithm is currently designed to almost never select any amount over 62%, with the average being 25%. This offer will end after a few months. The details are still being tweaked.

- Players will also likely be able to earn Fight Money by filling out surveys and offers, connecting their social media accounts to their CFN accounts, referring other players to make new CFN accounts, and/or posting certain promotional hashtags and links on social media. These features may not be available at launch to avoid people "getting the wrong idea".

- The team is even considering offering players the option to run cryptocurrency miners on their computers, possibly in the background while the game isn't actually running, to earn extra Fight Money, but this idea is considered "experimental" by Capcom higher-ups and will not be implemented at launch guaranteed to "to avoid malware allegations" or a "repeat of Capcom.sys".

- The Japanese version will include a pachislot-style minigame (a popular Japanese gambling game mixing a sort of pseudo-pinball with a slot machine) where the balls must be purchased with Fight Money or Fight Gems and the prizes are the digital items in the game, but it remains to be seen if this will be available worldwide. Real-life pachislot machines to advertise the game will likely also be available.

- A minigame based on Xiangqi ("Chinese chess") is being considered exclusively for the Chinese market to "inspire patriotism".

- The game will also feature a heavy presence of advertisements, including interstitial video ads (particularly during loading screens) and ad banners, logos, and other forms of advertising on the backgrounds of stages, in-game menus, and characters. "Ad skips" are a purchasable consumable. Reportedly ads can also be eliminated (or at least reduced) via the Battle Pass (detailed later below). 

- Unlike with SFV's experiment with ads, ads in SFC cannot be turned off unilaterally for free. Capcom believes the game's free price will justify this in comparison to SFV. Interacting with ads or other "sponsored content" may earn Fight Money.

- The advertising will be from third-party sources this time, advertising more than just Capcom-related materials.

- These ads will likely not be in the game (or at least not be as frequent) at launch, being introduced over time. Overall, the game's economy will be "much more generous" at launch to grow the userbase, only "clamping down" as it grows.

- Attempts to block the ads via "HOSTS file-style solutions or game modifications" will be "detected and punished". 

- (Coincidentally, any game modifications at all, even for local play only, will be "heavily discouarged", as Capcom was apparently "embarrassed" by the positive reception of SFV's "Mysterious Mod" in comparison to the base game and wants to "avoid a similar situation happening again". "Advanced file encryption, obfuscation, and verification" techniques and DRM will be used to make the game's code and assets "as difficult to alter as possible".)

- An option for players to be able to buy premium cosmetics for cheap or perhaps even for free in return for them having ads on top is being considered.

- Capcom is also considering partnerships with real-life clothing and shoe brands for the game's cosmetics. The idea is that they may make these cosmetics available for free to advertise the brand, at the brand's cost.

- Going along with the clothing and shoe theme, an idea being floated around (in particular to capture the "highly desirable" youth market that "has access to their parents' credit cards") is to make an SFC clothing brand. 

- Those promoting this concept point to the success of bikini seller "Zaful" in making its bikinis "go viral" by sending YouTubers (mostly attractive young women, sometimes shockingly underage) free swimsuits in return for them making "try on haul" videos showing off the products they received (and of course their bodies, which some say is the primary reason the videos are popular). 

- Some in Capcom feel that the company's "rich history" of female characters could inspire a similarly successful line of bikinis and "target the horny teenage boy market" with "social media promotions" (though many others find the idea "demeaning to women", "distasteful", and "potentially creepy as many of these YouTubers are underage girls").

- "Every minute of play should get us paid." is an informal motto in the office. Capcom's fighting game division, particularly its new hires, wants to prove its financial worth to the company after the medicore performance of SFV and MvCI. 

- The hope is that even people who "hate play" the game with no interest in spending money on it will still make them a profit through passive forms of income like in-game ads. 

- As mentioned previously, a Fortnite-style "Battle Pass" subscription will be available, but the exact details of it are not yet known. It is likely to provide extra battle tickets and lives, exclusive Fight Spirits and cosmetics, and eliminate (or at least reduce) advertisements in-game. 

- New characters will be available separately in a "Season Pass", though the two may be combined, either automatically or in a separate "combo deal". The passes may have different "tiers", in which case likely only the highest **** of Battle Pass will eliminate ads entirely.

- Bots disguised as actual players with "human-looking usernames" will likely be added over time to the online pool both to "keep player populations high at all times in all regions" and to "massage" player winrates. Some in Capcom are "reluctant" to implement such a system as they feel it is "fundamentally dishonest" but it is "likely to go ahead" anyway as the "technology [which is apparently used in other mobile games already] was already purchased".

- In the system, players who have a winrate that is "too high" (in particular, players who are good at the game but haven't spent much money on it) will be matched up with "input-reading bots" to "take them down a peg" (though the input-reading will be "non-obvious" and the bots will "keep it close until the end"). 

- Conversely, players who have spent a significant amount of money on the game but still can't win will be matched up with "cans" that will "give them a vigorous fight" but ultimately "throw in the towel, though in a very discreet fashion" in order to "boost their self-esteem". 

- In the event a player somehow beats or loses to a bot they were not supposed to, they will simply be matched against a harder or easier bot next time.

- Per their game economy designer, the optimal winrate for any given player is supposedly around "53% to 74%", which is "just high enough that they don't get demoralized and quit, but also still low enough that they nevertheless feel somewhat inadequate and thus have a strong drive to play more to improve".

- A player's winrate will thus tend to fluctuate within these values, being automatically adjusted by bots when necessary, with a tendency to go up more the more money the player has recently generated for and spent on the game. "Purchases should always lead to perceived improvement." is the idea. Staying above 74% for long "should require a significant and perpetual investment".

Marketing:

- Capcom's marketing strategy for the game is apparently "highly advanced", "ahead of its time", "progressive", and "non-traditional" in many aspects, though many executives still aren't on board with certain controversial aspects of it (detailed later below).

- Due to the positive reception SFV: AE received, plans are to again rebrand the game, this time at up to potentially 3 points in its lifespan, "without really changing it too much". "Non-traditional adjectives" like "lit" and "fire" are being considered for the titles of these "rebrandings" instead of "more traditional options" like "super" and "hyper".

- The feeling is that the series "intimidated" prospective new players by emphasizing its long history too much in the marketing of SFV. 

- "Street Fighter is for Everyone", "Your Street Fighter", "Everyone's Street Fighter", "Not Your Grandpa's Street Fighter", "New Game, Easy Play", and "Nerds Hate It" (not popular but actually suggested) are some of the marketing slogans being considered to emphasize the game's easier mechanics, which will be a heavy theme in its marketing.

- Many in Capcom (especially Capcom USA) regret using the "Rise Up!" slogan for SFV, which has become associated with the "Gamers Rise Up!" meme online parodying bad behavior by video game players, but they "don't want to admit it publicly" and know it's "too late to erase it from history". They want to ensure that any slogans used for SFC are "less aggressive".

- "Legacy players" such as Daigo will not be contacted by Capcom or featured in any of the game's marketing material or promotional events. Most of Capcom (especially Capcom USA) wants to "leave the past behind" and embrace a "fresh start". Nevertheless, some are worried about a possible backlash from snubbing Daigo in particular, who is very popular in the fighting game community.

- Some players known more for playing SFV than for playing past Street Fighter games such as SonicFox may be courted.

- Selected promoters will be required to sign a non-disparagement agreement (protected from being acknowledged itself by a non-disclosure agreement) to prevent them from criticizing the game.

- Similarly to the marketing campaign for Apex Legends, Capcom is considering paying certain Twitch streamers to play SFC on stream. 

- The game will be heavily "influencer friendly" overall. Verified YouTubers, Twitch streamers, Instagrammers, etc., based on the size of their fanbase, will be able to get "special account upgrades" that eliminate battle ticket/life requirements, award more fight money or free DLC, etc. in return for posting about, making videos about, or streaming SFC semi-regularly. 

- Capcom will reach out to certain influencers, and there will also be a way to apply for this status, with the exact rewards for each person decided on a case-by-case basis. Smaller creators will get smaller rewards and larger creators will get larger rewards. Creators who make content that "doesn't appeal to traditional fighting game audiences" will get preference, as Capcom wishes to "expand its horizons" with SFC.

- Twitch streamers of the game and YouTube content may be integrated into its interface directly.

- Capcom is "carefully scrutinizing" FCC legal requirements and the like to look into how they can "avoid publicizing compensated promotions" for the game as much as possible, that is, not let people know it's being artificially boosted. Capcom's legal team is also looking at "legally deniable phrasings" that would allow them to advertise their own win rate-manipulation bots (detailed in the "Monetization and Financial Strategy" section) as if they were a part of the regular playerbase.

- Overall, Capcom is looking into the "widest variety of partnership and product placement opportunities possible".

- In particular, an "intimate partnership" with Nintendo's "Super Smash Bros." series of video games is being sought as many of the newcomers to the team are apparently "huge fans" of it. Capcom executives envy Smash's position as "the only fighting game series to achieve broad popularity among all groups" and "wish to emulate its success". SFC's team has promised them that, though Smash is popular, it is still "too complex for many players, particularly fans of mobile games" and "too expensive" and that they can deliver an "even more broadly appreciated experience".

- Capcom would like Nintendo to incorporate SFC-related content into Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as DLC (likely free, as it's an advertisement), such as giving Ryu and Ken (already characters in Smash Ultimate) costumes based on their SFC designs (or even replacing the originals outright, though Nintendo is unlikely to go for this) and adding in SFC-related spirits, assist trophies, etc. 

- Capcom has offered to give Nintendo more guest characters to appear in Smash in return and would also like to see at least one Nintendo guest character appear in Street Fighter. Captain Falcon is a name being "thrown around frequently". In the event the character were implemented, Capcom and Sony would split the revenue with Nintendo.

- As an additional carrot, Sony is "cautiously open" to letting SFC launch on Nintendo Switch concurrently with the PS5 or "shortly after" should Nintendo's cooperation in these areas be guaranteed. 

- Nintendo is apparently still "unsure" about the partnership due to the poor reception of SFV. That they do not want to "dilute" the value of their properties by associating them with "maligned games" is what they're supposedly discreetly communicating.

- Capcom is also "fiercely pursuing" a partnership with the Summer Olympics, intending to fictionally depict Street Fighter-style martial arts being featured at the event in certain game scenarios, per their "sports-like presentation" approach. They would like SFC to be declared "the official fighting game of the Olympics". The details are still being worked out. 

- Some in Capcom are advocating to rename the game "Sport Fighter Connect" for the Chinese market, though many others consider this excessive. As detailed before, the goal is to give the game a more "sports-like presentation" to appease Chinese regulators who "find the concept of street fighting distasteful" (and possibly take the game's name more literally as they don't have as long of a history with the franchise as Westerners and the Japanese do).

- They are concerned mostly because China has cracked down on depictions of violence in video games in particular extra heavily lately, with confusion and uncertainty rampant throughout the industry. The game will launch on China day one, and reaching Chinese players is considered a heavy part of Capcom's monetization strategy as they often prefer the gacha-style, RNG-heavy, and stat-focused mechanics the game heavily relies on.

- Capcom's "Chinese strategy" is overall internally considered a "coup over Mortal Kombat" which cannot readily launch officially in China due to its extremely violent themes (though many Chinese gamers play it anyway via unofficial means).

- A partnership with the aforementioned k-pop group BTS is additionally being considered, as it again has many fans at Capcom USA, including potentially even putting the group's members in the game as fighters (though this is seen as "highly unlikely" by Capcom higher-ups).

- Capcom is considering ending online support for its past fighting games in order to "encourage" people to move to SFC. They are also considering "cracking down" on online ROMs of its past fighting games and services like FightCade.

- Capcom is planning on vastly expanding the eSports presence of SFC compared to SFV, with ideas including biannual "Influencer Invitationals" (with social media stars, YouTubers, Twitch streamers, and certain celebrities, etc.) similar to Nintendo's "Smash Bros. Invitationals" to draw interest, deals with WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) that would see the game potentially played at its scripted pro wrestling events on TV and maybe PPV, a "Juniors ***" specifically for children under 12, and partnerships with other eSports leagues such as Blizzard's Overwatch League and Epic's Fortnite competitions.

- Esports competitors will apparently have "equal access to Fight Spirits and other premium items" to create "a fair fight".

- One unconventional idea from a particular staffer was to create a "reality miniseries" where a member of the Kardashian family (originally Kim but not after Capcom saw how much she'd want to participate) "attempts to become a pro fighting game player". Other candidates for the central figure of the series have been suggested such as "Cardi B, RuPaul, Danielle Bregoli ("Bhad Bhabie"), and Kylin Kalani". It's unknown if this will actually get off the ground, but it shows you the kinds of ideas they're throwing around. 

- Attracting more female players, who are supposedly "reality television addicts" according to many at Capcom, including older females with significant amounts of disposable income, is Capcom's "most key strategic goal right after majorly penetrating the Chinese market and growing its under 13 demo".

- A "web miniseries" featuring the Capcom USA office depicted in the style of popular sitcom "The Office" to make them seem "relatable" was also a proposed idea.

- The goal is for Street Fighter to become a "welcome novelty", like fireworks, balloon animals, or live music, that people are always happy to see at an event. Rather than pushing SFC as the main event everywhere, they want it to become a "universal side event". They want Street Fighter characters to "become as popular with kids as Frozen characters and Marvel superheroes".

- As mentioned prior, many in Capcom believe that the game's soundtrack should incorporate more modern musical styles like trap music. Consequently, promoting a "Trapcom" variant brand is apparently a proposed component of the game's marketing, with some in Capcom suggesting they sponsor musical festivals and bring SFC setups with. 

- Despite the game deemphasizing sexualization overall, Capcom Japan higher-ups are still considering using more "gravure idols" (Japanese pin-up models) and other "sexy promotions" in the Japanese market "than ever before" due to Tecmo's success in doing so with Dead or Alive 6, but this will be "entirely hidden from the Western market to avoid embarrassment or controversy".

- Rather than advertise the game in traditional ways only though, Capcom's marketing team has come up with a plan to take advantage of the anticipated backlash to certain aspects of SFC to "fan the flames of conversation" in a way that "keeps SFC being talked about", which has been designed "especially for tricky Western markets".

- The exact details are still being discussed as, though many in Capcom want to "play both sides of the issue", the higher-ups don't want to cause a "genuine controversy" over issues like diversity or social justice that could "make them look bad". They want the "progressive ideals" of the game to be "universally accepted", but the goal is nevertheless to "keep people discussing the game, positively or negatively" so that its "notoriety" spreads and people are "tempted to try it no matter what they think about it".

- In fact, despite the apparent "woke" orientation of the game, some in Capcom (mostly in Capcom Japan) are looking into "possible concessions to traditional gamers and the Western political right" that could be put into the game to "avoid serious controversy". Most in Capcom USA "strongly oppose" this idea though.

- Some Capcom higher-ups are looking at how SFC can attract the "green dollar" and "relate itself to environmentalism". Shutting down the game's servers for Earth Day to "save energy" and partnering with the tree-planting search engine Ecosia are two ideas that have been thrown around.

- Though apparently most on the team, particularly at Capcom USA, are "true believers" who "genuinely care about issues of social, economic, and environmental justice", many of the executives and higher-ups are "a bit more cynical" and view them as "mostly a marketing gimmick". They "fail to see the importance" of "attempting to impart social values through a video game".

- Another part of Capcom's marketing for SFC will apparently be to mock and degrade SFV, embracing its criticisms, to make SFC seem better by comparison.

- In particular, the marketing team will be embracing the memes about Ken's hair from SFV in an attempt to seem "congenial, approachable, and meme-savvy", with the possibility of it even being sponsored by a banana company similar to how the Dole Food Company sponsored the bananas in Super Monkey Ball for the Nintendo Gamecube actually being brought up (mostly as a joke apparently, but you never know). 

- A partnership with Hasbro (makers of Play-Doh, a product invoked in another common criticism of SFV's graphics) was also brought up (again, mostly as a joke apparently), though as the artstyle is significantly changing, this would only be for pre-game marketing purposes. 

- The marketing team will also "ironically" embrace the anticipated criticisms of SFC while at the same time attempting to depict them as being primarily the concerns of "neckbeards and incels". 

- The plan is to promote SFC normally as good to more casual audiences and then subtly as "so bad it's good" to more core players (to encourage them to "hate play" it or "check it out just to see how bad it is", which can still make them money via ad views) while also insisting that the only people who don't like the game are "old losers who can't handle change" (through more informal channels and paid influencers). 

- This "schizophrenic" marketing strategy is based off of "prior video game controversies" and is "designed for the social media age".

- Another part of Capcom's strategy seems to be to "take control of the narrative" by introducing its own "intentional flops, foibles, and pranks" that they maintain control of, both to "take away attention from any unintentional glitches in the game" and to again "give people something to talk about that keeps them focused on SFC".

- The first of these proposed "intentional incidents" involves Dante from Devil May Cry's appearance in the game. A week or so into the game, Dante would be replaced by his black-haired DmC version ("Donte" as fans call him), in the hopes of "ironically" reviving his popularity for a possible DmC 2 as a parallel series to the regular games. "Traditional Dante" would be a premium costume from then on. 

- Only Dante's traditional design would be used in the marketing materials, with "Donte" being hidden entirely in the game. Capcom's social media channels would spread the idea that the switch was a "prank" and that players were "trolled" in an attempt to turn "Donte" into a "meme". 

- Players who actually purchased traditional Dante before the change would still keep him, but this wouldn't be revealed for 2-5 days (depending on the social media response) after "Donte's" unveiling. The event is intended to "create publicity" while also making players think that Capcom will "do the right thing when pressed" to build goodwill. Additional social media experts have been hired to potentially manage this and other related PR issues.

- There are more "intentional incidents" like the above proposed, but Capcom hasn't fully committed to pulling the trigger on any of them yet.

- The tripping mechanic (detailed in the "Mechanics" section) is also a part of this "virality creation" technique. They hope that it will "troll" players to the point of also becoming a "meme" and provide numerous small, "viral ready" clips of characters tripping at exactly the wrong time that get spread around on social media.

- As you might expect, the executives and higher-ups at Capcom and Sony are overall more enthusiastic about doing things the "old fashioned way" whereas it's the young people specifically in the marketing team who want to "experiment" and "be provocative".

Reveal and Release: 

- The game will launch on PS5, PC (with Denuvo and/or CrackProof, the DRM technology already implemented in SFV), iOS, and Android. The "Fight Farm" minigame will also be available independently on iOS and Android. 

- Versions for Microsoft's Xbox Series X and Nintendo Switch will be available eventually (potentially closer to launch for Switch if the Smash partnership goes through), though the exact timeframe hasn't been decided. Sony is also considering making the game available on Xbox One at launch in an attempt to "covertly sabotage" Microsoft's transition to its new console, assuming there is no backwards compatibility.

- A version for PS4 may be available "a year or so after the game launches" to "extract some extra cash from players who can't afford or refuse to upgrade to PS5".

- Overall Capcom expects the game's launch to feature a "storm of entitled players complaining on social media" that is nevertheless ultimately overwhelmed by a large amount of casual players, particularly from China, who "sail the game to success". The team is on "war footing" (an idea likely stolen from remarks made by Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg) with the predominant sentiments being "you're either with us or against us" and "love it or leave it".

- The game is expected to be unveiled either later this year or shortly in the next, though Capcom is also considering an "Apex Legends"-style strategy where they simply launch it without any "fanfare" to "avoid controversy" and then promote it after. Sony prefers they do things the traditional way though, with reveal trailers, etc. The details are still being decided.

- The game's launch in certain European countries may be delayed due to anti-lootbox legislation, though the team says they are "unconcerned" by such proposals, including the one made by US Senator Josh Hawley.

So there you have it. Don't shoot the messenger. Message Tom if you want any more clarifications.