Street Fighter II has been remade, repackaged, and re-released countless times. You can find some version of the massively popular fighting game on pretty much any platform capable of playing games, and Capcom has shown no signs of leaving the title behind. It's fitting, then, for the company to announce that it's celebrating Street Fighter II's 30th anniversary with a limited edition run of totally playable SNES cartridges.
That's right. While Nintendo was busy recreating the SNES with its SNES Classic mini-console, Capcom decided to partner up with IAm8Bit to make 5,500 copies of a 30-year-old game that can only be played on a truly retro console. (Or third-party devices compatible with SNES cartridges.) between the SNES Classic, this run of Street Fighter II cartridges, and the upcoming Ataribox, "what's old is new again" has never been so apt.
These cartridges will be available in two color schemes: "Opaque Ryu Headband Red" and "Glow-in-the-Dark Blanka Green." There's no way to choose which color you get when you buy the cartridge; they're selected at random when the orders ship. We do know, however, that 4,500 red and 1,000 green cartridges will be made, so chances are good that you're going to get the red one with your order.
Of course, the cartridge isn't the only thing you'll get. IAm8Bit said the product "embodies retro-inspired luxury" with SNES-inspired boxing, a tri-fold cover, and a recreation of the original instruction booklet with a new cover print and "secret pack-ins." We imagine that will get fighting game enthusiasts and retro game collectors excited enough to pay the $100 cost for this package. They should just be careful, because IAm8Bit warned:
Use of this reproduction game cartridge (the “Product”) on the SNES gaming hardware may cause the SNES console to overheat or catch fire. The SNES hardware is deemed a vintage collectible, so please exercise extreme caution when using the Product and make sure there is fire extinguishment equipment nearby.
There's gotta be a "hadouken!" joke in there somewhere. Anyway, if you're willing to risk life and limb to enjoy some retro fighting action, the 30th anniversary run of Street Fighter II cartridges is available now. Orders are expected to ship in late November 2017, so the package should arrive just in time for the holidays. If you can't get your hands on an SNES Classic—the pre-orders sold out quick—this might be the next best thing.
