A brilliant Swansong from Crawfish.
Crawfish has managed to squeeze every character from the original game and has made it seem so effortless. Amazedly the characters have retained all of their in-battle animation, with only the number of win animations being reduced to one or two per character. Even new characters have been added to the already impressive rooster. Available after unlocking are the characters Eagle, Yun and Maki. The sprites have been scaled down, but on the smaller screen of the Game Boy Advance this is barely noticeably and entirely forgivable. The gauges above and below have been increased in size to add clarity and everything is clear, even the tiniest of text. The backgrounds (stages) have also been reduced in number, been scaled down and have lost frames of animation. Most still work well, although one of them has a minor problem, the background blends in with the vitality gauges, making it hard to decipher how much energy you or your opponent has.
The character selection screen is there in all its glory and is a mark up on the PlayStation's version as the highlighted characters are animated as opposed to static. All the character introduction are present and correct, but the mid-game dialogues and individual endings are noticeably absent.
Also absent are most of the voice samples, in particular that of the announcer, but since his incessant cheerfulness was grating he shouldn't be missed. Many of the key voice effects are present; such as Ryu shouting 'Hadoken.' Cheats are used on certain samples, for example Sakura seems to be using Ken's voice, just pitched higher. Indeed many of the grunts and screams seem to be repeated amongst the different characters, which can be a bit disconcerting.
The music has been downgraded to around midi quality and is just as forgettable as it was on more advanced systems. Giving the constraints of the system this game is running on this is hardly surprising and is forgivable seeing as none of the missing data is integer to the main bulk of the game. Of course there is one major benefit to the cartridge medium: no loading times.
The controls are responsive. However the Game Boy Advance's lack of six buttons could have been a major problem, but Crawfish has countered it by clever button management. By the use of different button combinations it is completely possible to use medium attacks and PPP and KKK attacks. The small D-Pad may make it difficult for some to pull of the more complex moves, the SP's pad even more so. There is a simple mode for beginners that allows the activation of Super moves with relatively simple movements; although it removes some of the control you have over things and isn't all that useful in certain Fighting Style modes (i.e. V-ism).
All the relevant systems and nuances are as you'd expect. Any combos that worked in previous versions work just as well here. The flexible and forgiving juggling system is just as intuitive as ever, and the PPP/KKK recovery moves are as useful as always. No important parts of the basic game mechanics are missing.
They are plenty of different modes to keep you occupied. Survival, Dramatic battle. The lost of World Tour from the list could be a mild disappointment to those who enjoyed it. This is also quite a difficult version of Alpha 3 with the AI being incredibly tough on the later difficulty levels. It should give even well seasoned veterans a run for they money. The usual problems associated with Street Fighter are present: the annoyingly cheap boss, computer characters who don't need to charge moves and the fact that the computer can get 10+ hits in when it uses a multi-hit throw on you.
This is a great game for long hauls and short trips alike, find someone with another copy and you could find that you've played verses mode all day long. It is rare that a almost perfect port of such calibre as this is released, especially on a format like the Game Boy Advance. That is what has happened, one of the best fighting games of all time has been shrunk down to fit in your pocket and has lost nothing in the translation that won't be missed. It proves that the Advance is an extremely capable piece of hardware in the hands of good team. Any faults that are here are extremely minor, and have more to do with the limitations of the hardware then anything else and they certainly don't detract this from excellent status.
The GBA has little in the way of fighters of pure excellent standards. Only The King of Fighters Ex2: Howling Blood comes close. However Alpha 3 stands just a little higher than the rest and is possibly the most impressive port of all time on what could be regarded as an underdog. The only sad thing in all this is that the developer went out of business after making this game; even still, it's a brilliant Swansong from Crawfish.