Street Fighter Alpha 3 stormed onto the arcade fighting game scene back in 1998, and ever since it has grown into one of the most prominent fan favorites in the proud franchise's illustrious history. Fully aware of its popularity, Capcom has resurrected Alpha 3 and brought it back to the fans once again in Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX for the PSP, marking the franchise's grand debut on Sony's handheld powerhouse in the process. In conjunction with the stellar 2D fighting gameplay and huge cast of fighters remaining intact from the original version, Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX has received a massive boost in content that should land it on every PSP owner's must have list.

At its core, MAX is a direct conversion of its arcade counterpart, Street Fighter Alpha 3. That means that when you insert the game UMD into your PSP and fire it up, you get the chance to fight it out with one of the deepest character rosters in the franchise, as well as experiencing the sublimely fast-paced, fine-tuned 2D fighting engine that has drawn such an enormous fan following over the lifespan of the series. The key component that sets the core gameplay apart from the rest is the ISM system. After selecting a fighter, you are given a choice between three ISMs - X-ISM, A-ISM and V-ISM - each of which determines how your chosen fighter performs special combo attacks and abilities in the battles ahead. X-ISM is the ISM of choice for beginners, as it only allows for one Super Combo Level to be obtained and disables performance of the more complex abilities, such as mid-air blocks, ground defensive falls and Alpha Counters. One step up is the standard A-ISM, which allows for three levels of Super Combos, then finally you have the V-ISM, which is for advanced players who want to try their hand at creating custom combos.

The gameplay in Alpha 3 MAX is intense, challenging and fast, resulting in some of the best fighting action you'll find on any platform this year so far, and there are numerous options relating to game speed and difficulty that can be adjusted to suit your favored style of play. Additionally, load times are virtually unnoticeable and the frame rate is consistent and smooth. The only setback the game suffers from in the move to the PSP is a slight dip in control precision, as the PSP's analog nub and D-pad simply aren't as precise when attempting to pull off certain combo attacks. I personally didn't have too much of a problem adjusting to the controls, but diehard arcade gamers may have a little more trouble accepting it. Capcom did release a special D-Pad attachment accessory to aid in making the controls more natural, although I don't believe it's all that easy to track down.

Turning to the game's immense roster of playable fighters, all of the original characters from the arcade version are available and ready to brawl, including the likes of Ken, Ryu, Blanka, Guile, M. Bison, Chun-Li, Zangief, Cammy, Akuma, Vega and many, many others. On top of the returning roster, four new characters have been brought into the Alpha series arena for the first time, totaling 37 fighters to choose from. Newcomers include Maki, Eagle and Yun from Capcom vs. SNK 2, alongside Ingrid from Capcom Fighting Evolution, plus each has new moves and a new storyline to follow.

As far as gameplay modes are concerned, you won't find a more feature-rich game on the PSP than in Alpha 3 MAX. World Tour is the chief mode of play, where you take your favorite fighter around a world map, competing in matches and completing special challenges to level up and improve your fighting skills. A standard Arcade Mode is present as well, consisting of a string of 10 bouts following a different storyline for each character - or instead of plowing through this 37 times, you can fast forward to any character's story ending by playing the Final Battle mode, which takes you straight to the final encounter with Bison. Then there are typical fighting game modes like Survival, Free Battle and Training, plus a VS 100 Kumite that puts you through 100 single-round bouts and accumulates your win-loss record as you go, with Dramatic and Reverse Dramatic Battles pitting you and a computer-controlled teammate simultaneously up against a lone opponent, and vice versa. A new Variable Battle Mode has been added as well, granting you two fighters in a tag-team match against one opponent. Rounding everything out is an Edit Mode that enables you to actually customize your fighter's attributes and abilities to your liking, after which you can register them to use in other game modes via the Entry Mode.

To extend the replay value even more, Capcom has put the PSP's Ad Hoc Wi-Fi capabilities into full force for what makes for truly compelling multiplayer match-ups. VS, Team Battle, Dramatic Battle and Variable Battle modes are all available over the local Wi-Fi network, with the VS and Team Battle modes supporting up to eight players in friendly fighting tournaments and leagues. The only thing missing is full online play, which may come as a disappointment to some.

Although you won't see the PSP's processing power being pushed to its 3D graphical limits, Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX's visuals are still mighty impressive. The old-school 2D graphics are crisp and beautiful, sporting detailed arena backdrops, fluid character animations, flashy special effects and lively colors that light up the PSP display with tremendous style and flare. Also worthy of note, both widescreen and 4:3 ratio display settings are offered for players to choose from - for my tastes the game looks much better in widescreen. About the only graphical element that isn't up to scratch is the interface; the main menu is rather ugly compared to the rest of the presentation. On the audio side, fans can expect much of the same music, combat sounds and voiceovers that have become so recognizable in the Street Fighter games. There's nothing especially creative or out of the ordinary for the series, or for any fighting game for that matter, but it all sounds great, so I'm not complaining!

Having sold over 27 million units around the world (and still counting thanks to the release of this and other recent Street Fighter games), it goes without saying that the Street Fighter franchise is among the most popular the video game industry has ever seen, and with Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX the franchise hasn't lost any of its luster, and doesn't look like doing so anytime soon. Despite some minor control quibbles, this truly is one of the best PSP titles money can buy - so go play it already!

Reviewed by Matt Litten for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).