We've known for a while now that four of Capcom's favorite fighters are returning when Ultra Street Fighter IV arrives this Spring: Rolento, Hugo, Poison, and Elena. However, there's also a fifth, supposedly brand new character, that, according to Capcom's Senior Product Manager, Matt Dahlgren, has "never been featured in a Street Figher game up until now." Or has he/she? A piece of art seems to indicate otherwise.
The piece of art seen above is from "Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Artbook," which released in Japan long before Capcom made any announcement of new or returning characters, or even before Ultra Street Fighter IV. However, at least two characters that have been confirmed to return in the game can be seen; Elena and Hugo, spawning the idea that another fighter who hasn't seen the light of day since the original Street Fighter will be part of Ultra.
As Capcom's first arcade fighter wasn't nearly the smash hit as its follow-up, there's a good chance not too many are familiar with the baldy at the upper right. His name is Retsu, and he has something of a penchant for popping up in concept art for Street Fighter games over the years. He's a fairly obscure character, but Capcom diehards could never miss those eyebrows.
Before you get too excited, keep in mind that this is just concept art. Also, Retsu's addition is unlikely, as according to Dahlgren, the fifth fighter has "never been featured in a Street Figher game." Though, if you buy into the CVG argument, Retsu remains a possibility as he's never been playable. In the game's single player mode, gamers were saddled with Ryu as the only playable fighter. Even when fighting against a buddy in the 2 player mode, the second player was forced to go with the palette swap of Ryu, Ken. Still, "featured" and "playable" don't mean nearly the same thing.
Capcom has dug into the past before to get fans more interested in previous games in the series and bolster the SF roster, mostly with the Alpha games, bringing back Adon and Birdie. Crossovers have also proved exceedingly successful for adding more characters: Guy, Cody, Rolento, etc. from Final Fight. Adding in Retsu would be keeping with Capcom's habit. Still, I do hope it winds up being someone a little more...colorful.
Despite the recent launches of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, Ultra's release is limited to PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC. It will release in two forms, with the player picking whichever they like:
1. As a $15 DLC upgrade - choose this route if you already have a copy of Street Fighter 4. With the price breakdown, it means you get each new character at $3 each.
2. As an all-new physical release, on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
Besides the new characters, players will also get six new stages, all of which featured in Street Fighter X Tekken: Cosmic Elevator, Mad Gear Hideout, Jurassic Era Research Facility, Blast Furnace, and Pitstop 109.
