Street Fighter 6 producer Shuhei Matsumoto revealed how dire issues had been for Capcom’s flagship preventing sport franchise throughout the Street Fighter V period and defined how he and director Takayuki Nakayama labored collectively to save lots of the sequence from loss of life.
It’s no secret that Street Fighter V stumbled massively when it launched in February 2016. Many gamers felt that it was shipped out in an unfinished state, because it lacked fundamental components like an arcade mode or story mode, on prime of its extremely unstable netplay.
Shuhei Matsumoto — who stepped in as producer for Street Fighter V close to the top of its lifetime following Yoshinori Ono’s exit from Capcom in 2020 — alongside director Takayuki Nakayama, acknowledged that the franchise as an entire was in peril, and believed that the Street Fighter IP may truly fade into obscurity inside the subsequent decade in the event that they didn’t act quick.
“When the 2 of us had been speaking throughout Street Fighter V, we realized that if we did not do one thing about Street Fighter, the Street Fighter IP would most likely die in 10 years. It was important. So, we needed to make it a sport the place folks would get to comprehend it yet again and play it once more,” Matsumoto mentioned throughout an October 2026 interview with Karin Ohira.
Matsumoto defined that SFV’s growing old playerbase was one instance of this problem, saying Capcom wanted to focus on youthful gamers if it needed Street Fighter to reside.
“At the moment, the participant base for Street Fighter V was roughly 35 to 45 years previous. In 10 years, these folks can be 60. It’s troublesome to maintain the franchise if we solely depend on that group,” he continued.
“…It had change into a distant presence. Individuals knew of the scene, however weren’t truly taking part in the sport, which made us assume, ‘That is unhealthy.’ In the long run, we’re a sport firm, but folks weren’t taking part in our sport. Is not that essentially the most deadly factor? In order that was the largest hazard. We did not know if these folks would proceed with the identical degree of ardour, and naturally, there is a lifespan to issues, proper? That is once we talked about how, if we left it because it was, the IP would doubtless die in 10 years.”
So, how did they handle to show issues round so dramatically with Street Fighter 6? Matsumoto mentioned that the workforce averted counting on its energy as a historic IP, and determined to start out with a clean slate, as if nobody within the present technology knew about it, in any respect.
“Whereas folks say Street Fighter has excessive title recognition, we should not be overconfident. We determined to behave as if the present technology does not know us. We have now to correctly clarify issues to those that are simply beginning to play video games now — like who these characters are and methods to play — so we do not take that familiarity without any consideration.”
Matsumoto additionally mentioned that the event of SF6’s Trendy management scheme was integral to reaching a brand new viewers, alongside different approachable options like World Tour Mode (which has since been paused for the forseeable future), the Battle Hub, and real-time commentary from group figures like Vicious and Tasty Steve.
Matsumoto and Nakayama’s plan paid off massive time; Street Fighter 6 is one in all Capcom’s most profitable Street Fighter video games of all time, having bought greater than seven million lifetime items as of summer season 2026. It’s extraordinarily well-liked each in Japan and overseas, and boasts an enormous playerbase throughout each Steam and consoles.
It’s a giant yr for Street Fighter followers and Capcom usually; the developer has launched three critically-acclaimed titles in Resident Evil Requiem, Pragmata, and Onimusha: Method of the Sword, and is gearing up for the Street Fighter film on October 16, which comes on the heels of the Resident Evil adaptation directed by horror savant Zach Cregger.
Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s Information Editor. With ten years of expertise reporting on video games and leisure, she’s obtained a storied background within the preventing sport group, influencer information, and viral on-line traits. Discover her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.