Street Fighter Alpha 3 Isms Explained: X-ism, A-ism and V-ism

In Street Fighter Alpha 3 every fighter can use one of three isms: X-ism, A-ism or V-ism. X-ism gives you one very strong super move and the most damage. A-ism gives you a three-level gauge and several super moves. V-ism has no super moves at all, but lets you start custom combos. You choose the ism right after your fighter, so the same character can play three different ways. You can try all three in Street Fighter Alpha 3 on Yes This Game.

The three isms at a glance

X-ism: one big super

X-ism is made for players who know Super Street Fighter II Turbo. Your gauge has one level, and when it is full you get one super combo, the strongest version of the character’s best move. Your normal attacks also hit the hardest of the three isms. In return you take the most damage, you cannot block in the air and you cannot use Alpha Counters.

A-ism: the all-round choice

A-ism, called Z-ism in Japan, has a gauge with three levels and several super moves for each fighter. The button you press decides the level: a light button gives a level 1 super, a medium button level 2 and a heavy button level 3. It is the style most players start with, and the one shown on the left of our picture, with a full level 3 gauge.

V-ism: custom combos

V-ism has no super moves. Instead, when the gauge is charged you press a punch and a kick of the same strength to start a custom combo: for a few seconds your character leaves shadows behind and your moves chain into each other freely. It does the least damage per hit, but a good custom combo can take a big part of the energy bar. On the right of the picture, Birdie’s V-ism gauge shows CHARGE at 100 percent.

The guard meter

All three isms share one new rule: the guard meter under your energy bar. It empties as you block, and when it runs out your guard breaks and you stand open for a moment. After a break the bar gets shorter, and it can shrink several times in one fight. X-ism has the longest guard bar and V-ism the shortest, and some fighters, like Zangief, have much longer bars than others.

Which ism should you pick?

1. Start with A-ism. Several supers, air blocking and Alpha Counters make it the easiest to learn.
2. Try X-ism if you played Street Fighter II: fewer tools, but every hit hurts.
3. Move to V-ism once you know a fighter well: custom combos reward practice.

Want the classic first? Play the original Street Fighter II and read our Street Fighter 2 moves list.

Cheats

On Yes This Game the magic wand button next to full screen has three cheats for player 1: unlimited energy, super moves always ready (the gauge stays full, so you can try every super of every ism) and infinite time. The arcade machine takes two coins: press Coin twice, then Start.