It was seven days ago that in this article, Paul Gale Network presented the first details and screenshot of what Street Fighter V could look like, if Capcom went back to its 2D roots.

Most gamers responded positively to the story, saying that they’d be in favor of Street Fighter once again going to 2D hand drawn art and enjoyed some of the new gameplay additions that I came up with. There were also some of you that said that going back to sprites for a series that finally made polygonal 2D fighters “work”, would be a step back for Capcom. But it was almost unanimous, that art on display by Joe Danos, looked great, felt real, and made you say, “Wow, I want to play in that stage.”

It’s why I’m happy today, to let you know that Joe has created yet one more great piece, this time depicting Rainbow Mika and Zangief.

Street Fighter V: Rainbow Mika vs. Zangief (Large)

– In this picture, you see that since Rainbow Mika is a little older, she’s gone the ponytail route, instead of her old pigtail look. However, it still parts in the middle, giving her that “M” she’s known for. The remainder of her look hasn’t changed too much, but is just meant to show that time does go by in the SF universe.

– With Zangief, his model is a little less bulky as represented in the past, because he was born in 1956 after all, making him 56 years old. He’s also gotten just a little bit gray here and there.

– One of the goals with stage design, is handling each one as personal to its respective character, as possible. Here you see St. Basil’s Cathedral in the background (long time building of Russia’s) and the fighters on top of a snowy mountain. Since this is Zangief’s stage, and he’s known for training with bears, we’ve got three in the image, including one that’s a bit beaten up.

– To top of this new, hypothetical engine of Capcom’s, we’ve got advanced lighting that’s shown from the fire providing continuously changing shadows for what’s happening in front of it…and a new particle system that allows for the snow to fall in various patterns, even being able to be kicked up from the surface and moved around thanks to the fighters’ movements.

If you like the work that Joe Danos has done this time around, be sure to check out his DeviantArt profile. Stay tuned for our next installment of Street Fighter V. Thank you. Hadouken!