Pugilists from SF III: Third Strike and the Alpha series as well as missing SSFII faces Dee-Jay and T-Hawk, make a welcome appearance in quite possibly the most definitive list of SF fan favourites you'll find in one place. Even late addition and glistening oddball Turkish oil wrestler, Hakan, fits right in as sufficiently different from the other big bruiser mainstays – like Zangief or E. Honda – to make him worth experimenting with. Although cosmetically he's complete at this preview stage, Hakan is still undergoing some refinements before the final game is released, though he controls pretty well, conveying a sense of weight and impact even in his relatively rough state.

Juri on the other hand is an incredibly supple and agile practitioner of Tae Kwon Do and the first SF character to practice the martial art. She the very antithesis of Hakan, moving with a swift grace and agility that makes her simultaneously dangerous and arguably unlike any other fighter in the game - she's another interesting addition to the roster who has the potential to become popular amongst fans of the more rapid fighters.

So, is 'Super' an apt prefix then? Of course that's entirely subjective, and really down to whether you think that the addition of ten characters, several dynamic backdrops, extra Ultra finishers, enhanced online mode and re-jigged presentation and interface qualifies as reason enough to revisit a game that you might have already played to death.

It's entirely possible that the inclusion of so many revamped components and added bonuses will adequately serve to revitalise a game that's already held in such high regard. Online in particular, adds a wealth of new modes including a replay channel, 8-player team contests and the winner-stays-on 'Endless Battle' mode where players can chat between watching and engaging in fights.

This all certainly gives you something more to consider beyond the expanded list of fighters, and then there's the overall front end redesign that makes it feel more like a fresh release rather than an ill-conceived rehash. In short, it's all shaping up rather nicely indeed and come the end of April, we're going to be very hard pushed to resist the lure of Super Street Fighter IV and all of its newly instated accoutrements.

Super Street Fighter IV is available April 27th and April 30th in North America and Europe respectively for the reduced retail price of $39.99/£24.99.