Skip to main content

Free ‘Street Fighter V’ Steam trial includes DLC characters, new features

Capcom announced that its one-on-one fighting game Street Fighter V will be free to play on Steam next week, offering PC players a glimpse of new features and balance tweaks arriving in the months ahead.

The free trial will also grant access to all previously released DLC characters, making it easier for Street Fighter fans to pick a favorite among the game’s starring cast.

Recommended Videos

Released in 2016, Street Fighter V is the latest entry in Capcom’s flagship fighting game series, delivering tournament-grade gameplay and a diverse lineup of playable characters. Capcom further upgraded Street Fighter V‘s cast with the recent launch of its second season of content, which introduces a number of additional characters as paid DLC.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Capcom notes that it will use the upcoming trial as a test bed for a variety of new features and improvements heading to the PS4 and PC versions of Street Fighter V in its next update, including more accurate matchmaking, reduced match load times, and an interactive player timeline that ties into a new friend management system.

Players can also expect to see improvements to Street Fighter V‘s “rage quit penalty system,” which will make it easier for veterans to avoid players who frequently disconnect from online matches. Other upcoming additions include Battle Lounge country flags, more detailed fighter profile stats, and filterable leaderboard rankings.

“This trial offer will be limited to Steam users and will only feature online modes, but will be completely free to play for both current and new players,” Capcom said. “All available characters, including the recently released Kolin, will be unlocked for play. Once the test is concluded, Capcom will make further adjustments to optimize the new Capcom Fighters Network and it will make its official release to both PS4 and PC players soon after.”

Street Fighter V‘s free Steam trial kicks off on March 28 at 1 p.m. PT. The game will return to full price on April 3 at 12 p.m. PT.

Danny Cowan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Danny’s passion for video games was ignited upon his first encounter with Nintendo’s Duck Hunt, and years later, he still…
How to change profile Titles in Street Fighter 6

Diving into the world of Street Fighter 6 opens up a whole new arena of customization. Instead of just playing as the iconic world warriors and other designed fighters, you are finally able to create your own custom avatar to face off against these legendary brawlers. The character creator is extensive enough already, but that's only part of the suite of ways you can customize your experience. Titles are back and give you a way to add some flair and personality to your profile when playing against opponents online. Unfortunately, the way to actually change your Title is a bit obscure. Here's how you can change your profile Title in Street Fighter 6.
How to change your Title

After  you've gotten started in the game, head into the Main Menu and go to the Profile section. This is where people will get tripped up. You need to press Square to enter the Battle Settings, then press Triangle to access Update Character Settings, then select Title Settings from the available tabs. This is finally where you are able to go in and pick from any of the Titles you've unlocked so far. The Title will be applied to whichever character you have selected, so you can have different titles set for each character.

Read more
Street Fighter 6’s World Tour mode is the best fighting game tutorial ever
A regular fight in Street Fighter 6 World Tour.

As hard as I’ve tried, I’ve never quite been able to wrap my head around traditional 2D fighting games. I’ve clicked with the fast pace of Super Smash Bros., but I’ve just never been able to hold my own online in a King of Fighters XV match. For me, it’s always been an education and onboarding issue. Most fighting games I’ve tried teach me their wealth of nuances in a lightning-fast tutorial that shows me how to do dozens of things in the span of a few minutes. With that whirlwind pace and a lack of practical context, I always find it difficult to actually retain all of that information.

Street Fighter 6 is perhaps the first 2D fighting game that fully solves my problem and that’s because of its standout World Tour mode. At first glance, World Tour seems like a meaty piece of single-player content for players to pick at between matches. But for more casual brawlers like me, it serves a much more important purpose: It’s the most thorough, effective fighting game tutorial ever crafted.
Learning to fight
As a piece of single-player content, World Tour is an ambitious mode. It’s a full-on action RPG that plays like a classic Yakuza game. Players explore Metro City, and a few other locations, in 3D and stop to brawl in 2D battles. It’s a lengthy campaign that takes over 15 hours to complete and is filled with RPG hooks, from stats to skill trees. It’s an impressive piece of content that helps make Street Fighter 6 feel like a fully fleshed-out release on day one.

Read more
Steam launches new trial service featuring a free 90-minute Dead Space demo
Isaac Clarke aims at a necromorph in Dead Space.

Steam is rolling out a new feature that allows developers and publishers to offer limited-time free trials for their games. The first title to have one is EA Motive's Dead Space remake.

Motive released its remake of Dead Space in January to critical acclaim. Now, almost four months after launch, EA announced it is running a 20% off sale for Dead Space on Steam and is offering a free trial through May 29. Over the next two weeks, anyone with a Steam account can try out Dead Space for an hour and a half for free. Players do have to download the full game before starting the free trial and can then choose to purchase the full game once their 90 minutes are up.

Read more