The Street Fighter game with the series' classic characters. The game was originally a ion project for Yasuda that gained renown in the office of Capcom. The company then asked him to divide his team among several others so they could make games like his project, expecting him to fill in the gaps in each team. This culmination of events eventually gave birth to the title in 1997, seen by many as a game called Street Fighter, looked like a Street Fighter, but in reality, it was just a bridge to the next title. Though his time at Capcom was short, Yasuda helped further the franchise with what was originally just something he was doing on the side.

Street Fighter 3 Is An Important Game In The Series

With the differences to most of the Street Fighter roster, including mechanics taken from other series under Capcom's banner, it could have been theorized that the game never started out as part of the Street Fighter franchise, but this interview with Yasuda confirms it. The subtle gameplay changes to make the game more dynamic and the stunning graphics were good decisions at the time, but it didn't make an attempt to distinguish itself. The title would have been better suited for another spin-off rather than be a part of the mainline series, yet Capcom decided Yasuda and the team he had were equipped to turn their project into a game that did not share the same success as Street Fighter 2.

SF3 never reached the pinnacle of the franchise's potential, nor did it nearly ruin the games industry like Street Fighter 2, but the two revisions, 2nd Impact and Third Strike, added more characters and shifted the mechanics' direction even more. Regardless of its reception, the game is widely considered a classic and received a prominent spot in the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection. While not everyone will Yasuda's work on Street Fighter III, the game was an important addition to the franchise, allowing titles that followed to capitalize and refine what was introduced.

Sources: Akiba Souken, VGDensetsu/Twitter