Did you play the cracked beta? Better hope the Capcops don’t find out.
Are you a pro Street Fighter player that's used the Street Fighter 6 beta crack to get a leg up on the competition? Well, the shows over, you filthy criminals! Capcom announced late on Friday that if it catches any players using the beta crack from this point forward then said player will be deemed ineligible for the Capcom Pro Tour.
Say goodbye to one million dollars. Just that simple. Why is Capcom cracking down so hard on this SF6 crack? Here's what you need to know.
The Street Fighter 6 beta crack controversy
This story begins in fall of 2022 when Capcom held a limited, closed beta of Street Fighter 6. Featuring eight playable characters, the beta was more of a status symbol for the community than an opportunity to learn about what may well be the biggest fighting game in years. Forums like Reddit contained unending complaints from fans who didn't get into the beta.
And of course, like Prometheus bringing fire to the people to betray the gods, so did someone create a Street Fighter 6 beta crack. Hackers removed the limitations on the software and created a version playable by anyone able to download it.
In a vacuum this doesn't seem like that big a deal. Pro players getting access to a game almost a full year before anyone else? Besides instigating a content creator gold rush I'm sure nobody thought anything of it. That is, until Capcom announced that the Street Fighter 6 iteration of the Pro Tour would have a purse of two million dollars, with one million going to the winner.
And as usual, anything is fair game when you get between people and large sums of money.
You wouldn't download a car beta
The biggest name to speak up about the Street Fighter 6 beta crack was Japanese FGC legend Momochi. Speaking on his stream, he felt that Capcom wasn't doing enough to limit the unfair advantage a number of pro FGC players were clearly getting in the race to one million dollars.
And, hey: He's not wrong. Search YouTube--at least before today, as I wouldn't be surprised if players were now removing content as fast as possible--and you'll see scores of fighting game pros showing SF6 content. Some devil's advocates in the community have attempted to make the argument that playing the beta doesn't matter. After all, it's only a third of the roster.
However, they seem to miss the point. This is about fundamentals.
A player with access to the game before day one--even a version with less characters--is going to have an advantage. Part of learning and playing fighting games is developing a feel and sense for that game's engine. It's why I can sit down even now with Street Fighter IV and bust out Hakan's bread-and-butter oil slide combos. Sure, it's been years since I've played seriously. But that muscle memory is burned into me.
The same goes with learning a new game and its system. It's a huge advantage, and one that Capcom may have been too late in doing anything about.
Will any players actually get the ban hammer due to the Street Fighter 6 beta crack? We can only wait and see. And if they do, then great! That's one less person in my way towards winning that money myself.
Right? Right?
....Guys?
Stay tuned to esports.gg for esports news and more Capcom Pro Tour info.