It’s time once again for the Cooperation Cup, a Japanese Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike tournament featuring the best players in the world. Coming in its 17th installment, this long-running 5v5 tourney brings the fighting game community together to enjoy some classic Street Fighter. The tournament runs this weekend from January 5-6 in Asakusabashi, Japan.
The Cooperation Cup, or Coop Cup, already kicked off the festivities last night in fact with a pre-tournament. Divided up by their main characters, teams of 5 were made for the single elimination tournament. Team tournaments are something popular in Japan, however, seeing high-level players team up in a game like 3rd Strike is something to be seen. I mean what could be more exciting than seeing greats like Momochi behind a cabinet playing Yun?
The pre-tournament concluded with Team Kenji (Yun players) and Team Five Rangers (Ibuki players) in the finals spot. The sets were hype and combos were executed, but Team Kenji pulled through with a win at 5-3. The team tournament was a great kickoff event and gives just a taste for what these next two days have to offer.
You can watch in on the action starting today at 8 p.m. est on Twitch with English commentary. If you’re looking for the Japanese commentary however you can watch here. And if all of this talk about Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike got you in the mood to play, you can pick up the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection on Amazon for Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.
And in other Street Fighter news, Street Fighter V announced its newest fighter Kage and have removed in-game ads temporarily.
The post Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Is Back This Weekend at the Cooperation Cup by Zack Potter appeared first on DualShockers.