Who would have thought that one day Street Fighter II would land on Atari XE/XL computers? But that's the challenge that Krzysztof “Vega” Góra, a well-known Polish developer on the Atari 8-bit homebrew scene, has set himself.

His new project aims to adapt Capcom's famous fighting game, released in 1991, for Atari's 8-bit machines. Góra recently unveiled the first video extracts from this version in development. He insists that this is still a very preliminary version, but enough to arouse the curiosity of enthusiasts.

Designed to run on a standard Atari XE/XL with 64KB of memory, the game will be distributed on cartridge. It is based on the Game Boy version of the title, with a number of additions specific to this adaptation.

Among the first features to be integrated are digitised voices for the introduction and conclusion of battles, as well as separate lines for the three playable characters at this stage: Ryu, Ken and Zangief. Each of them can already perform their iconic special attacks, and the game features eleven tunes to recreate the arcade atmosphere.

On the AtariAge forum, Góra details the technical challenges encountered, including audio limitations (4 KHz samples) and graphical constraints. In particular, he used the PMG (Player/Missile Graphics) technique to improve the display of the characters and test different colour palettes.

The project is supported by a talented team: the graphics are by S1M (known for Bubble Bobble on Atari), the music by Michael “Miker” Szpilowski, and the voices by Grzegorz “GienekP” Karpiel. All tested with the help of publisher Atariteca.

Still in the works, this port of Street Fighter II for the Atari XE/XL already impresses with its ambition. A project to keep a close eye on on the retro scene.