Street Fighter II Turbo Cover Painting (SNES)

Before Mixed Martial Arts made it to the mainstream as a major sport in the U.S., there was the video game series “Street Fighter.” Society’s current obsession with the sport of Mixed Martial Arts was prefigured by the international cult-like response to Capcom’s Street Fighter II series in the early 1990’s. The game featured international fighters from an array of disciplines including Ninjutsu, Muy Thai, Taekwondo, Professional Wrestling, Chinese Kempo and more. The United States, Brazil, Japan, India, Russia (USSR at the time), Spain, Britain and Thailand were all represented. Released by Capcom in 1992, Street Fighter II Turbo was third in the Street Fighter 2 series. The Turbo version offered the same experience as the original version, only now at hyper speed. This difference in pace between Street Fighter II and Street Fighter II Turbo was analogous to the speed difference between Mario and Sonic. Increased speed resulted in increased popularity, as Street Fighter II Turbo was a smashing success. This Street Fighter II Turbo artwork above was featured on the cover of the original Super Nintendo game box, and has since turned into a cultural icon.