It's hard to forget all the great 2D fighters that the Street Fighter franchise has spawned over the years, from 1992's genre-defining Street Fighter 2 all the way up to 2014's Ultra Street Fighter 4. However, within those two decades of Street Fighter releases there were a lot of oddball games that took the world warriors in some very... interesting directions. Most people are used to seeing Ken and Ryu square off in the ring, but their travels have also taken them into the realms of board games, slot machines, and even a pen-and-paper RPG.

With hype rumbling in our minds, we got a hankering to comb through the franchise's storied history and shine some light on the curios that attempted to capture the spirit of Street Fighter, even if they abandoned its core gameplay tenets entirely. Here are our picks for the best (and strangest) Street Fighter games that have nothing to do with 2D fighting.

Street Fighter 2's board game adaptation feels like someone handed the designers a picture of the SF2 box and said, "Make a game about that." Up to four players pick a character and roll dice to move around the board (which, fittingly, is a bunch of streets). Eventually, two players will collide and a fight breaks out. This is also handled with dice, with higher die rolls trumping lower ones a la Risk. Fighters grow stronger with each victory, and the game ends when someone either reaches max level or defeats M. Bison, who is holed up in what looks like a Panda Express. With its over-reliance on random dice rolls, the Street Fighter 2 board game ultimately fails to replicate what makes the video games great - despite being entirely about fighting and streets.

To fighting fans, the Cannon Spike is best known as Cammy's Shoryuken facsimile, where she rockets into the air bootheel first. But it's also the title of a wildly offbeat shmup that Capcom quietly snuck into arcades and the Dreamcast in 2000. It's a top-down run-'n'-gun starring those elite, army-trained street fighters Cammy and Charlie Nash (who's back in Street Fighter 5, if you didn't know). They could team up with other iconic Capcom blasters like Mega Man and Darkstalkers' B.B. Hood to take down waves of robots who are quite clearly disturbing the peace. You've even got the claw-bearing Vega (aka Balrog, in this case) as a recurring baddie, complete with a redone goth-meets-SM look.

The backstory behind this Street Fighter 2 version of Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots gives a very dark alternate ending to the original Street Fighter 2. As narrated in , "From around the globe, the street fighters came, bashing and banging until only Ryu and Guile remain." So what happened to the rest of them? Did they all beat each other to death? In that case, M. Bison would've already been defeated, so what motivation do Ryu and Guile have to keep "bashing and banging" each other? When will the carnage end!?

FMV games were all the rage in the '90s, giving the the illusion that you were in control of a photorealistic experience, even though it was more like long periods of doing nothing interrupted by frantic Simon Says. To its credit, Capcom put a smarter spin the concept than most, repurposing the footage from Street Fighter 2: The Animated Movie by casting you as a voyeuristic Shadaloo cyborg observing the film's events from afar. Yes, there are some moments of 2D fighting as a reskinned Ken sprite in the Super Turbo engine. But all the the familiar street fighting is bookended by long periods of watching the anime with a distracting android-eye overlay, hoping to score 'battle points' by responding to button prompts with inhuman speed.

Continuing a proud tradition of random crossovers between Japanese companies that make fighting games, Namco X Capcom is a vehicle for watching adorable, sprite-based versions of your favorite Namco and Capcom characters hit each other. Player input and strategizing isn't as important here, as the game really isn't all that difficult, so you really can just sit back and watch the little guys do their thing. If you missed the original on PS2, then the spiritual 3DS successor should give you a good sense of its tactics. For the super fans who want to see these characters in a new setting - or in a new game whatsoever (poor Captain Commando) - this game is probably already in your collection, so let's just move on.

Localization is a delicate art, where taking some liberties with Japanese-to-English porting can create a franchise black sheep that causes ripples in the space-time Street Fighter continuum. Case in point: Street Fighter 2010, which was rejiggered for American markets to evoke two Capcom franchises that had nothing to do with the game itself (and if anything, it's line with Strider). The original version has you platforming and zapping aliens as Kevin Straker, a titanium-plated future cop. But to cash in on Street Fighter hype, the localization renamed him to Ken, implying that this was the same blonde-haired playboy who threw fiery dragon punches, then went on to become a world-renowned scientist and law enforcer.

This card game comes by way of Cryptozoic Entertainment, which has made similar games based on Naruto, The Lord of the Rings, and DC Comics. All of these deck-building games use the same ruleset, so if you want to make the hybrid Naruto/Batman/Chun-Li deck from your wildest dreams, that's entirely possible. The rules themselves are simple: you buy cards to power up your character, then use those cards to attack your opponent(s) and earn victory points. When all the cards are gone, each player tallies up their victory points to see who won. Sadly, this ends up feeling like the card game equivalent of button mashing, as the randomness of what you're buying and playing undercuts the strategic elements of any good fighting game. But hey, at least it's thematically teresting than a game of War.

Given that the mobile game market is a bit like the Mega Millions Jackpot these days, Capcom would be foolish not to attempt a parlay of Street Fighter's fame into an Android/iOS spin-off. The result is Street Fighter: Puzzle Spirits, which is actually line with Puzzle Dragons than Puzzle Fighter. Instead of dropping blocks Tetris-style, you're tapping on a 6x7 grid of colored orbs, where adjacent spheres become mini-Hadoukens, and adjacent fireballs become nondescript swirls that look like candy. And rather than a team of monsters, you assemble a line-up of iconic specials (and even some normal attacks, like Ryu's overhead medium punch) that you can unleash in one giant combo. So, not too off from the source material, then.

While Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo contains 2D fighting, it is not itself a 2D fighter. Instead, it's a tile-matching puzzle game, similar to Tetris Attack or the Puyo Puyo series. Players build up clusters of similarly colored gems before shattering them with corresponding Crash Gems, 'bomb' pieces associated with the elements of fire, water, lightning, or leaves. The bigger the cluster gets before shattering, the more blocks get dumped onto your opponent. Therefore, the key to mastering Puzzle Fighter comes from learning when to hoard your gems and when to shatter them all in a chain of colorful explosions. Give and take - it's very Zen-like in that way. Unless you pick Dan, in which case defeat is inevitable.

Pinball is one of those fantastic mediums where anything (blockbuster films, typically) can be turned into an exciting and physically tangible game. Street Fighter 2 Pinball is no exception, condensing the spirit of Capcom's 2D fighter into a legitimately fun ball-and-flippers experience. It's all about capturing the theme on the playfield: you've got Chun-Li as a Spinning Bird Kick spinner, Zangief busting out a Spinning Piledriver on a ramp, and M. Bison staring back at you with an evil grin whenever you lose a ball. The artwork is all spot-on (giving that electrified beast Blanka primo placement), and the backglass even managed to capture the young heart of . If you can't find this Gottlieb machine in person, try the SF2 table for the digital Pinball FX2 instead.

When it comes to Street Fighter tie-ins, publisher White Wolf had the unenviable job of basing an entire game around one of the most invisible aspects of any fighting game: the story. It's hard to imagine a game of Street Fighter: The Storytelling Game that doesn't go the way of the 1994 Street Fighter motion picture: all random vignettes, awkward fights, and no cohesive plot to be found. Even so, this pen-and-paper RPG spawned four more books before going out of print, as well as a planned fifth book that will include characters from the Street Fighter 3 games. We salute those folks' dedication to carrying the SF2 tabletop torch.

If a Japanese franchise doesn't have a pachinko machine, it may as well not exist. Where Westerners have slot machines, pachinko is the mindless, minimally interactive gambling of choice in Japan. Folks of all ages line up to watch balls drop between pegs in a cacophonous room full of machines bouncing metal off metal. This Street Fighter-themed machine makes it more exciting than it sounds: all the while, you're watching a plastic-encased monitor embedded in the playfield that shows original CG footage of Ryu and Chun-Li teaming up against Akuma. And if you're lucky enough to trigger a jackpot, then entire machine lights up in an eye-searing rainbow of neon colors and loud noises that seem purposely engineered to trigger epileptic seizures.

Speaking of slot machines, it's nigh unbelievable that Capcom would give its blessing to the virtual Street Fighter 2 slots on InterCasino.com. We're staring at the legit-sounding copyright info emblazoned right beneath the slots, and we still refuse to accept it as reality. It's not that it's a fundamentally abysmal game, either; slot machines work with what little they can to capture a theme, in this case subbing in Vega's mask, Balrog's gloves, and Dhalsim's necklace for the cherries, bells, and 7s. You can even pick your own character - Ken, Ryu, Sagat, Chun-Li, or Guile - which is pretty neat. But the problem is that no matter who you choose, they're rendered as hideous, amateur-looking 3D models, squaring off with two frames of animation against an M. Bison who looks just as homely. while you spin is an affront to the eyeballs.

Released in 1999 for the Neo Geo Pocket Color, SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters Clash is a celebration of both companies' massive stable of characters, all crammed into a simplified card game. Players summon monsters (or, in this case, fighting game characters) which generate SP points. The 'monsters' then fight, while players use those SP points to play support cards and give themselves an edge. While these games didn't have a huge impact in the West, Card Fighters Clash (and its stellar chibi art style) did resonate enough with some to earn the sequel game an unofficial English translation patch. One super fan has even adapted it that you can print out and play at home.

Game trailers are an art form in and of themselves. With only 180 seconds or less to impress their audience, they need to tell an immediately arresting story that gives a snapshot of what an hours-long game will make you feel. One way to tie it all together is with a recognizable piece of licensed music, a familiar, melodic thread to guide you to the highlights of this virtual world.

E3 is gaming's trailer season, and you can bet that you'll be seeing plenty of trailers using licensed music to promote the many . With that in mind, we wanted to look back the trailers that were made more distinctive, more memorable, and (most importantly) more effective because they chose to revolve around familiar songs. Hey, all you E3 2015 trailer-smiths: these are the ones to beat.

Not all pulse-pounding rock songs are created equal. While banking on the power of screaming lyrics and throbbing rhythm usually gets a game some attention, about a million other trailers are doing the exact same thing. To be heard over all that noise, a trailer's musical accompaniment has to be distinguishable from generic beats and connected to the game in a way that makes the two feel inseparable. That's what folksy thrasher song 'Beast of America' does for the trailer of the same name.

It's difficult to envision this trailer with any other song, since the game and the tune seem tailor-made for each other. You have rustic humming and drumming at the beginning that drips with Americana. You have the obvious nods to a broken American dystopia that's everywhere in BioShock Infinite. You have vicious vocals and guitar riffs that highlight the violent, angry, and enormous visuals that fill the trailer. And you have a unique sound that stands out in your mind and makes the game do the same. Now you can't think of either the song or game without the other, which is exactly the point.

"What do you want, Michael?" asks a psychiatrist as a drum machine begins marching and keyboard strains slowly lift in the background. Michael is conflicted. He has the dream; the big house, the family, the money. But he also has nothing; his family hates him, and his days are filled with a crushing sense of self-loathing and worthlessness. As Michael begins to question what he really wants, Queen's 'Radio Ga Ga' forms the backdrop for one man's quest for meaning in a town full of fleeting opportunities to find it, and I honestly can't think of a better fit for this spectacular, explosive trailer.

The lyrics are a perfect metaphor for Michael's existential plight - a grasp at nostalgia for days gone by, when listening to the radio was something that mattered, not just 'some background noise'. Michael is a man attempting to regain the feeling of the glory days of his youth, when a big score was around every corner, but finds nothing beyond the regrets that come with mid-life crisis. Even the melody evokes strains of melancholy in its immensely danceable beat, punctuated by scenes showing exactly how Michael's life is falling apart around him. Rockstar is good at a lot of things, but ever since Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, it's been an expert at creating the perfect soundtrack, and Michael's trailer is its ultimate masterwork.

The most memorable trailers can strike a chord with people who have no intention of playing video games in general, let alone the one that's being advertised. And juxtaposing soft, melancholy piano melodies with Marcus Fenix's alleyway encounter against the Locust hordes creates the kind of attention-demanding scene that can enrapture anyone. You've got to appreciate just how big of a gamble it was for Microsoft and Epic to advertise their new red-blooded, M-rated shooter - packed with guns-blazing violence and chainsaw bayonets - by giving a brief, perfectly-scored glimpse into the forlorn desolation of the post-Emergence Day apocalypse. That gamble paid off, big time.

It's all anchored to Gary Jules' somber cover of 'Mad World', which puts the sadness of Tears for Fears' original lyrics into focus. The song was certainly memorable in Donnie Darko, but the Gears of War launch trailer makes it absolutely unforgettable for an entire generation of gamers. I still get chills when Jules croons the chorus just as Marcus is desperately firing on a gargantuan Locust he can't possibly defeat.

Ok, yes, it's dubstep. Go ahead and get all the hate for that particular overused musical style out of your system, because Nero's 'Doomsday' is the perfect backdrop for the delightfully bombastic, cheerfully ridonkulous action of . Really, what other kind of tune are you going to put behind a trailer that tells you to "Get ready to joy puke your face off"? Jazz? Stop.

Borderlands is a game that rejoices in its absurdity, revels in its violence, and reminds us that shooting things is a really, really fun thing to do. Borderlands 2 cranks up the volume in every way possible. The 87 bazillion guns get bazillionder, there are more skills (for the payment of bigger bills), and it’s 1,000 degrees hotter. Mostly, though, it's a colorful departure from typical gritty shooters and it simply wants you to have a good time doing violence on Pandora. The thumping beat of 'Doomsday' accentuates the quick shots of Borderlands 2's gameplay, accelerating your pulse until the volume plummets and Handsome Jack makes his appearance. We're gonna need a lot of guns...and 96.5% more wub wub.

When it comes to Prince of Persia trailers, Ubisoft has a format they like to stick to: footage of the Prince beating up enemies and using time-travel acrobatics, while a Moviefone narrator talks very seriously about destiny. The point is to make the Prince look like a proper action hero, but it pushes a simplistic view of who he really is. That's what makes the E3 trailer for the 2008 Prince of Persia reboot so interesting: it presents the Prince in a more thoughtful light, and the accompanying song - Sigur Ros' dreamy ballad 'Sæglópur' - shows just how different this Prince of Persia is meant to be.

Avoiding the quick transitions between fight scenes that you might expect to see, Sæglópur's gentle rhythm slows the trailer down, honing in on the way the characters move together and the world they're moving through. It also strengthens the mystical nature of their combat, and it feels like the music is given form through the Prince and Elika's colorful explosions of magic. The crescendo of the song comes just as Elika turns their battlefield into a lush, sunlit landscape, showing this is what the game is meant to be about: these two rebuilding the world. This new Prince feels different from his generically impressive former self, because Sæglópur has given him a different tone. One that sticks with you well after the trailer is over.

This trailer is all fire and rage and hate; a descent into madness stretched across five minutes that feel like an eternity. Leading the charge is its title track 'Nuclear' by English prog rocker Mike Oldfield, which I wrongly assumed had been written specifically for the trailer. This song perfectly encapsulates what's going on with Big Boss' character, while also invoking the overall tone of this game. The lines 'I'm nuclear / I'm wild / I'm breaking up inside' sum up the game's protagonist in a nutshell: a broken soldier whose life has been going to hell ever since the events of Metal Gear Solid 3.

Layered on top of these lyrics are images of violence that are extreme even by Metal Gear standards. This creates a striking contrast between and rest of the series. Sure, Snake's exploits have explored torture and other dark themes, but they've always been tempered with the levity of giant robots and people with superpowers. None of that is on display here. Instead it's all stabbing and torture and dismemberment, which together set a powerful (if not grisly) expectation for how this adventure will play out.

A lot of the trailers on this list take a solemn, serious tone, amplified by a poignant piece of music. And when it comes to melancholic drama, there's really no topping the original Dead Island trailer. So I was delighted to see the reveal go in the complete opposite direction, with its bright, light-hearted, and comically chaotic tone. Ignoring the fact that this sequel takes place in California - which, last I checked, is not an island - this trailer perfectly captures the fun side of a sunny zombie apocalypse.

Pigeon John's 'The Bomb' is irresistibly catchy, making you want to clap along to the poppy rhythm which, like a zombie's diet, is organ-centric. And John's jovial, self-congratulatory chorus of "I'm the bomb and I'm 'bout to blow up" perfectly matches the vanity of this tanned, teeth-whitened male model even as he slowly decomposes, as well as the impending explosion of undead pandemonium that's erupting right behind him. Even with the gazillion other trailers shown off during E3 2014, the song - and the accompanying scene of morning cardio gone to hell - kept running through my mind all week long.

If you're a fan of 19th century sea shanties, you've probably heard doesn't match that description at all, and the rendition of 'Drunken Sailor' used in its E3 debut trailer (changed to 'Drunken Whaler' to fit the game's environment better) becomes a whole lot darker to match.

The visuals in this trailer gracefully lay out the basics of Dishonored: where you'll go, who you'll run into, and the violent methods you have to dispose of most of them. However, it's the song that really lodges the whole thing in your brain. The music alternates between unsettling wisps of sound and pounding industrial cacophony; add that to a creepy child singing 'slice his throat with a rusty cleaver', and the music drives home that there's something deeply wrong with this place and everything you're seeing in it. Where the images could easily have been a dull catalog of whos and whats, 'Drunken Whaler' brings Dunwall to disturbing life, and makes you want to experience its horrors for yourself.