_leech_ said:
Translation: "SFIII didn't sell, and parrying took too much skill. So we're dumbing down the game."
Could be. And you know, I had this same opinion when I first read the leaked news. But consider this...
Sometimes, removing a feature isn't a bad thing. Sometimes, simplicity trumps variety. The example I would offer up is Quake 3 Arena vs. Unreal Tournament. On a feature for feature basis, UT absolutely kills Q3A. It's not even a contest. Every UT weapon had two modes of fire to Q3A's one. UT had dodges, Q3A did not. UT had gametypes out the wazoo, Q3A had DM and CTF. In all respects, UT simply out featured Q3A. And yet, there are many who would tell you that Q3A was a better game, because its core mechanics, the system of movement and shooting and the weapon balance, was perfect. The simple design trumped the complex one, by virtue of doing what it chose to do perfectly.
Are parries awesome? Of course, watch the Daigo video and try to argue otherwise. Is it unfortunate that they're gone? Arguably so, as they definitely add to the SF system. Is a SF without parries automatically less in-depth than one with parries? I would say no, not automatically. Depth can come from all sorts of places. It's not dependent on feature X or Y.
edit: AC is clearly review proof, so this 4.5 is a tempest in a teapot. It's the proverbial C-.