Just kidding, not
all of them are terrible. Actually, overall, fighting games are probably one of my favorite genres to jump in out of every once in awhile. I love the thrill of learning a new system and playing with new characters and just immersing myself in battle with another person (or really good CPU in a pinch). I'm thrilled with the glut of recent entries into the genre that have attracted many old and new fans into the hardcore fighting arena.
The one problem I have with all of these new releases is that almost all of these games are sequels or spiritual successors to previous fighting games. Very few of them display a high level of experimental creativity in their character design or movesets, and though I'm grateful for a well-crafted martial arts experience, I miss the zany and wacky side that fighters used to display.
It all started when someone said to himself, "You know what would be awesome? We should get all of the Marvel Super Heroes together and let them fight each other." That stray thought spawned a whole slew of great games that went on to include "serious" fighters from the Street Fighter series and made fighting over-the-top, excessive, brash, and...well, awesome.
Then someone at Nintendo had the same idea with classic Nintendo mascots. The first Super Smash Bros. is still one of my favorite N64 games, and the sequels have attained an almost zen-like balance of depth and casual entry. The game offers you the option to have an intense one-on-one battle between
an overweight plumber and a dinosaur with a saddle on his back.
I understand that serious fighting games have a place, and I would be hypocritical if I was seriously denouncing them all. Just as Killzone, Call of Duty, and Halo have a place in the gaming hierarchy, so do KOF, Street Fighter, and newcomers like Blazblue. I am simply calling for more companies to take risks and ignore the inhibition to just be wacky and crazy. My favorite fighting memories have come from "casual" fighting games, and I hope that someone will take a break from Generic FPS 3 or Shovelware Minigames 7 to make something really special.
It has been 9 years since MvC2 came out, and nothing has stepped in to fill that silly, superheroey void. For shame gaming industry. For shame.
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The problem is probably at least partially inherent to the so-called "hardcore" fighting community, who (while not without exception, granted) tend to scoff at "silly" or "cute" or "funny" fighters, regardless of how they play - not sure why, guess they're not "manly" enough. I noticed that this trend made itself particularly prevalent in KoF XII, which I just recently ranted about here.
Totally agreed with Bulletmagnet. People miss out on so many great games with that kind of stupid attitude, and not just fighters. If you like this kind of game, look for Waku Waku Seven for the Neo Geo. Not sure how you feel about emulation, etc, but it's another amazing cute/over the top fighter if you can get your hands on it.
@Topher - Nice suggestion in Waku Waku 7 - there was a Japanese Saturn port, but it's not very well-regarded, so try to snag the (again, Japan-only) PS2 "Sunsoft Collection," which includes that game and the (rather lousy, IMO) Galaxy Fight (but unfortunately not the rather nifty sequel, Astra Superstars). The Power Instinct/Goketsuji Ichizoku series is also worth a look.
"Just kidding, not all of them are terrible"
Pshhh.
Fighting games are actually the only genre of games that I can't relly get into. Sure they are fun on an arcade but I havn't bought a fighting game since I 1st got my PS2 and that was like 10 years ago or something like that.....
I do want to try that Blue Balls/Blaze game that has been plastered allover as is looks very crisp.
Wasn't Afro Samurai supposed to be a casual fighting game? I didn't get the game, so I'm not really sure... but that's how it seemed to me.
Eh... I don't often play fighting games (not since my Dreamcast days of button mashing Mortal Kombat)... but yeah, if they had a more casual take on it, I might give it a try.
@Elsa: I think the problem with games like Afro Samurai (and recently the Mortal Kombat series) is that they are not that well made. A casual game does not mean that the game is terribly simple, just as a hardcore game is not necessarily terribly complex. The key is making a good, solid game that just works. The Smash Bros. series has a ridiculous concept, but Melee is one of the most accessible (2 attack buttons) but deepest (dodge rolls anyone?) games that I've experienced.
Also, thanks for the Waku Waku 7 suggestion Topher. I'm iffy on emulation, but tracking it down doesn't seem too likely.
Afro Samurai is a 3D action game, not a fighting game. Unless they've made a different one. The one I tried a demo for was a hack and slash game.
Just letting the two of you know.
Unless I'm wrong. Then I didn't let you know much.
You are right EDS.
Ah, the days of button-mashing against friends... and winning.
Tatsunoko vs Capcom sounds like a game you would like a lot. It has a lot of technique but doesn't take itself too seriously. The mech from Lost Planet vs a giant golden cigarette lighter? Sold!
Even though Blazblu may count as hardcore in your book, it is easy to get into and a blast to play. Bang Shishigami may be the one of the most fun fighting game characters ever.
And I vaguely remember some ex Smash Bros people working on a Smash Bros type game with the TMNT license. That could be fun, hopefully.
To be fair, i think a lot of developers in the past have tried to create something unique with the Fighting Genre, usually by attempting to do away with the standard Health Bar system, or buy giving the player full freedom of movement in 3d, but its and incredibly delicate balance to make a fighting game that feels solid, yet is easy to pick up and play from the get go.
Some games which come to mind that tried something different and nailing it were Bushido Blade 2 and Virtual On, other games which tried and failed were Erghiez and One Must Fall Battlegrounds.
I can't get into fighting games because they require a load of time and dropping money on some controller that will give me a minor advantage at best.
I can get into the Marvel Vs line because its so simple to get into but anything more complicated and I just can't do it nor am I interested in dropping the time, I mean I could spend 20 hours mastering C. Viper or I could spend 20 hours playing an RPG or some adventure game, not a hard choice.
Any fighting game can be brilliant as long as you have the right person to play with.
I don't really get you, nanbu.
God article. I would love to see some shit come out of left field.
@Smurfee
Is my post to complicated?
I can get into casual and easy to pick up fighting games but anything more complicated and I lose interest.
I like Soul Calibur IV for just these reasons, I can go into training and spend an hour and can walk away with a decent understanding of that character, I do it with SFIV and I barely know anything.
I think we're forgetting that up until a few months ago, before SFIV was released, we were living in an era where the genre seemed all but defunct. We had Guilty Gear, and that was pretty wacky too. Now the genre is having a revival and I'm sure we're gonna see more original ideas and variations...BlazBlue is a step in the right direction.
Besides, being a fighting game fan is a lot like being a Nas fan. Street Fighter II was already perfect.
@Nanbu:Not too complicated, I guess I just can't see why you won't put a little time into getting better. Maybe an hour or less a day? That's not too much.
But I guess some people are like that; they can't be arsed to try certain things. To each his own.
I'm sorry, I read the title, was intrigued enough to click, and then you negated everything in the first two sentences.
I'm so fucking tired of everything on Destructoid (even the goddamn user blogs) being about reeling you in. Every article now seems to try to be inflammatory just to get more comments. Half of Jim Sterling's articles have now devolved into prodding fanboys because it'll spur 100+ comments without fail. It just gets annoying.
And now even the c-blogs totally betray me.
I think this rant is a wee bit flimsy since we are in a fighting game revival. I mean sure the revival also happens to be either literal remakes or spiritual successors, but its a revival in a genre. More interest, means more games, means more chances for original work.
@G Fresher: I totally agree that we are in a revival, I just hope that the market doesn't get oversaturated with generic clones like the FPS market or stale like the JRPG market. I really just want originality and wackiness. Also, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom looks awesome, I just need a Wii now :(