Skullgirls (2D Fighting Game) Announced for XBLA, PSN
- Thread starter Shard
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As a fan of fighting games, I see no reason to not pick it up after what I saw today. It's going to be inexpensive with good online play and solid fighting mechanics. They're trying to replicate MvC2 style gameplay without some of the bullshit that game has. I had a good time playing it today, for sure.TheOGB said:
SapientWolf
Trucker Sexologist
Labombadog
Member
How did ya play it?Dartastic said:
The Take Out Bandit
Member
Labombadog said:
I could be crazy but. . .
Labombadog
Member
The Take Out Bandit said:
Well thank you kind sir.
edit: OP didnt have it.....nvm i think u meant the site link is on the op. thanks again
akachan ningen
Member
Dartastic said:I plan om writing more about this game when I have access to a computer but, uh, the game knows when you're trying to pull 360's with a grappler. When it detects this, your character won't jump.RAH
hooray for dumbed-down fighting games.
On the contrary, hooray for a fighting game actually making grapplers more viable for the majority of people. Even as someone who plays fighting games, I never play grapplers. Partially for this very reason. There's more to it than just that. Like I said, I'll type up more later.akachan ningen said:
akachan ningen
Member
Dartastic said:
it's not that hard to pull a quick 360 without jumping. Especially since most fighting games let you do a 270 or even 225. stopping your character from jumping in a heated situation where you're doing a motion then change your mind is just going to lead to frustration.
you can't make a fighting game that's all things to everyone. look at sf4. it doesn't work.
Ashkeloth said:
Maybe because they... you know... like the idea of an all-girls fighting game? It's still an indie project, thanks god not every dev have to decide everything by running focus groups. I don't even like the art style of Skullgirls, but it's good that they went with what they liked, regardless of marketing problems.
Wow at all the 'animu' and 'moe' comments. This is about as moe as the female characters in Darkstalkers were, it's hardly Arcana Heart is it? I guess the all-girl cast doesn't help but is that really a big deal?
Hopefully this plays as good as it looks. Capcom will never make a HD 2D Darkstalkers so with any luck this will be the next best thing. A lot of the animators on this are extremely talented people, and they have some balls competing with the Japanese developers.
lol this is on the screen for like 1/30ths of a second. Ever heard of the animation technique of smearing? It was a technique pretty much perfected by warner brothers. 2D capcom games used it quite a lot too. I agree with the chunky thighs comment though, I can see how that'd be off putting style wise.
Hopefully this plays as good as it looks. Capcom will never make a HD 2D Darkstalkers so with any luck this will be the next best thing. A lot of the animators on this are extremely talented people, and they have some balls competing with the Japanese developers.
akachan ningen said:Sound the bad art alert.
lol this is on the screen for like 1/30ths of a second. Ever heard of the animation technique of smearing? It was a technique pretty much perfected by warner brothers. 2D capcom games used it quite a lot too. I agree with the chunky thighs comment though, I can see how that'd be off putting style wise.
akachan ningen
Member
Gagaman said:
Seriously though, it's not the smearing that bothers me, it's the stupid pose. That one that somebody else posted with the headstand and the sword coming out of the shoe looks even worse. And yes, the horse legs.
One Ok Rock
Neo Member
Gagaman said:
I think the majority of comments with those words are saying it's either not animu or moe enough, it's stuck in a kind of yucky mix of western and japanese style. That's what I meant at least. I agree though, if people want to make games with all girls or boys, more power to them... but..
Izayoi said:
You have my vote. :>
danmaku said:
I'm fine with that. It just won't sell as much as it potentially could, even if it is the best fighting game ever.
It's still better to have a spirit of adventure and experimentation when it comes to game design than them making something like a bald space marine fighter or another twin stick shooter, though.
This just seems like the most opposite of that ideal though, making it intolerable to all but the most hardcore of Japan-lovers. Whatever happened to the middle ground?
Haha thought that might get quoted.akachan ningen said:
Seriously though, it's not the smearing that bothers me, it's the stupid pose. That one that somebody else posted with the headstand and the sword coming out of the shoe looks even worse. And yes, the horse legs.
Ah fair enough, I get what you mean about the pose. All the panty shots are a bit off putting too, kind of like how Dead or Alive is an excellent fighting series, but sometimes you just wouldn't want to be seen playing it.
As someone that hates 'moe' pretty much with a passion the style doesn't bother me too much, mainly because the moves are so surreal and freaky, what with all the monsters and that. Eh, we'll see, we've only seen two characters so far and we know at least one of them isn't quite as thunder-thighs-and-panty-shots like:
Looking forward to seeing this character in action. She looks like a twisted 1920's cartoon character
Dartastic said:I plan om writing more about this game when I have access to a computer but, uh, the game knows when you're trying to pull 360's with a grappler. When it detects this, your character won't jump.
Why even use 360 motions in the first place, I wonder? It seems to antiquated, in a way. I've always prefered grapplers in SNK games, as they often just used half-circles, and their throws we're comboable for the most part... will be happy to see how this game's "360 detection" system works though, yet I'm more concerned about what kinda potential glitchy exploit-ish tactics this could lead to... I wonder if this situation will apply only to grappler characters, or to all character in the game?
Gagaman said:Ah fair enough, I get what you mean about the pose. All the panty shots are a bit off putting too, kind of like how Dead or Alive is an excellent fighting series, but sometimes you just wouldn't want to be seen playing it.
At least DoA had some balance. Lots of males in the cast, hidden costume for Ein with him just in a pair of ripped jeans + chains on his wrist, big burly dudes like Bass right alongside old men like Gen Fu... oh yeah, and then those bouncy females. Which normally offered a wide variety of outfits; you could choose the skirts and fanservicey stuff, or things like the Tecmo's deception 3 outfit for Helena, the Full body ninja outfit for Kasumi, or Ayane's purple Ninja suit...
Looking forward to seeing this character in action. She looks like a twisted 1920's cartoon character
Yeah, I remember seeing a few other characters from this game a few years back... really would be nice if the whole cast ends up fairly varied, though all the recent videos staring the same 1 or 2 characters really makes it easy to see the game in only 1 way ATM.
I like the idea that they seem to be very open to DLC for the game as well. Who knows what kinda additional cast the game could end up with?
Ashkeloth said:
Actually, I think the most hardcore japan-lovers will hate this game because it looks like a "fake anime-wannabe". I know it wasn't the intention, but this is what many will see.
Aside from that, I don't understand why Skullgirls should be the opposite of the indie ideal. The devs didn't choose the middle ground simply because they didn't want to. They don't have to please the shareholders, so they don't need to accept compromises in order to reach a wider audience. I can't see this as a flaw. This also means that many people could miss a great game, I agree with that, but it happens all the time. Bayonetta had the same problem: many hated it, but it's their loss.
Master Milk
Member
Because middle ground means more variety and not alienating your already small consumer base.tiff said:
Hmmm, here's a 2006 Interview with the Skullgirls Devs, back when the game looked much different:
http://www.siliconera.com/2006/10/12/dreaming-of-making-a-game-spotlight-on-skullgirls/
And an image from the demo from long ago (2007):
http://www.indiegames.com/blog/2007/05/skullgirls.html
An old animation frame for the game, on Pixeljoint (when the calves were even skinnier!)
http://www.pixeljoint.com/pixelart/40218.htm
And here's an illustration of the 8 main characters from back in March 2010 + descriptions, along with a lengthy blog post:
http://goborobo.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=43
Character Pic (pretty big): http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3550643/skullgirls_main_8_and_bosses.jpg
Going to be quite interesting to see all this come to life!
http://www.siliconera.com/2006/10/12/dreaming-of-making-a-game-spotlight-on-skullgirls/
And an image from the demo from long ago (2007):
http://www.indiegames.com/blog/2007/05/skullgirls.html
An old animation frame for the game, on Pixeljoint (when the calves were even skinnier!)
http://www.pixeljoint.com/pixelart/40218.htm
And here's an illustration of the 8 main characters from back in March 2010 + descriptions, along with a lengthy blog post:
http://goborobo.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=43
Character Pic (pretty big): http://dl.dropbox.com/u/3550643/skullgirls_main_8_and_bosses.jpg
Going to be quite interesting to see all this come to life!
For those who don't visit the GB thread: http://www.giantbomb.com/quick-look-ex-skullgirls/17-3845/
The Take Out Bandit
Member
Kintaro said:
At this point I'm leaning heavy on Japan just being techno-xenophobic.
Having incredible internet connections there doesn't help us as that just enables crap netcode. They're winning the water gun fight with a fire hose. :\
Thanks for digging those pics up SAB CA!
I see all the complaints about this game's artstyle, saying they don't like it because it looks like a poor American-made anime wannabe. I disagree.
The art's not bad because it's a poor anime knock-off, it's bad because it's a poor Bratz knock-off.
Honestly, the character design looks like it belongs on a bootleg Goth version of those wretched pedo-fashion dolls that soccer moms buy their six-year-old daughters to play dress-up with. Now, with added panty shots and bouncy-bouncy!
Yeah, it's the doll-like proportions more than anything else I'm...well, not complaining about, but certainly not enthused by, either. It just looks...creepy, far more so than stuff like Vanguard Princess or Arcana Heart. Plus, it doesn't help that the lines are so thick and the colours so subdued, making the whole thing look dark and muddy IMO.*
Mind you, this is a Mike Z co-production, with some nice animation care of one of the Scott Pilgrim devs, using GGPO, and on PSN, so GETTING HYPE! cautiously regardless.
*Please bear in mind that I've only seen the trailer and the obviously alpha footage, and am basing my criticisms on those.
The art's not bad because it's a poor anime knock-off, it's bad because it's a poor Bratz knock-off.
Honestly, the character design looks like it belongs on a bootleg Goth version of those wretched pedo-fashion dolls that soccer moms buy their six-year-old daughters to play dress-up with. Now, with added panty shots and bouncy-bouncy!
Yeah, it's the doll-like proportions more than anything else I'm...well, not complaining about, but certainly not enthused by, either. It just looks...creepy, far more so than stuff like Vanguard Princess or Arcana Heart. Plus, it doesn't help that the lines are so thick and the colours so subdued, making the whole thing look dark and muddy IMO.*
Mind you, this is a Mike Z co-production, with some nice animation care of one of the Scott Pilgrim devs, using GGPO, and on PSN, so GETTING HYPE! cautiously regardless.
*Please bear in mind that I've only seen the trailer and the obviously alpha footage, and am basing my criticisms on those.
Glad to help! I followed the breadcrumbs laid by your comments on seeing more about the animation... still didn't find that, but that GOGOROBO stuff is very interesting (Even showing some male character designs. Would love to see "Big Band" in action!)The Take Out Bandit said:Thanks for digging those pics up SAB CA!
Aye, thanks for linking that! Really liked that first stage shown there (The elevated town with blue skies) and it's full of usefull info overall. Cerebella looks pretty awesome there.Dizzy-4U said:
Very good to see things like shadows in dark areas, and some lightsource trickery similiar to KoF XII / Asuka 100% stuff of old. Good to see the game with a decent U.I. too, even if it and the effects are all apparently temporary / WIP.
Dambrosi said:
It's funny, as much as people complain about being tired of seeing "generic anime" styles in games, anything that's different always gets a heavy amount of detractors... :lol:
Bratz look more like Trollz of old to me, though... At any rate, that doll-feel might also be intentional. They seem to want to merchandise the stuff from this game, so giving it such an appearance is probably a good idea for that end.
I can see alot of the bother with the style going away as we see more of the characters unveiled, though... Fila and Cerebella seem to be among the most "samey" looking of the cast, so it'll probably feel very different when character of more varied designs enter the fray.
Dartastic said:
Well, that's good to hear. A couple of 360's to give the grapplers a larger variety of moves then, I suppose. I just hope a lot of the systems don't lead to detrimental effects, like the shortcuts and vast amount of option select stuff of SFIV. Hope we see some good stuff from PAX!
Alright, I just watched the Quick Look, and that's sold me on it...somewhat.
Is it just me, or have they changed the (presumably) main character's animation to not have so many panty-flashes from the alpha version? They've also changed up her moveset, she looks far more complete now.
The other character, Cerrabella, looks like she's all cheesecake fodder with some of Tager's moveset and an impossible amount of jiggle. Not much else to say about her, tbh. I await footage of the other characters with semi-baited breath.
I love the catwalk stage, with the 3D high-rises in the background. Reminded me of some of the backgrounds from SFIII: Giant's Attack, or a higher-res version of some of SNK's background art. The other two stages...still meh. The overall art style seems much cleaner now, though - I can actually make shit out now!
No more three-on-three tag mode? Looks like it's now a 1-on-1 fighter with MvC mechanics, which could be interesting in and of itself. For the record, I was never a huge fan of MvC2, though I liked MvC1 a lot. If this game is more like the first MvC, that'll be cool.
Overall, my impression of the game now is far more positive than it was a mere 30 minutes ago. They should have never shown the game in alpha, it made for a bad first impression, and that's important for anything, never mind a new fighter. Nonetheless, I'll definitely check SkullGirls (...ugh) out when it comes to PSN. Should be good stuff.
And yes, TToB, Sugeno needs to get his finger out and bring Vanguard Princess out on XBLA at the very least!
Is it just me, or have they changed the (presumably) main character's animation to not have so many panty-flashes from the alpha version? They've also changed up her moveset, she looks far more complete now.
The other character, Cerrabella, looks like she's all cheesecake fodder with some of Tager's moveset and an impossible amount of jiggle. Not much else to say about her, tbh. I await footage of the other characters with semi-baited breath.
I love the catwalk stage, with the 3D high-rises in the background. Reminded me of some of the backgrounds from SFIII: Giant's Attack, or a higher-res version of some of SNK's background art. The other two stages...still meh. The overall art style seems much cleaner now, though - I can actually make shit out now!
No more three-on-three tag mode? Looks like it's now a 1-on-1 fighter with MvC mechanics, which could be interesting in and of itself. For the record, I was never a huge fan of MvC2, though I liked MvC1 a lot. If this game is more like the first MvC, that'll be cool.
Overall, my impression of the game now is far more positive than it was a mere 30 minutes ago. They should have never shown the game in alpha, it made for a bad first impression, and that's important for anything, never mind a new fighter. Nonetheless, I'll definitely check SkullGirls (...ugh) out when it comes to PSN. Should be good stuff.
And yes, TToB, Sugeno needs to get his finger out and bring Vanguard Princess out on XBLA at the very least!
Maybe with VP Prime?
McBradders
NeoGAF: my new HOME
Thanks for the links to the samples outside of the game, I am on board now. The first vid I saw seemed too anime-esque, but it's a little more unique than that, thankfully.
Dambrosi said:
Naaa, they definitely still have the tag system in. But the game will allow you to combat, ratio-style. (1 strong, 2 middle of the road, or 3 weaker charas) They've also mentioned the game will have 3 assit modes for your partners: Something like an alpha, a beta... and then basically a "Make your own assist" as a 3rd option, where you can input the special moves / commands you want to be your assist.
They also apparenrly want the assist tag-ins to be unique; Some character appearing from the ground, others vertically, some appearing just as they would in MvC... sounds rather ambitious.
I like their mindset of getting the game out and in front of people as soon as possible... but I think they could use a bit more planning behind it. I don't think these were the best 2 characters to make an announce trailer with, for instance. While to their eyes, there's loads of differences (Rushdown VS Grappler, School Girl outfit VS Circus Themed Acrobat, etc), I don't know if the general public sees much more than the samey surface stuff.
Might work out in the end though. Bad early impressions, but they might be able to pull a "Look how far we've come!" effect out of that, for those who stick around for the ride.
They seem to have an underlying Film/Animation motif going on (strips of film for the combos, all the "That's a wrap!" and such bumpers for rounds, characters drawing inspiration from various periods of animation, etc), I hope this gets more and more evident as time goes on. Seems like a nice spin to help give it some unique personality.
thebaroness
Member
I like how girls with non chicken-like noodles legs are consider to have "horse calves"
Screw ya'll I like Ahad's artwork.
Screw ya'll I like Ahad's artwork.
CountAntonius
Member
That's a fantastic Quick look. These guys have a great philosophy on game making.