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[petran79]

Do you love them?

Just like going out with a childhood friend since the 80s


Do you have fond memories of the genre?

Mainly on arcades and computers since the 80s. First console for fighting games was a Dreamcast since arcades had dwindled. You can never seperate fighters from their arcade roots. They'll feel like a different game. Same for other arcade game genres


Do you think they'll survive?

They changed when compared to previous decades, even in Japan, but they'll survive

Do you still play?

I do as I play other arcade games. I have a PC that I mainly use for emulation and a Dreamcast nearby that I use mostly for arcade games.

How would you improve them?

Unfortunately it is difficult for the player base to change and accept the genre the way it is. You see younger players who've spent thousands of hours in other online genres like DOTA, CS, Warcraft, League of Legends. Games with countless information and tactics that would make any fighting game pale. Had they spent all those hours in a fighting game, they'd be unbeatable. In the 80s their equivalents would spend all their coins in arcades and finish games with 1 coin. They discovered everything on their own. My fried had found various unimaginable ways to score in Super Sidekicks, all by himself. He'd demolish me. Another guy could play Shinobi 1 blindfolded, without any mistakes. Others would reach level 80 in Bubble Bobble without losing a life. This did not happen because they were born with amazing reflexes. They spent countless hours playing and enjoying the game. Publishers and developers need to promote that type of gameplay, which has been relegated to portables and mobile phones or Wiiware and XBLA. At the same time it is also difficult to make a good fighting game. Game looks simple on the surface but it is quite complex beneath. Majority of trash games I played were fighting games. At least in other genres you can fill them with CGI, OST, dialogue etc so they look good

I think you're being extremely unfair towards the community. There's a level of elitism in the FGC, sure, but it's not as simple as you put it. All sports are geared towards competition, but there's so many people playing them that you'll always find someone on your level. But try getting into a niche game/sport, like... curling. You'll be lucky to find one noob, the rest will be expert players and would it be fair to ask them "please, don't play seriously because I'm a noob and I want to remain a noob"? It would be nice to have offline friends on your same level and with the same attitude, but when the game is small, not many will be so lucky. If there's a ton of people playing the game, communities of different skill level will form naturally, but if it's small... you'll have to adapt.

Sometimes expert players do not have to play seriously at all, especially for older fighters. They'll just take advantage of the various glitches and infinites and make a noob never touch the game again.

But this did not deter me from playing Last Blade 2....

 

[Mr. Nice_Guy]

Got into them a few years back, really enjoy playing them with friends, but don't have the competitive drive to play online that much. I'll just go through phases where I will for a week or so and then drop off. I'm happy if there are enough single player options, so if I get the urge to mess around with a bunch of different characters, I can just enjoy doing that for a bit without being completely obliterated online.

 

[Neo-Kny]

I was an 8 years old kid when there was a local store in my neighborhood with one arcade machine with KOF95, by then i had only played street fighter games, but this kof it was something different, the ability that you can play with 3 characters was something revolutionary, at least in my neighborhood and soon i got good and my friends couldn't win me.

There were other local store in another street near to my house, with a lot of arcade machines and one of them with KOF97, i started to go play there, but it wasn't the same, i was far away to be good, and there was a guy older than me, i don't remember his name but his nickname was "huevo" (egg in english) and he was too good, nobody could defeat him, i never could defeat a single character of him, sometimes he challenged me even when i was close to finish the arcade mode, fighting against orochi, and he challenged me just for the pleasure of beat me, i really hated that guy.

When i was in high school, in that local store there was a single arcade machine with KOF2002, i used to go play there after high school, and i hadn't seen "huevo" in years, but one day i was playing and suddenly "huevo" walked in the local store, he didn't see me, neither the arcade machine, he went there only to buy some snacks and when he was leaving, he heard the voices on the arcade machine and he stopped, but he only was standing there watching me play almost by 5 minutes, i didn't even know if he remembered me, but i did, obviously i remembered him, and i got desperate cause he was only sanding there, watching without say a single word, just thinking, then he decided to challenge me, he inserted the coin and i got nervous. The fight started and finished quickly, with me winning without lose a single character!, i was surprised!! i won to "huevo" finally!! i my mind there was questions like "did i get good?" "did he lose his level?" but i really didn't care the answers, i was too happy that i could finally win to that guy!!
"Huevo" left the store while i was still smiling because my victory, but like 10 minutes later he came back to the local store, but this time without thinking or saying anything he challenged me again, but too unfortunate for him, the result was the same... and the same in 3 more times...

none other genre has made me feel this way
i love fighting games.

 

[Amedo310]

I was an 8 years old kid when there was a local store in my neighborhood with one arcade machine with KOF95, by then i had only played street fighter games, but this kof it was something different, the ability that you can play with 3 characters was something revolutionary, at least in my neighborhood and soon i got good and my friends couldn't win me.

There were other local store in another street near to my house, with a lot of arcade machines and one of them with KOF97, i started to go play there, but it wasn't the same, i was far away to be good, and there was a guy older than me, i don't remember his name but his nickname was "huevo" (egg in english) and he was too good, nobody could defeat him, i never could defeat a single character of him, sometimes he challenged me even when i was close to finish the arcade mode, fighting against orochi, and he challenged me just for the pleasure of beat me, i really hated that guy.

When i was in high school, in that local store there was a single arcade machine with KOF2002, i used to go play there after high school, and i hadn't seen "huevo" in years, but one day i was playing and suddenly "huevo" walked in the local store, he didn't see me, neither the arcade machine, he went there only to buy some snacks and when he was leaving, he heard the voices on the arcade machine and he stopped, but he only was standing there watching me play almost by 5 minutes, i didn't even know if he remembered me, but i did, obviously i remembered him, and i got desperate cause he was only sanding there, watching without say a single word, just thinking, then he decided to challenge me, he inserted the coin and i got nervous. The fight started and finished quickly, with me winning without lose a single character!, i was surprised!! i won to "huevo" finally!! i my mind there was questions like "did i get good?" "did he lose his level?" but i really didn't care the answers, i was too happy that i could finally win to that guy!!
"Huevo" left the store while i was still smiling because my victory, but like 10 minutes later he came back to the local store, but this time without thinking or saying anything he challenged me again, but too unfortunate for him, the result was the same... and the same in 3 more times...

none other genre has made me feel this way
i love fighting games.

May I ask where you grew up?

 

[Neo-Kny]

May I ask where you grew up?

monterrey, mexico

 

[gelf]

I have loved them ever since I first played Street Fighter 2 and I have continued to play them ever since. Despite that I've never been particularly good at them and have mostly just enjoyed beating up the CPU aside from a decent stint playing Virtua Fighter 5:FS online. That VS CPU features have gone backwards since VF4:Evo two gens ago is a major disappointment. I can't muster the motivation to learn these games competitively without a single player mode guiding me through it in the first place. I don't enjoy just messing around in training mode.

In any case I feel the dedication needed to become proficient at fighters is beyond me as I have many other genres I also love and I can't dedicate my gaming time to just one. Because of this I would really appreciate modes aimed at enjoying these games offline and would especially love a fighter to copy Virtua Fighter's Quest mode.

 

[duvjones]

Rather than debating about different fighters, let's go to the genre.

Do you love them?

Yes

Do you have fond memories of the genre?

I have been playing fighting games since ST hit big in Canada, to say that I have fond memories would be an understatement

Do you think they'll survive?

Yes, but... (see last question)

Do you still play?

Yes...

How would you improve them?

You know, watching SFV rise and then suddenly fall has been rather disheartening. I mean, for all the BS you can say about SF4... it was a series that was keenly focused on doing one thing and one thing very well. Attracting the casual player.
Even in the improving state of SFV, it's first (and by the looks of it, only) shot to sell casuals on the game was a complete miss-fire. Without the content to back up the frankly amazing game-play, there is little reason to care for the game, the characters, and so on unless you were already a fan. After that big issue, it's mostly been a bunch of hit or miss features that has been a "Death of a thousand cuts" for SFV (which there are at least fixing)... but the second it started the downward slide was when Ono assumed that he could just ignore the casual base in flavor of getting the game out there.
As a genre, this should be a lesson. It will infuriate those that have been in the FGC for a lot less time, or whom put in all there passion into a game/series/genre... but the truth is the FGC doesn't make a company money, we are simply too small for that to happen. We help sell the game but we are not the ones with all the power (or the cash). Those people (for the most part) live outside the FGC. They should be your first concern. If you don't... your game will suffer, unless you are happy being niche. You ignore the casual base at your own peril.

And honestly, the life of the genre will and always has depended on that. Getting new players, more players. The good news is that most, at least, understand this lesson (hell, even SNK and they are not known for that). The bad news, it's easy to forgot until it is too late.
Anything outside of that is isn't nearly as much of an issue.

 

[Berserking Guts]

I respect them from afar and I enjoy watching evo. But I haven't been any good at fighters like street fighter, mortal kombat, tekken, soul calibur and dead or alve since the 90s to early 2000s. The online aspect of them does nothing for me.

 

[Ensoul]

I loved them in the heyday of the arcades. When I was younger I used to go to my local arcade every night and play street fighter 2. Yeah going to an arcade every night sounds loserish that but I did meet a few people there and it was a place to socialize.

I have a ton of fond memories going to different arcades around my state playing people. Yes I think they will survive.

Do I still enjoy them? Not really. Fighting games are meant to be competitive against other people and right now I can no longer complete. I did buy the latest MK last year trying to get back into fighting games but it just was not happening. The games are just to complex now. Too many combos, fighters, fighting styles to learn. I played a few games online and even the worst ranked players were having no issues beating me.

I was a good MK (once got 39 victories in row at MK 3 against people.) and Street fighter (played for an hour and a half straight beating people with M. Bison) player but those days are long over.

 

[Amedo310]

monterrey, mexico

Lucky and nice summary.


-------------------------

I'll get on topic now. I am 27 years old and grew up and still live in Baltimore, Maryland.


-Do you love them?

I can't say I love fighting games, but they have been apart of my life for long time. I love the adaptive nature of fightings games.
Especially, my adult life.



Do you have fond memories of the genre?

I remember playing SSF2 on the SNES with my brother at my dad's home. He would get the upper hand a lot in our ryu and guile matches. He was guile and I was ryu. We are play alot of mortal kombat from 1 to 3. I could never played those game well. There was weapon Lords on the Sega Genesis, but I only played a couple of time by my self. The cover and designs scared the shit when I was a kid.

Years passed. I go to theme park, which I think was Adventure Land in the mid Atlantic. I played Vampire Savior for the first time and beat the arcade with sabertooth. It felt really good doing something in a public place too. I never much cared for fighting games again until I played CVS1 on the Dreamcast at a city daycare or camp. Kyo and Terry caught my attention almost immediately, since I normally saw them in one of the KOF PS1 demo, fighting in front of Neogeo land arcade, and in CVS1, they looked amazing. I played one time and lost, but I wanted to play the game so bad that I stoled that copy for the weekend and played it non-stop. I learned Terry moves and Kyo's on the Dreamcast pad which was hell. I return the game back the following Monday while acting like it was lost in the class where I stay during the camp. Oh, I had mvs1on the Dreamcast as well, but I could not play it much since I ripped opened my thumb and had about 20 stitches on it for several months.I did play a lot of arcade mode and training in the game with Megaman and Spiderman.

Around 2008, I played a lot of GGXXAC with a the friends that I know now. I lost a lot with Ky and this was time where I learn real combos. Lol. Around 2009, I was introduced to the local FGC at UMBC in Baltimore County. This was during the start of SF4. I still remember Ken player being disappointed about the character not being his 3rd Strike self. Thursday or Wednesday nights were great and magical. I played Steve H and got destroyed in
KOFXI. I played Fate, KOF02um, KOFXII, BBCT and Tekken 6 a lot with KOF02um being favorite. Non of my friends played it as much as I did or do now.

The genre got me in making arcade sticks. I start playing on one when KOFXII came out. First stick was the hori mini fightstick 3 for ps3, than I got SC3 stick for ps3. I modded that stick into a ps2/ 360 dual mode stick and having been modding stuff since that time.



Do you think they'll survive?

I give the genre another 10 to 15 years if it stays the same as it is now.

Do you still play?

Yes. I play only SNK games at this point. I just played PS4 KOF 2000 for several hours in training mode. Making videos on Facebook of death combos with Clark and striker Joe. Haha!
Funny thing about that is it was the first long session with that game. I had the game on ps2 before, but I would only play it for 10 minutes. Now, I can't stop thinking about the things that can be done in that game. I enjoy playing it a lot and I can't to play others in it as well.

Again, I still play 02um along with KOFXIII, XI and 98umfe. I played KOF for so long at Xanadu Games that every knows me as the KOF guy. I'm super casual about it though. I have SFV too, but I only have that to bring it at my local's monthly tournaments.


How would you improve them?

I have no idea. (I'll touch on this when I am not on my Android.)

 

[Jay Sosa]

Do you love them? Used to
Do you have fond memories of the genre? Hell yeah, fondly remember playing the Tekken 2 demo or Soul Blade for insane amounts of time
Do you think they'll survive? Why wouldn't they
Do you still play? Nope, hate online and the friends I have left aren't interested in the genre
How would you improve them?

.

 

[MaverickVII]

I've never been super invested into any one fighting game but in general I really like them despite being mediocre at all the ones I've tried.

I have some cousins that I've spent a ton of time playing video games with over the years and fighting games have always been a staple. I've never gotten into the competitive scene but I've had a blast playing various fighting series casually, including Tekken, Soul Calibur, Street Fighter, Darkstalkers, MvC, Mortal Kombat, and even some random games like Gundam Battle Assault or that terrible Star Wars fighting game (which as a kid was still pretty damn fun).

 

[Disaster Nebraska]

I got seriously into them about a decade ago, although I played stuff like Smash Bros 64, SF2, Clayfighters, Tekken, Soul Calibur, and KI while growing up. If you knew that "casual kid" from the 90s who tried any fighter he could get his hands on but sucked at all of them, that was me.

For some reason, Guilty Gear #Reload really struck me as something special. I sunk a ton of time into learning the mechanics and how the characters differed.

What really helped get me on board is I had a group of friends who started learning the game at the same time, and since there wasn't much of a local scene, playing together in Nate's basement was our outlet. We each had our "mains" and our secondaries and matchups that we had to test each and every session (Millia vs Potemkin and Zappa vs Venom, for instance). We were better than your average casual player, but we were by no means great at the game.

As years went on, we'd always buy the newest iteration of GG. It wasn't until I bought my first high-end arcade stick for the PS3 where it all really clicked. Learning the game all over again -- for real, no button mashing or panicked inputs -- was a very cathartic experience, as I was going through some work and personal struggles at the time. It was a lot of fun actually mastering something. I'm by no means a great fighting game player, but I can at least clear out any characters' "combo challenges" and hold my own locally and online.

It's a great genre that I hope continues to evolve feature-wise (like better tutorials, better online room options, more robust challenge modes, stories) and graphics-wise (GG Xrd is the best-looking fighting game. EVER). But at the same time, I want the genre to stick to the fundamentals of what makes a good fighting game. I want to spend time mastering a system and use that against the person sitting to the left of me in my living room. The feeling of fighting an opponent who also understands how to play a fighting game decently is one of the best highs in my gaming experience. There really isn't another genre that gives that same feeling, except maybe 1v1 RTS.

 

[cordy]

Damn, GAF turned out with these responses, love it.

 

[Emerson's Essentia]

As a fan of the genre since SF2 and practically being the only genre I play regularly these days; I think it needs a developer with big publisher money willing to take a risk. If it's not shaken up soon, it could become almost completely irrelevant outside the indie space in 5-10.

I eagerly wait to see what Riot is doing atm.

 

[crap monkey]

As a kid I played SF2 in the arcades, never knew what to do because couldn't pause, practice, see the move list, etc. Never cared about it on SNES. Next gen when 3D fighters became popular I played a lot of them because everyone else did. But hated having to memorize long button combinations in order to do cool things. Hated fighting games passionately from then on. When HD Remix came out I dled the demo out of boredom one day hanging with a friend and really got into. It helped that the OST was awesome, the graphics looked amazing and there was a goddamn move list finally. That steamrolled into getting SFIV and then SFV. I'm pretty good at fighting games now (at the very least SF) and I can't stay away from playing a few matches for too long now.