a fighting game Want success comparable to the most played competitive games in the world? The answer, if you just look at the market, seems to be an always resounding “no” motivated by reasons that have been repeated as a mantra for decades. “These are very inaccessible and complex games”, some say “the barrier to entry is too high”, reassures others … yet if you analyze the learning difficulties of a fighting game, the barriers are no more insurmountable than exaggerated. Reach high levels in a Dota-like or shooter game.
True, most such games overwhelm the system player, and approaching their mechanical mass from scratch can be traumatic; However, in recent years, the spread of oil in systems designed to welcome newbies more gently, in increasingly advanced and instructional communities, and the Netcode rollback finally stabilizes the online experience enough to be enjoyable almost globally.
So while these transformations are on the table, the initial question needs to be re-asked, although it is clear that few brands in the field can truly blow up the market. For example, Smash Bros. (though hindered by Nintendo’s inability to focus on its competitive success), like Mortal Kombat (currently among the most mainstream) or the undead Street Fighter. Capcom recently approved the sixth major chapter. However, running a well-established historical series is always a very difficult challenge, especially if the goal of total dissemination described above is pursued.
Today we will therefore try to understand What do we want and expect from Capcom’s new fighting game, Street Fighter 6?.
Optimize the yes, simplify the no
We have said this several times on our pages, and we repeat it even now: we are not fans of forced simplification of systems to satisfy the general public, but we will always support any option added. accessibility. There’s a big difference between hacking advanced mechanics and making them easy to perform for the disabled (or simple implementation difficulties); The second option is always positive for us, there are no ifs and buts. However, Japanese developers have rarely approached this with great cunning, adding little mechanics that don’t really make it easy for beginners to learn.
That’s why when it comes to Street Fighter 6, we’d like to see well thought out accessibility options included: macros that make it easy to execute complex moves (even the switch-only option) or less brutal requirements for completing optimal combinations. In our view, it’s not really these factors that make a fighting game really great: A novice can’t beat a champion simply because it’s easier to use basic mechanics in a complex combat system. Oh, for God’s sake, no auto comboFrom a few fighting games (like Dragonball FighterZ) where the mechanics are natively integrated into the system, in 90% of cases it’s a spitting addon that does little or nothing to really teach those who want it the basics. to learn.
One approach we’ve seen successfully used recently is simplified custom inputs: the ability to use special moves and perform combinations by simply pressing certain keys and simple directions. But if you’re playing like Granblue Versus, and the latest DNF Duel (not yet released) seems to use this idea heavily, we don’t think it’s a good fit for Street Fighter. In a brand that is the foundation of every fighting game, it would be a real disrespect to remove the inputs from Hadoken and Dragon Punch. To make everything less difficult for the impractical, perhaps it would be worth noting to include super-simplified ones (for example, without double-quick moves or recharges), but as previously mentioned, smart macros should suffice and progress even with a classic system. .
What do we want, what do we expect
After tackling the accessibility issue, it’s okay to go into the purely mechanical one, as possibilities matter. In fact, Street Fighters have always tended to shuffle cards from chapter to chapter, suggesting systems that are significantly different from the past, and we have no doubt that Street Fighter 6 will represent a game as well. dry lifeboat Compared to what we see with V. However, our hope is a less encompassed and harnessed system than that of the V-triggers (in our opinion, it really developed properly only when the squad was full and it really started to try with the possibility of fighters).
Street Fighter 6 needs gameplay It has a personality, basic mechanics that allow players not only to drastically change their playstyle with a single character, but also to perform complex offensive and defensive actions. Comparable to 3rd Strike parry or Guilty Gear’s Roman Cancel. Stop before you get the forks: we obviously don’t want Street Fighter to turn into an anime fighter with aerial shots and animations that can be canceled in 12 different ways, in fact we’ve already mentioned the importance of respecting the roots of the name. No, in our view Street Fighter should remain a brawler with a well-established system, always built on footpaths and perfectly regulated distances; therefore, among all possibilities, paradoxically, -ism system Street Fighter Alpha’s with the chance to change your character’s style and special mechanics for each choice.
However, we believe that the next game in the series will still take a few steps. more magnificent. If what we’ve observed with Luke provides a clue for the next game, it’s reasonable to expect “shoto” with much more elaborate combinations than the classic ones, and a tendency to bounce opponents off the wall. Who knows, so the next Street Fighter doesn’t really offer some kind of environmental interaction associated with certain combinations or the possibility of changing the properties of specials as needed.
So we believe it’s legitimate to expect a particular one. revolution in staff and in its content. We never want to review a game in the launch state of the previous episode: a better older build, much better attention to online and offline content, and a list that’s been nurtured from day one (nothing exaggerated, a minimum of twenty characters). Indeed, many people recently theorized that the best way to bring all fighting games is to play free-to-play structured in seasons, but we believe that this is not the case for this series at the moment. Coming back to the roster, however, the well-known characters of the saga will certainly not be completely abandoned in favor of new entries as was initially done by Street Fighter 3 (with well-known results), but it’s a middle ground with the capacity to renew it significantly. loosen things up a bit and ‘don’t mind the nostalgia yoke. Finally, we do not find it appropriate to repeat it and we demand it. netcode rollback high level. It is an absolute necessity that Capcom cannot ignore today. Ah, a big style change certainly wouldn’t hurt, because Street Fighter V was pretty lacking in art.
Overall, our ideas for a new Street Fighter might be a mix of more accessibility and a well-known name, even if it’s a build fear closer to live services (and we fear it because it’s rarely implemented by benchmarks). not enough to make the game a global success without changing its historical appeal. If the genre doesn’t dominate, it’s not bad either way: it’s enough for us to see the brand comeback in dizzying form on our screens.
Source: Multiplayer