Capcom’s Street Fighter V was a game I was extremely excited for. It promised to be bigger and better than anything before it in the Street Fighter series, but what we got was less than expected. The game lacked so many basic modes and was extremely difficult for a newcomer to get into, despite Capcom saying they wanted to make it easier for newcomers to get into the series. It was a complete disappointment to me and it was the first time I ever felt upset at buying a game digitally, since I could not return it. The incomplete launch was such a turn of to me that it caused me to question if fighting games were for me.
I had been getting into fighting games more and more over the past year but SFV killed all excitement I had for the genre. I began to wonder if it was even worth getting into, or if I was wasting my time. Aside from Mortal Kombat, few fighting game were very welcoming to newcomers and casuals, or to fans who are not hardcore players. I thought “Okay, maybe this is just how the genre is now” and was willing to accept that. But then it all changed.
When SNK’s King of Fighters XIV was announced, people mocked it for its graphics and wrote it off as a waste. But it slowly but surely began to win people over, people who were tired of what the genre had become and wanted something different. When KOF XIV came out, it was a revelation to me. This was a fighting game that I could learn and get into , and hardcore players and casuals alike could enjoy for different reasons. SNK sacrificed visuals to make the product the best they could in terms of substance and I found myself enjoying fighting games again.
When issues came up online, SNK hurried to make a patch and fix the issues, and every interview with the developers shows a love of gaming that is lacking elsewhere. KOF XIV won over skeptics and gained many new fans with its design. Anyone can learn it but it takes effort to master it and that is how it should be. It also happens to be a complete game with everything included at launch. DLC may come later, but there is already so much variety that if there is no DLC, there is still more than enough content.
I was ready to move on and accept that fighting games were something I would never get into. But SNK rid me of that idea and made me realize that there are fighting games worth playing. I am particularly excited for Tekken 7 now and I will always be indebted to SNK for saving this genre for me.
You can read my review of KOF XIV here
I can understand what you mean, Street Fighter V did fail to impress, mainly because of the fact that it felt like there was not much to really do; but then again, fighting games are all mostly PvP competition when it comes down to the end of it.
From a competitive gamer standpoint, The King of Fighters XIV is harder than Street Fighter V at an entry level; it is simply more different on execution, confirms, and learning how to “properly” play the game.
Also, if you want a good fighting game, you really need to play “Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-“, as it is HANDS DOWN the best fighting game to come out this year. However, it takes dedication to learn how to play at even the most basic level, but well worth it.
Since the emergence of e-fame and big pot prizes, the bulk of the FGC aren’t really into fighting games; they’re into the FGC soap opera of who’s saying what about who/stupid memes/d-ck riding their favorite e-celeb.
I’m not crapping on it, that’s just the way everything becomes when you add money and fame.
At its purest (1992 – 2004), because there was no big money or fame involved, people who loved fighting games played whatever they thought was the best game.
Sure, you had franchise loyalists, but within that if the newest iteration of X-fighter X was crap, no-one would take it seriously.
In 2016, there’re sponsorships, ad deals, 100,000 dollar cash prizes, stream revenue, ad revenue, e-fame, attention whores, etc. People have a lot more to personally gain from playing the newest game even if it’s total garbage. Their livelihoods depend on it!
This breeds a situation where one company or one select group will have too much power over what the followers in this new FGC does or plays, because:
“Since the emergence of e-fame and big pot prizes, the bulk of the FGC aren’t really into fighting games; they’re into the FGC soap opera of who’s saying what about who/stupid memes/d-ck riding their favorite e-celeb.”