Why fighters are inaccessible and how they could be

There was a time when you were the hero of the schoolyard if you knew how to carry out the fatalities in Mortal Kombat. It did not even matter if your instructions actually worked. Fighting games were popular and everyone who had a Super Nintendo or Mega Drive was in possession of a copy of Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat.

In that respect, a lot has changed nowadays. Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat are still there, but the fighting genre has undergone enormous developments. The rise of online gaming has given games like Street Fighter a whole new dimension: your opposition is no longer limited to a group of friends, but extended to everyone in the world. In addition, large e-sports competitions such as the Evolution Championship Series (the largest and most prestigious fighting game tournament in the world) can be followed online and the interest in this type of event is growing every day. It seems to be the perfect formula for unprecedented success, but despite these developments there is something that holds back the genre: it is not accessible to casual gamers.

Difficult and ruthless

That the genre is seen by many as inaccessible is partly due to the essence of the genre. Fighters are incredibly competitive and that can be very stressful besides exciting and challenging. After all, anyone who plays to win automatically puts a certain pressure on himself. When you play against a human opponent, this pressure is often much greater. The competitive nature of the game ensures that both players want to win at all costs and this can ensure that an evening of Street Fighter is frustrating rather than relaxing, especially if your opponents are much better than you.

The learning curve of the average fighting game does not lie either; in many cases it takes a lot of practice to get a solid grip on the basic skills. That means you have to spend dozens of hours in training, while you would rather just play a game. Performing attacks or combos is often quite a task in itself, which is even more difficult under performance pressure, especially when your opponent does not give you time to get used to the control.

Although fighting games will always be competitive, the inaccessibility of many fighters is just as much about choices that the developers make. A complex control or a laundry list of attacks is not necessary to give a game strategic depth. If a developer chooses, he automatically focuses on seasoned enthusiasts and keeps a casual player outside the door. By adding different single player possibilities, there is also a lot of fun for the latter target group. An interesting Story Mode or singeplayer challenges, such as those in Mortal Kombat X, are good examples of this. The degree of difficulty can be set against computer-controlled opponents according to their own views. Unfortunately, such options are limited in many fighters or are completely missing.

The best recent example of how that can go wrong is Street Fighter 5, a game with profound and well-developed gameplay that fell well with the professional Street Fighter community, but was shattered by the general public. Street Fighter 5 is regarded by Capcom as an eSports game and there is no room for the casual gamer. This setting was painfully expressed on the launch of the game due to the lack of any form of single player modes and a stubborn focus on online competition. In combination with the high learning curve, it ensures that the casual gamer quickly pulls out completely. Even the fact that many additional options have been made available in the months after launch has not yet benefited.

The accessible fighter

Fortunately, there are also examples of fighting games that make it much easier to step in. The Super Smash Bros. franchise for example. Especially Super Smash Bros. Melee is still very popular and is embraced by both casual and professional gamers. The fact that the different attacks are easy to carry out ensures that every player understands within a few pots what his or her character is capable of, with the result that everyone can immediately take pleasure from the game.

Because the goal in the Smash Bros. games is not to reduce a life bar to zero, but to work out the level several times, the possibilities for a comeback are also greater. Add to that a fun party mode that allows the game to be played with four players at the same time, with optional items and stage hazards, and you have the formula for a fighting game that is suitable for a wider audience. This accessibility is not at the expense of the depth that Super Smash offers, which makes it fun to play the game at a high level.

Between elitist and casual

But is it really only possible to make fighting games accessible by completely changing the traditional formula? There is at least one developer who does not think so: David Sirlin. He has participated in Street Fighter 2 tournaments at a high level and has a preference for the competitive aspect of the genre. He is also responsible as a game designer for producing and balancing Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix (the version of Street Fighter 2 used as the basis for Ultra Street Fighter 2 on the Switch).

At the moment he is working on Fantasy Strike, his own project. Fantasy Strike is a fighting game that basically takes a 2D fighter as a Street Fighter and makes it easy to learn. There are many similarities to the game on which it is inspired, but simplifies many of the game mechanics. Attacks can be carried out at the touch of a button and combos do not require strict timing, so they do not go wrong by mistake. In addition, there is the Yomi Counter, a skill where throws of the opponent can be countered. In order to carry out this maneuver, you do not have to do anything at all. Throws are automatically thwarted as long as you do not press any button, so not a direction.

It sounds easy and that is it. On the tactical level, however, the game is surprisingly profound and does not get boring fast. Because everyone has the control of the game quickly under control, this strategic depth in a short time for every player within reach, and that makes it at the same time a very competitive and a very accessible game. Every mistake that a player makes arises from a wrong decision and not from a lack of control over the control. Other developers could learn a lot from it.

The future of fighting games

Fighting games are a niche genre for a long time because of their high level of difficulty and that is a shame, because despite their reputation they can offer a lot of fun. Fortunately, the genre seems to slowly soften its elitist image. In 2018 there are several fighting games waiting for us and so far they look very promising. For example, two fighting games will be released this month, Street Fighter 5 Arcade Edition and Dragon Ball FighterZ. The former adds more possibilities that were lacking in the original edition of Street Fighter 5; an Arcade Mode in which players can record against CPUs and automatic access to the first twelve extra characters.

Dragon Ball FighterZ seems to become a dream for fans of the Dragon Ball manga and anime. Unlike most of the fighting games that use the Dragon Ball license, this time we can expect a serious fighting game with depth. Developer Arc System Works (known from Guilty Gear among others) has opted for a control system that offers many possibilities, but is easy to understand. Attacks in Dragon Ball FighterZ are relatively simple to perform (sometimes just a single button) and because the game focuses on three against three battles, players have more chances to come back when they are losing. Combined with an extensive Story Mode full of recognizable moments and references, Dragon Ball FighterZ seems to have the elements for an accessible fighting game.

In addition, we can also start working with SoulCalibur 6 later this year. The series is known for paying a lot of attention to game options that casual gamers appreciate, for example a Story Mode or designing own characters with lots of costumes and parts to play freely. Up to now there is not much known about the game, nor whether such possibilities return, but it seems natural that part 6 will not break this trend. With that, another fighter takes a step in the right direction.

Fighting games that focus mainly on competition and hardcore players are unlikely to disappear, but games such as Street Fighter, Tekken and Guilty Gear are becoming increasingly difficult due to their inaccessibility. That's a shame because they are well-designed games. Fortunately, we see that the genre is increasingly open to a larger audience. By adding not only competitive game modes but also interesting casual or single player options, or using less rigid operating systems, fighters can offer both target groups a lot. And that can be mercilessly simplified without the gameplay. Games such as Super Smash Bros., Fantasy Strike and Dragon Ball FighterZ show that the middle way between casual and elite is fine to walk and that can ultimately only benefit the image of fighting games.

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