The Evolution of Fighting Games
At a good friend's insistence, I am posting an entry. This is something that has irked me for the last few weeks, as I have been playing (and losing at) Soul Caliber 3... repeatedly.
I've found that the modern fighting game has evolved to a point where it has become an insanely complex simulation of real time combat. Realism is good, you might say, but when it comes down to having super fast hands of doom in order to be any good at them, they start to miss the point of "Fun." At that point, fighting games boil down to a test of pure, freaking frustration. The causal gamer becomes ostracized by fighting games at later levels, when "skill" becomes key to victory over the generally effective strategy of "mash buttons in random combinations until the enemy falls down."
There was a time when that 'strategy' actually worked, and it was pretty effective. I wish to take you, reader, to a time where there were only four buttons and a D-pad on the controller, instead of a billion-and-one*. This time is the era of the Super Nintendo (SNES for short), and the game is Mortal Kombat. I could probably argue that this was the birth of the modern fighting game (Mortal Kombat is a series that has evolved with the times when '3D' fighting games became the norm, but still kept mostly to its simplistic roots), as it was one of the first to show bloodshed and produce 'special moves' (followed closely by a personal favourite, Killer Instinct). It turned out to be a fairly simple game to master, with the four buttons representing high and low punch and kick, and the D-pad controlling the character back and forth, with up and down as jump and duck respectively. This was a game which running forth and spamming buttons could take you to the top (and sometimes beat the final boss), but more skillful players who spent hours honing their favourite character to perfection had as 'easy' of a time. I mean, sure, the game had flaws, especially in the AI system, but it wasn't mind-numbingly hard and offered various difficulty modes to suit any style of player, casual or otherwise.
Fighting games were still their 2D, side scrolling gems of video gaming lore until systems like the Playstation and Sega CD started introducing the concept of 'Depth'. Up was no longer jump, but sidestep. The fighting game entered a new stage, most notably pioneered by the earliest of Virtual Fighter games. '3D' combat had now become the norm, evident in later systems like the Nintendo 64, and the later Playstation 2.
Now, what bugs me isn't the fact that there '3D' fighting games exist, far from it (I actually was introduced to one I actually enjoyed and are fairly decent at). As I stated previously, it's the complexity that seems to spawn from the fact that the third dimension automatically means 'realism' in this day and age, and as a result, more controls and combinations are added from this freedom of movement. I can't beat a fighting game boss without continuing multiple times, and using tactics that some would consider 'unsporting'. In short, I have to cheat to win. I shouldn't have to do that to get the enjoyment I want from fighting games.
I do miss the simpler time of two-dimensional side scrolling fighting games, but I can do little else than reminisce. With the newer technology, fighting games are only going to rise in complexity until we are actually punching at the screen (a feat that only Nintendo can master these days). And as a direct result, my enjoyment with new fighting games is going to dwindle. Ah well, you can't win them all.
At least I can still cheat.
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Quote: "Necessity is the Mother of Invention"
Tune in next time: Same Kat Time; Same Kat Channel!
I've found that the modern fighting game has evolved to a point where it has become an insanely complex simulation of real time combat. Realism is good, you might say, but when it comes down to having super fast hands of doom in order to be any good at them, they start to miss the point of "Fun." At that point, fighting games boil down to a test of pure, freaking frustration. The causal gamer becomes ostracized by fighting games at later levels, when "skill" becomes key to victory over the generally effective strategy of "mash buttons in random combinations until the enemy falls down."
There was a time when that 'strategy' actually worked, and it was pretty effective. I wish to take you, reader, to a time where there were only four buttons and a D-pad on the controller, instead of a billion-and-one*. This time is the era of the Super Nintendo (SNES for short), and the game is Mortal Kombat. I could probably argue that this was the birth of the modern fighting game (Mortal Kombat is a series that has evolved with the times when '3D' fighting games became the norm, but still kept mostly to its simplistic roots), as it was one of the first to show bloodshed and produce 'special moves' (followed closely by a personal favourite, Killer Instinct). It turned out to be a fairly simple game to master, with the four buttons representing high and low punch and kick, and the D-pad controlling the character back and forth, with up and down as jump and duck respectively. This was a game which running forth and spamming buttons could take you to the top (and sometimes beat the final boss), but more skillful players who spent hours honing their favourite character to perfection had as 'easy' of a time. I mean, sure, the game had flaws, especially in the AI system, but it wasn't mind-numbingly hard and offered various difficulty modes to suit any style of player, casual or otherwise.
Fighting games were still their 2D, side scrolling gems of video gaming lore until systems like the Playstation and Sega CD started introducing the concept of 'Depth'. Up was no longer jump, but sidestep. The fighting game entered a new stage, most notably pioneered by the earliest of Virtual Fighter games. '3D' combat had now become the norm, evident in later systems like the Nintendo 64, and the later Playstation 2.
Now, what bugs me isn't the fact that there '3D' fighting games exist, far from it (I actually was introduced to one I actually enjoyed and are fairly decent at). As I stated previously, it's the complexity that seems to spawn from the fact that the third dimension automatically means 'realism' in this day and age, and as a result, more controls and combinations are added from this freedom of movement. I can't beat a fighting game boss without continuing multiple times, and using tactics that some would consider 'unsporting'. In short, I have to cheat to win. I shouldn't have to do that to get the enjoyment I want from fighting games.
I do miss the simpler time of two-dimensional side scrolling fighting games, but I can do little else than reminisce. With the newer technology, fighting games are only going to rise in complexity until we are actually punching at the screen (a feat that only Nintendo can master these days). And as a direct result, my enjoyment with new fighting games is going to dwindle. Ah well, you can't win them all.
At least I can still cheat.
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Quote: "Necessity is the Mother of Invention"
Tune in next time: Same Kat Time; Same Kat Channel!