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[The horizon is bright for fighting games, so I thought I’d have Virtua Kazama take the stage and talk about some of the biggest fighting games coming to 2016 for a new year of salt. But a quickie note, Kazama had a lapse in memory and forgot to includePokkén Tournament! With interesting standby choices like Blaziken and Charizard, to new contenders like Suicune and Chandalure,it is shaping up to be a great fighting game for the Wii U ~Strider]
2016 is finally here, ladies and gentlemen!
Last year, we saw several releases for fighting games, such asMortal Kombat X,Skullgirls 2nd Encore,Dead or Alive 5 Last Round,Yatagarasu: Attack on Cataclysm, the PS4 port ofUltra Street Fighter IV, the arcade releases ofTekken 7,Blazblue Central Fiction, andGuilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-,Blazblue Chronophantasma EXTEND, the Steam release ofGuilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, and the North American release ofDengeki Bunko Fighting Climax.
We also had DLC of existing fighters such as the appearances of Mewtwo, Roy (Fire Emblem), Ryu, Lucas, and Cloud inSuper Smash Bros. for 3DS/Wii U (along with new and returning stages for both versions), Kombat Pack 1 (Tanya, Jason Voorhees, Predator, and Tremor) inMortal Kombat X, the inclusion of Leo Whitefang, Elphelt, Sin Kiske inGuilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, the Fireworks stage inDead or Alive 5 Last Round, the second season ofKiller Instinct, and more.
And who can’t forget about noticeable FGC moments such as Woshige’s premature popoff inGuilty Gear Xrdat EVO, SonicFox defeating Perfect Legend 13-0 in a FT10 inMortal Kombat Xat Summer Jam 9, K-Brad channeling his inner Stone Cold Steve Austin inUltimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3at CEO, JC Akira winningDOA5 Last Roundtournament with Akira in NEC16, the controller issues between Momochi and Gamerbee during Grand Finals inUSF4at EVO, and Daigo’s pixel comeback inUSF4at Capcom Cup 2015 Finals.
We had a good retrospective on 2015, but now it’s time to look for the future for fighting games and the FGC. We have a good amount of fighting games that are coming out this year for consoles, PC, and arcades. One could say thatwe might be ushering in a new golden age of fighters.As Velociraptor mentioned, “Though not the biggest subdivision in gaming, the FGC is showing a real sense of community instead of competition.” That will be mentioned when I get toTekken 7: Fated Ambitionin a moment.
Without further ado, let’s take a look at the fighting games coming out in 2016, the DLC content coming, and the tournament series that will take place this year.
Back in late 2014, the FGC exploded when Capcom announcedStreet Fighter Vexclusively for PlayStation 4 and PC. At first, I thought it wasn’t gonna be possible due to Capcom’s financial situation, but thanks to Sony’s involvement, they made it a possibility. I know it pissed off the Xbox fanboys when the announcement hit, but to be fair: they will be fine.
Last year, we witnessed the return of M. Bison (Dictator), Cammy, Vega (Claw), Zangief, Ken, and Dhalsim, all joining Ryu and Chun-Li. We also witnessed the epic return of four characters that we haven’t seen sinceStreet Fighter Alpha: Charlie Nash, Karin, Rainbow Mika, and Birdie. And finally, we witnessed the debuts of Necalli, Rashid, Laura (older sister of Sean ofSF3), and F.A.N.G. In addition to the 16 characters, Capcom announced the first six DLC characters, which are Guile, Balrog, Juri, Ibuki, Alex, and Urien. All of them are coming out this year right after the game comes out.
Capcom let all the players try out the beta version ofStreet Fighter Vbefore the game comes out, offline and online. We had a chance at playing all the characters and getting used to the new mechanics. Hell, I played all three beta days of the game and I enjoyed using Chun-Li and Laura. I like what I see so far, and I feel that it can keep the fire going thatStreet Fighter IVleft for this game.
Oh yeah I forgot: Capcom Pro Tour 2016 is going to begin, starting with Final Round 19 in March. Of course, the game will let you know what tournament is coming up, so if you are interested, join in on the fun!
Will it be at EVO?:Duh!Street Fighteris the backbone of the FGC, why wouldn’t it be? Of course it will be at EVO! It’ll be the first thing to be announced by Mr. Wizard.
This one caught me and everyone else by surprise. Last month, we got a teaser trailer and it pretty much worried everyone because the game using 3D graphics. The first thing that everyone came to mind was the fact that SNK has a terrible record with transitioning 2D gameplay into 3D gameplay for their fighters, likeKOF Maximum Impact,Samurai Shodown 64andSen, etc.
No, that was not the case.KOF14transitioned to 2.5D gameplay, meaning that it is 2D gameplay with 3D graphics. The gameplay feels similar to KOF13, only with some changes. For starters, they added the auto combos called Rush Combos, which is good for beginners. Just Defend fromGarou: Mark of the Wolvesmake a return toKOF14. Blowback attacks can now cause wall bounces, which can work well in terms of juggling combos. Not much was said about the gameplay, but we’ll see in the future.
In terms of characters, we are supposedly getting 50 characters, which is the biggest roster inKOFhistory. So far, the characters that are confirmed for this game are Andy Bogard, Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, Chang Koehan, Leona Heidern, Kula Diamond, King, Billy Kane, Angel, and Ralf Jones. And the best part about it is that for the first time ever, online mode will have a Party Battle mode, in which it allows 6 player 3v3 teams.
Honestly, I can’t wait to get my hands onKOF14. Also, this game is exclusively for PlayStation 4 much likeStreet Fighter V. It’s safe to say that PlayStation 4 is the go-to console for fighting games.
Will it be at EVO?:We don’t know the release date forKOF14yet. Besides, the game is only 70% complete based on what I know so far. Until a release date is set, then we will know. For now, I’m gonna be quiet about it.
Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-brought back life for theGGcommunity, from appearing in tournaments, to gaining new players. Hell, the game made it to EVO and it caused a noticeable moment in Top 8, which was Woshige’s premature celebration.
However, Arc System Works announced the follow-up sequel,-REVELATOR-sometime back in 2015, right after EVO as a matter of fact. The game came out with major balance changes, some new stages, and a couple new characters. Returning from pastGGgames are Jam Kuradoberi, Johnny, Jack-O Valentine (new character), and Dizzy (who won due to fan votes, beating Bridget and Baiken).
Will it be at EVO?:The game comes out this spring, so it’s most likely gonna be at EVO.
We all know thatTekken 7came out for arcades last year, and it left a major impression on the gameplay. Gone were the traditional bounds ofTekken 6andTekken Tag Tournament 2, and the gameplay feels somewhat similar toTekken 5: Dark Resurrection.
After The King of the Iron Fist Tournament 2015 came to a close, we witnessed a trailer forTekken 7: Fated Retribution. The first thing that blew the internet up was the fact that Akuma fromStreet Fighterjoins the cast as a playable character. And the best part about it is this: IT IS CANON TO THETEKKENSTORYLINE!
Yes, you heard it right: Akuma is part of theTekkenstoryline. While we don’t know the full story behindTekken 7, we can expect a lot of great things coming from it since it is the conclusion of the Mishima storyline.
As for gameplay, Akuma transferred into theTekkengameplay very well. The only thing thatStreet Fighterplayers need to realize is that they are not dealing with combo links, but instead of combo strings. Also, all the characters received a graphical update, rebalanced gameplay, and more new stages. In terms of customization,Tekken 7: Fated Ambitiontook a page fromVirtua Fighter 5 R/Final Showdownby including custom pre-fight intros based on equipped items.
Will it be at EVO?:We don’t know ifTekken 7will have a proper release date for consoles, but I’m pretty sure that the arcade version will be used like the previous version. Only time will tell.
Killer InstinctSeason 3 was announced last year and it is coming to Xbox One and PC in March, complete with cross-play. We got a preview of one of the characters, which was Rash fromBattletoads. Keep in mind that the character is not fully done, so what we saw from the preview will be changed from the time the game comes out. Also coming in the game are Kim Wu and Tusk, both returning fromKiller Instinct 2. And as usual, we will get new gameplay changes, more characters, and new stages. Not much to say there.
However, I do want to say that theKiller InstinctWorld Cup is coming up this month, January 30-31, 2016. $30,000 up for grabs and 32 players will be competing for it.
Will it be at EVO?:Most likely. TheKIcommunity has done a great job supporting their scene, so we will see it again.
DLC coming out this year:We got new fighters releasing in 2016, but it wouldn’t be right if we didn’t talk about the DLC that’s coming out for some of last year’s games.
Let’s start withSmash Bros.If you remember last month,Smash 4will be getting Corrin from the upcomingFire Emblem Fatesand Bayonetta next month. In case anyone forgot, Bayonetta was the most-voted character in the Smash Ballot.
Dead or Alive 5 Last Roundhas another guest character coming in March, which is Naotora Ii from theSamurai Warriorsseries. I checked her gameplay out inSamurai Warriors 4just to see what the character is like, and she might be dangerous in the right hands. We’ll see on March. (Also, still waiting on the announcement for Battle Royal 2016, guys.)
Also, can’t forget about the Kombat Pack 2 forMortal Kombat X. We are getting Leatherface, Bo Rai Cho, Tri-Borg, and Alien sometime soon in 2016. That’s gonna be very interesting whenMortal Kombat Xreturns to EVO this year.
I know there’s more coming this year, but that’s about it for this blog. I must say, 2016 is looking really good for fighting games and the fighting game community as a whole. Let’s bring the hype and mark a legacy that we will never forget.
