New Generation.
Originally uploaded Jan. 16th, 2023.
“Wake up or die, my beast within!” – Some dude who wrote for Capcom during the CPS-3 era, I think.
My name is Viper, and my favorite fighting game is Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R.
I’ve been playing the game seriously for about two years now, ever since rollback was announced. I’ve played in a few dozen tournaments, met some really cool people, and I’ve had my life changed for the better, I think.
But if you’re not new here, you already know that! You know how much I like Justice, and you know how much she and the game mean to me.
With that out of the way, a game I haven’t taken a liking to is Guilty Gear Strive.
It’s not that the game is worse. It’s a good game. A great game, even! I just prefer the mechanics and system of +R. Nothing wrong with that.
There’s a lot of eyes, people and money in Strive. When Strive released, people were on that shit like rats to cheese, or fighting game players during a steam sale. And rightfully so – ASW’s marketing was pretty damn good. Hell, it was the main event at several major tournaments and will still be the main event alongside the next generation of fighting games. It is the next generation of fighting games, so to speak – an era that defines devs (hopefully) working alongside players at all skill levels (ideally) and actively fixing problems, issues, and whatnot to make the experience of learning, competing and playing fighting games worthwhile.
That being said, you should play what you want.
You might be going, “This is the most useless writeup ever made. That should be a no-brainer.” And it is, in a way, the most obvious answer to an unnecessary query. Play whatever you want to play! Duh! Your wallet, your setup, your choices! It’s as simple as that.
But…
I bring it up because… I like +R. I really, really do.
Not only that, but Karnov caught my eye as well, over the past two years. Karnov’s Revenge is fun! Really much so. It turns into a game where each round is a lightning fast game of reflexes, and playing it in-person with friends at CEO 2022 was an experience that you can’t really get anywhere else.
Not only that, but I’ve been playing a bit of Breakers Revenge as well. I used to only dabble in it, but I’ve only recently learned of the system mechanics, and how bonkers they really are (For example, the longer your winstreak is on the arcade version, the more your defense values are lowered. Another example is the more time that passes before you attack, the stronger your attack is. It’s something I’m still getting used to.).
The world of Fightcade 2 has really broadened my horizons on what games I can learn and have fun with my friends. It’s a really neat (and free) way to get your feet wet if you don’t have the budget for those 60 dollar+ investments. Fightcade 2 isn’t all – there are tons of games you can play for free or cheap with good networking (Actress Again! ABK! Even Xrd a little after this article comes out!).
Getting into an old game isn’t tough – the hardest part is obtaining the game itself. After that, it’s looking into documentation and learning the game, playing the game, having fun with the game. Boomer games aren’t impossible, and shouldn’t be seen with a sense of mysticism or sacredness. You put the time and effort in and you’ll be dancing on stage alongside the rest of top 8.
Using +R as an example – the community is so receptive and positive to newcomers I went from a total rookie to someone who can stand their own against a large percentage of the community. I’ve still got things to learn, of course and that road is long. But you’re crazy if you think I’m going to stop having fun because Arc System Works decided to release another fighting game tomorrow.
You don’t have to play the newest game to have fun.
This isn’t a dunk on newer games, because those have a ton of value in the community. Why would they not?
I can’t stress enough how much I enjoyed the Street Fighter 6 beta. Type Lumina took a bit, but I warmed up to the system mechanics. Strive (bringing it up again) introduced a ton of people to fighters during a global pandemic and one could argue it helped re-invigorate the genre, as other devs stepped up to the plate to provide experiences that weren’t sub-average for the average consumer. We can’t (and thankfully won’t) settle for games without those all-too-vital quality of life experiences, hopefully.
With more and more offline events re-entering the public consciousness, and with netplay strong enough to start and continue running online events, the future of things is looking pretty hopeful. The kids, old and new, are going to be alright.
But I’m still going to play +R.
It’s how another friend of mine put it – “I’m going to kick your ass in Street Fighter 6. And then I’m going to go back to 3rd Strike, because nothing is going to replace the way 3rd Strike makes me feel.”
And that’s exactly how I feel.
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