There’s a good comparison between the Street Fighter scene and the Magic The Gathering scene
Super Turbo = Legacy
Third Strike = Modern
Latest version of Street Fighter (SF5 currently) = Standard
I know nothing about Magic: The Gathering so that comparison is beyond my comprehension.
The answer is so obvious, you just don’t wanna hear it.
SFV, being a Street Fighter game, has the following things going for it:
- classic gameplay that has enjoyed for over 20 years on both casual and competitive levels
- the most iconic and loved characters of any fighting game series
- beautiful animation and sound that makes it very satisfying to play
- an expressive art direction that brings everything to life
You want to know why other games don’t surpass Street Fighter in terms of popularity? ^^^^ That’s why. I know some people will come at me saying “Yeah well this Street Fighter sucks!”. Okay. Are you playing something else instead? If yes, cool. If not, that list is why you keep coming back to SF. ^^^^
The only modern games I’ve seen match Street Fighter in those categories is Overwatch and maybe Dota 2, two non-fighting games. The characters in those games are already on their way to becoming iconic, the games are animate, look and sound great, and their gameplay is fun to play on a casual and competitive level. And those games are two of the most popular and successful games in the world. Go figure.
And lets talk Overwatch specifically for a second. In less than 4 months, a NEW IP managed to overtake Counter Strike, one of the most iconic and popular PC FPS of all time. There is nothing stopping fighting game developers and publishers from doing the same in the fighting game genre.
Mortal Kombat characters are the second most iconic characters of all time. If you ask some random people on the streets, “Do you know who Scorpion and Sub Zero are?”
They will most likely give you the correct answer…
I’ve said it before. Street Fighter is the turkey of the FGC Thanksgiving. No one cares if you came for mashed potatoes or macaroni and cheese or cranberry sauce. The focus of the meal is the turkey. Why? Because of the overall significance of turkey to the Thanksgiving tradition. Plus, turkey tastes fucking amazing.
Edit: I like your Overwatch comparison but it’s slightly harder to fighting games. Blizzard has massive staying power on name alone. So combine that with how well Overwatch was handled in terms of execution and presentation, it’s not too hard to see it overtaking Counter Strike, which was already catered to, I would say, a very specific group of players. I won’t exactly say niche since CSGO did an amazing effort to incorporate everyone into the mix but Overwatch is on a whole different level. The reason why I think it’s slightly harder for fighting games is because…besides SF, what other fighting game pays as well as SF? Capcom is rightfully known as the company for fighting games. That is a very fair accolade to give them. To overtake that spot is too hard, IMO.
No doubt. I wouldn’t even disagree with MK being tied with SF in terms of character popularity if the argument came to that. I was just making a point about why SF is where it is.
The only games I can see overtaking Street Fighter are Mortal Kombat and Smash.
Modern MK games have been more commercially successful than Street Fighter. MKX was the highest selling video game the year it was released in. It definitely could have the numbers to suppress Street Fighter but it hasn’t. MK doesn’t enjoy the rich competitive history SF has. Before MK9 the only competitive MK game was UMK3. Everything after it was trash.
MK9 and MKX has there own problems with stiff movement, animations, unconventional take on standard fighting mechanics and it’s constant balance adjustments it’s difficult to get into on a serious level.
MKX is like UMVC3
NRS won’t be able to do it. NRS takes from the same pool of competitive gamers that prefer traditional one on one fighters. If MKX with its 9 bajillion sales couldn’t bring more people to tourneys than SFV, nothing will.
Only shot is Smash and Riot if they make their SF killer LoL inspired fighter or whatever. That’s if it ever comes out and even then its not guaranteed the FGC will like it and may just garner its own scene.
Riot has China money and have Mr.Wizard and the Cannons on their payroll. They have the means to overthrow Street Fighter.
Cats swinging on Xian’s nut’s like he didn’t also say SF4 wasn’t a good game and that’s he still enjoys SFV despite it’s problems in the same AMA :lol:
Why does everyone have to be swinging on someone’s nuts all the time? We listen to guys that you know, are fucking champions of the game?
I still think SF5 is decent, but it’s got a fuck load of problems that could be easily addrssed of Capcom actually gave a fuck about anything other than money. Go back and check my comments from months ago, carbon copy.
Answer:
Name and brand recognition. Simple as that.
Taking an early hold on a genre or type of medium solidifies you as always being relevant.
Capcom is extra lucky, because they as a company, when they didn’t suck, produced many of the games people liked and as such, carry a lot of nostalgia with their name brand, street fighter included. The power, as you’ve seen, is that it allows you unbelievable levels of leeway (nostalgia armor as I have come to call it). It’s sad, it is, but that’s just how it is. People look fondly upon things they remember from a long time ago, and by pushing yourself on them early in a new medium, and by continuously producing sequels, you make the old people with nostalgia give the new people nostalgia for the later games for even LATER in life. It’s an endless cycle.
So whenever you see someone post “first” in a comment section, just remember: He got there first, and that means he will always be the first comment people see. That’s Street Fighter – it sucks, and you hate that guy, but he did get there first, and you can never unsee him.
Nobody can doubt the power and popularity of Streer Fighter - it’s number 1, it’s not we the fans and players that underestimated it, it’s the company that designed a half assed game when they had the keys to the kingdom in their back pockets.
If the premier FG company doesn’t have enough resources to fix the premier FG then it’s all down hill from here.
Unless they figure the fan base is basically Apple customers, they’ll lap up any old shite and actually start multiplying into something larger, worse, but insanely popular.
Thank You, that was the point I was trying to make.
I couldn’t find the best words but it is name brand and recognition. People ALLOW Capcom such major leeway just like they ALLOW EA and Activision to keep doing what they do simply because of what they now represent even if they are pretty much garbage tier to everyone else.
SF6 is going to be a 3 button game like Marvel 3. It’s coming.
Touch screen iPhone
Actually I’m not sure Street Fighter is no.1 in popularity. In the competitive scene yes! But Tekken has sold more copies overall than sf. Despite coming out years after and releasing far less iterations, sequels and ports. Tekken also dominated the Arcade scene. In Korea for a long time SF was barely touched while Tekken had it’s own TV show. And in Japan while Tekken held the top spot in arcades for years straight. A lot of sf games outside of it’s new game release period, struggled to stay in the top 10. Tekken also dominates Europe.
I kinda wish they brought out Tekken vs Street Fighter; To hopefully shake up Capcom.
That’s all we’re saying is that SF clearly is the number one game in the competitive scene. Outside of that other franchises are technically more popular.
Street Fighter is more internationally culturally relevant than all fighters, sans possibly MK. Its popularity isn’t necessarily anchored to its sales. This is the power that Capcom exploits recklessly.