Fight game communities

Hi all, I’m very new to this site.

I want to get back into fighting games and my goal is to simply have fun. I want to know which games have good active communities. Whatever game I choose to get into I don’t want it to be dying at least. I’d like to have many matches and participate in a decently sized forum for it. Idk, I just want to feel involved.

I own a PS3, play with a controller, and I’ve played Marvel Vs Capcom 1, some 2, and 3, Street Fighter 2 and the alphas, but I don’t think I like them much anymore especially with the silly iterations of each one, but I’d get back into them if they are recommended. I’ve played around with Soul Calibur, Tekken and KoF and I found I like them too. I’ve never played Persona but that seems interesting.

I think I’d like the small comboing involved in games like 3rd Strike, Tekken, or KoF rather than the bigger stuff of a Marvel game.

I was pretty good at fighting games on the Wii, but I don’t own one anymore.

Anyway, the point is, I’m here to see what fighting games are recommended to still play. I hope the community for whatever game is still active and I look forward to interacting with you.

Oh I forgot about the Blazblu games. I’d like a good local multiplayer, but in my area other people are hard to come by, so I know I have to depend on an online mode to really play it.

If you’re looking for simple combos, BlazBlue probably isn’t for you. Persona is a pretty good entry-level anime game, and the sequel will be coming out later this year, but it might be hard to find people to play with right now because most people are playing BlazBlue.

SF4 is always a safe bet; it’s got a good online community, serviceable netcode, and you come from a Street Fighter background already. It sounds like the first game you should be looking at.

If you like KoF XIII, you basically have to play on PC as the lag on console is unplayable, so PC is where everyone’s at. I’m not sure what gave you the impression that KoF combos are easy or short, though. It’s a very difficult game.

Well, I like 2D fighters and hitbox detection is the most important thing to me, so that’s why I don’t like 3D fighters as much.

I don’t like Street Fighter that much anymore. The jump to 3D also makes me wary. I find alternative fighters more interesting. I did like MvC before it got stupid with 3.

Even though I said I like short combos like Tekken or something, Blazblu, Persona, and KoF are things I would be interested in learning more in-depth. I would like to learn longer and more complex combos, but not the unfun kind like in MvC.

Sounds like KoF is out though since I use a console. That’s helpful, since your information narrows it down. Thanks a bunch for your post! I still need more info to make a decision.

Whereabouts do you live? New players are often surprised to learn that there’s already a scene near them! (Seeing what the people around you like to play will probably influence what you’re interested in playing.)

Also, as a friendly heads-up in case you think you might be interested in attending any major tournaments (they’re a lot of fun!!!): wireless controllers are usually banned on-site, because they can accidentally interrupt other people’s matches. There are definitely still options available for pad players, though. I can go into details later if you’d like.

That’s cool. I’m in Wisconsin in the US. I’m willing to learn anything really. Although getting an arcade stick is unaffordable for me right now.

Ha, I’m literally playing Divekick right now and a tip told me about not being surprised when I hear wireless controllers are banned.

I’m not from Wisconsin, but I’ve met a few people from there at various tournies. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a scene in your city or 1-2 hours away by car.

What about Marvel combos do you find “unfun”?

As far as KoF13 goes, it really doesn’t ask that much from a computer, so almost anything that’s not museum stuff should be able to run it (as long as it has Windows, that is). PS3/360 controllers are supported just fine.

Well…if you want a game with an active online scene on PS3, and you don’t want to play a Capcom game or a 3D game, that really leaves only Persona, BlazBlue, and possibly Skullgirls. I think you might really enjoy Aquapazza and you should give it a try, but don’t expect to get much out of it in netplay.

Edit: Oh, I forgot about Injustice. But that doesn’t really seem like your cup of tea.

Maybe, but the trick for me now is to figure out where they are and more importantly, what game most people play.

Well, I played Marvel 3 when it came out because I’m a Megaman fan and including Zero was cool. At first I was taken in by the spectacle and got 100% trophies, but I returned the game out of anger. I did that because of the online community spamming Dark Phoenix and Sentinel all the time, the ridiculous X factor, but most importantly, how comboes would go on FOREVER and blow up your entire team. It was just unfun to be hit for so long and not allowed an opportunity to come back or learn and adapt. One mistake and boom, they would repeat the Bnb combo they were doing for the entire match. I liked to vary up my characters and playstyle, but the people and structure of the game wouldn’t allow me to do that if I wanted to have fun my way. To succeed, I would have to do what they did.

That’s interesting about KoF. I don’t know how to use a PS3 controller on my PC though. I’ve tried looking it up but it seems I need to download a program and configure stuff. It’s just not clear to me. I haven’t found reliable information telling me how to set that up.

Another thing I’m aware of is cost. I’d be willing to try Street Fighter games again, if they weren’t expensive for my budget. Aren’t they coming out with another one soon? Then that would mean full price which I can’t do and if I buy an older one, most people would migrate and I would have less to play with. I may be wrong of course since I’m basically new to this scene.

I’ve never heard of Aquapazza, but I’ll search for it.

I’ll be trying some Doa5 because that demo is free and will give me a good taste of even the online. Otherwise, unless getting Kof for PC is justified and I can make it work, I will be looking more deeply into Blazblu or TekkenTag 2, or Persona if the game is still going strong. Or 3rd Strike if the price drops 5 bucks. I heard a new BlazBlu game is nearing release so that revisits my above decision about Street Fighter. Blazblu is something I would like to at least try and see how well I grasp that game’s mechanics but I don’t think there is a way I can sample it because it doesn’t have a demo.

Yeah, I’m not really into Injustice for some reason.

You could get AE (comes with a free update to AE 2012) for $20 with shipping right now, Ultra isn’t coming out in another three or four months and even then it would only be a $15 update, so it’s pretty much going to be the same cost as the newest Blazblue when that comes out for US if they release it for $40

Not sure what you mean golymol? Is that the Street Fighter Arcade Edition? Is there a particular online store that is reliable for that price? Regardless, I appreciate those figures for both games.

You guys have been helpful. Would you mind telling me what you play and why?

Your option for active netplay going to be limited if not including the mainstream games. Their are are fighters tha’ll play the way you want like the digital imports Dark awake/chaos breaker, and phantom breaker extra. Sadly these games netcode are supbar, and minimal to no active community.

Persona may be the best choice for your needs.
Personally I’ll like to suggest one other game so you don’t feel persona your only option. Take a look at AH3. The online activity is scare but active due to veteran players. AH3 allow you to be more engaging with not only diverse cast, but diverse subsystem that allow you to define your own game. Granted Ah3 has long found optimal combination and strategy for character, but its still possible to deviate from those and have some success.

Yeah it’s Arcade Edition. You live in the US right? Amazon has it for that low and I’m pretty sure a local gamestop would have it at $20 too,you might want to call them to see if they have it in stock first before driving though.

You can buy BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend (the previous version) for like $15 used, or watch some video guides on Youtube. If you have Skype, I’d be more than happy to give you a tutorial through screen share.

I’ll respond to the above 3 comments soon in an hour because I have an appointment to go to, but I just got done playing the Dead or Alive 5 demo.

What is the appeal of that game? I found the mechanics clunky and too complex. The tutorial is massive! I really couldn’t get into it. In fact, I really dislike how it functions. Is Virtual Fighter similar to it? I like parries/counters but that system was too mashy and just guessing. Stunning is ridiculous as well. Whatever, my intro experience and that game’s complexity will keep me out of that series and any like it.

If you like KOF but dont want a lot of combos then you should play KOF 98 instead of 13 since the drive cancels have to be learned to be competitive in a tournament. Try to play it on GGPO or Supercade.

  • waits for that private Skype tutorial on how to actually get MBAA working after you downloaded it and extracted it, but could not get it to run*

I appreciate all the assitance, advice and info so far to help me find my niche in fighting games.

I’m narrowing it down.

3D fighters are out. Tekken’s sidesteps and hitboxes are worthless. DOA is too complex for me and I’m not a fan of the dial-a-combo or it’s visual style. I haven’t tried VF because there is no demo but it seems similar to DOA. I have been told VF has the most balance though so if I could try it, I probably would if someone endorsed it on here.

I don’t want to support Capcom for how it treats it’s fanbase and franchises. Although, if I buy used I guess that doesn’t matter.

I don’t really want to go back to MvC3 even if Umvc3 improved some things, but it’s fighting was stylish and simple.

I’m not sure how I feel about SF because there are so many iterations, but 3rd Strike has my eye if the community there is still strong and I’m more partial to sprite based 2D fighters/animation.

I wish I had a Persona background because that would probably be my choice, but I’ve never played a Persona so my interest in it is less. I would need some people to objectively recommend it.

It looks like BlazBlu or something like it will be my choice. I just wish I could sample it to be sure I can enjoy it for a long time.

Or the new Guilty Gear when it comes out. I have some trust in that. Hopefully, I’m not too naive.

Hmm, then again. My Tekken experience is only been 3, 4 and Revolution. Maybe TTT2 is good enough for me. Revolution has soured my opinion of Tekken. Nah, better stick to my gut and not force it.

Crap, I forgot all about Soul Calibur. Because it does vertical and horizontal attacks, maybe that means sidestepping actually works.

Ideally, I like characters or games that allow me the option to parry or counter, but it seems most games that have it involves merely guessing and hoping the opponent use the right attack to trigger the parry until they start repeating themselves.

Double crap. I forgot about KoF13. So the console version is dead then? I have no idea for how to set up my computer for it and use a PS3 controller too despite google searching.

If only I had money. Then I could buy two or three and find one to my taste easily.

Any other recommendations or tips guys? This has been helping me a lot.

That’s a shame about those imports, but I want to play with people. It’s no fun to play a fighter with only AI. I’ve never heard of Arcana Heart 3, but I found a thorough review for it. It seems decent, but unfortunately 30 dollars is too much for me to spend on a relative unknown (to me) download only title. Especially, if it’s online is dying out. Unless I’m wrong.

Hey that’s generous of you. I do have skype and it does seem Blazblu is my winner so far.

Thanks golymol. I think I’m tied between BB and STAE now. I wish I had the money, because then I’d just get them both because they are pretty cheap. I’ll probably have to watch some reviews of both to make my decision.