I was watching NerdJosh stream some CVS2 goodness and I realized grooves could legitimately be a part of this game and add to the “customize my fighter” motif capcom wants, while providing a tournament experience the players were hoping for. Say there’s 5 ‘styles’ for you to chose from, S Style, F Style, X Style, T Style, and K style. People have made the case that there are far too many system mechanics in the game, and this type of groove system allows for people to use the mechanics they like differently, and not have to worry about the ones they don’t care for, or don’t find particularly useful (pandora). Other mechanics can be changed in a different style (T Style allowing forward and backward rolls, for example).
You can use your imagination and dream of what each style is capable of, but X style is at the heart of the system. X style is the win-win for all of us and capcom, as it is the game as it currently is. Gems, 3 bars, all those system mechanics. It allows online players to continue using their DLC gems to fine tune their characters, and tournament players to have access to basically every mechanic they want, allowing it to be useful regardless of the TO’s decision on gems.
Perhaps I just enjoy CVS2 a little too much, but I think something like this can really boost SFxT into a far more interesting and hyped game then it is now.