There's something to be said about a legacy franchise that keeps punching its way to the mainstream no matter what. Meanwhile, other fighting games have managed to saturate the market and stand well on their own, it also took one big game recently to convince people that online gaming is the way to go.
And the change required is finally something we've all been waiting for; rollback netcode. Guilty Gears - Strive did that, and the latest of fighting games to follow its example, we have Street Fighter 6 now.
A new demo came out, and even if it's very barebones, it has enough to give insight into the fighting mechanics and new gameplay additions for the sequel. I might dig into some of the monetization plans Capcom has for the game as well. But for now, I want to go clashing with Luke and Ryu.
Core Changes
The big highlight of the sequel and obviously the root changes that everybody wanted was making a fighting game easily accessible to any other audiences. The big issue before this was how most fighting games were designed for hardcore fans or people who were into them in general.
With that being said, through playing the demo, and testing out every fighting move, I've realized Street Fighter 6 still has a lot of depth within, and mastering to do when it comes to the fighting. The design is based around more counters, to stop other players being defensive so many times or punishing aggressive players. Rewarding the player for being tactful.
Game director Takayuki Nakayama has stated that after SF2, their goal has always been trying to let newcomers come, without dealing with its stigma of being only for the hardcore types. And since SF4, they've continued to do well with that scope in mind.
Even then, if all this sounds confusing and too much for you, welcome to Japanese fighting games. And this is the era where online fighting is going to peak because of the netcode making online gaming more viable than before. And so accessibility, with introduction to counters and easy tutorials, are shaping up to cater towards a bigger audience.
I could say, they are slowly becoming more beginner-friendly as well. As well as using the latest tech in graphics engine to provide better visual data. Because of how fast they move, you'll have to keep focus retention on your opponents. Modern Street Fighter games have 2 or more different animations for each move as proper indications. So that you can read everything that comes.
Drive System
After playing the tutorial for learning commands and control, there's a new system introduced and that is called the Drive system. I would describe it as some sort of power move. Useful for game changer moments. It doesn't do fancy power combos, but instead offers a lot of practical use.
To start off is Drive Impact, this is a basic button prompt where you launch a fierce attack that knocks your opponent out and does serious damage. This does slow the flow of combat after impact, but let's just say it's a good way to disengage.
It can also be a punishing counter move if enemy attacks, leaving them vulnerable for a combo strike. Even canceling out any other attacks from the opponent before it. Timing is essential, as it is tricky to use and easy to get it wrong. So quite the trade-off there even something as powerful as this.
Driver Parry, as the name speaks, blocks any incoming attack. This can only be stopped with a grab attack and also does serious damage. Using any of the Drive move drains the gauge, but getting hit during parry recovers it. Using Parry didn't leave me vulnerable, as I was still able to dish out attacks quickly afterward.
Rush is basically inputting Parry but double tapping direction for a rush towards the opponent. This one has multiple use for aggression, but also costly to use after attack like 3 gauge bars. Drive Rush is faster than quick stepping, hence why it's costly. There are others like Overdrive and Drive reversal, but they sort of fall similarly as the others.
The tutorial does a good job of trying to explain and familiarize with all of this, including the part where if the gauge enters burnout, it's unusable till it fully recovers. Leaving my character in an exhausted state, leaving me pretty much open to my opponent unless I carefully block their attacks.
Now, what I've explained here is surface level. There's a video I found that explains this so much better and helped clear up any confusion as well as in-depth understanding. This is obviously a replacement for the V system in the prior games, largely changing the gameplay formula it's known for.
The Content
The obvious content here that is recognizable is Fighting Ground, with all the familiar matchmaking. But the two other modes in this game are; World Tour and Battle Hub. World Tour is basically the story mode, but starring a custom-made protagonist avatar. Battle Hub is kind of like the one Dragon Ball Z Fighterz did with lobby mode.
How robust is the customization, you might ask? Well, can adjust everything, from muscle, height, body type, facial detail, and so on. They did not slack on this one at all. I mean, I made the most generic type of white dude protagonist you could think of. Sadly, this is one run thing. After quitting, all of it gets deleted, since there's no saving in the demo.
But am sure there were enough options to mess around, making the Sims 4 character maker seem gentle in comparison to absurdity. There is a story mode, and it starts with Luke being the training officer in the gym I've entered.
World Tour I believe will be much broader in terms of story mode and content to play on. I mean, not ideal for a fighting game, but this is Street Fighter we're talking about with a rich lore and
character writing. I do believe this is a fad to copy out something that NBA 2K games have been doing.
Unlike Street Fighter V, 6 will have vast amount of content as promised by Capcom. To make up for the half-assed release of V and hopefully with more involvement with the game series than their other IPs at the moment. After playing the demo, not only did I feel like I could play this well, but I was ready to put myself into full gear, learning all I can. I never touched V, but I played 4 years ago.
As well as 7 new characters added to their large roster, which most if not all will be available to play in both launch and post-launch DLC content on top of the 18 characters on launch version.
At this rate, I might buy an Arcade stick. I already have Tekken 8 wishlisted, and needing to refamiliarize myself with Guilty Gears - Strive. My love for fighting games is putting me on another pedestal.
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