Fighting Games for a Non fighting Gamer

Fighting games are notoriously hard for new players to get into. But what does trying to get into fighting games look like? What kind of challenges do new players have to deal with? What are fighting games like for someone who’s never played them before? That’s what this video is here to answer. To give you a rare glimpse into the mindset of a casual. A gamer, who hasn’t played fighting games before. Now enough reading, it’s time to watch.
Also shout out to @razbuten for the Gaming for a non gamer video, which inspired the title.
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Music Attributions
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Somethings Out There - HoliznaCC0
Source: freemusicarchi...
License: creativecommon...
Bite Me - NEFFEX (KZbin Music)
Denksnavel's Theme - Wuppo
Addict (Instrumental) - NEFFEX (KZbin Music)
The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Sneaky Adventure by Kevin MacLeod
Free download: filmmusic.io/s...
License: filmmusic.io/s...
Tiang Hong Yuan Stage - Street Fighter 6
Staff Credits - Metroid Prime 3
Enter Groose - Zelda Skyward Sword
Sailing Away - HoliznaCC0
Source: freemusicarchi...
License: creativecommon...
tmp - voide
Source: freemusicarchi...
License: creativecommon...
Boilerworks - Luigi's Mansion 3
Omegaccino - Going Under
Battle Hub Lobby (Ver. 4) - Street Fighter 6
The following music was used for this media project:
Music: Cyborg by Frank Schröter
Source: filmmusic.io/s...
License: filmmusic.io/s...
Elder Kettle - Cuphead
The Mathematician - The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood
Misadventure - Guilty Gear
Danger - Loyalty Freak Music
Source: freesound.org/...
License: creativecommons...
Continue - Street Fighter 3rd Strike
Cleric Beast - Bloodborne
Jungle Night - Wuppo
Revived Power - Shadow of the Colossus
Extra Stage - Nintendo Land
Viking Gods - Crusader Kings II
Boss 1 Chiptune - Crypt of the NecroDancer
Sinister Abode - Zane Little
Source: freemusicarchi...
License: creativecommon...
Anthem of Rain - I Got To Go Now (Instrumental)
Source: freemusicarchi...
License: creativecommon...
St. Swithin's Moor, Scraps - Tearaway
Epic Orchestra, LOOP - Joshua Empyre
Source: freesound.org/...
License: creativecommons...
Douse Shinundakara (Insturumental) - Gravity Rush
Turn Up, Let's Go - Jeremy Blake (KZbin Music)
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KZbin won’t let me credit everything, so here’s a link to the rest.
pastebin.com/t...

[@merajislam5987]

Nah bro, fighting games music are goated.

[@phsquared1000]

Agreed gamer. Fighting game music is some of the best music for when working out and it always gets me in a lifting mood.

[@DaMilkman-ct1lz]

Anybody still remembers guile’s theme?

[@mcgosch]

​@@DaMilkman-ct1lzIt's legendary.

[@ayrtonjoga]

Bro has weird tastes, he really wanted dramatic, orchestral scores, after calling the games ironically funny

[@DaMilkman-ct1lz]

@@ayrtonjoga how wierd? like how much of a weird taste does he have? it can´t be that much, right?

[@wutsmyname101]

guy discovers Engrish through snk and learns the entire genre for it

[@theultimateartist4153]

Comon comon geh sewious!

[@mikaela5938]

Fighting games have some of the best music in any games ever, orchestral blah that most triple a games have is forgettable and boring

[@CarbyGuuGuu]

They lack the heart of Japanese, AA, and indie game soundtracks, too. I can assure you a big band piece from a Mario game is more memorable than whatever the heck I’m listening to in a Ubisoft game. AAA games have such high budgets because large publishers think we want to watch a movie than play a game.

[@SubIndy]

I agree with you on the orchestral blah!

[@sonofaglitch7549]

Yeah. The "good music" he's talking about just wouldn't fit a combat duel.

[@plaguedfrost1753]

@@CarbyGuuGuu I mean at some point it all comes down to taste, and in general if you don’t vibe with a games soundtrack nothing can be done. But… Guilty Gear Strive, Street Fighters character themes, MK’s techno, Killer Instinct’s insane Metal… I don’t think you can brush off fighting game ost’s cause some have weak tracks.

[@mastahmaxtah9339]

Under Night In-Birth's soundtrack got me into fighting games, ngl

[@InteriorCrocodileAlligator86]

Moral of the story: Don't be afraid to step out your comfort zone

[@benmouhamedmamounn9923]

And never sit and block in a corner literally

[@VortexF]

​@@benmouhamedmamounn9923ah yes,the Justin Wong special

[@thevictore7482]

Ayoo fighting gamer checkin in. Enjoyed the video lots. For those of us on the competitive side perspectives like this are more than welcome. The more casual players enjoy the games the more we get new players at tournaments. Its a win for everyone.

[@SubIndy]

Very cool. Glad you enjoyed my very causal take on this!

[@ianweckhorst3200]

I have a random idea, what if we made the joystick use a mouse on keyboard, it would be easy to get those quick movements in and we have a whole keyboard to work with on the other hand

[@sonofaglitch7549]

​@@ianweckhorst3200 I don't see how fighting games can incorporate a mouse in the control.

[@snowflake4108]

Fighting games have been my favourite genre since I was a kid. To get into them is hard if you're trying to do crazy stuff like 14 hit combos but the way I fell in love with them is just by mashing buttons with friends until u get a rough idea of how your character that you like works. After that it was a chain reaction until you just get good. It's like how one can say building in Fortnite became extremely sweaty. It's coz you just advance slowly and make up stuff as you go.😂

[@epiczombies34]

​@ianweckhorst3200 you can already use a keyboard wasd to move and pick your favorite 6-8 keys to map it will also make special moves a bit easier to learn bc you can hit s d + punch and get a fire ball. The mouse is not possible to use bc the way the game reads inputs is in 8 way directional and the center is nuteral. And the nuteral position is also a button in its own way waiting for an opponent to miss a button and counter is a huge part of fighting games. Not to mention the way you do a fireball is ⬇️↘️➡️ if you do➡️⬇️↘️➡️ the first 3 of those inputs will instead do an uppercut bc that's how you do a shoryken. So without a nuteral position it's not possible to have accurate controls these games are seen as like playing chess to defuse a bomb you have to make alot of hard choices fast.

[@Scroteydada]

Do you suffer from tone deafness? Like do you struggle to make out and retain melodies? That music section was so bizarre. Especially when you bring up other games with soundtracks that de-emphasize memorability in favour of ambience. It's just weird.

[@Cronalixz]

the whole video felt like it was seeing fighting games from a comparative point of view as opposed to seeing them objectively (and genuinely) tbh. I couldn't take it that seriously, the music section was where this is the most blatant and obvious

[@seanphillips7961]

Saying what you said about fighting game music, while showing Strive gameplay actually physically hurt me like you have no idea

[@EjiroEloy73]

I'm a non-fighting gamer, but you gotta put more respect on their music, yeah nothing tops shadow of the colossus but you ain't gonna beat the crap out of someone with an entire orchestra on the background. Also I can't really speak for other places but in Mexico it's ingrained in our culture the "trying to figure out what they said even if it's not the same language" and I've never really heard anyone in the english community do it, it's nice to see it.

[@theultimateartist4153]

What are you talking about, SNK engirsh is well known and memed also Killer Instinct Mick Gordons sound track will give SOC a run for its money anyday!

[@EjiroEloy73]

@@theultimateartist4153 well I hear you, but it's still much more common in here given how in the early days of videogames there rarely was any games with a Spanish dub so we'd do that with everything, ad to that engirish and you have the most fun game of international telephone

[@SpiffyTrousers]

Sounds to me like you figured it out. The absolute best way to get into fighting games is to just have fun with some friends of a comparable skill level. That's it. Doesn't matter if you're totally clueless, know some basics, or actually have a decent grasp. So long as you have buddy/buddies to play with, everything else will fall into place. And also making up names for misheard moves. That's a big one. I think EVERYONE has done that at some point. In my group, "Here's Your Birthday" is "Angel Fuzzy."

[@vernaltear]

Something to point out about fighting game inputs is something that applies to all beginners in any game is that… controls are unintuitive in every game. We’re just used to the industry standards like looking with right stick, moving with left stick, shooting with right trigger, X/A to jump, etc.. But to a complete beginner, none of these make sense. Whenever my non gamer friends pick up a game, any game, they just can’t do anything. They perform exactly the same at a fighting game as any other fighting game casual. As someone who picked up fighting games only about a year ago, I now really get that it’s all just a matter of what you’re used to. Inputs that’re ingrained in my mind and muscles for fighting games are the same as any inputs for Doom, Titanfall and more, just… different. They’re all equally weird if you really separate yourself from the concept of game inputs.

[@SubIndy]

Totally agree.

[@MomockDamock]

Nah dude, fighting games controls are plain stupid. Every genre evolved their control schemes with time. First you played FPS with keyboard only, then with mouse, and then some dude realized that WASD was the way to go, and it became a standard because that's what works best. The same can be applied for any genre, even fighting games' cousin the BTU: you are no longer required to press two times a direction to run/dodge, or to do button combinations, they became aware that controlers have more thant two buttons since forever. Only fighting games keep it stupid, even in the instructions they keep showing you a nonexistent arcade stick! That's how stuck the dudes are! And no fighting game dev seems to be able to see what is keeping newfolk out, they're lost too far up their own collective ass. When you see the "casualization" attempts, that make me laugh! They try to fix totally irrelevant things for noobs (and pissing off the hardcore base... like the big slowmo COUNTER in Strive... to give time to noobs to react and pull out their insane character custom combo optimized to take advantage of the counter-state altered frame data from outer space... YEAH, RIGHT! In a hundred years, maybe!) while maintaining all the cancerous shit (the biggest being that the simple basic action of moving your character around feels like absolute trash, in ALL fighting games).

[@yakatsusensei325]

​​@@MomockDamock pray tell what the solution should be?

[@votch2798]

@@yakatsusensei3252xko will have 2 special move buttons instead of movement inputs. I'm definitely interested in how that's gonna affect gameplay

[@yakatsusensei325]

@@votch2798 agreed. i just dont see why the current state of fighting games is "Garbage". There is no "Right way" to make how fighting games SHOULD do their controls. Hence the experimentations. the video itself has illustrated a problem, there arent enough buttons for these specific fighters so they created that scheme. Turns out it "Evolved" to be the way that most people want to play FGs. Simplification is fine and all. but there are also titles like UNI2 that keeps the bonkers inputs. So again, @MomockDamock. What is the "Smart Way".

[@genericbonk]

One thing about motion inputs is, thankfully most games pretty much use the same inputs since 1996 from sf2, so other stuff is more of an exception than the rule Looking at you pretzel input

[@SubIndy]

I do appreciate how fighting games are similar in that way. Imagine if they all had radically different motion inputs.

[@beanman9936]

DANG IT GEESE

[@zizirobinson]

Then there’s Mortal Kombat’s directional inputs, which feel less like I’m doing an anti-air and more like I’m unlocking 30 lives in Contra

[@byonixen]

arcana heart... oh arcana heart

[@cmk5498]

@@SubIndy looking at you darkstalkers

[@melon3109]

the punch button is the button that makes you punch

[@X19Virus]

calm down, you're confusing him

[@gabrielnascimento3807]

Wait until he plays Balrog and the kick button doesn't kick

[@SwordsmanOrion]

Hearing you implying that Guilty Gear music is somehow lesser than music from other types of games hurts. I've been listening to the guilty gear soundtrack pretty much every day since 2001 or so.

[@imarock.7662]

That part genuinely irked me.

[@ChalkMuncher]

EXACTLY!!! i especially dont get it when he says he likes to not take his fighting game seriously and have music that reflects that when guilty gear is arguably one of the campiest fighting games to exist!!! Lore wise, characterwise, and of course music wise. Extras is the first song that comes to mind but there are several others that are a little silly too. The chourus to extras is literally "rub a dubba dubba yeahhh" how much campier do you want your fighting game??? 😭

[@ehhorve857]

@@ChalkMuncher it does? when? the only thing I hear is "OH GOB JEEZ WAAG DON'T YOU F@\

[@velvetbutterfly]

Ky has been preparing us for this. Never forgive a shenanigan

[@ehhorve857]

@@ChalkMuncher fine. I'll try again. I cannot hear the music because the game is too loud. Is THAT polite enough for you youtube?

[@XellosNi]

"R U OK? BUSTA WULF!" Truly the FGC applauded the Shakespearean Caliber of Terry Bogard's delivery. But it's not Lightning Turkey, dude. It's Rising Taco. Don't you see Terry tossing a taco in the air before defying gravity?

[@ThatWolfArrow]

Good video, but your take on fighting game music reads to me as you just having different taste as opposed to fighting game music just being bad. Especially since most examples of your non-fighting game music lean more orchestral when most of the genre leans more towards rock or electronic music.

[@SubIndy]

Yeah that’s 100% true.

[@iriszilong1429]

​@@SubIndyIf you want to look into orchestral Fighting game tracks, take a look into Soul Caliber! Not every Fighting game soundtrack has the same feel, some of the most polarizing examples are the aforementioned Soul Caliber and Skullgirls.

[@retro7943]

What you said at the very end, "Literally EVERYTHING about them breaks down if you don't have a friend.", really sums up the fighting game genre in general. Some of my fondest memories in gaming was going to the arcade back in the late 90s, and playing fighting games with my buddies. Every weekend, until the early hours in the morning, you could find us there, dropping quarters, talking shit, and having an absolute blast. Nowadays, I don't have anyone that will play them with me. And before you say, "Just go online and jump in a lobby.", it's not the same as squaring up with someone you know and enjoys these games as much as you do. Thanks for making this video. I really enjoyed it!

[@frorociousexpress]

For those starting off, just remember that almost all combo trials arent great combos and are just meant to be cool looking or show combo theory for the character Combos are also some of the last things you'll need to learn in a fighting game

[@ayrtonjoga]

Agreed, MvC3 is a great example of that, they are only worth practicing until level 7, anything afterwards are just "impracticool" combos that you never use

[@arcadedude1987]

As a person that grew up playing fighting games and still plays them, it's actually really cool to hear someone's honest perspective on trying to give the genre a fair chance. It's awesome hearing how you and your friends stuck with them and were learning things together and stuff was starting to make sense. I still check out the tutorial modes in new games just to see how they try to onboard new players, and a lot of times, it seems severely lacking in explaining fundamental mechanics or why you would do them. Anyway, this was pretty awesome and thanks for making it and being so open!

[@SubIndy]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@akiuta4]

I was waiting the whole time for the set up of "guilty gear music is bad" to go into "i actually got into it". The way you said "it's all just rock/rap" made me really anticipate the change. And then it never came. You even said "you can laugh when the music suddenly ends at the end of the match" so turning off the music turns of that fun. I'm quite happy that you pointed out the voice lines being fun to misshear. It's a great time tbh. Hope you continue to enjoy fighting games. And show people ways to get into them.

[@Mewtic2]

It was hard for me to get into gg music. At one point, happy chaos's theme was my fav song ever, but there was a time when i thought it was one of the worst musics to exist(???)

[@TruxtonII]

When MvC2 came out loads of people hated the OST, it was a popular practice in some circles to burn discs of the Dreamcast version with custom OSTs. Nowadays it's a bit vindicated by history and nostalgia but some OSTs take a while to grow on people.

[@fabriciodesi]

Happy's is a bad song, in fact

[@nidgithm]

i wish i could mishear the voicelines too, but i actually know some japanese so i cant if its in japanese lmaoo

[@akiuta4]

@@nidgithm that's too bad. I was actually thinking about that. Maybe it's not always good to know japanese. If you also like blaz blue ragna says with his Carnage scissors something that sounds like "criminal offensive side eye" and that always cracks me up. I actually sometimes do it with English too even though I know it. I just think about it in my native language native language czech. So do try to think about it in English it might work.

[@goodgamer1419]

I never really had issues with the quater circle, however i used to think the Z input told you to make a z across the intire stick not just the lower right

[@mobius-q873]

My brother may you never find some of the old arc sys games,this is not a insult or anything but genuinely some of the old one like arcane heart are hell for inputs

[@goodgamer1419]

@@mobius-q873 i have played the older arcsys games, i know the inputs, IVE DONE THE INPUTS

[@mastahmaxtah9339]

REAL. I read the manual for the SNES version of SF2, so I had prior knowledge about the DP input. However, it did not occur to me that the Z represented it in other games until a friend described how you do the input

[@PikaPenny17]

Wait, how do you actually do a Z input?

[@goodgamer1419]

@@PikaPenny17 forward down down forward

[@bebop306]

One thing I heavily disagree with this video is fighting game music. There are so many good fighting game soundtracks out there and they are considered “real music”. Many fighting game developers also place huge importance on the music for the gameplay experience, just like any other developer like indies and Fromsoftware, if not even more than a lot of other games.

[@TheXell]

Yeah, it's insane how wide the gulf is between playing FG with friends and playing against strangers. It's basically a different subgenre.

[@SubIndy]

that's so true

[@ennohex]

As a 44year old fighting gamer, let me give you the best advice you'll ever need. Power Rangers: Battle For The Grid I look forward to the follow up video after that.

[@Hox5241]

It’s a good thing that you actually accepted not being good at fighting games. Too many blame the game itself due to a lack of experience when I teach people Strive. I have always disliked people being unnecessarily angry at the game instead of reflecting or taking a break, but I suppose that is just the hurdle for teaching or learning.

[@StanNotSoSaint]

Lol, I think that most FG players could agree with all the points. EXCEPT SLANDERING MUSIC LIKE WTF

[@manganari8022]

As a fgc player, first the music is fire like what ??? And then I thinking we kinda like discovering new moves on characters like in the beginning you feel a real progression, first being able to one or two command inputs, then you can start using them, using them properly, using them in combos being able to play a coorect neutral etc,

[@thecheekychoof]

Terry Bogard’s Powah Geysah (Power Geyser) has always been “I want…Pizza” it’s official folks 😂

[@frorociousexpress]

Back in CvS2, I always thought he said "how high can you fly?!"

[@microblast3700]

Even as a non fighter gotta put some respect on fighting game music my dude

[@decoder_main6875]

As someone who had played fighting game for almost 10 years, "play" fighting game is more like equal to learning art or sing a song. How many time you dedicate yourself into it it will reward you much bigger than you ever imagine.

[@bakarai2167]

One thing you got wrong is that in Guilty Gear Xrd REV2 the announcer says Hell Fire when input a super with you are low on life, and when says Hell Yeah its you killing the opponent.

[@esmooth919]

I said it before, but I'll say it again: Thanks to Street Fighter II, I've been a fighting game aficionado since 1992, but I will *never* pass judgment on anyone who has a hard time learning how to play fighting games, because I remember how long it took me to learn how to throw a damn hadouken!

[@railgunmisaka296]

Not really a hardcore fighting game person like far from it, but I was slightly baffled at first how you're making fireball motion it's like rocket science, then I remember when I was teenager that how I felt when I saw the move list or MVC2 and MVC3 and thinking I may not learn fighting games properly unless I have a PhD or something, until I randomly learned a fireball motion after months of just spinning the analog stick and pressing buttons randomly. I'm not the first, but the fighting game music take is really something. Like I understand some people mute or prefer to listen to their own music, like some fighting game streamers I see listening to their own music while fighting. But the downplay man, since a lot of those music is like part of their identity like a lot of games in general. Anyway, nice video it could be nice eye opener to both harcore and non-fighting game person to how majority of people enjoy fighting games and not just being a sweaty competitive about it.

[@evilded2]

I mean I have literally taught someone how to do a Quarter circle in under a miniate at a party, If you aren't hung up on preconceived notions it's really not difficult.

[@ayrtonjoga]

Also, the fireball input is the most iconic special move in gaming, even me, who is only getting into fighting games recently, always knew how that move works I thought it was common knowledge that anyone who plays any kind of game must've heard about it Also also, yeah, his taste for music is questionable

[@XJBG1001X]

Street Fighter 6 has a World Tour mode. In it, there is some minor tutorial stuff, but there are some side jobs you can take. One of them is making pizza! Stay with me here. In the mini game it explains moreso how to actually follow and read inputs. Sure it's tricky, but it will likely help a lot of newer players of Fighting games

[@funkyflunky9882]

The World Tour mode is actually pretty sick from a casual gamer perspective. There aren’t a lot of fighting games that tout their single player content, and for good reason. You play these games to play with friends. But having something to ease you in the way World Tour does is extremely helpful. Every bit of dialogue is about the journey and reflects both the characters and real world gamers’ paths in fighting games. Every single character says their journey isn’t over, no matter if it’s the young kids like Luke or Ryu pushing 40 and discovering smart phones for the first time. My fondest fighting game memory comes from taking turns on Soul Calibur 2’s story mode on the GameCube. If I lost, I switched with my friend, and so on. It was great to go on a silly journey that seemed pointlessly funny and cruel with a friend.

[@thegreenflareon1542]

Kof 13 combo trials are a sin, really. do not force yourself to play them unless you hate yourself, or you want the funny internet points, as a wise Leon Massey once said: "Fighting Games are for everyone... but not every Fighting Game IS for everyone". And I think that's pretty true, at least in my eyes... so just play Kyanta 2, its fun :) and free lol

[@SubIndy]

Those combo trials are terrible, aren’t they

[@Nepushi]

we all had to start somewhere! i remember i found it easier to do fireballs when i held my controller upside down when i was little. i had no idea what i was looking at when looking at the controls but eventually i figured it out after trying it for so long and now fighting games are my favorite games :)

[@marcelol.4371]

Also, another important thing to add is that motion inputs are a way to balance moves, hindering you from easily performing them in certain situations. For example, a dp move (623) cannot be done while blocking

[@eduardoserpa1682]

Idk why, but I had never thought about the funnies as a draw to fighting games. Specially if you play just a little bit of multiple games, which might be the best way to approach them. I've played them for years, so I get most of the laughs from contextual playstyle things like people playing like maniacs or doing huge call-outs, but there's a lot more goofy shit going on at the base level. Specially with weird characters like Faust, Yoshimitsu or the entire Darkstalkers cast.

[@nubaco5001]

THIS IS FOR EVERYONE THAT TRIED FIGHTING GAMES, Thank you for trying !

[@ggteddf1]

i'm happy for you, genuinely. its nice to see someone else see what i see in the genre. its funny, its tense, and most of all its just cool. and yeah third strike ost is beast

[@javjuegos_8917]

how to get into fighting games: pick ken Jump MP-HP shoryu profit

[@arw_fgc]

Hi, fighting game player here. Something that I think that alot of more casual players don't necessarily see when playing fighting games is that they're really more like sports than normal video games. When people play them, they sort of want to practice and get better over a long period of time. If they were easier to master and memorize they would be less interesting because the community that plays the game would figure out all of the best strategies in a week or two and then everyone would just play exactly the same from there onwards. If I'm being honest I wouldn't recommend fighting games to most casual gamers, because most games are built so that you win maybe 75 to 90% of the time. Most of the stuff you try you should be able to do easily. But fighting games are about losing. They're about getting the crap beat out of you, getting up, learning a new skill, and coming back and kicking the other person's ass. And then they do the same to you. If you're playing them right, you should either be losing the majority of fights or you should be one of the best players in the world. And that's a really really specific kind of fun...

[@binho2224]

I play vs CPU, rarely play online. I love fighting games. They have the best action combat than any other genre. Mk9 brought me to the genre and Ive been playing ever since. I imediately tried to understand them. So I quickly learned about neutral, footsies, frame data, okizeme, etc. It was like magic!! So much fun once you learn how they work! I think thats the problem. Many don't want to learn all those fundamentals. Once you understand whats going on, there is nothing like them. Like Tokido said: "Fighting games is something so great!"

[@banana_pancake7171]

I'm just recently getting into fighting games from a friend, I've been into gaming for a long time but finally they clicked.

[@xxwavexx8851]

“Realistic sports” 😂😂😂 the key to the FGC is never quit. Also the editing in this video is amazing🔥 and commentary was hilarious 🤣

[@thegreenflareon1542]

as someone who likes fighting game music, ouch, you hurt my feelings with those mean words :( but in all honesty, enjoy fighting games how you want, do the dumb shit, try to git gud, doesn't matter, play how you want :)

[@Yxazel]

As a Fighting game top player, i can tell you Damn it feels good to just be dumb sometimes, but it also does to know exactly everything you do, its like you are some kind of skilled assasin moving thorught the stage and playing chess with the enemy, being 5 steps ahead of them

[@AziDoesQuestionableThings]

out of curiosity, what are you top in?

[@AziDoesQuestionableThings]

your pfp gives me uni/melty vibes, that’s my guess (i don’t know any of the characters except seth)

[@Yxazel]

@@AziDoesQuestionableThings The PFP is from Uni, im a Melty AACC Top Player

[@JomaXZ]

I always interpreted the inputs in fighting games as a much easier version of learning real life martial arts moves and techniques. Interpreting the commands as if they are runes kind of add to the experience tbh.

[@dmgdevelops]

I find this entire take very interesting. I like the idea that fighting games are still a product of the arcade and some aspects of change have been slow. I think the current age of fighting games has been trying to move more towards the console market and introduce new people into the genre. As someone who studies game dev and tries to understand what different people feel about my favorite genre, I want to understand more about how people feel when they play. I remember being at Evo last year and trying 2XKO and asking people in line about what their general motivations are. Your mentality reminds me of a person who told me that they didn’t care about combos or anything like that, and wanted to see what button gives them the most instant dopamine. As someone who wants to make fighting games, I often wonder how to cater to both casuals and the competitive players. Still not quite sure of the answer but I love seeing stuff like this talking about the more casual side

[@-cactus.raven-]

Honestly, the best way to get a laugh is going to the fighting game glossary (it’s a thing. It exists) and just,,, scrolling. The words we come up with are great. I loved this video, different experience then what I first felt when I got into the genre

[@isoito5927]

If you care about winning and you have a passing interest in fighting games: My suggestion is that you take it lightly and learn ONLY the characters you like. I promise it is not as much as you think. Then, if end up liking the game, part of the enjoyment of fighting games is learning new stuff. Every character in every game is a bottomless barrel of techniques and information. There is nothing more satisfying than learning something new about your favorite characters and then applying that information in an online match. Please do give them a chance.

[@vais__]

FG player here, sooner or later you change the music cuz you get tired of listening to the same 30 tracklist after a while, its perfectly fine. Even if the ost is great, i happen to mix a bunch of FG songs in a list to add more variety

[@kaisar3306]

As someone who has had cursory experience with fighting games, I agree with your points except the music part (I am a big music guy also, and that entire bit of the video broke my brain and heart so bad). I just realized that I don't have many friends I could share this interest with, you really got me thinking in that ending quote. But at the same time, I just like playing fighting games; either with a friend or just sparring with the CPU. I literally just play it for its enjoyment, and I can't explain why it's so good. It just *is.*

[@JAMllostthegame]

I'm glad that when you tried motion inputs, you understood that maybe fighting games weren't for you and accepted that. You are a bigger person than most people who complain about motion inputs, and I respect that you at least gave fighting games a shot.

[@ThePlKLE]

The edit of batman playing last blade was really funny

[@nrdscott]

Fighting game enjoyer here, overall a good video but the issues with learning moves was a tad disingenuous. You never acknowledged that the games you're talking about aren't the current games most people play. Tekken 8, Mortal Kombat 1, Street Fighter 6, Skullgirls, Guilty Gear: Strive, and others that I'm going to forget have extensive tutorials and detailed move lists (often with video examples and when each move is best used). I also think saying music is good or bad when it's really more of a personal taste thing isn't the best way to critique music in any game. Games like Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6 also have other modes worth visiting, SF6 has an ARPG on the side, and there's more than just fighting one another. Either way, thanks for the input. I love casual player takes even if some of the aspects aren't things I think hold up. The FGC is all about different types of people coming together to love a genre in their own way.

[@feldsparthegreat]

As someone who has fallen in love with fighting games I always love hearing new player perspectives, especially what keeps you around. Fighting games ARE funny! It can be easy to forget this, even as I routinely play a character who faceplants as an attack. A lot of what you said reminded me of my own roots- playing after high school at my friend's house, trying to figure out what the characters were even saying. Good shit. It's unfortunate that the music doesn't resonate with you, but they put in BGM volume control for a reason, as much as I don't want to admit it. Oh well, maybe we'll get you on the next big release. Good video and hope you keep having fun with fighting games for a long time!

[@PozitivSaiyan]

Im happy more and more people are getting into one of my favorite genres, the video is genuinely good at explaining the casual appeal and reminded me of my childhood when I was just playing with my friends while having no idea what Im doing. The music is goated tho atleast when it comes to tekken and guilty gear.

[@pampamtamtam4001]

I loved the editing of this video! For me, fighting games are all about the charm. That's always what sells me.

[@Sketchchess07]

I get the perspective of “play your own music and make your own funny soundtrack” (and hell, that’s what I do for SF3, SF6, and Tekken) but you can’t deny Guilty Gear Strive music is great for being funny, serious, dramatic, or just plain wacky.

[@ackerman207]

Great video. I'm just starting strive and it's so overwhelming lol

[@SubIndy]

And yet Strive is one of the easier ones, haha. Good luck!

[@bebop306]

I’ve been playing fighting games for awhile and Strive is definitely a difficult game. For some it might be easier, but for me it is a little hard to click with. But every game just takes time

[@CantHandleThis6]

​@@bebop306Fighting games by their nature are pretty hard. Even ignoring the execution barrier for some games at the end the day you and your opponent are basically playing speed chess. Blockstrings, pressure resets, conditioning, Neutral, reading your opponent. All things you have to get acquainted with while making sure Millia doesn't air dash at you and catch you sleeping. You have to be reactionary but also build and plan your own offense while stuffing your opponents. At the end of the day it's all a giant mind game that comes down to experience and just learning while playing. This process can be sped up through study but not everyone finds that fun. Me personally half my time is spent in training mode yet I'm still learning new pressure sequences and ways to mess with my opponent with Evil Eye and Chocolate Oki in P4AU. It's hard for a game against other humans to be inherently simple because at that point half the game becomes a battle of wits, predictions, being unpredictable, and Mindgames while also making sure your fundamentals and execution are solid. Even Tic Tac Toe has strategy to it and that game is simple as all hell. PvP make games more difficult by default. Games like Valorant and GGST wouldn't be so difficult if it was driven by fighting A.I (actually it might be seeing as the A.I would get better as a result). Fighting another human is also the fun of it. Nothing feels better than exploiting your opponents bad habits, making a hard read based on past knowledge, or getting someone with that set up you spent hours labbing options and counter play for. It's peak PvP to me.

[@dinonuggets7148]

The learning curve for fighting games was a really rough one, the way they play is so different from most other popular kinds of games

[@osaka5754]

As someone who has played fighting games since kindergarten, Thank you very much for your perspective. This video helps me understand how fighting games are looked at from the outside looking in, but also from the perspective of players who are just seeking to try something new. Thanks a bunch.

[@Wurboo]

What a banger video. Was genuinely laughing at the "Heres your birthday" and "lightning turkey".

[@dandre3K]

The problem with fighting games is that the controls are only standardized for movement in general and half the time for blocking. Attacks in fighting games are not standardized beyond motion controls simply due to what can be done with an analog stick. Characters within the same game usually aren’t standardized, an attack with the Sonic Boom input doesn’t have to be like Sonic Boom. Video game genres = a core game loop + controls + perspective. 2d side view mostly melee combat games should have similar controls.

[@SuperCeasar777]

*I am a fighting game player, and I had to remind myself a few times though out the video that this is from the perspective of a non fighting gamer if I could give some advice that I feel would help you to understand fighting games more going forward or to make it fun for you going forward, follow these rules, and I PROMISE you'll grow to love fighting games.* #1 Have fun. Never take the game too seriously. The most important thing is to always improve and get better and learn from your mistakes and loses trust me you will lose way more then with in fighting games but that's 100% fine as long as you improve. #2 Have a friend/ friendly rival to play with in order to push each other to do better and to get better fighting games are always meant to be a multiple player experiences its been like this sense the 90's and will continue to be like this in the 2K20's #3 (LEARN THE GAME!!!!!!) Forgive me I'm not trying to sound condescending or be a asshole when I say this but you'll always do better by learning the mechanics of said game example learn how to block its a super simple thing to do but yet the most important thing at the same time, if you're playing a game like GG Strive or SF6 learn how to( Roman Cancel) or (Drive Rush). Learn what each button does. "Do you have a light punch, light kick, or heavy punch, heavy kick?" "Can your character fly, or run, or are they slow and immobile?" #4 should be together with #3, but I feel it's so important to have and deserve its own talking point. Learn a basic basic bread and butter combo (BNB). When I play fighting games, I find that most of the time, I'm not doing fancy big damaging 90%, almost touch of death combos, I doing pocket into grabs and ending with basic fire ball and honestly that's really all you need because at the end of the day your goal is to get your opponents health bar down to 0% it doesn't matter how you did it as long as it got done. Trust me, this rule will help you out in 99% of fighting games, even new ones that release day one. If you play casually you never need to know fighting game lingo or frame data, for example, out the gate, but you always have a leg up on your opponent if just know a basic combo again not fancy just basic. #5 NEVER EVER FOLLOW TEIR LIST and pick whomever you want on the roaster you feel speaks to you or you think is cool.

[@nidgithm]

tbh from the video it doesnt seem like theyre really interested in becoming better, i think they just want to have fun and they just so happened to get better over time

[@TheJackson4eva]

I recommend every newcomer to play and learn fighting games using sf2. Hyper fighting is preferred. Learn the controls, learn to fight, maybe do that for a couple hours then go play your main game. Sf2 is the blueprint for all fighting games, so everything feels familiar from sf2 to kof, guilty gear, dbfz, sf6, etc

[@velvetbutterfly]

I would recommend UnderNight since it has a very intuitive Tutorial mode and lets you slow the speed down to get used to moves.

[@nore5888]

The best casual fighting game is Slap Happy Rhythm Busters for me. I just understand it unlike any other fighting game

[@majortom331]

Thats a great beginners fighting game as well. I love it.

[@SillyLilFella]

Honestly really good insight and I'm glad to hear that you finally "got it" so to speak. It's always such a good feeling when something just clicks one day. Now, it's time for you and your friend to take the next step and learn martial arts together in REAL LIFE. I promise it's easier to remember lmao

[@legacy7ds]

Old school fighting game player has entered the chat. Good video. When it comes to fighting games, it takes practice and time. However once you get over that mountain, it all starts to come together. But again, one must put in the time to learn. Without that, you'll never advance in fighting games. As for fighting game music, Killer Instinct 1,2 and the remake has easily the best music of any fighting game.

[@PGS280]

Competitive fighting gamer here. Amazing video here. Takes me back to the time I was just like and didn’t know anything and how to any motion input. Not until I found a game called Blazblue Chronophantasma extend. I couldn’t play street fighter cause I thought it was strict and restricted. Blazblue allows so much more freedom that’s difficult to explain without using the lingo that would probably make someone brain explode lmao. Either way, trying out different fighting games and just going at it with friends is so much fun at all skill levels and how I even got into these games competitively in the first place. I think it’s pretty awesome how you just picked up a game and just kept playing with friends and had fun in your own way. Nothing wrong with, it’s pretty cool and I say keep it up to both you and any other casual who may come across this. One more thing before I finish this long comment, you’d be surprised how many people actually turn off the music in fighting games. I even do it myself and I love the music in fighting games, some of my favorite stuff. I just turn it off for the sake of editing videos with my own music and it helps with focus to have a chill song while playing. Either way, play how you want and have fun! 👍

[@binho2224]

Chronophantasma is amazing! It was the 4th fighting game I tried and I loved it. I spent too much time in Abyss mode. I never understood why more fighting games never tried to implement more modes with RPG elements.

[@theguardian2284]

I was writing about how this video shouldn't have 14% dislike ratio, since it is just a dude saying how he tried and didn't enjoy that much the experience of learning but saying that they have NO GOOD MUSIC? HELL NAH

[@platinumconquest2365]

Seems like orchestral music is more your thing, as opposed to the pure rock and electronic tracks fighting games mostly go for. There's a good amount of orchestral music in fighting games if you know where to look. It looks like you've just been exposed to the ones that don't. The main series to check out in this regard would be Soul Calibur. That series' music is made up entirely of pure orchestral tracks. Killer Instinct has some excellent ones too. That OST goes into just about every genre you can think of. Try checking out "Warlord", "Lycanthropy", and "Nocturne in Blood". Tekken likes combining orchestras with electronic sounds a lot. I can recommend "Moonlit Wilderness T5&TT2", "Ground Zero Funk", "Mystic Force", "Duomo Di Sirio 1&2", and "Volcanic Bomb 1&2". You can also have Vega's theme from Street Fighter V and "Venator Ballare" from The King of Fighters XIV as a couple of extra recommendations.

[@dragonwings206]

As someone who had already been playing console rhythm games for a while speedy dpad imputs were second nature for me personally the bane of my existence was using charge characters effectively and not jumping trying to do half circles foward ultimates in GG strive

[@rickybelmont9651]

I'm a longtime FG player and never realized the red orbital planet was depicting a joystick (I play pad) but it makes so much sense hahahah

[@mathclass2548]

It’s crazy that you’re a not a fighting game gamer because I’m pretty sure you’ve played more then me but I love these games

[@josephkeen7224]

I’m a beginner also, so take this with a grain of salt (and it probably shows that these kinds of games aren’t for me), but personally what I think fighting games need is a higher focus in defense, because for me that’s where 90-95% of impact in combat comes from. But from what fighting games I’ve played (the old Samurai Showdown and Street Fighter games), I get that the depth is probably meant to be when you use combos, but for some reason that kind of thing in games just feels like button mashing for me even though I understand that isn’t the case. To give you an idea my favorite combat systems are Kingdom Come Deliverence, Sekiro, and Sifu.

[@H1_R3Z]

I have yet to find a greater joy in this world than getting drunk with the boys, booting up some random fighting game that none of us have heard of on fightcade, and just goofin' around.

[@VJ2099]

Fighting games have always been a tough genre to get into but I think another issue non fighting game players have is that they sort of psyche themselves out when it comes to fighting games. It’s easy to get discouraged when you see other people doing crazy shit and feel like you can’t keep up especially when on the surface there’s just so much to learn. This viewpoint used to be pretty justified considering that in the past, fighting game tutorials were very bad at teaching you things (and to some extent, there are still some things that could be communicated better like the hadoken input you showed earlier). However, at least in my opinion, this viewpoint isn’t as justified as it used to be since in recent years, fighting game tutorials have improved tremendously. Another thing is that while there is in fact a lot to learn, you don’t necessarily have to learn everything in a fighting game or do crazy combos. All you really need to do is learn the basics, learn whatever it is that your chosen character can do, and stick to simple combos until you get more comfortable, you can play the rest by feel. If there’s something in particular that stumps you, you can practice it using the tools in training mode. Like any game, fighting games require skill and take time to get good at. You will fumble a lot, you will lose a whole lot but that’s just part of the process. Just remember that everyone has to start somewhere and have fun. Don’t take it so seriously, it’s just a game after all.

[@goukudera]

Hey dude fighting gamer here. Also rpg gamer (especially etrian odyssey) i apologize for all the potential hate youre gonna get for not liking fighting game music. Especially guilty gear as they pride themselves on their music. Good luck my friend

[@ITNoetic]

When I first started taking fighting games seriously in 2008, it was thumb soreness that ultimately drove me towards fightsticks.

[@BlackHayateMX]

I'm glad you figured out that fighting games are NOT supposed to be taken seriously and instead they are meant to be silly and over the top XD that's the real charm of them!

[@predeterminedmeat5024]

I knew a guy who played KOF and he spent 3 full months learning a single combo. Jeez. Also never tense your hands while doing motion inputs. That's a one way ticket to joint pain.

[@dragonmaster3030]

I feel this statement on a physical level(yuzu main of uni)

[@CantHandleThis6]

​@@dragonmaster3030I'm sorry for your fingers. Enjoy your plink inputs. . . That being said I'm planning on getting the game and maining Yuzu so I'll know your pain soon

[@dragonmaster3030]

@@CantHandleThis6 do you play on PC, also I'm not just gonna be plinking, gotta piano input this stuff as well

[@CantHandleThis6]

@@dragonmaster3030 Yeah was gonna get the game on console but I've been moving my main fighting games to P.C. (P4AU and Guilty Gear) So I decided to get the new ones there to. Planning to get into Uni 2, Melty Blood (Akiha Setplay go Brr), BBTAG, and Blazblue (Rachel/Kokonoe player). Planning on playing at least Uni and BBCF competitively. Maybe Melty Blood if the scene is still alive

[@CantHandleThis6]

@dragonmaster3030 I do play on pad although I'm looking into getting a fightstick as 2 of my controllers have their right dpad permanently pressed in within the span of 6 months

[@brutalnobody5240]

6:50 blame japan if you must, Guys keep kept the arcade around and afloat far longer than we did and outside of Mk the majority of fighting games are Japanese in origin

[@LinWasTaken]

how dare you express your opinion on the internet?

[@lucas_lipp]

Great video, but I'm the exact opposite when it comes to the music. I constantly listen to the Guilty Gear soundtrack. When I'm going to uni, doing chores, going to the store, when I wanna listen to some sick rock. Daisuke Ishiwatari is too sick with it.

[@commiekin]

If you're having thumb pain and are playing on a PC, try using the keyboard. ASD+Spacebar (or just WASD if that's more comfortable) for movement; uio & jkl for buttons. Cheaper than buying a leverless.

[@bubbles46853-ep9if]

To be fair, I had my fun with Injustice. I even somehow managed a Perfect online. But yeah, I play by feel most of the time. I don’t really research combo routes or anything. Everything I do is just reactionary.

[@aramondehasashi3324]

Since you kept showing SF6 footage i was waiting for you to talk about playing with modern controls but you never did lol Fighting game music is awesome major cap for turning it off I'm so happy you played Last Blade 2. Even just seeing it in KZbin videos like these gives me hope that some players will see it and want to play it and join our LB2 community.

[@atunalamarinera]

I recommend you hear the guilty gear strive ost alone as every character on that game has his own vocal track that speaks about the story of the character, and also are BANGERS.

[@Mistouze]

"fighting games are goofy silly games" HE GETS IT

[@amirulakhyar50]

General gamer here, you not mostly correct there my good man. Fighting game music are one of the best next to Souls game music.

[@Havlark]

Granblue is a pretty good fighting game for newbies because its built a lot like smash. You got your directional specials, and all the characters have really similar kits which means swapping between them is a lot easier.

[@PhilosophersCallingToManga]

Also, that reference was genius, I was like 🌏 somebody gets it.

[@MoonlightMaskG]

Now I can’t get the lighting turkey part out of my head 😭 great video tho

[@WoobertAIO]

I like how you put K' in your favorite characters 4 times, on top of putting him on the thumbnail

[@bunnybreaker]

Posting right away to say... PHANTOM BREAKER OMNIA!! I fully assume it doesn't get mentioned and you should definitely check it out. No motion inputs, easy to get into, but has deep mechanics. I've played with complete noobs that were able to start understanding how fighting games work on a strategic/tactical level within the first session.

[@Hack--rz1io]

Something about the end that i found interesting is that when i hop online in melee and fight random online opponents.. I swear it feels like meeting friends. I can feel their state through the game, we non verbally agree to just be silly and sometimes we try a bit harder. There's a connection you can form through punching a video game character that's really cool ! It probably comes with a lot of time though, i have been playing for a looooooong time

[@kacerislofton715]

Nobody told you, how to properly use the D Pad😅 damn I can say it takes skill to master most fighting games using the controller .

[@neon-lake]

Hi, great vid btw Idk if u take recommendations but there r "simplified" fighting games out there that might be better 4 new players/casuals Dive Kick and Footsies come to mind. But u could also try Your Only Move Is Hustle(yomi hustle 4 short) a "turn-based" fighting game its super weird but really interesting mechanically speaking

[@VoiceFGC]

As a fighting gamer since 2012, I REALLY enjoyed this video. I have not really had many IRL friends who were really interested in trying fighting games out save for 1, and I do really wish that I could find a way to teach them in a way that would get them to enjoy it. But, they show little interest in them still. Since then however, I have found many people online and yeah, it is a LOT more fun with friends. I'm glad to see a story of someone stepping outside of their comfort zone to try to enjoy a brand new genre of game like this and discovering a whole new world of goofy moments, badass finishers, personable and unique characters, and limitless growth. I hope some people who don't play fighting games can see this and think, "Huh, fighting games actually sound pretty cool now that I think about it." ... ...There is just one thing, fighting game music is GOOD dude. I get why you wouldn't necessarily like Guilty Gear's music (I really enjoy it, but it's not for everybody), but most fighting games tend to have truly incredible soundtracks (glad you recognized how great 3rd Strike's is though haha). Though I get it, I guess for a new player it might get a little old listening to it for too long. Either way, great video, really enjoyed it!

[@MichaelHarto]

just like everything else in life, you learn little by little. don't just jump into trying combos. be acclimated to the inputs, train your hands and fingers to do those inputs until it became muscle memory, let your mind get used to the timing of each of your normal attack inputs. learn executing special moves until you can execute each special move 10 out of 10 times or at least 9 out of 10 times. now learn to cancel 1 normal attack into a special move to make a simple combo. now expand the combo step by step.

[@harrybalsac8279]

Im personally a fighting gamer but I understand the grind, we all eventually had to learn how to play and I had also started learning after the arcade era. Fighting games were rough to get into but what hooked me in was the cool shit and the near infinite skill ceiling. I'm certainly not a pro player but this genre is easily my favorite and it's in large part just because there's always a new thing to uncover and that's amazing. Sitting in training mode used to be my favorite pass time before online play was available to me just because I could experiment with all kinds of stuff and probably find a new tactic or technique. It's cool to see other people find enjoyment in these games too and honestly didn't realize how much having a friend helps the journey. It took me a while to really sink my teeth into the game probably because I had nobody to play with and my only motivation was to do the cool thing and solve the fighting game puzzle. I think it would be nice if fighting games had better teaching tools and single player content since it would help get people to start learning how to solve the fighting game puzzle and stay invested if they dont have a friend but looking at the most modern fighters it's looking a bit better.