10 Years of In Third Person: The Universal Fighting Game Guide

Improving at fighting games is one of the steepest mountains to climb in all of video games. You have to contend with complex special move inputs, combos, complex gameplay systems, difficulty that changes based on who you fight against, an online player base that will take turns stomping you into the ground, and no one to blame but yourself each time you lose. Furthermore, the path to improvement usually requires help from outside resources, such as guides, video tutorials, or coaching, as even the most robust in-game teaching tools won’t prepare you for everything you’ll face in the real world.

Though I put a ton of time and effort into training, I credit Street Fighter III: Third Strike legend and one of the FGC’s pioneers in content Gootecks for helping me grow as a player. Dating all the way back to his audio-only podcast from ages ago, his tips and advice really set me down the right path. Without his indirect guidance, I don’t think I ever would have gotten to the place where I am today.

When I got to a point where I felt like I had knowledge of my own to pass down, I started the Universal Fighting Game Guide. I wanted to pay it forward like Gootecks did for me. Feeling like there wasn’t enough information out there for beginner-to-intermediate level players, I wanted to write the kind of guides I was looking for to answer very specific questions I had. On top of that, I wanted to write guides that worked for a wide swath of fighting games, as so much knowledge is transferrable from game-to-game.

I was hoping that a handful of people would find my work useful. What I didn’t expect was the massive and ongoing success it has achieved.

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The “Is Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Dead?” Live Stream

Is Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite dead? In light of recent news, let’s play this troubled fighter while discussing its future!

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Is Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Doomed?

2017 was a rough year for Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite. Mired by critics and fans for its sub-par visuals, a short roster sorely lacking in power, and a gameplay shift to 2v2 combat that was perceived as a step back for the franchise, the game floundered upon release. Even Capcom’s eSports efforts, which helped salvage Street Fighter V, sputtered through a tournament season that felt rushed by the organizers and were poorly-attended.

Things only got worse to start 2018. Based on Capcom’s recent financials, the game shipped a million units. Despite being a seven-figure number, Capcom reports that figure as “soft”. Capcom announced the new season of Capcom Cup and Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite was notably absent. On top of that, EVO announced its 2018 lineup and the game wasn’t included, marking the first time a Marvel vs. Capcom game didn’t make it.

With poor sales and no support from the largest tournament organizers, is it time to put the tombstone on this game and quite possibly, the series?

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Capcom’s Comedy of Fighting Game Missteps

I consider myself to be a massive fan of Capcom fighting games. I’ve poured in thousands of hours into everything they’ve put out since Street Fighter IV, and was a always a fan of Street Fighter II. However, it’s gotten increasingly hard to ignore the calamity of errors that follow every fighting game release. Let’s run through a bunch of them from the last few years, shall we?

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Kickstart Guide to Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite

The fate of two worlds rests on your shoulders in Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite! This tag team fighter may be more streamlined compared to its predecessors, but it’s still one of the toughest fighters to learn due to its lighting pace and the complexity that comes with managing multiple characters at once. While the in-game teaching tools are awful, don’t let that stop you from enjoying a really solid fighter. Try these tips on for size!

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Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Review

Years ago, Disney ended the licensing of its video game rights to third parties in order to focus on making its own games in-house. While it was the decision that gave life to Disney Infinity and Marvel: Contest of Champions, it was also the move that prematurely ended the Marvel vs. Capcom 3 series. Once the game disappeared from store shelves and digital distribution channels, it seemed like the series was never coming back.

But like the Phoenix (who isn’t in the game yet), Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite rises from the ashes to bring tag-based fighting action to the masses. Curiously missing a #4 in its name, it’s omission is clear once you see some of the dramatic changes that make it stray from the 3v3 format of yesteryear. Is this game still worthy of the Mahvel name?

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Out Tomorrow – Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite

To say that Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite has had a rocky PR battle throughout the course of its existence is a bit of an understatement. From the lack of X-Men characters, to the “downgrade” of 3v3 combat to 2v2, to Capcom mostly rehashing characters and animations from Marvel vs. Capcom 3, to the terrible story demo they released, to the poorly-worded quotes from Capcom representatives that reduced characters to just functions, to Chun-Li’s busted face, this game has been through the ringer.

On top of all of that, Capcom is fighting an even steeper uphill battle after breaking the trust of gamers with Street Fighter V. Layer on top of that the impending release of Dragon Ball FighterZ, which looks to be a worthy adversary in the tag-team fighting game space, and Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite appears to be in a lot of trouble before it’s even released.

So why then, am I buying a copy?

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My 5 Favourite Characters in Fighting Games

Character choice means everything in a fighting game. It’s about the moves that your character has. The strengths and weaknesses they have. Their look. Their back story. All of this ends up being a reflection of you and how you like to play any given fighting game.

For the fighting games I play, this very much applies to me. Characters that I use need to look cool and fit my play style. If they don’t fit both, I have a hard time being effective with them or finding the motivation to get better. As such, here’s my five favourite fighting game characters!

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Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Story Demo Impressions

Months before its scheduled release, Capcom has given us access to a story mode demo for Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite. Single player content is not what I come to the genre for, but its importance can’t be understated in a world where NetherRealm has raised the bar with the story modes in Mortal Kombat and Injustice. Furthermore, the lack of single player content at launch was a key factor in Street Fighter V failing to win gamers over, causing the game to sell short of Capcom’s expectations. With that in mind, let’s take a look at what we have in Infinite.

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Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Team Deconstruction

Imagine playing a game of Street Fighter where in the middle of the match, you break Ryu’s wrist and he can no longer throw fireballs. This would instantly change the dynamic of the match, as Ryu can no longer keep you at a distance with projectiles. While I’m not actively campaigning for breaking bones to be a feature in the next Street Fighter game, the concept of losing abilities as a fight is happening is a fascinating one. You can already experience this concept in action by playing Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

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