Fighting game experts: Best game for someone trying to get good at them?

[ReservoirAngel]

I've had a long-standing love for fighting games, going all the way back to the SNES version of Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter 2. Unfortunately I also have an equally long-standing habit of being what can charitably be described as absolutely fucking god-awful at them.

So for any actual good players out there, which current fighting game (on PS4 ideally) is best for properly giving a go and trying to get into and good at this genre?

At the moment I'm only really aware of Mortal Kombat 11, Street Fighter 5 or Tekken 7, so... yeah.

 

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

I came to give you a deeply disappointing answer. That answer was "There is no game".

Thinking about that answer, I'm going to amend it. The answer is thus: "The Game You Like The Most".

The reason why is that you're going to pour time and time into it whether you are wrecked or not. You will do what you can to learn about it. You will research moves and try to execute them yourself because it's fun for you. Work is only Work when there's no passion behind the effort.

Take the games you just mentioned. They couldn't be more different than each other. Tekken 7 to me is the most complicated of the three. Dodging out of the way, using the entire stage to your benefit, realizing you can only get the best combos on certain stages doing certain moves on certain bodies requires such a deep knowledge of the game that it's staggering to most people who come from "Aim reticle until object dies"

Mortal Kombat 11 might as well be a spin off game compared to the rest. But that's actually par for the course in Mortal Kombat Games. No two play exactly alike. Meter is thought of differently. You have more defensive options than ever game you mentioned. And each character has the chance for an ingrained mechanic that is special to only that character. E.g. Jax's heat-up arms.

SF5 is admittedly my least favorite of these games. I have it, and it's an easier version of the series than I've ever played (Sf 3rd strike will forever be my favorite fighting game of all time). Each Character's special ability are triggers and another meter you need to measure. But it plays vastly different than MK 11 or Tekken. The concept is the same, outthink your opponent. But the tools to do that are vast between the games.

Find the game that moves you. Find the character that sings to you. And get ready to lose. Lose like you never did before. But use every game to build knowledge. Hey, you might like how Ryu's Roundhouse looks, but it's too slow for a reliable anti-air. Ok, You've heard good things about His standing close jab. Time to invest some practice in that.

Try to find people even here that has the same game. Get in some matches. Talk afterwards. Theory-Craft. Above all, Have. Fun. It doesn't matter if you lose. This is our hobby. Just find enjoyment with whatever you decide on.

 

[Dreiko_v1legacy]

DB FighterZ simply because of the combination of good developer, vast and active community that keeps playing, ongoing support with new patches and characters and a relatively low entry difficulty. All in all it's the easiest recommendation on paper.

That being said, you really just wanna try a bunch of em and pick the ones you actually enjoy the most cause if you're getting good you'll be spending multiple hundreds of hours and you won't feel motivated to do so if you're not having a blast.

My favs are Blazblue central fiction and Guilty Gear Xrd Revelator 2, closely followed by under night in birth and arcana heart 3 SS. All of them are pretty technical but their depth is incomparable as well.

 

[Lufia Erim]

Honestly, The best thing you can do is try them all. No seriously, You need to find the style/game that you enjoy the most and play that.

I started with Marvel vs capcom 3. I enjoyed the fast past chaotic action.

Then i played SF 4, I enjoyed the slow tactical pace. I did have A LOT of trouble with comboes because of the strict timing.

Then i played Soul Calibur 4. I was absolute trash at that game. I realised i do not like/can't grasp 3D fighters. So i crossed off all 3D fighters off my list.

Then i tried Injustice. I learned i do not like Netherrealm games because they feel clunky and disjointed to me.

Then i tried Blazblue. I really enjoyed the combat and characters. But the game was too complicated for me.

Then i tried Persona 4 Arena. I freaking loved that game. I realised i like anime fighters. This is the first game i actually GOT GOOD at .

Then the PS4 came out. I bought Guilty gear Xrd. It was a simpler version of blazblue. i loved it. I played it to death. I got good at this one also

Then i played Street fighter 5. I really enjoyed that too. I got goood at this one also.

So all this to say i tried many games until i found what i liked. then i got good at that

 

[Lufia Erim]

Having said that. i recommend starting with Street fighter 5. You can use it as a stepping stone to learning the basics of Fighting games. The skills carry over. Learn Movement, spacing, anti-airs, execution and comboes. You'll then be able to play or at least understand any game you desir.

 

[ReservoirAngel]

Funnily I just started downloading Street Fighter 5 on PS4 given it was on sale for only a few quid. So I figured fuck it, might as well start there.

Plus I did love playing Street Fighter 2 back in the day, even if my experience of it was limited to utterly failing as but continuing to insist on using Vega, or just spamming projectiles to annoy my brother who was trying to play the game properly.