Old Skooler Needs Help getting up to date!

Newbie Saikyo Dojo
#1

OK, long story short, I used to help run an arcade back in the early 90’s. I’m out of Chicago, so our site got to field test Midway and some Capcom games. We had some really, really excellent players, of which I’d like to think I could include myself.

Well, now it’s been 15 years since I touched a fight game. I’m building myself a hardwood fight stick from scratch (I’m a decent woodworker), and I’m looking for what fight games I should get into. Keep in mind, when I played, we had MKII and MKIII was being tested at Midway, and SFII Turbo was the hot game. So I’m really out of it today, and trying to wade through the forums is a bit overwhelming.

I stopped by a Best Buy last night since I had a gift card for my birthday, and when I asked for fighting games, they tried pushing MMA games on me. Obviously I was in the wrong place asking the wrong questions.

So what games should I pick up today? I saw two or three different versions of Street Fighter on the shelf, and the new MK (9?).

I’m looking forward to getting into fighting games again. I don’t think I’ll be able to get up to the level I was back in the day when I bumped elbows with Chicago’s best players, and I really doubt I’ll be competing, but I really want to fight again!

Sad side story: I stopped by Galloping Ghost in Brookfield, IL the other night (midwests largest arcade), and hit up the MKII and Streetfighter II; I could still rock Blanka pretty decently, but I was completely worthless in MKII. I couldn’t remember any combos and my timing was way off. It pains me, especially considering I used to be able to get to the last fight in MKII using only the block button the whole game. I miss those days.

So guys and gals, what games does this old skooler need to jump into to learn to rock modern fight?

#2

The dominant 2D fighters now are Super Street Fighter 4: Arcade Edition (which is available for consoles) and Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3. People actually living in North America right now are going to have to chime in on MK9, but from my (half way around the world) perspective, MK9 seemed to have died down after Evo.

If you dig street fighter, SSF:AE is probably going to feel most natural to you. If for whatever reason you can only find a disk version of Super Street Fighter 4 (no Arcade Edition), the AE upgrade can be bought on xbox live/psn. Also, a free patch is due in a week that will no doubt be pretty hype. Marvel is a ton of fun too, though faster paced.

As for 3D, Tekken 6 is still hanging on, but the 3D community seems to be waiting with baited breath for Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and (probably to a lesser extent) Soul Calibur 5.

Welcome SRK and welcome back to fighting games. Check out the stickies here in the newbie dojo if you have any stick/mechanics questions. Also, be sure to check the regional matchmaking section. Although arcades are struggling in the States, you might find some local meetups to get in on.

#3

I have a long way to go before I start hitting matches!

I did see SSF:AE and the regular SSF IV and wasn’t sure what the difference was. I wound up picking up MK9, but I’ve not opened it till I get some feedback from the peeps here. The reviews I’ve been reading have been everything from “one of the Top 5 games of 2011” to “meh”. I might still play it, just because MK is what I grew up on.

I certainly need to go through the newbie thread…I’m watching videos and having trouble keeping up with what I’m seeing…lots of stuff that wasn’t around when I played. I feel like such an old timer. LOL.

Who knows, maybe I’ll find the time to put the hours/days/weeks of practice in, and maybe I’ll show up for some matches.

#4

If you liked MK back in the day, MK9 is going to do a good job of giving you that “Mortal Kombat feel”; Whether that’s a good thing or not will vary from person to person (For me, it drove me away from the game, because they somehow managed to make it look like the old jerky, digitized sprites, only with 3D models, and god, I hate that jerky animation.). I don’t know how “serious” the community is, really, but you can’t argue that the game doesn’t feel like Mortal Kombat.

Super Street Fighter 4 and Super Street Fighter 4: Arcade Edition are functionally the same game, but Arcade Edition includes a patch/DLC update type thing that will run you about $20 ($15? I forget) to download. If you can find SSF4 for more than $20 cheaper than AE, you might want to get it and buy the patch, otherwise, just pick up AE and have done.

UMVC3 is the latest entry in the spazzy team fighter genre - since you dropped out of the scene before the Marvel vs Capcom 2 craze hit the market, this may or may not be your cup of tea. It’s a pretty different experience from Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat. You might be better off getting a “taste” of the genre by picking up MvC2 on Xbox Live or PSN (whatever you have) before you throw down $40 or whatever for UMVC3.

Outside of those three, games you might want to look into:

The aforementioned Marvel vs Capcom 2 (XBLA/PSN Digital purchase)
BlazBlue: Continuum Shift - this is a “new school” fighter with all the combos and airdash madness that entails, but it’s really nicely balanced (after the free balance patch download), has a very unique roster, and, since it has a disc-only update coming in a couple of months, is mighty cheap ($17 for the Xbox version on Amazon). Don’t buy any DLC though - the next version bundles most of it. Still, if the subgenre (“airdash fighters” or “anime fighters” or whatever) holds any interest, this is the game to get. (Though I guess you could make a case for Arcana Heart 3 if you’re on Playstation and can get past the all-girls roster.)
SF3: 3rd Strike: Online Edition - the game some folks still regard as the best entry in the Street Fighter series, now with online play and the ability to upload replays to Youtube.

#5

Thanks so much for that list! I guess I should have clarified that I have a PS3. No 360 yet, and depending on when their next version is coming out, I just may wait. Between PC and PS3, I’ve been happy with my light weight gaming needs.

I don’t know what DLC is though, I guess I’ll have to look that up.

Street Fighter IV was $20 at Best Buy, and SF3: 3rd Strike is only $15 on PS3 Store. So I’ll start with those.

Thanks everyone for helping out. This has been a very helpful thread and I wish I had asked it a week ago when I first found SRK. I’ve been trying to poke around and figure my way, but there is just so much information here! Just getting the Joystick hardware basics took me a week! LOL So thanks again!

#6

Be sure to pick up Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, as that is the latest edition. Third Strike on the PSN is also a great buy, as its cheap, has plenty of content, and has plenty of competition to test your skill.

If you’re still into Street Fighter 2, there’s still a pretty decent online community on GGPO that plays Super Turbo, as well as good offline competition in the west coast and east coast.

#7

What is GGPO? You guys keep throwing this stuff out there, remember, I don’t know all these acronyms that you’ve probably been using for the past 5 years. LOL

#8

if you like MK, then MK9 should suit you ok, but I’d also definitely recommend Super Street Fighter 4: Arcade Edition (don’t get the older versions, they are not what you are looking for).

don’t worry about GGPO, its a type of netcode and a way of playing downloaded emulators of old arcade games. there is some great stuff on GGPO, but I don’t think it’s what you are looking for either.

#9

Don’t forget KOF XIII. "It’s a real honest fighting game."
Very little BS, but high learning curve.

Another thing to look out for is SkullGirls, the spiritual successor to Marvel 2 being developed by an indie in this community at present.

I’d probably avoid 3SOE if you’ve been out of the loop for a while, as I think the other games are going to be worth more time investment as a newer player.

#10

Welcome back. Similar story here. I have not played seriously in arcades since the late 90s and I stopped arcade fighters in the mid-90s. Did not like MK3 at all and prefered SNK to Capcom fighters. I forgot MKII controls too.

Had some fighting game glimpse with some Dreamcast fighters.

One thing you’ll notice is that combos have gotten much easier overall and are much more dominant.

I also recommend GGPO and Supercade. I am sure you’ll fare well at older fighters there.

I’d not recommend Blazblue if you are not into anime, since some gfx and sfx may put you off. If you exclude that, game is fine overall. Since you missed its predecessor Guilty Gear, Blazblue might seem easier to get into.

I’d also recommend Hokuto no Ken and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. They are anime influenced too but I guess you prefer old school anime just like me.They play great and are bizarre games.

KOF is allright and you can play the older games (closer to XIII is 2002 on ggpo) to see if it suits you. SNK has different philosophy to Capcom

#11

GGPO is… a piece of software that allows you to play some fighting games over the Internet. If you’re just getting into this hobby again, I suggest you ignore it entirely - a some of the people in this thread seem intent on recommending some pretty obscure games, and I think you’re better off starting with the more mainstream stuff and then, if you decide you want to be in the hobby, explore around a bit more once you’re familiar. Keep an open mind, and play stuff.

I did kinda forget KOF13, because, er, KOF has never worked for me, somehow and it slipped my mind.

Also, I hope you got SUPER Street Fighter 4, in which case you can then upgrade it to AE with a DLC (Downloadable content - C’mon fella, work with us here, this isn’t fancy fighting game terminology this time. :wink: ) update. If you got ordinary “Vanilla” (i.e. no “super”) SF4, you’ve basically paid $20 for a game that’s out of date and few people have interest in playing, so I hope that isn’t what you got.

#12

I dont think GGPO or Supercade were suggested to lure him off the newer FG. I’d recommend those mainly because there is a better chance to find players of his age group or even older. so they might give him some advice and (most importantly) have fun.

They are not obscure games btw, except maybe if you are 20 or less years old.

#13

DLC= Downloadable Content. This is everything from games purchased in your PSN/XBL stores, online updates and patches for games, and new content made available for the games you own.
For instance I bought SSFIV(super street fighter 4) and when AE(arcade addition) came out instead of going to buy another copy of the game I was just able to download the AE content off Xbox Live for my game.