Yesterday I got hype as humanly possible. For about 10 seconds. You see, I saw that Jujutsu Kaisen had received a fighting game with Bandai Namco. The same people that published Dragonball Fighterz. Let’s fucking go. Arc System Works is back to bring another franchise to the world of competitive fighting games. However once I started watching the trailer I immediately realized that I had some misconceptions about what type of product was actually announced. You see in the fighting game community, there is a clear difference between a 2D or 3D fighting game, and an arena fighter. The former type generally lasts for a few years if developed by a competent company. The latter type is typically forgotten about in six months or less. Anybody remember that Black Clover arena fighter? Regardless, I'll post the trailer for the interested.
On the bright side, myself and so many people are tied up with Street Fighter right now, I wouldn’t have the time for another bussin’ game so soon. There’s a reason I had to skip Final Fantasy XVI. However, it hurts to see a franchise so brimming with potential for a real fighting game to be slapped with the stereotypical “arena cash grab” treatment and move on. Now some of you may wonder why arena fighters are treated as second class titles by the community, so I’ll wrap up with a quick explanation. You see “real” 2D and 3D fighting games (SF, Tekken, Guilty Gear) are all about a true competitive experience to see who the top players of the world are. Sure there’s a tricky character here or there, but for the most part a tier list doesn’t even matter until you’re in the top 10-20% of players worldwide anyway. These games often have complex combo routes, system mechanics, matchup knowledge, and difficult inputs to master. On the other hand, arena fighters have a reputation of offering a janky camera, animations that are difficult to see and understand, controls so simple a monkey could do it, and an overall lack of complexity in the combat compared to a traditional fighter. This means that after a few months the players tend to abandon it, giving the product a “cash grab” feel in retrospect.
Unfortunately I doubt Jujutsu Kaisen will receive a game from Arc System Works anytime soon since this product is already underway. I don’t mean to be a complete downer, I saw in the trailer comments that some people were hype. But a lot of people also seemed to be tired of the repeated “arena fighter” copy and paste button that seems to plague a ton of shounen series. If you’re excited, I hope you enjoy it. And if you’re disappointed, maybe something else will be coming down the anime fighting game pipeline before long. Are you watching Jujutsu Kaisen? Are you hype, disappointed, or indifferent about this game announcement? Are we going to get new doujins with the new season about to start? Become a sorcerer, cast some spells, and exorcise some curses in the comments below!
