This blog has been getting some good use as of recently and I definitely see why people can become addicted to blogging.
Anyways.... this is another off-topic post outside of the ordinary. Before I decided to be a game dev, I was a full-on competitive fighting game player. I was SUPER into tournaments and went to all my locals as much as I could. But as I got older... I realized that I wanted to do something else with my time and the fighting game genre isn't doing too well because of the pandemic and poor business practices, which I discuss over at my friend's blog. But in Today's topic I want to talk about SNK's latest title in their flagship title. "KOF XV." But why am I making this blog post about a genre I don't really associate much with anymore?
Well I still love fighting games. I think no other genre really gives you the same sense of satisfaction of making you feel powerful once you learn the mechanics through trial and error whilst building a sort of "second nature" when you get proficient at them. I also really want to see this particular game, KOF XV, do well because I love this franchise. It's my favorite fighting game series of all time and will stay that way. I also think it's one of the last bastions of hope for the genre in the future. The genre right now, in terms of product quality and dev support, is no less than awful. So I just want to bring this discussion in the forefront because I believe that KOF XV isn't going to survive on legacy and an established fanbase alone. So let's discuss about what KOF XV needs to be a successful game.
1. Superb Online and Content
For anyone who has played fighting games, they know the drill on this one. For those who don't, here's a brief primer. Most fighting games out in the market today have abysmal online and lackluster content and that is a big issue. Now whether that's due to developer incompetency or tight budget constraints, it's not an excuse to release products that are below industry standard when it comes to online play and modes that will keep players engaged for a long time. Imagine if the latest Call of Duty had the crappiest online where players were desynced all the time and the only mode besides campaign was Team Deathmatch. People would say it would be the worst CoD ever. In Fighting games, that's sadly the norm.
Which is why KOF XV can't just succeed on legacy alone. You don't know how many tweets I've seen of people calling Terry Bogard "Hat Ken" when he was revealed in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. No one besides old heads know who Terry or Kyo are. They just want to play a fully fleshed out game that, for over 20 years, have spanned over multiple installments. That honestly should show that the developer by now is competent and knows what their franchise is all about, what people love about their franchise, and why it's been relevant for so long. To not ask for good rollback or content that will engage the players for hours on end is unacceptable, especially since SNK's net worth from making a whole bunch of spin-offs has netted them 3.1 Billion Yen.
KOF XV on launch should have a variety of content and amazing rollback netcode that will entice new players to play their game, as well as keep their loyal fanbase happy. Stuff like balance changes and day 1 fixes are important, but that is common with any game with multiplayer functionality. You can't prioritize just one small tidbit a handful of people are complaining about when the larger fan base is addressing bigger concerns about your game. If the game is overly glitchy, if the online keeps desyncing after every match, or if something trivial ike final scores in arcade mode aren't updating correctly, that's a big problem with the product.
2. Long-Term Dev Support & Marketing
So let's say KOF XV has all I mentioned above; great online, ubiquitous amounts of content and priorities on fixing the overall product if anything is buggy. So what else does the game need to do to hold relevancy? In terms of going mainstream, I don't think it'll be streamed in the hands of anyone like Markiplier or Pewdiepie anytime soon, at least not in my lifetime. I do however believe that SNK needs to engage with the larger fighting game community. Now... I think they do an... ok job as far as promoting things like online tournaments and events with their e-sports program, but it could be a lot better.
There is no engagement with big time fighting game personalities/streamers that keep most games relevant in Today's cycle of competition for seeking attention. KOF XV has to have a consistent level of engagement for it to be on top of that cycle. Hell, it's literally as simple as tweeting out "Hey guys and gals, we have @FamousStreamer2002 streaming some online play and showcasing our latest balance patch that addresses problems in ranked and casual match! Tune in at their Twitch link below!" It gets people in the community engaged on your game, lets people see the game being played at a high level depending on the streamer, and is great for showing that the devs actually care about their game. SNK could even have small exhibitions of players around the world ran on their own twitch stream.
It is crucial that SNK takes this step in order to engage with their audience and keep them engaged. Those "Smash Directs" Sakurai does aren't all for nothing.
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And that is... literally it. I just wanted to make this a short read since I feel that I have my main points across and hopefully this gets spread around enough where people can see it. Until next time, I'll see you guys later and have a good one!
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