Month: June 2017

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Windjammers? More like signal jammers; Thoughts on the closed beta

When I got my hands on a beta code for Windjammers, I was very excited. Living in Europe, I am just around the corner from Windjammer’s most passionate scene, and I was desperate to see what all the hype was about. I had the client downloaded well in advance, so when the beta finally opened I logged in immediately.

Since I’d never played the game before, I decided to whip through the tutorial. It’s not extensive — just a few slides explaining each button and how to execute curves and special throws. Before long, it was time to actually give the game a go.

Uh-oh.

Finding a match was an exercise in futility. There’s something very strange going on with the netcode Dot Emu are using here, because eight or so of every ten matches I got either failed to load (forcing one of the two players to quit out) or downright disconnected without an explanation. And with only match types online modes, there was no other option but to wait out the disconnects and try again. And again. And again.

When you finally get a game, it’s good fun. Impressively lagless and surprisingly good-looking, it wasn’t long before I was learning just how important positioning and mind-games are in earning victories. I’m not entirely sure how it came to be that I was playing footsies in a frisbee game, but it turned into a fascinating and engaging experience.

The character you pick matters too, despite the slender size. With raw statistics so clearly on display, you can pick those aspects of a character that are most exciting to you, and the difference between the max speed character and the biggest and slowest of them are very noticeable. It all works its way into a situation where your character choice really does matter, and can be clearly reflected in the way that you play.

And when things work out, it’s incredible satisfying:

Which only makes it more frustrating that the netcode just couldn’t keep up. Every game that I played was excellent, and there was only a couple of games with any sort of lag, but when I’m only getting into two games in ten, there’s something very wrong. It got to the point where I could recognise the names that wouldn’t load in, and didn’t even bother picking my character of choice. I just mashed, quit out and went back to waiting for a new match.

Our Assistant Editor Sam “Trilby” Foxall also managed to get his hands on a code. His thoughts were much the same as mine:

What can I say? It’s Windjammers with an extra lick of paint. All of the mind-bending saves, Super Curves and bumper shenanigans are intact, with some redone sprite work to make Windjammers a bit prettier. The main issue is with the game’s online: it’s fantastic when it works, awful when it doesn’t. When Windjammers relies on players making split-second dives to stop a speeding frisbee, it needs to have good netcode and luckily, this port of Windjammers delivers. I only experienced one laggy match while playing the beta, with every other match running like a dream. The problem is that you can only get to high-speeding disc throwing if you manage to connect to your opponent. In about six out of ten matches, Windjammers would freeze just as the match was about to begin. The only way to solve this problem was to forfeit and search for another player. This is fine in player matches when there is nothing on the line, but it becomes a huge problem in Ranked play. Since forfeiting a match — even if it the screen freezes — results in you losing points, the real game is waiting to see if you or your opponent quits first. Unless this connection issue is fixed before launch, you’re honestly better off sticking to the MAME version of Windjammers to avoid frustration.

And SRK’s resident newshound d3v? I think these tweets from the man himself say it all:

It seems then that there’s a lot of work to be done. As a closed beta, it’s understandable that there are still a few problems, but the connection issues are above and beyond just shrugging off. I can only hope that Dot Emu can work their issues out, because the game — when you can get in — is a ton of fun. It is legendary for a reason and it deserves better. A lot of the FGC would definitely enjoy it — but only if they can get connected.

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Sub-Zero slides into Injustice 2 next month

Earlier than expected, NetherRealm Studios have released the next character trailer for Fighter Pack 1. Coming into through a portal from Earthrealm, the cryomancer Sub-Zero is joining the Injustice 2 cast in July. Acting as a combination of all of his Mortal Kombat X variations into a single character, this version of Sub-Zero is quite the chilling opponent.

Many of his strings and specials are the same as his Mortal Kombat X incarnation: it’s the meter-burn specials where things get really interesting. His meter-burn Slide has him projecting a frozen version of himself sliding along the ground, while his meter-burn Ice Clone has him backflipping to create a grounded and an airborne Ice Clone. His special is particularly brutal, turning opponents into a frozen pin-cushion while teleporting around the screen. He also has an ice dive-kick, where Sub-Zero stays in the air while an Ice Clone goes flying at your opponent.

While his moves stay strictly PG-13, his win animation is the throwback to his iconic Spine Rip Fatality, as you see it happening from the victim’s perspective. Hearing the bloody explosion and seeing Sub-Zero staring at you as he lifts your torso into the air is quite the finisher.

Based on this release schedule, expect Starfire to release this August, with a trailer coming sometime in July.

Source: Injustice

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Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite — Story Demo combo video mini-roundup: Dante, X, & Chun-Li

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite‘s Story Demo, unsurprisingly, seems more focused on letting players have a taste of the game’s single player content. While this is understandable, considering that Street Fighter V was lacking in this department, this has left players that are looking to test out the gameplay systems somewhat wanting. That said — more than a few enterprising players have toughed it out and made some combo videos based on the Story Demo.

First up, we have Isedelica, who put together this sick-looking Dante combo that gets some decent mileage using the Power Stone’s Infinity Surge, combined with Dante’s Devil Trigger. That said, while it outright kills the Ultron Drone in the video, these do have less life than the regular characters, so it might not be a true touch of death in competition.

Meanwhile, Swillo & BimmyQuestion have put together a more detailed combo video for X. Here, they demonstrate how he can extend his combos using a combination of Buster Shot follow ups and Sonic Slashes bounced off the wall. Additionally, one of the combos uses the mechanic that allows for a free level 3 hyper combo during an Infinity Surge, at the cost of sacrificing the rest of remaining Infinity Surge time.

Finally, Team Lago demonstrates a ground loop Chun-Li can do by instant air dashing in between ground strings. The loop itself seems tricky, and you can see them dropping it multiple times in the video. But it’s still an interesting showcase of the freedom that the game’s combo system allows.

Sources: Isedelica; Swillo & BimmyQuestion; Team Lago

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Eagle comes to Killer Instinct on June 27th, alongside patch 3.8

After being teased at Combo Breaker, we’ve finally got more footage and a release date for the cybernetic hunter and brother of Chief Thunder, Eagle. He will join the Killer Instinct roster on June 27th, coming along with patch 3.8. According to Iron Galaxy designer Adam “Keits” Heart, Eagle is a “mobile zoner” with “scary mixups from various ranges.” If you’re a fan of Green Arrow, Hawkeye or Nakoruru, Eagle should be right up your alley.

Based on the trailer, it confirms that Eagle’s bird will be an assist character, returning arrows to him if they miss their target. His quiver has a finite number of arrows, so you’ll need to call on your feathered friend to restock your ammo supply. Eagle can fire a single arrow or a flurry of three arrows, either as normal arrows or as flaming projectiles. Similar to Arbiter with his carbine shots, Eagle can fire off an arrow at the end of a combo to deal some extra damage.

As for his other attacks, Eagle has a special flip move where he can cross up opponents similar to Shadow Jago’s divekicks. He also seems to have a slide and a move very similar to Fulgore’s Axis Slash, which makes sense seeing as Eagle became the model for the current Fulgore units. We’ll no doubt get a full character breakdown in the future, but he looks perfect for anyone who loves hyper mobile projectile characters.

Patch 3.8 is also promised to have a bunch of balance changes as well, so look forward to those as well on June 27th. Expect Eagle to cost $4.99, similar to recent DLC characters.

Sources: Killer Instinct; TheKeits

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Could a “Super Street Fighter V” restore fans’ faith in Street Fighter V?

Is rebranding the answer to the game’s woes?

Street Fighter V has not made the best impression in its first two years. As much as it has in common with prior Street Fighter titles, it’s still a product significantly different than what the fanbase expected, and this is reflected in its low sales and negative press. The approach of releasing a “service” rather than a complete game has created an ongoing sense of dissatisfaction from the community; functions visible but locked off in the CFN system only just started doing something in the latest update, nearly a year-and-a-half since launch. The roster has grown from 16 characters to 25 — but barely any new modes have been added, aside from minimal training content and a divisive cinematic story mode. Calls to overhaul core aspects of the game go unanswered — such as the reads-not-reactions input latency, and the infuriating rollback netcode — but we do regularly get new premium costumes to buy.

With new titles from competing publishers like Injustice 2, Tekken 7, and the Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2 update releasing to general acclaim and positive reviews, Capcom is in a tougher spot than ever. Loyalty to the Street Fighter brand can only hold fans so long through months of disappointment and frustration, so what’s there to do? How do you please existing players, while attracting new ones? They could just throw all their eggs into the Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite basket. Or — maybe it’s time for a rebrand.

sfv_street_fighter_v_logo_fancy

The rumor

An old, amorphous leak recrystallized recently, its most recent appearance being on r/Kappa as part of a long post by Rikurikumore. (It’s also being discussed on NeoGAF.) Consisting of supposedly leaked character and mode information for both Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite and Street Fighter V, the popularity of this leak list has grown through the confirmation of a number of its claims. Its MvC:I roster is looking very accurate so far. The section in question here is near the end of the post — after reiterating the older leak that claims Abigail, Menat, and Zeku are the remaining Season 2 DLC fighters for SFV (this has gained credibility through the older leak naming Akuma and Ed before they were announced), the post goes on to drop its “bombshell”: Super Street Fighter V.

The claim: instead of Season 3, Capcom will announce Super Street Fighter V for year three. As to not contradict their original promise — only having to buy the game once — SSFV will be a free update to SFV. It will include a user interface overhaul, and the following:

  • Arcade Mode
  • “Extra Battle” mode
  • a PvE mode where you battle the Illuminati
  • some “expanding on the existing mechanics”
  • new Critical Arts

… and maybe more! But that isn’t even what catches the most attention: the post also names the next six DLC fighters for the first year of SSFV, and it’s all returning characters:

  • Sagat
  • Sakura
  • C. Viper
  • Q
  • Oro
  • Necro

Supposedly, we can expect Capcom to officially announce Super Street Fighter V before the end of the Capcom Pro Tour, possibly at Capcom Cup itself. There is some speculation that Capcom might even drop the news this week at E3 2017.

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The reliability

Is this “leak” reliable? Or is it sheer fiction and/or speculation? There’s no way yet to be sure it’s the latter. There’s no way to rule out that it may be the former, either. The main source of credibility in this instance is the growing accuracy of the Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite character roster leak preceding it, and the likelihood-by-association of the Super Street Fighter V information being coupled with the highly-likely Season 2 character list. The reddit user even jokes that Alex Valle already leaked the next character DLC list for SFV earlier on Twitter, in the form of a joke:

Does Valle know something we don’t? Necro is already in a stage background (Spooky Arena), C. Viper, Oro, and Sakura all appear in character story modes, and Sagat and Q are among the most-requested characters to return.

sfv-story-oro-leak

Hmm… maybe DreamHack didn’t make a mistake, and was just ahead of the curve…?

Or if you prefer the conspiracy-theory approach, maybe Capcom was planning this all along — based on the photographic evidence from Alex’s license plate in the City in Chaos stage:

Street Fighter V - stage select - City in Chaos

This proves it!

From a cynical standpoint, the SSFV rumor seems suspicious simply because it reads like a community wish list. We cried for Arcade Mode (well, I personally didn’t, but that’s another article), we cried for Q, we begged for Sagat to return. Capcom should be taking community feedback into account — but so far, it barely has. It’s hard to believe now that the developers are finally listening.

The reality

So, let’s just suppose this rumor is dead-on accurate, and Capcom will be hitting us with a Super upgrade next year. Will it accomplish anything?

Community reaction to a “Super” SFV rebrand along these lines has been generally positive, supporting the idea that a SSFV could be spun into an effective relaunch of a “new,” more complete product. This could result in improved public perception of the Street Fighter brand — provided it is a free upgrade, and it doesn’t fragment the player base. James Chen talks about this at length in an episode of Unchensored (NSFW, as suggested by the title!).

 

I agree with this to a degree; it will likely boost sales somewhat, and positive press may draw back frustrated players that have dropped the game to retry it. A Street Fighter V that has washed away the complaints about poor offline content will undoubtedly be a stronger presence in the fighting game community — and things like an Arcade Mode, and a mode to beat up CPU Illuminati, will help support that elusive “casual” customer. Bringing back fan-favorite characters like Sakura, Q, and especially Sagat will foster even more goodwill (presuming they don’t change too much). New Critical Arts may help add some asked-for variety (although, I believe the call for new V-Skills/V-Triggers has been louder). And it’s hard to complain about a free upgrade. If Super SFV cost an extra $30, that’d be a much different matter.

That casual consumer market might easily jump on and enjoy Super Street Fighter V — if they look past the old Champion Edition/Super/Turbo/Ultra re-release silliness. A “Super” prefix could indeed be just the thing Street Fighter V needs to clean up its stained image — for the more casual gamer. However, unless the things that serious players have voiced issues with loudly and repeatedly — input latency, poor netcode, player 2 rematch control — are not effectively addressed, the improvements offered by a Super upgrade won’t make much difference among the competitive community. A new coat of paint won’t make a lemon run.

For the sake of their fans, for the sake of Street Fighter, and for the sake of Capcom themselves, I want them to get it right.

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Additional sources: Rikurikumore (r/Kappa); Tizoc (NeoGAF); Alex Valle (Twitter); Jimmy_Shoegazer (Twitter); UltraChenTV