Thanks to Tekken 7‘s runaway success, many new players are discovering the joy and complexity of 3D fighters. For those moving from 2D to 3D, there is quite the adjustment period as you adapt to the extra dimension that you can now play with. In his latest analysis video, Gerald from Core-A Gaming compares how 2D and 3D fighters tackle issues like character stances, the layout of fighting stages and more.
For 2D games like Street Fighter, characters will always revert to an open stance to ensure character readability. This means Vega swapping his claw hand so it can be seen by the player, Oro changing the arm he has hidden away and in Street Fighter II, Sagat’s eyepatch magically changing sides. In Tekken — where attacks are grouped as either left or right punches and kicks — retaining a character’s stance is important for establishing which way to sidestep attacks, whiff-punishing certain moves and so on.
Another major deviation between 2D and 3D fighters is how each genre approaches grounded movement. While 2D fighters like Guilty Gear and Marvel vs. Capcom have a heavy emphasis on aerial combat, games like Tekken sacrifice this aspect to deepen the complexity of their ground game. You need to keep track of which side of the body a move is coming from, which direction to side-step and so on, making the grounded spacing battles of SoulCalibur or Tekken super-important and thrilling to watch.
If you’re someone who wants to make the jump from 2D to 3D, or are just interested in seeing the main ways in which 2D and 3D fighters differ, this analysis is a great place to start.
Source: Core-A Gaming