Everyone has a fighting chance
Bandai Namco has announced that Bless Unleashed, a new MMORPG being built specifically for consoles, will be coming to XBox One. The game is being developed by Round 8 Studio, a division of Neowiz. Players will “dive into an epic multiplayer journey across a vibrant persistent world where gods and mythical beasts exist”.
From today through August 27th, Steam users can download the starter edition of Ubisoft’s For Honor for free and keep the game forever. In addition, players can save 75% on the Standard, Deluxe and Gold Editions of the game as well.
In the world of fighting games, the idea of a “household name” is subjective. Although there are players like Echo Fox|Tokido, Ghost|NuckleDu, and Method|Luffy, known for their continuous success, there are a few fighters you never forget about: one of which being Filipinoman, a classic player brought to light in the days of Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition. Despite the modesty of his recent activity, the legacy of his character keeps Filipinoman in the hearts of the FGC, and earlier today, Equinox Gaming took note in the form of a signing.
We are excited to welcome @filipinoman to the #EQNX Stream Team!
Follow for #SFV plays & top tier MS Paint skills
https://t.co/yo22gux6s7 pic.twitter.com/O08QLY3PY3
— EQNX (@EQNXGaming) August 22, 2018
On top of the formal announcement of his involvement, Filipinoman expressed his excitement in a video, shown below:
Happy to join @EQNXGaming pic.twitter.com/3CDiZRG2z9
— Anton (@Filipinoman) August 22, 2018
No matter where his career goes from here, the FGC can expect more of Filipinoman and his lovable nature in the future. His toned skills and vibrant attitude will surely shine with the added publicity, breathing life into an already lively following.
Sources: Equinox; Filipinoman
The months surrounding a Super Smash Bros. release are historically loud — fighting game players, Nintendo fans, and even followers of individual characters roar together in a chorus of anticipation. Yesterday, the fanfare surrounding Super Smash Bros. Ultimate grew a little bit louder, as new footage popped up on Nintendo’s social media.
First up, a tense 1v1 between King K. Rool and the (now returning) Snake:
Secondly, a hectic 2v2 between the protagonists of Fire Emblem: Awakening and the villains of Metroid:
Despite featuring item spawns for dramatic flair, these videos showcase how exciting Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be in a competitive setting. Harboring both energy and polish, as well as a ludicrous number of characters, Smash’s future has never looked brighter.
Source: Nintendo
Bizarro Mike returns to host another episode of Capcom Fighters’ Wake Up Wednesdays, now both looking back at Evo 2018 as well as looking forward to the remaining stretch of the Capcom Pro Tour that lies ahead. Michael Martin starts by offering congratulations to Mouseports|Problem X for his spectacular Street Fighter V win over returning champion Echo Fox|Tokido, and then serves up a couple of great interviews from Evo itself: one of America’s favorite contenders ESE|The Cool Kid 93, as well as Canadian commentary queen Jakyo! Check it out below!
More interviews from Evo are still on the way from Capcom Fighters later this week!
Source: Capcom Fighters
Brawlout — the colorful and action-packed platform fighter from Angry Mob Games — is now available on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, alongside the Nintendo Switch and PC. Another pair of indie game characters have also just joined the brawl, and in this trailer, they’re eager to show off what tongue-lashing, tail-swinging techniques Yooka-Laylee bring into the fight.
Yooka-Laylee joins Hyper Light Drifter, Guacamelee, and — coming soon — Dead Cells as indie titles contributing guest fighters to Brawlout!
Source: Angry Mob Games
Brawlout — the colorful and action-packed platform fighter from Angry Mob Games — is now available on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, alongside the Nintendo Switch and PC. Another pair of indie game characters have also just joined the brawl, and in this trailer, they’re eager to show off what tongue-lashing, tail-swinging techniques Yooka-Laylee bring into the fight.
Yooka-Laylee joins Hyper Light Drifter, Guacamelee, and — coming soon — Dead Cells as indie titles contributing guest fighters to Brawlout!
Source: Angry Mob Games
As we near the release of Nicalis’s new crossover fighter Blade Strangers, it’s important for the FGC to understand what a proper match looks like before making a purchase. Blade Strangers is a new IP and, as such, there’s only one beta test environment likely to produce quality matches that will resemble post-release games: the tried-and-true environment of arcade location tests in Japan.
These videos were taken from two days of testing at Port 24 Gaming Center. The most recent footage from the 15th shows a wide variety of character usage. Pay special attention to the win streaks from the hyper aggressive Helen and Ali players, who make excellent use of Melty Blood-esque air-to-air counter-hit conversions and set-play.
For grappler fans, you’ll want to see the footage from the 12th — Shovel Knight plays a simple, powerful game with his counter-hit jump in combos and EX Command Grab conversions. If you get someone into the corner? Lock them down all day with dig.
This footage was brought to our attention by Doghouse|Corgian, whom is also in charge of the Blade Strangers discord server. If anything interests you about the footage above and you want to find out more about the game, be sure to check out the growing scene here!
Blade Strangers launches on August 28th for the PS4, Switch, and Steam.
Source: ポート24八事店; Doghouse|Corgian
Fighting game fans know Fantasy Strike as a newer addition to the genre, with an emphasis on accessibility. With simpler movements and straightforward combos, Fantasy Strike aims to bring fighting games to an audience that might be intimidated by their complexity.
On August 21st, the Fantasy Strike team revealed a new update for their title, immediately available on Steam. Notable changes included an 8% increase of total game speed, new single-player modes, character fixes, and a general improvement of the game’s polish.
Due to player recommendations and outside testing, the team decided to amp up Fantasy Strike’s overall speed by 8%. Along with this change came new game modes, meant to increase single-player content alongside the recent story additions to the game’s arcade mode. Fighters now have a chance to test their might via the new Survival Mode, with 4 total tiers of varying difficulty. Jumping from 20 opponents to 10 “cruel” opponents, players are made to fight with a significant health detriment, with every fifth opponent acting as a “Shadow Boss.” These bosses have extra life, new moves, and a unique look that set them apart from the rest of the cast. Players will receive a crown upon their defeat of each level as a testament to their success.
Players can also participate in daily challenges in the new Daily Challenge mode. Described as an “endless version of Survival Mode” in the August patch notes, players’ final scores will be compared with that of other fighters who have attempted the mode in the past 24 hour period. Fantasy Strike’s overall polish was likewise improved, with new environmental sounds for stages, dynamic hit sparks, and smoother facial animations.
Alongside this news came a report of the game’s success at Evolution 2018. The team capped their “mega-tournament” at 64 entrants — a massive success compared to their initial projections. Returning champion FinalAbe took the win once more, with Killer Instinct champ Nicky Iovene taking second place.
While Fantasy Strike is currently only available on Steam, the title is coming soon to the PlayStation 4 and Switch– now planned for early 2019. Fantasy Strike presents the perfect opportunity for newbies looking to get into the fighting game genre, and even seasoned vets looking for a new title in which to hone their skills. Don’t miss out on this latest patch, and keep an eye out for a console release next year!
Source: Fantasy Strike [patch notes, Evo recap]
As you all may know, Arc System Works and Aplus Games brought their upcoming arena fighter Kill la Kill: The Game to Evo 2018. During the event, Japanese gaming publication 4Gamer got a chance to sit down and talk to producer Takeshi Yamanaka about certain aspects of the game.
Now, since the game was at Evo 2018, one topic they touched on was how the game was from a competitive standpoint. On this, Yamanaka states that they are trying to make a game that rewards players who take time out to study the game. That said, they also want the game where, even people who aren’t as good can enjoy trying to read their opponent. In addition to this, they’re also trying to make it so that the game’s Story Mode acts as a tutorial so players can learn how to play the game while enjoying the story.
Considering the game’s mixed heritage — combining Arc System Works’ reputation for competitive titles with the Kill la Kill IP’s greater appeal among anime fans into an arena fighter — the above approach does seem to make sense.
Of course, this isn’t the only thing they talk about. They also discuss other things with Yamanaka, such as how they’re addressing issues with the camera, and 4Gamer even tries to get hints about other characters coming to the game. The full interview is available over on 4Gamer, albeit in Japanese. For those interested, Siliconera has a few translated excerpts from it.
Check out our own thoughts about Kill la Kill: The Game from Evo.
Source: 4Gamer via Siliconera
