Capcom put up an interview with themselves on their investor page explaining why games like Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite might not sell a lot of copies, along with their ambitions for the title. Capcom did not inquire with him as to why other fighting games sell more, or the mobile fighting scene that sometimes sees 40+ million downloads.
Capcom: Tell us about the current situation of the fighting game genre.
Ono: Fighting games have been said to be a "closed market," and compared to the amount of buzz surrounding them, the number of players isn't as high as you would think. The reason for this is that the genre sparks competitiveness: you square off against an opponent and think of how to defeat them. This demands training. You have to put in the time to study the moves and master special techniques in order to win.
Core users who have been honing their skills day in, day out are overwhelmingly strong, so that newcomers don't stand a chance; because of this, the genre becomes a "closed market," only for a certain set of players, which is why compared to other genres it won't see the same explosive growth in users.
However, with the popularity of play videos on YouTube and spectator-friendly eSports competitive gaming events, we're seeing the rise of a new trend where newcomers can be entertained through watching.
Capcom: Given that, what sort of position is MARVEL VS. CAPCOM: INFINITE aiming for? What are your ambitions for this game?
Ono: On this title, we have pursued a satisfying competitive experience for core users, while providing less experienced users with a way to casually enjoy fighting games. We've made it with our continued support of eSports in mind, and moving ahead we eagerly anticipate players from the different segments bringing their enthusiasm and energy both as participants and as spectators. It's the complete package, both for core and casual players; I hope everyone is looking forward to it.