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How do you like unlocking characters in fighting games?
- Thread starter MysticGon
- Start date
Story mode. I'm sure if I cared more about battling online in these games I'd way prefer just having them from the start, though.
All characters in the base roster should be available from the start. If you must have unlockables, have them be for stuff like colors or alternate costumes. At worst, have an unlock cheat code similar to ARMS's Tournament Mode.
Speaking as someone who helps with locals, it's a pain in the ass to have to unlock every character on every set-up. I'm glad that unlockable characters are being phased out, & I hope that Smash follows suit in the game after Ultimate.
Speaking as someone who helps with locals, it's a pain in the ass to have to unlock every character on every set-up. I'm glad that unlockable characters are being phased out, & I hope that Smash follows suit in the game after Ultimate.
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I liked how in melee there was a big variety of unlock conditions OR # of matches played as a fallback condition. All fighting games that does locked characters should have an option to unlock all the characters in the options though.
I say have every character available at the start save one or two which are boss characters unlocked through a story or arcade mode.
I don't get anything out of unlocking characters anymore. I just want to get into VS mode with all of the important options available. I get much more out of unlocking colors, stages, etc.
If you have to have them, make them alt-costumes with no gameplay changes or make them obviously broken boss characters that you wouldn't be able to use online anyway.
If you have to have them, make them alt-costumes with no gameplay changes or make them obviously broken boss characters that you wouldn't be able to use online anyway.
I like unlocking stuff. Either new characters or costumes or things.
Story mode is great but I thought the smash way were new characters are unlockable every now and then now matter how you play was excellent.
Story mode is great but I thought the smash way were new characters are unlockable every now and then now matter how you play was excellent.
as a kid: I'm a fan of unlocks until I go to a friends house and they beat me with a character I haven't unlocked.
as an adult: i still like them. Smash does this right.
as an adult: i still like them. Smash does this right.
Still haven't unlocked Android 21 and I can't be arsed to do so.
Unlocking characters in fighting games should never be a chore.
Unlocking characters in fighting games should never be a chore.
Have them all unlocked from the start. I volunteer at tournaments from time to time and having everything locked would be absolute hell
I like how they used to do it in Smash. You must fulfill certain requirements to unlock new character.
Story mode is also a fun way of doing it.
Story mode is also a fun way of doing it.
I think Smash Ultimate did it right.
A small core cast of characters to start with, and then anything you do will unlock another character. If you can beat them 1-on-1 first, of course. This lets you get a preview of the character as you're fighting them, so you have a basic idea what they can do.
By having a small starting cast, you make it quick for a new player to pick someone, and you can still have your excessively large cast unlock rapidly after.
I don't like when all characters start unlocked, though. I like seeing new and unexpected characters appear.
A small core cast of characters to start with, and then anything you do will unlock another character. If you can beat them 1-on-1 first, of course. This lets you get a preview of the character as you're fighting them, so you have a basic idea what they can do.
By having a small starting cast, you make it quick for a new player to pick someone, and you can still have your excessively large cast unlock rapidly after.
I don't like when all characters start unlocked, though. I like seeing new and unexpected characters appear.
All from the start. I do like getting additional costumes through player modes though, as long as it's not RNG.
And then online when you get blown up because you have never encountered a character and dont know their moveset
This always ends up split the same way, the casual Audience wants unlockables, story modes and extra content beyond getting your ass handed to you by fighting game pros.
people in the FGC want everything unlocked from the start and generally only care about getting online to fight each other.
As a casual fighting game fan there is a reason why I mainly play NeatherRealm and Bamco fighters, and it's because they have the most to do outside of online multiplayer that doesn't usually match players at similar skill lvls.
people in the FGC want everything unlocked from the start and generally only care about getting online to fight each other.
As a casual fighting game fan there is a reason why I mainly play NeatherRealm and Bamco fighters, and it's because they have the most to do outside of online multiplayer that doesn't usually match players at similar skill lvls.
I'd rather have all characters available from the start. People like myself want that nowadays.
If not, then I'd like to unlock them the old fashioned way by going through Arcade & Story modes just like back in the day.
If not, then I'd like to unlock them the old fashioned way by going through Arcade & Story modes just like back in the day.
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You can still have stuff like story mode & whatnot without having to resort to an archaic means of providing progress like unlocking characters. And again, just have alternate costumes be the unlockables if you want to provide some kind of progress to the average joe.
"Multiple Methods, to respect each kind of gamer" is what I'd choose. But chose "free battle" for the poll.
Android 21 in DBF is the worse, since you have to go through all 3 branches of story to get her. It definitely became a chore. Kagura in BlazblueEyeDon'tKnowWhichOne also was locked behind stuff that took longer than needed to earn him.
KOF XIV did it mostly right, in that Verse and Antonov were unlockable through story, but months later, along with required gameplay patches, they became unlock-from-the-start. So they worked as an incentive to play the story... and then updated later to make tourney play easier. I also agree that a "Tourney friendly mode that disables achievements and pop-ups, while unlocking everything" is also a great option.
But in the end, Unlocks should inspire play and engagement. Which means they should be available to anyone who puts time into the game, regardless of how. If I've fought the character online, offline, in story, and / or in bonus modes, just unlock them.
Same for colors and stages. Let me earn what I see / fight, and what I know is available. The fact that Mortal Kombat 11 puts so much crap behind RNG is ridiculous to me. You could go weeks knowing something is there, but not be able to use it. Or may possibly never get said thing after weeks or months of play. At that point, what was once an incentive to keep playing, is now a reason to move on to something else.
One thing I think fighters should do more of, is offer new lore / relationship building things with each patch, too. Like... why has SFV gone on for so long with the same victory poses, same taunts, same boring pre-round animations between characters that should know each other, etc? Seeing little interaction bells and whistles "unlock" as a game grows, would be fun and great. I'd LOVE to see characters that face each other all the time in IRL tournaments get special intros between each other, or watch the most played teams online have a special interaction snuck into an update. There's a lot that fighters could learn from the MOBA and F2P genres, when it comes to refreshing old content to make each season feel like a new game.
Android 21 in DBF is the worse, since you have to go through all 3 branches of story to get her. It definitely became a chore. Kagura in BlazblueEyeDon'tKnowWhichOne also was locked behind stuff that took longer than needed to earn him.
KOF XIV did it mostly right, in that Verse and Antonov were unlockable through story, but months later, along with required gameplay patches, they became unlock-from-the-start. So they worked as an incentive to play the story... and then updated later to make tourney play easier. I also agree that a "Tourney friendly mode that disables achievements and pop-ups, while unlocking everything" is also a great option.
But in the end, Unlocks should inspire play and engagement. Which means they should be available to anyone who puts time into the game, regardless of how. If I've fought the character online, offline, in story, and / or in bonus modes, just unlock them.
Same for colors and stages. Let me earn what I see / fight, and what I know is available. The fact that Mortal Kombat 11 puts so much crap behind RNG is ridiculous to me. You could go weeks knowing something is there, but not be able to use it. Or may possibly never get said thing after weeks or months of play. At that point, what was once an incentive to keep playing, is now a reason to move on to something else.
One thing I think fighters should do more of, is offer new lore / relationship building things with each patch, too. Like... why has SFV gone on for so long with the same victory poses, same taunts, same boring pre-round animations between characters that should know each other, etc? Seeing little interaction bells and whistles "unlock" as a game grows, would be fun and great. I'd LOVE to see characters that face each other all the time in IRL tournaments get special intros between each other, or watch the most played teams online have a special interaction snuck into an update. There's a lot that fighters could learn from the MOBA and F2P genres, when it comes to refreshing old content to make each season feel like a new game.
Prefer to have them all at the start, but I don't play FGs for the story mode. Plus, it makes running tournaments a PITA.
I didn't mind it when fighters were an offline, solo experience for the most part, as it was something to work toward. With online available, I just want to have everything there from the start
I wish there was an option for just "playing the game."
I don't like locking it to just one mode specifically. I like story for certain characters like villains and/or rival characters or side characters, but think you should be also able to free play and vs to unlock them.
I don't like locking it to just one mode specifically. I like story for certain characters like villains and/or rival characters or side characters, but think you should be also able to free play and vs to unlock them.
