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Which Fighting games have the best single-player campaigns?
- Thread starter Exellus
- Start date
I don't know why people are suggesting Smash Ultimate. I'm playing through World of Light right now to unlock the roster and I'm finding it boring as Hell. The fights are boring and the spirit party management system is lame.
My suggestion to the OP is anything recently made by NRS. Injustice 1 & 2 are packed with SP content.
My suggestion to the OP is anything recently made by NRS. Injustice 1 & 2 are packed with SP content.
Does Melee count? those stadium modes are still played because they're so good and id trade the entirety of World of Light to get that back. Adventure mode was also the last time the series actually bothered to have platforming based on other Nintendo games.
I gave up on World of Light really fast and the game doesn't offer much else for single player.
I gave up on World of Light really fast and the game doesn't offer much else for single player.
DBFZ is like a shitty version of World of light with none of the charm, the character interactions were not enough to make it good, frankly it was overpadded.
Smash World of Light
Killer Instinct (this was added after launch)
Soul Calibur VI
Soul Calibur (Dreamcast release)
DOA5 Last Round
Mortal Kombat X
Injustice 1 and 2
Killer Instinct (this was added after launch)
Soul Calibur VI
Soul Calibur (Dreamcast release)
DOA5 Last Round
Mortal Kombat X
Injustice 1 and 2
Personal favourite is still Weapon Master of Soul Calibur 2. You can chose whoever you want and not locked into a character you don't know how to play for the "Story" and have to beat some BS boss. There are some BS Bosses in Weapon Master, but the freedom to chose who you want to take it down helps a lot. They mix the matches up often as well with different modifiers and you can get cool custom weapons along the way as well.
I've not been a fan of the whole "Big linear cinematic stories" we've been seeing recently. None of them are well written or have any replay value at all after the first time through them.
I've not been a fan of the whole "Big linear cinematic stories" we've been seeing recently. None of them are well written or have any replay value at all after the first time through them.
I don't remember anything that happened in MKX. I barely remember anything that happened in MK9 outside of Raiden lighting Liu Kang the fuck up...for reasons I can't remember.
These modes are great for spectacle, but they are largely forgettable and fail as stories (because they aren't character driven). Fighting games would be wise to do away with these big Cinematic Universe style stories and focus on smaller, tighter, intimate and contained stories tailored to individual characters. Make them the length of a typical arcade mode, but throw in the cutscenes and special fights we get in the big cinematic stories. Short and sweet. Add some bonus stages and secret bosses for replay value and you got all the single player a fighting game needs.
For sure.
Building a character then buying clothes and learning fighting styles along with a crazy storyline where you fight old school rappers is awesome. I gotta give it a replay soon.
I feel like it would have been way more enjoyable if you didn't have to finish it twice to unlock Android 21. At one point I was just skipping all the bla bla blah just to get it over with.
The only fighting games I can recommend for their single player alone would be Smash and Mortal Kombat Deception. MKD had an interesting story mode and some other near modes like puzzle fighting that were pretty cool. As neat as that all is though, the gameplay itself is poor though and one of those dark age MK games.
I really don't think the newer NRS games are anything special. They have been reusing the same format since MK vs. DC and it's stale. MKX was really awful. Sure not everyone cares about plot, but you don't have to care that much to laugh at how absurd it is when something stupid happens like Kotal Kahn, the big had leader of Outlord, getting beat by some dweeb Kombat Kid. It's put together in a way that feels like no thought at all went into it. And it's FUSTRATING playing Sub Zero.
I really don't think the newer NRS games are anything special. They have been reusing the same format since MK vs. DC and it's stale. MKX was really awful. Sure not everyone cares about plot, but you don't have to care that much to laugh at how absurd it is when something stupid happens like Kotal Kahn, the big had leader of Outlord, getting beat by some dweeb Kombat Kid. It's put together in a way that feels like no thought at all went into it. And it's FUSTRATING playing Sub Zero.
As a fighting game aficionado, I'd say world of light was hella boring and too long. 17 hours to 100% it. There's just...not a lot there. Depends how much you like the smash engine tbh but I think Subspace was better.
NRS or even Soul 6 might be up your alley if you prefer more traditional stuff. Smash is a great game and awesome multi but you really gotta love it to make WoL more than a slog.
Going back in time VF4 Evo and Alpha 3 World Tour are the correct answers. Maybe someone with more knowledge might know if DOA had good stuff?
Blazblue has a full on anime light novel if that's your jump too
NRS or even Soul 6 might be up your alley if you prefer more traditional stuff. Smash is a great game and awesome multi but you really gotta love it to make WoL more than a slog.
Going back in time VF4 Evo and Alpha 3 World Tour are the correct answers. Maybe someone with more knowledge might know if DOA had good stuff?
Blazblue has a full on anime light novel if that's your jump too
You're not gonna get anything better than NRS' story modes. MKX, Injustice 2, etc. The latter is easily the most visually appealing, their graphics and character models have come a looooooong way since MK9. I2's facial animations are the best in the genre by a long, long shot.
Tekken 7's isn't the greatest ever but it follows a similar format to NRS stuff and has some fucking great fanservicey fights.
I found Smash's to be a total slog.
Tekken 7's isn't the greatest ever but it follows a similar format to NRS stuff and has some fucking great fanservicey fights.
I found Smash's to be a total slog.
I agree with this list, VF4:Evo is still the king. Not only was it fun it actually made me better at the game because I was motivated to complete the quest orders.
Alpha 3 world tour didn't exactly make me better at SF but it was too much fun for me to care.
Can't say I'm into story heavy single player so much, both the above modes are great despite being light on that.
If you have/can get a GameCube and a copy of SoulCalibur II (w/ Link) then do it. I still boot it up once a month and have a blast. If you can't, then there's an HD version on PS3/X360 (I don't know if they retain Heihachi/Spawn though).
Honestly I wish WoL had the character interactions of DBFZ.
WoL to me feels like DBFZ's story but without the charm.
That would be cool, but WoL still had a much better map system, a much better fighting gimmick, much better skill tree and modifiers and character rescuing system, DBFZ just had mindless grinds in the story mode, in my opinion.
Depends on if you prefer a cinematic experience or one with more content, or one that actually focuses on the core fighting gameplay, or one that goes in a different direction with the characters.
Mortal Kombat Deception
Forces you to learn multiple characters and you get a shit ton of world building in the MK universe.
I want to say Smash Ultimate but I'm disappointed the characters don't interact like in the initial cutscene. Maybe we'll have to wait for a Smash Bros. movie.
Forces you to learn multiple characters and you get a shit ton of world building in the MK universe.
I want to say Smash Ultimate but I'm disappointed the characters don't interact like in the initial cutscene. Maybe we'll have to wait for a Smash Bros. movie.
Honestly to me all of that stuff is just mind numbingly dull.
Like DBFZ was repetitive but it had fun interactions between characters who never got to interact, all the while looking and sounding great.
This is the most I've enjoyed playing a fighting game's single-player mode, by far.
Smash Ultimate World of Light - Best single player I've run across in any fighting game. Hella lot of content, the fights have a lot of variety, and the spirit system is a blast to tinker with!
Injustice & Injustice 2 are both a blast as well. The campaign is short, but memorable.
Edit: ARMS was fun too, in a more limited way.
Injustice & Injustice 2 are both a blast as well. The campaign is short, but memorable.
Edit: ARMS was fun too, in a more limited way.
Alpha 3's World Tour is king for me. VF4 Evolution's and World of Light is great, too.
It's a little short, but Chronicle mode is pretty legit. Made for a great DoA5 appetizer, too.
Soulcalibur II's Weapon Master mode is amazing. There's so much to unlock in it, from characters to costumes to even special weapons and stages. The various conditions really helps spice things up. Street Fighter Alpha 3's World Tour mode is still one of the best and it's very replayable, unlike the story modes that the last couple Mortal Kombat games had, for example. One of the cool things about World Tour was that you can use your leveled up character in other modes. Tekken's ghost battle in the recent entries is great in that there's an incentive to getting the gold: buying parts and outfits for your main.
Smash World of Light is mediocre with some really cool moments.
NRS fighters are the king. Both Injustice games, Mk9, MKX, and soon to be MK11 no doubt.
BlazBlue is also good if you want fan fiction tier visual novels with maybe fighting sometimes like once every hour
NRS fighters are the king. Both Injustice games, Mk9, MKX, and soon to be MK11 no doubt.
BlazBlue is also good if you want fan fiction tier visual novels with maybe fighting sometimes like once every hour
Blazblue series. Aside from lengthy visual novel type story modes that greatly flesh out the characters and world they also have Arcade mode (CF even has multiple arcade routes for most characters all with little bits of story), detailed character tutorial modes and score attack/rpg lite stuff. ArcSys usually puts lots of effort into having a robust singleplayer offering.
NRS games like Injustice 1&2 by a long shot
Smash World of Light (although its a lot of finding these little cards, is kinda good because its lots of different scenarios ). The intro video is soooo hype
MvCI, although not the best by far, at least tried to make a linear theme park thing. It's not good but strangely charming and 'was an effort'
Tekken 7 tried hard to make a linear CoD theme park style thing but the story & writing is rather noobish
Dragonball fighterZ, I would rate this higher than MvCI & Tekken but it makes you fight 3 times many mooks than neccessary
Soul Calibur 6 has a lot of SP content and you can create your own characters. The personal character stories are not bad.
Guilty Gear Xrd has like a 7 hour movie with one or two fights. The rest is full of dialogue
BlazBlue 1 Visual Novel thing was interesting is worth a mention
Smash World of Light (although its a lot of finding these little cards, is kinda good because its lots of different scenarios ). The intro video is soooo hype
MvCI, although not the best by far, at least tried to make a linear theme park thing. It's not good but strangely charming and 'was an effort'
Tekken 7 tried hard to make a linear CoD theme park style thing but the story & writing is rather noobish
Dragonball fighterZ, I would rate this higher than MvCI & Tekken but it makes you fight 3 times many mooks than neccessary
Soul Calibur 6 has a lot of SP content and you can create your own characters. The personal character stories are not bad.
Guilty Gear Xrd has like a 7 hour movie with one or two fights. The rest is full of dialogue
BlazBlue 1 Visual Novel thing was interesting is worth a mention
Mortal Kombat Deception is the best Midway/NRS singleplayer offering ever but only if you're devout enough to want the fanservice of going to every major realm and interacting with the ~60 or so relevant kharacters preceding MK9. It's swarmed with unlockables including tons of developer insight and commentary, to the point where the more modern games still feel like a step back in just how much there was to find and read about concerning every stage and the small doodads that are sprinkled in them.
If MK isn't your thing, Soul Calibur II's story mode and Injustice 2's perpetual flow of event-based content both offer a ton of stuff to do. World of Light is definitely divisive but I found it fun as well, moreso for just seeing how they framed references to hundreds of characters and games within such comparatively isolated settings and the feedback loop of trying to clear out the Spirit List.
If MK isn't your thing, Soul Calibur II's story mode and Injustice 2's perpetual flow of event-based content both offer a ton of stuff to do. World of Light is definitely divisive but I found it fun as well, moreso for just seeing how they framed references to hundreds of characters and games within such comparatively isolated settings and the feedback loop of trying to clear out the Spirit List.