Super Smash Bros.
It’s sort of amazing how over 15 years ago not a single person would’ve imagine a family friendly fighting game being widely regarded as one of the best out there. When Nintendo released Super Smash Bros. on the N64 back in 1999, not many knew what to think about its rather unique premise. Here were a dozen of Nintendo’s iconic characters, duking it out arenas from all of their more popular properties beating the ever living crap out of one another. Cute characters, such as Jigglypuff and Pikachu, were pit against the likes of Captain Falcon and a fire shooting Mario. What seemed like a niche little party game at first, eventually grew to unimaginable proportions.
Super Smash Bros. Melee used the success of the first to build an even greater game. It doubled the roster, added new game modes, and even included its very own trophy collection system. Fast forward more than a decade to the release of a handheld and Wii U Super Smash Bros. standing toe to toe with some of the biggest names in fighting games. The game has grown so much that developers are even polling fans for what new challengers to include in upcoming DLC.
The folks led by the plumber in the red hat have created a fighting game that still has nowhere to go but up, and that is something special. There may have been naysayers when it was first thought up, but there is no doubting now that Super Smash Bros. is a truly great fighting game franchise.
Tekken
The Tekken series of fighting games has brought fans some seriously extraordinary action. With its diverse roster of characters, deep back stories, and evolving mechanics, this particular series has managed to grow and mature in more ways than most modern games do. Sequels for video games tend to always play on the safe side; introducing new characters little by little, not changing the gameplay too much in order to keep things smooth. But smooth isn’t always the best way of doing things. Fans can grow bored, even of things they love. Tekken realizes this and makes sure to mix things up whenever they get the chance, for better or for worse.
Revolving around the King of Iron Fist Tournament, Tekken introduces tons of characters with interlacing plots and back-stories. It’s true that this is nothing new to the fighting game genre, but Tekken always managed to keep every character interesting, something a lot of games fall short on providing. Tekken also introduces some complex fighting mechanics that force players to utilize everything space of the arena at their disposal in order to attack, dodge, counter, and survive. Each entry builds upon the story and these mechanics in order to allow the game to evolve based on fan feedback, and developer direction.
Spin-offs such as Tekken Tag Tournament have also lent themselves to the greatness of this beloved fighting game series. The introduction of co-op fighting, along with bowling really helped to revitalize the series in a great way. Tekken is a solid fighting franchise that has navigated the years as other titles came and went. The fact that it’s up to it’s seventh main entry is a testament to how amazing Tekken really is.
Street Fighter
There aren’t many gamers in the world who don’t know what Street Fighter is, and that’s for a very good reason. The Street Fighter series isn’t just one of the best fighting game franchises, it is one of the most recognized video game franchises period. But this fighting game is more than just great. It is a forefather of pretty much everything that came after it. Street Fighter 2 is the first fighting game that allowed you and your friend (or enemy) to choose from a roster of fighters. This, of course, became the norm for all fighting games to follow, and paved the way for some of the games on this list.
What truly makes the series great is its commitment to precise fighting action. Games in the Street Fighter series have always been easy to pick up and play, but to truly become a champion you needed to learn the intricacies of all of its mechanics. Counting frames, cancelling, combos, and other staples of the fighting game genre were introduced by Street Fighter. tournaments have been built around the game because of it, and fighters have been pulled into other games and forms of media because of its immense popularity.
Marvel vs. Capcom, and Capcom vs. SNK both showcase some of Street Fighter‘s best combatants, along with gameplay that utilizes most of the now common mechanics introduced by the franchise. Heck there was even a crossover between Street Fighter and Tekken, another entry on this list, showcasing the best of the best. Then there are the movies (both animated and live action). While a couple other entries on this list have movies as well, none can compare to Street Fighter‘s (the animated ones at least). A truly great fighting franchise indeed.
SoulCalibur
Ah, SoulCalibur. One of the Sega Dreamcast’s best games, and one of the best fighting game franchises to ever be played. It is yet another game that innovated and transformed the fighting game scene in its very own special way, and it all started with something as simple as a weapon.
Although weapons in fighting games were nothing knew, and even SoulCalibur‘s predecessor, Soul Edge, had weapons. But, SoulCalibur placed all of its emphasis on the weapons system along with its revolutionary eight-way run. It completely scrapped the ability of only side-stepping out of danger, and instead allowed players to run at their leisure in order to flank opponents. This allowed for a freedom of movement during battles that just couldn’t be had in other 3D fighting games. The variety granted by the smooth movement, and the different weapons gave players the ability to play in a way that suited them, more so than your average fighter.
The mechanics combined with SoulCalibur‘s stable of unique warriors helped this game stand head and shoulders above a market filled with fighting games. this has allowed the series to survive when others have fallen and been forgotten. Although things have gotten a bit shaky for the franchise in recent years, there is no denying how truly great this fight game series has become.
Mortal Kombat
There was absolutely no way a list of the greatest fighting game franchises could be built without including Mortal Kombat. Like every other fighting franchise on this list, Mortal Kombat has introduced its own fair share of things to the genre as a whole. But, it also happened to be the catalyst behind something that now affects all video games: the ESRB. Mortal Kombat was (and still is) an over-the-top violent game that rubbed a lot of people the wrong way when it was first released, for mostly good reasons. This paved the way for the creation of system that rates video games so that the more extreme experiences never land in the wrong, unprepared hands.
Of course, leading to the ESRB isn’t what makes this series so great. The Mortal Kombat series introduced something that has stood the test of time: Fatalities. While other fighting games had you focused on just defeating your opponents, the developers of Mortal Kombat were cooking up ways for you to murder them in style. Ripping of heads, setting opponents on fire, eviscerating them, melting them, you name it and one of the entries in the series probably has it. There were even variations, such as Babalities and Friendships, introduced in some of the Mortal Kombats for those a bit to squeamish for the gallons of blood being spilled throughout the bouts.
Then there’s the iconic fighting game characters birthed from this long running franchise (Scorpion anyone?) that really sets Mortal Kombat as a whole apart. Different fighters from different realms all meeting up for a tournament to seize control of the worlds is its very own kind of awesome. Add to that the intertwined back stories of love, deception, revenge, and hope and you have yourself a series hard not to fall in love with. Yeah, it can get a bit cheesy at times, but what games don’t?
Mortal Kombat changed the scene for the entire industry when it came out swinging, and has managed to survive throughout the decades. Heck, it even has a highly anticipated entry releasing tomorrow.
Like all things, it was difficult to narrow this list down to only 5 selections. Are there any fighting game franchises you think contend for a place in the ranks? If so, feel free to share in the comments.
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