The EVO 2018 Fighting Game Funtime Fiesta -- ARCADE EDITION

Well, I didn’t think I’d be doing this again so soon.  But since every fighting game company under the sun decided to drop megaton after megaton within the past few days -- with the characters to show for it -- in a desperate bid for exposure, attention, love, and those sweet, sweet FGC dollars, here we are again.

Let’s do this lickety-split.  Because apparently, gamers have nothing better to do than devote their lives to whatever game has the shiniest addition to it.

The Importance of Being Twintailed

Forgive me, readers, for I have sinned.

RE: Persona 4 Arena Ultimax

Ever needed proof that I’m cursed?  Here it is. 

A fellow (supra-dynamic) blogger did a post on the latest iteration of the Persona fighting game, and in anticipation I thought I’d offer up my thoughts on the characters.  So I opened up a Word file to jot down my thoughts (and make sure I could keep things within the comment box’s character limit).  And as I wrapped up, I thought to myself: “Wait, what am I doing?  Does anyone care if I go this in-depth?”  So I realized the answer was no…after scraping together most of a blog post.

So here we are.  I didn’t intend to do a post on Ultimax, but because everything I touch turns into a novella, I figured I might as well do a lickety-split rundown. 

Let’s hear it for resignation to futility, and consistently making the same mistakes!

Let's discuss fighting games...for EVO!

How does the saying go…?  Ah, yes -- get HYPE.

I should probably start by saying that I’m not very good at fighting games.  I’m no Flowchart Ken, but I’m in this weird purgatory where I’m several steps above a “scrub”, but several steps below someone who actually practices with the game on a regular basis -- so yeah, you won’t hear about me taking any tournaments anytime soon.  But I still enjoy the concept of them, and the potential each one holds.  The end result may always be the same, but how they go about it varies wildly.  Not to mention the joy (and despair) that results from playing as your favorite character.  Truefax: the only reason I’ve played Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is because I get to lose with play as Phoenix Wright.

So in honor of the battles destined to rage at this year’s big battlefield, let’s talk about a whole mess of fighters -- old ones, new-ish ones, and more.  So oil up your arcade sticks; it’s time to DP our way into some tatsunical combos!

…Tiger knee motion.

Let’s discuss a whole bunch of video games.

In the immortal words of Chef Gordon Ramsay, “I’m going to do something I’ve never ever done before.”  How often that’s the case is up for debate, but who am I to deride such a well-renowned chef?  And by the same token, a man whose rage constantly keeps him in Super Saiyan mode?

In any case, there are a number of things that I’m in the mood to talk about, but only tangentially; that is, I don’t feel like there’s enough meat right now to turn any one of the games into a three-thousand word dissection.  Plus I’m working on some other projects right now -- I Hraet You, The Manly Song Repository, and a “certain something” especially -- so I’d prefer not to get too distracted.

So let’s get this thing going, yes?  Expediency, ho!

Persona 4 Arena: Pursuing My True Self...Again

You know what?  Confession time: I actually wasn’t expecting much out of Persona 4 Arena’s story. 

Heresy, I know.  How could I call myself an Atlus zealot if I wasn’t willing to go knocking on doors and proclaiming the coming of our savior?  But really, can you blame me?  Fighting games -- BlazBlue notwithstanding -- aren’t exactly known for their stories, and the transition from a linear format in the original Persona 4 to an inevitably-what-if-Yosuke-had-to-save-the-day format seemed like a motion that would only hurt the overall narrative.  And again, this is a fighting game; my time would be better spent learning how to properly zone with Naoto’s Hair-Trigger Megido instead of uncovering the mystery behind why Teddie’s decided to start moonlighting as a pimp.

But for Atlus’ sake -- and to find out why, purportedly, Elizabeth is on the moon -- I figured I’d give it a shot.  And I’m glad I did; format issues aside, P4A is a worthy successor to the canon.

(Warning: spoilers for Persona 4 and Persona 4 Arena to follow.  If you haven’t played either of those games -- and if not, then you should be playing those instead, you foolish fool! -- then get ready to have a ton of spoilers lopped onto your plate.  Like a healthy serving of spaghetti laced with plywood.)

Four (Kinda-Sorta) Important Elements for a Good Story

I would like to consider myself lucky.  I’ve barely had Persona 4 Arena for a full 24 hours, yet it’s notably and easily exceeded my expectations.  The look of the game is fantastic.  It’s overflowing with style.  The combat, while intimidating at first, is easy enough to understand once you dive a bit deeper into the game.  There are plenty of little flourishes, from one of the game’s characters thanking Atlus and ArcSys for “sponsoring the program” to a slick main menu…and just in case you haven’t nerdgasmed at the sight of your favorite mystery-solving teens in glorious HD sprites, classic music plays in the background (along with plenty of new tracks, of course…accented by a bonus CD full of remixes guaranteed to get your toe tapping).

It’s been a while since I’ve played a game that made me want to stay up all night.  But lo and behold, P4A is just the game to make me want to do it.  And not just because of the fighting game arms race my brother and I ALWAYS have (though a fair portion of my time went towards trying to learn some Yosuke combos); it’s the story that made me want to swear off the sandman.  Even with just an hour or so of playtime, I can sense that my trust in Persona 4 -- which I consider to be a pillar of fine writing, video game or otherwise, as well as one of my Top 5 Favorite Games -- wasn’t misplaced.  In fact, I’d argue that even with a cursory glance, P4A’s story is even better.  I’ll likely discuss the game in more detail in the coming days, but for now I’ll just leave you with this image:

 I’ll acknowledge that there’s still a lot of time for P4A to go awry (and that I need to take of the fanboy goggles to view things objectively), but I’m pleased with the product so far.  But that aside, I want to focus on something a bit more to my speed.