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Community Engagement: Fighting Games on PC

RoboCop

The future of law enforcement.
Administrator
Premium Supporter
For those of you who have thought about playing on PC but don't, what barriers have kept you from making the leap? The common issues I see brought up are:
  1. PC versions are usually low-quality ports of the console version that receive less/worse support and delayed patches
  2. concern over low player population
  3. lack of a decent controller or a reluctance to play on keyboard
  4. not the tournament standard
  5. "PCers are mostly an assortment of cheaters, scammers and generally unwashed weebo mouth breathers." -swindle
  6. bots/scripts/cheats (I've never encountered any, but apparently some users have)
Anything I'm missing? What would make you reconsider picking up a fighting game on PC?
 
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@RoboCop I've also heard some say they refuse to play on anything but the tournament standard (traditionally the PlayStation version).

You may wish to add that to your list.

Update: Also, the cost of a gaming PC. People oft seem to think the cost of a good gaming PC is astronomically more expensive than a console, which of course is not true in the slightest unless you're going for top-of-the-line.
 

Immortal

Blind justice....
There is like XXX people using bots/scripts and other "tools" in KL on PC, so it's very annoying. I play mostly on PC (sometimes on PS5/X but thats for work only) but since i can't really find any character i like (and i disslike FB/KB/Fblocks and ofc no wifi filter, oh and Sheeva lol) it's more of casual play from time to time. Probably gonna play more when new GG is released.
 

Zviko

Noob
To encourage more people I'll say I see no issues with any of those points. PC games are usually console ports, that's true but you can always wait and check reviews if they are any good. Fighting games usually are. I see no complaints on SFV/Tekken ports and I can say MK11's is amazing too. My PC is trash and the game still runs great, stable 60fps on high settings except in The Krypt which is a bit laggy. Once I had fps issues on one of the stages but that was fixed shortly after.

Player population can simply be checked by googling "the name of the game steam charts", if the game is on Steam of course. MK's example, it's currently at 5k players online, 2-3k on average per month. That's more than enough. Even 1k is more than enough and MK11 has never been that low while the other 2 are even higher and have crossplay. Maybe if you live in Australia or some place like that you might wait a bit longer and find higher pings. I'm from central Europe and I can find players fast at 5am if I want to.

And third, the controller, I mean if you plan to play fighting games you will obviously want to play on controller and Steam has a great support for all of them. So if you already own any console you already own one that will work great.

There's a 4th point you forgot and the main reason why I avoid playing online games on PC which is cheaters. Fortunately, there aren't as many in fighting games as they are in shooters for example. In my 860h on MK11 I maybe matched with 2 of them.

I actually enjoy MK11 on PC more than I did on PS4 and the reason is I find more wired players which kinda makes sense.
 

Gooberking

FGC Cannon Fodder
I'm clearly not in the demographic that gets to answer, but in proactive response to the silent reason holders:
I do think many of those reasons were good reasons not to play on PC not that long ago. This last big wave of games really invalidated most of them, at least for most cases. MK11 patching and quality were lagging behind the main game, but it really has been the odd man out. There are a lot of the big fighters that have had good release parity with consoles, and in a lot of cases get time content unlocks first.

Performance wise, PS4 has had to repeatedly address a tendency for additional input latency not found on PC. It's something that has helped make a couple games on PC considered "best" versions even if more population exists on console. If you wander into a high level Tekken or SC6 stream, there is a strong chance they are playing on PC. I don't think it moved the needle much but SFV some people started playing on PC because the jank netcode changes seemed to hurt the PS4 while improving the PC netplay. (Not sure where SFV fits these days)

Latency does play into the "play the standard" argument, since it can change meta a bit. I've heard streamers talking about meta shifts in things going from reactable to guessing games for DOA and Granblue for them. PC's don't make for great tournament setups, but nobody is standing up rooms full of PS4's right now either.

On the negative side, even when a fighter is best version, you can't count on the other player having a good setup, which could impact your experience. When people complain about performance issues, there are also lots of people to let that person they should stop playing on a potato without actually knowing if they have one. It makes talking about issues extra difficult. More configs, people not really knowing how their PC works, and extra ease of access to cheating.

At different times, I've been more and less comfortable just playing something on PC. I generally like being there because I'm already at my PC and I can be doing several things at once. It's good for playing all kinds of games where as a console isn't ideal if you want KB&M. If someone's PC is old, and in a dark corner of a far room then picking up a wireless controller is probably much easier to jump into, so I get that would be a big factor I don't fully relate with.

Cross play is in a weird place. It's been done, but if a platform is going to get left out in the cold, it's PC who would arguably benefit the most from it.
 
For those of you who have thought about playing on PC but don't, what barriers have kept you from making the leap? The common issues I see brought up are:
  1. PC versions are usually low-quality ports of the console version that receive less/worse support and delayed patches
  2. concern over low player population
  3. lack of a decent controller or a reluctance to play on keyboard
  4. not the tournament standard
  5. "PCers are mostly an assortment of cheaters, scammers and generally unwashed weebo mouth breathers." -swindle
  6. bots/scripts/cheats (I've never encountered any, but apparently some users have)
Anything I'm missing? What would make you reconsider picking up a fighting game on PC?
Aren't most fgs played on pc ? Aren't nrs games thr only ones primarily dominated on ps4
 

Evil Canadian

G O K U
Premium Supporter
Aren't most fgs played on pc ? Aren't nrs games thr only ones primarily dominated on ps4
Most fighting games are overwhelmingly played on playstation. To the tune of more than everything else combined, several times over.

Only FG's more played on PC are the niche/"dead" games.

I myself will always prefer fighting games on console even though I almost always buy any given FG on every possible platform just for work because 1) it just works 2) its always the developers priority over PC 3) no/less cheating 4) less tech jank.
 

Immortal

Blind justice....
There was, probably is (i dont follow the scene that closely) an exception to that - Tekken 7. For long time PC version of the game had the lowest input delay which made the game extremely popular among Tekken community. While tournaments were and are run on Playstation most players at home were playing/training on PC since it was the best version of the game.
 

colby4898

Special Forces Sonya Up-player
Just the number of players. I have transitioned recently onto solely PC so don't really have much choice. The only games I played on PS4 were NRS games, I dont play them much atm, and I refuse to pay £7 a month just to get access to the online part of the game which I've already paid for when I fancy a game (I dont understand why this doesn't get more attention than loot boxes, micro transactions etc. Being charged the game, and then a subscription on top to access it is absurd to me). But there seem to be fewer players on PC. I dont care whats tournament standard cos I dont compete, I just want a larger player range to fight, which seems lacking. But the games I've played have been MKX and MK11 (only in the last 2 weeks as I hadn't touched the game for 2 years, still boring to me sadly). They're both a few years old now, and only find players in rooms on MKX (the same 10) and only people in Kombat League on MK11 and not too many.

PS4 seems best for NRS games.
 
(I dont understand why this doesn't get more attention than loot boxes, micro transactions etc. Being charged the game, and then a subscription on top to access it is absurd to me).
It's for a few reasons:

  1. Most gamers today grew up with consoles that had subscription services
  2. They see a value in the price somehow. When I've complained about it, I've often been laughed at and told "It's only $10.00)!
  3. The actual redeeming qualities to such services are that it truly is a centralized platform (something PC lacks) and it typically has better anti-cheating enforcement. That is a big deal for public gaming. If you're mostly playing with friends and doing private games though, not so much.
I'm not a fan of subscription services, and as a longtime PC gamer, the concept of paying to play multiplayer is absurd to me. My consoles have almost always been Single Player/offline multiplayer only.

Ironically many of the people complaining of the cost of PC gaming fail to factor in the accumulative cost of PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold. Their console actually ends up being more expensive than a solid gaming PC by end-of-life thanks to it.
 

Gooberking

FGC Cannon Fodder
I definitely avoid playing on console when I'm having to go buy net access I normally don't have to play for.

The last time I tried to buy PS+ I accidently bought PSNow which I'm not sure what to do with. I'm apparently too dumb to even buy network access, so I'll just take the free stuff on Steam and call it a day
 
I definitely avoid playing on console when I'm having to go buy net access I normally don't have to play for.

The last time I tried to buy PS+ I accidently bought PSNow which I'm not sure what to do with. I'm apparently too dumb to even buy network access, so I'll just take the free stuff on Steam and call it a day
On the Xbox-side, Microsoft has increased the cost of Xbox Live Gold to try and entice people to go for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate instead.

I personally think Game Pass is an excellent service, but used in short bursts almost like a "rental" service. It gets pretty pricey after a bit, and it's far more economical to buy the few games you want unless you're playing dozens of games a month.
 

colby4898

Special Forces Sonya Up-player
It's for a few reasons:

  1. Most gamers today grew up with consoles that had subscription services
  2. They see a value in the price somehow. When I've complained about it, I've often been laughed at and told "It's only $10.00)!
  3. The actual redeeming qualities to such services are that it truly is a centralized platform (something PC lacks) and it typically has better anti-cheating enforcement. That is a big deal for public gaming. If you're mostly playing with friends and doing private games though, not so much.
I'm not a fan of subscription services, and as a longtime PC gamer, the concept of paying to play multiplayer is absurd to me. My consoles have almost always been Single Player/offline multiplayer only.

Ironically many of the people complaining of the cost of PC gaming fail to factor in the accumulative cost of PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold. Their console actually ends up being more expensive than a solid gaming PC by end-of-life thanks to it.
I have no issue with subscription services. Its the locking part of a game for which I have paid full price for I hate. I also pay my Internet bill which PlayStation now prevent me from being able to use unless I pay them. Ps3 didn't make you pay to access the game, and I still subscribed to PS plus cos I genuinely thought it was good value for money. Ps plus on ps4 might be worth it for the benefits, but they should not lock access to a game you bought without it. I honestly think it's a horrible business practise.
 
Most fighting games are overwhelmingly played on playstation. To the tune of more than everything else combined, several times over.

Only FG's more played on PC are the niche/"dead" games.

I myself will always prefer fighting games on console even though I almost always buy any given FG on every possible platform just for work because 1) it just works 2) its always the developers priority over PC 3) no/less cheating 4) less tech jank.
When I'm talking about majority, I'm usually referring to people who play the game and don't drop it after 2 to 3 days

Nrs games majority playstation
Tekken (especially 7) majority pc
Sfv (mix of both)
Smash (isn't even on either platforms)
Brawlhalla (mix of PC and ps4)
Strive (probably gonna be mained on pc)
99% of anime fighters (pc)
Dbfz (not sure)
 

DeftMonk

Noob
Lots of people play fighting games on pc nowadays. If the game doesn't have rollback anyone who cares about playing well will consider pc. If ur still calling people elitests in 2021 for playing games on pc I dunno what to tell you...
 

Gooberking

FGC Cannon Fodder
When I'm talking about majority, I'm usually referring to people who play the game and don't drop it after 2 to 3 days

Nrs games majority playstation
Tekken (especially 7) majority pc
Sfv (mix of both)
Smash (isn't even on either platforms)
Brawlhalla (mix of PC and ps4)
Strive (probably gonna be mained on pc)
99% of anime fighters (pc)
Dbfz (not sure)
Why are you thinking Strive will be mained on PC? I'm assuming mained means it will be the platform the good/best players flock to.
 

DeftMonk

Noob
Why are you thinking Strive will be mained on PC? I'm assuming mained means it will be the platform the good/best players flock to.
A lot of the arcsys crowd are playing on pc atm but Strive will seem to pull people from all games. And seeing as the netcode is supposedly godtier, I am sure lots of people will just play on ps4.
 
I have no issue with subscription services. Its the locking part of a game for which I have paid full price for I hate. I also pay my Internet bill which PlayStation now prevent me from being able to use unless I pay them. Ps3 didn't make you pay to access the game, and I still subscribed to PS plus cos I genuinely thought it was good value for money. Ps plus on ps4 might be worth it for the benefits, but they should not lock access to a game you bought without it. I honestly think it's a horrible business practise.
I don't disagree with you.

Microsoft brought about subscription-based Multiplayer with the original Xbox as there was no other comparable service in console gaming at the time, and it was using their servers. That was their justification at the time (which I disagreed with and only ever used Trial cards to access) but a lot of people bought into it. Online Multiplayer with native voice communication on a console? That had not been done before.

The Xbox 360 was an astounding success so Microsoft had no need to cut their profit margin and nix the cost for Xbox Live Gold. At least they allowed general, non-Multiplayer access to Xbox Live for free as the then "Silver" membership.

For the PlayStation 3, remember that it was the lesser console of the 7th generation, lagging well behind the Xbox 360 (let alone the Wii) for most of the generation. Sony offered free Multiplayer as a means to try and entice gamers to invest in their console, and they did so at a loss.

Before the 8th generation even started, Microsoft shot themselves in the foot with the marketing and reveal of the Xbox One and the roles quickly reversed. Sony was now top dog, and they could now charge for Multiplayer because everyone was already onboard for their platform.

It's all money and business.