Neutral Game

With Evolution 2019 now in the rear view mirror, we have a decent idea of how the various subcommunities and metas of the fighting game community are shaking out. What can we learn from the top 8s, the announcements, and from the choices Evo made as an organization? It's not all smiles and rainbows: we're displeased with some of Evo's choices, as well. Don't forget to check out Six and Miodrag on Twitter at @sixdettmar and @mdkii respectively!

Show up to shodown. SNK is giving its samurai a spirited revival in the form of Samurai Shodown, a 2019 series reboot of the classic 2D weapon fighter. Will this turn out to be their last blade, or does the soul still burn? Six and Miodrag endeavor to find out in the latest episode of Neutral Game. Don't forget to check out Six and Miodrag on Twitter at @sixdettmar and @mdkii respectively!

Netherrealm's latest is also the newest episode for Miodrag and Six! Six has never played an MK seriously before, but Miodrag has given them a real shot in the past. How will this one treat newcomer and returner alike? Unfortunately, we can't just talk about the game, we find ourselves obligated to talk about the studio's labor practices and casting choices. Don't forget to check out Six and Miodrag on Twitter at @sixdettmar and @mdkii respectively!

On this latest episode of Neutral Game, Miodrag and Six cover a trio of old fighting games: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Hero Turtles: Tournament Fighters for the NES, Super Smash Flash 2 for the PC, and Samurai Shodown 3 for the Neo-Geo. From this collection, often overlooked fighting games, what fresh ideas and insights can be drawn?

This week, Six had the opportunity to sit down with Guilty Gear pro and Evo 2018 top 3 player, LostSoul. One of the best GG players in the US, the Elphelt from the East Coast has proved that result was anything but a fluke, with impressive tournament showings that cement him as perhaps the best Elphelt in the world. Six sat down with him to talk about everything from his start in the arcades, to how he picks a main, to the merits of an unbalanced game. Please, enjoy the interview. Neutral Game will have a regular episode early next week. Until then, please enjoy this rare opportunity I received! LostSoul can be found at @Lost_Relic on Twitter, his Twitch channel is here, and he plans to attend Texas Showdown 19 next month if you want a chance to see him work!

This month, Bear and Six sit down to talk about VS Puzzle Games, which share a lot with fighting games. We particularly focus on Magical Drop III and Money Puzzle Exchanger.

The world's biggest platform fighter has come to a new platform (heheh) with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and a whopping roster of 74 fighters, with more still to come. And yet, none of them is host Miodrag, who is out on vacation! Scrambling to put together a show, Six grabbed ver friends Kat and Tai to come talk about the latest and greatest in the world of fighting games, and why Falco should really have more to say about how weird Pikachu is.

This month, Miodrag and Six welcome you back to the stage of history. Soulcalibur claims to be a tale of souls and swords eternally retold, and after over ten games, we can at least agree that the series has remained true to the elements at the soul of its success. The fundamentals are the same, but how do new characters and new mechanics push the series forward? Let's take a look.

SNK has a storied history of fighting games, from Art of Fighting to Samurai Shodown, and a wealth of other styles of fighting game besides. But of all their works, one of them is mentioned as perhaps being the best fighting game ever made. The end game of the Fatal Fury series, Garou: Mark of the Wolves is a masterful summation of what makes fighting games unique and great. This month, Miodrag and Six tackle one of the greats of the genre, and examine what makes it tick. You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We’ll see you again in a month.

Miodrag and Six welcome Mario to the show for the first (but likely not last) time as they discuss the Switch release, Mario Tennis Aces. It's not that much of a stretch to imagine how a sports game can fit into the fighting game mold, but a Mario sports game? Well, this one's a real moldbreaker. This month, we're discussing the changes that made Mario Tennis into a fighting game, and how much they committed to that vision. You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We’ll see you again in a month.

Another Evo has come and gone, and in its wake, Miodrag and Six contemplate what makes a good watching experience in a fighting game. Mechanics, presentation, commentary, community: all this and more combines, often in unexpected ways, to produce great spectator experiences. Plus: the duo comment on a few high profile Evo incidents, and their implications. Unfortunately, Six's audio is rough due to some technical difficulties. It shouldn't recur, and we're sorry! You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We’ll see you again in a month.

This year has been so packed with new and noteworthy fighting games that Six and Miodrag have had to split the duties of coverage! When the developers of the old Street Fighter EX series finally decided to come back to the fighting game genre, we knew we had to be there to see what they made. What they made is Fighting EX Layer, or FEXL: a new fighting game with a classic feel, at once both crisp and loose, and wholly unlike any other fighting game currently on the market. Do the PS2-styled fighter's ideas have enough merit, or is its vision of a different type of fighting little more than a Skullodream? You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

Fate will not be denied. Though we try to resist, fortune conspires for Miodrag and Six to come together once again and make a fighting game podcast... this time about the newest Arc Systems Works fighting game, BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle. Worlds collide, mechanics cross, but spacing and rushdown are the same as you ever knew. How have existing characters changed in this crossover? What has been done with new character designs? And how does this crossover game pay homage to BlazBlue's history without being trapped in the shadow of its classic mechanics? You can't escape from the answers to these questions. You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

As 2018 prepares to head into a fevered pace of fighting game releases, Six and Miodrag take a moment to look at the past before diving into the future. Neither of them played the Street Fighter Alpha series when it was popular, but it still has lessons to teach, even years removed. What systems and gameplay decisions in the oft-forgotten prequels of the Street Fighter series bear merit today, and what ideas from that golden age of fighting games were lost in the shuffle? You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

One of the most common scapegoats for players frustrated by the complexity of games, frame data is demonized as the inscrutable language of the elite that the average player cannot make use of. You have to be OBSESSIVE to learn frame data. It's such a BURDEN, it's unreasonable! Or... is it? Maybe you're thinking about frame data the wrong way. Maybe you can just dip your toe in, just a little, and come out a stronger player. Miodrag and Six are here to help you understand this misunderstood cornerstone of fighting games. What is frame data? What does it mean? And how can I make it work for me, without doing a whole ton of studying? We've got your back. You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

This month, we're focusing on the more personal challenges of our cohosts, as Miodrag and Six tackle different elements of fighting games in their lives. Miodrag introduces friends and coworkers to Guilty Gear, and observes the challenges and pitfalls of new players trying to adapt to the most anime of heavy metal fighters. With all of the newbies coming at the game from different perspectives, what does that mean for their play? Meanwhile, for the first time in ver life, Six has a genuine rivalry on ver hands! You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

We're about three months into 2018, and still no game has hit with the impact that Dragon Ball FighterZ has. With one of our favorite developers, Arc System Works, going all out to make a fighting game for a classic franchise, we couldn't stay away. Miodrag and Six have spent the time in the lab and the ring, and now it's time to sit down and talk about the most popular fighting game in years. From systems to roster, netcode to DLC, we've got a thorough analysis of what makes DBFZ so interesting. You can contact Six on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

It is ever our endeavor to be your newbie-friendly fighting game podcast, so when famed competitive game designer David Sirlin and the team at Sirlin Games released a fighting game focused on making the genre more accessible, we took notice. Fantasy Strike declares that it has "cut the chaff to focus on the heart of the genre." It's certainly an impressive claim, but does the game itself back that up? Miodrag and Colin investigate, and come away with mixed feelings. You can contact Colin on Twitter at @sixdettmar, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

Over the course of December, Miodrag undertook an ambitious task: to stream over eighty different fighting games, and demonstrate their systems. This great project would be known as... Deckember. Now, on the other side of the endeavor, Colin and Miodrag convene to discuss the lessons of dozens of fighting games, and what moments and games stood out as remarkable in the crowd. You can contact Colin on Twitter at @SixTwoSixFour, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!

We touched on it briefly last month, but on this episode, Miodrag and Colin talk in-depth about Gundam Versus, the first of its kind to hit western shores. From mechanics and systems, to strategy and personal favorites, it's a great beginner's guide to a game that is at once both fresh and familiar to fighting game veterans. Among your busy schedule of Street Fighters, Tekkens, and Guilty Gears, Gundam Versus can be the change of pace you need in an often predictable genre. I deserve an award for the self-restraint I showed not making a bunch of Gundam puns in this writeup. You can contact Colin on Twitter at @SixTwoSixFour, and Miodrag at @MDKII. We'll see you again in a month!