The newbie-friendly 2D fighting game Fantasy Strike will be coming on the PlayStation 4 and the Nintendo Switch on July 25, developer Sirlin Games has announced.
David Sirlin, who was the lead designer for Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, is a veteran in the arena of competitive games. Therefore, he understands the steep learning curve fighting game giants such as Tekken and Street Fighter ask from their players, whether from newbies or pros. A deep understanding of frames and complicated notation systems can easily intimidate newcomers to the genre.
According to their official site, Fantasy Strike aims to change that by emphasizing decision-making, making things understandable and aiming for elegance. Notable features implemented in Fantasy Strike include simplifying combos by minimizing button presses and cleaning up move commands such as removing joystick motions like half-circles or 360s. Also, characters have been given a total of 12 to 15 moves so that they all can fit on one screen. Another added benefit that considerably fewer move gives is it provides that notes can be used to study a specific character, whether you’re using that character or fighting against them.
Multiple improvements also include cleaning up the life bar and super meter, along with adding specific effects that indicate your fighter’s status, whether they’ve parried, been poisoned, or counter-hit. Indication on throws that could have been dodged and other visual effects also give information to both players on who has the frame advantage after an interaction. Whether you had the frame advantage or your enemy did, or if it was by a few frames or a lot, there is a visual effect to go with it. It may take some time to memorize, but it is definitely more newcomer friendly compared to memorizing frame data for all characters.
Aside from these innovative changes, Fantasy Strike has the typical modes other fighting games have, such as an Arcade Mode, a Ranked Mode, Survival Modes, and a Boss Rush mode that allow players to select power-ups to defeat increasingly powerful opponents.
Fantasy Strike has been on Steam’s Early Access since September 15, 2017 and so far, it holds a “Very Positive” rating. The polished version will be released on July 25 for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC for $29.99.
