Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite

**Krandor** · 2017-08-17 16:42

I'll watch competitive CSGO even tho I don't play the game at all, but otherwise I watch nothing on twitch but fighting games or the occasional really big event (like the final day or two of The International)

Capcom already saw what happens when you make the entire focus on the esports angle (as evidenced by SFVs awful sales). And no matter how much they pushed it down everyone's throats the situation hasnt improved, so I have no idea why they're repeating the situation other then sheer stupidity.

**Guitarman** · 2017-08-17 18:03

I mean it's a total guess on my end. I can't make heads or tails of what they're trying to accomplish with this game, it doesn't seem to be made for...anyone. I can absolutely see Capcom doubling down on Esports even after the SFV debacle because that's the type of tone-deaf image they're portraying to the public in recent years.

For example:

SF Fans: "We want Sakura! Poison! Sagat!!"
Capcom: "Vrroom Vrrrrrooooom!!"

If it wasn't for the absolutely amazing RE7, I would've washed my hands of anything Capcom a while ago.

**Spider-Dan** · 2017-08-17 18:47

Originally Posted by Guitarman

Also, @1:36, creepy dude looks a lot like Salazar from RE4:

That is Grandmaster Meio, Strider's main enemy.

---

I would try to reconcile SF5's back-to-back live ESPN broadcasts with the facts that "no one likes or plays that game" and "Capcom's esports have been a total failure" but it seems like wasted effort. Some people just have too much invested in blind hate to listen.

**Bweigelt** · 2017-08-17 19:21

Well using ESPN broadcasting it as proof of it's popularity falls apart pretty quickly when you consider that viewer numbers have been dropping across the board the last 3 years.

**Spider-Dan** · 2017-08-18 01:37

Are you talking about total ESPN viewership numbers...?
That isn't really an indicator of the popularity of SF5 as a spectator e-sport, for exactly the same reason that it isn't an indicator of the popularity of the NFL or NBA.

Even with its declining numbers, ESPN is far more popular than any e-sport in America could ever hope to be during our lifetime. SF5 was the first fighting game to get a live ESPN broadcast, and it did well enough that it was brought back the next year. That is an indicator of success, not failure.

**MyTitthias** · 2017-08-23 02:17

Max can be annoying, but I really appreciate his videos because it actually gives a taste how the gameplay will actually look, instead of most of the standard video game websites with their bullshit boring clips.

The infinity gems look pretty hot. I'm excited to see how they get used in high level play.

**Deejay** · 2017-08-23 07:35

Originally Posted by Spider-Dan

Are you talking about total ESPN viewership numbers...?
That isn't really an indicator of the popularity of SF5 as a spectator e-sport, for exactly the same reason that it isn't an indicator of the popularity of the NFL or NBA.

Even with its declining numbers, ESPN is far more popular than any e-sport in America could ever hope to be during our lifetime. SF5 was the first fighting game to get a live ESPN broadcast, and it did well enough that it was brought back the next year. That is an indicator of success, not failure.

Marvel as an e-Sport would probably kill it on ESPN.

Brand recognition aside, watching Captain America beat up on Ryu with Yipes getting hype on commentary?

The potential is there.

**gaira** · 2017-08-23 09:53

this is looking better and better in terms of gameplay. roster still sucks, and graphics don't bother me, but i think this will do quite well for the fgc.

**Sho** · 2017-08-23 13:08

Originally Posted by gaira

this is looking better and better in terms of gameplay. roster still sucks, and graphics don't bother me, but i think this will do quite well for the fgc.

Gameplay was never a problem honestly -- both Spider-Dan and myself have been mentioning this the entire time. The gameplay will be epic.

What's still debatable is the roster and that god awful UI.

**Lokus** · 2017-08-23 14:20

Serious question, what's wrong with the UI?

**Spider-Dan** · 2017-08-23 15:00

It's boring as hell. Everything is static, the fonts are all incredibly plain and all text moves around in complete sentences, the UI animation is subdued or non-existent. There isn't even a Vs. screen! You just go straight from player select into match intro.

UMVC3 started some of this (removing the character models at player select/Vs., greatly dumbing down the best Victory screen ever) but MVCI is much worse.

**Spider-Dan** · 2017-08-25 13:31

More new video of Dormammu & Ghost Rider. The game has a Vs. screen now! Baby steps.

Ghost Rider seemed to be getting an awful lot of happy birthdays, which may be a counter to the mega-offense tag madness in this game. During Dorm's Chaotic Flame super, the tagged-in new character is (currently?) drawn behind the (old character) flame super animation, which makes mixups literally invisible. Blocking is going to be HARD in this game.

**Deejay** · 2017-08-25 13:58

It's finally starting to come together. The balance seems like it's going to be fucking dumb though. I love and hate how Capcom seems to give fuck all about balancing characters in these games. I'm not even complaining about the stronger ones, but the just basic boring bullshit like Firebrand that doesn't offer anything interesting other than unblockable setups.

**Spider-Dan** · 2017-08-25 16:23

The balance has traditionally been horrible in Marvel games because (unlike most anime games) Capcom doesn't believe in giving every character everything. If you gave Hulk an airdash and a parry, his bad matchups would look a lot better. MVC3 kind of sidestepped this by turning the damage way up; allowing every character to kill off 1 hit inherently serves to level the playfield. (This is, not coincidentally, also the reason why XF3 exists: to make 1-v-3 matches less lopsided.)

As far as Firebrand goes, I think he's fine... kidnap and unblockables give him a character identity. In contrast, Iron Man is just Magneto-but-worse and has been for a while. Characters like Thor and Chun had similar problems where they didn't really have something that gave them a strong character identity.

**Lucavi** · 2017-08-25 17:29

Ryu looks so out of place in this game. All this chaos going around with all these characters and then you just have ol' stiff strike short range Ryu throwing out slow-ass projectiles.

When is the last time he's even been considered usable, let alone viable?

**Krandor** · 2017-08-25 17:39

iirc ChrisG got some mileage out of him for awhile before he switched to MorriDoom

**Spider-Dan** · 2017-08-25 18:11

Chris was playing something like Ryu/Wesker/Ammy in vanilla, but Ryu also suffers from the same "lack of identity" problem. He's a character that would have benefited greatly from a DP assist that was more similar to his MVC2 version, but that would have unbalanced too many other matchups in the process.

You don't necessarily have to be a super-high on the tier charts, either. Phoenix Wright is a low-tier character that has a strong identity. So are Arthur, Cap, and Deadpool. Every character should have something distinctive that you associate clearly with that character.