Topic: Street Fighter "casual unfriendly"?

[DocSavage]

When did this happen?  I realize fighting games in general has become a niche thing for obsessed wanna be pro gamers, but I always figured the Street Fighter franchise as the definitive "Accessible for casual fans, offers enough depth for hardcore fans" fighting game.

http://www.1up.com/news/david-sirlin-calls-street-fighter

David Sirlin Calls Street Fighter 4 "Casual Unfriendly" "Not every game has to be casual friendly," says Street Fighter tournament player.  By Steve Watts, 02/25/2009   

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 David Sirlin is a notable game designer as well as a well-known Street Fighter tournament player, having helped to balance the revisions in Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix. So when he takes the time to speak up about Street Fighter 4, we can at least be assured that it's coming from a man who knows what he's talking about. In a recent blog post, Sirlin criticized reviews he's seen claiming that the game is accessible to beginners.  Among his complaints are the button configuration menu, size of the stages, and overcomplicated recovery. Most of all, though, he says that advanced moves like two-button throws, complex link chains, and Ultra Combos make the game too difficult for casual players. "I hear how 'casual friendly' it is. This is deeply mysterious and I'm not sure why this so often claimed," he says. "Not every game has to be casual friendly, so it would seem more honest to just explain how casual unfriendly all these things are." His post delves deep into the minutiae of game balance, for those interested in reading more.
 He also criticizes the online mode, saying that the ability to "cherry pick" ranked matches "negates the entire purpose of a ranked match." In addition, he claims that online matches should have a double-blind character select. "The optimum strategy is often to wait until the opponent chooses first so you can counter-pick," he says. Finally, he disagrees with the notion of unlocking characters. "I'm fully aware that casual players love unlocks... But the characters? This steps on the toes of those wanting to play the multiplayer game by making our first experience with the game a very boring one," he says. "I wanted to hire a MMO gold farmer to do this for me."
 To those who have been playing the game, do you agree that it can be too daunting for a new player, or does it strike the right balance?

[Chus-Kay]

A: Street Fighter 4

[DocSavage]

I just realized something...

At that fighting game, Evo, the top players are all nerds.  O_O

Growing up, video games used to be for everyone..  The captain of our football team even hosted nes parties before a game.  When did nerds take over video gaming? 

[FreebirdSTF]

Everyone probably still plays them, they just don't play them the way the "nerd" top champions do.

[DocSavage]

Playing Abel against cpu Blanka is so frustrating, I started looking up guides for tips.

Can you say "part time job" with the practice involved?  O_o

I don't want to unlock Fei Long "that" badly..