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[Afro Republican]

When it comes to solid consoles you can directly hook to your TV, two fighting games backed by first party studios come to mind: Street Fighter V and Killer Instinct.

Sony helped Capcom produce this 5th entry into the Street Fighter franchise, making it a headliner at their E3 conference. While Killer Instinct was revived near around the launch period of the Xbox One also introduced at an E3.

Both games have changed over the years, with SFV adding updates and eventually breaking its promise of not releasing new versions, and Killer Instinct updating by seasons, usually distributed in a Free to Play model while also having retail discs of the entire season.

It's now 2020, which of these two games do you consider to have been better overall? That means all the good and the bad throughout the years need to be considered.

VS.

​

 

[Vawn]

Street Fighter by a mile. It had a bare bones launch, but the mechanics stomp all over KI.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Yikes, no Guilty Gear Xrd?

(nah I know you said "first party backed", but that would be my vote if there was an option)

I enjoyed SFV most, but to be fair I only played KI at public demo stations. None of my local friends even owned it. It seemed okay but I was never much of a KI fan, so I'm sure the nuance and nostalgia was lost on me. I've been playing SF since I was a kid so it has that, if nothing else. The core mechanics are simple, therefore like riding a bike again. I enjoyed my time with the game even when it only had a handful of characters and no good single-player modes.

 

[Spukc]

oof

i can’t vote for SF5. I bought that game day 1
i am still mad about this shit

 

[too much eslim]

Street Fighter by a mile. It had a bare bones launch, but the mechanics stomp all over KI.

Did you play KI throughout the seasons?

 

[Vasto]

Killer Instinct for me because of how different it plays from everything else. That game launched with hardly anything and grew over time to be one of the best fighters this gen.

 

[Hawks Eclipse]

Both games have changed over the years, with SFV adding updates and eventually breaking its promise of not releasing new versions,

I don't want to come across as a Capcom defender but can AE and the upcoming CE be considered as breaking their promise?

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think you don't have to buy either edition to eventually have access to everything gameplay-related.

However, they did nerf the amount of FM (muh Fight Money!) you could get so you're most likely better off getting AE when it's on discount or CE which is effectively launching at a discounted price for brand new buyers.

Since you said to take the good and the bad into account, the rootkit that came with SFV on PC was some next level crap, unintentional or not.

SFV also gave us this timeless quote: "HATERS WILL BE LEFT BEHIND."

 

[Afro Republican]

This poll is closer than I thought it would be surprisingly.

 

[Rentahamster]

Hard to compare since KI is free to play, but it does/did have more concurrent players than SF5.

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Neither. UNIST shits all over SF5.

 

[The Pleasure]

Why does ki have so many particle effects for such a fast game? It's gonna give me pokeman syndrome.

 

[MoreJRPG]

Didn’t like the direction they took with SFV. If they kept SFIV core gameplay with the updated graphics and roster it would have been a homerun. I didn’t like the fight money idea either and the connections felt horrible compared to last gen. Not sure if they screwed with the netcode or more people were playing on wifi.

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Why does ki have so many particle effects for such a fast game? It's gonna give me pokeman syndrome.

KI1 played better than KI3.

 

[too much eslim]

Why does ki have so many particle effects for such a fast game? It's gonna give me pokeman syndrome.

They toned it down

 

[Hobbygaming]

When it comes to solid consoles you can directly hook to your TV, two fighting games backed by first party studios come to mind: Street Fighter V and Killer Instinct.

Sony helped Capcom produce this 5th entry into the Street Fighter franchise, making it a headliner at their E3 conference. While Killer Instinct was revived near around the launch period of the Xbox One also introduced at an E3.

Both games have changed over the years, with SFV adding updates and eventually breaking its promise of not releasing new versions, and Killer Instinct updating by seasons, usually distributed in a Free to Play model while also having retail discs of the entire season.

It's now 2020, which of these two games do you consider to have been better overall? That means all the good and the bad throughout the years need to be considered.

VS.

​

Killer Instinct needed a bigger budget for the characters I remember Tusk, Kim Wu and some others looking pretty bad

Both games started with a small amount of content but Street Fighter V has been amazing as an overall project especially with the tournament scene: Evo and Capcom Cup

 

[Afro Republican]

Hard to compare since KI is free to play, but it does/did have more concurrent players than SF5.

KI has a retail version.

 

[Nikana]

Street Fighter by a mile. It had a bare bones launch, but the mechanics stomp all over KI.

Bullshit.

 

[Defect]

KI > SFV

Also has the best soundtrack

 

[Potato Chip PRO]

I really liked how KI introduced new characters with cool abilities and fighting styles also bringing back classic fighters from the SNES days

 

[The Pleasure]

They toned it down

Good. I hate seeing guilty gear spastic particle edition ZEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

 

[fallingdove]

Both felt a bit unfinished when they first launched but I think I ended up liking Killer Instinct better.

SFV just isn’t that fun and the art direction is uninspired. I really hope they ditch the whole 90s action figure look for 6.

 

[Hotspurr]

SFV has the better mechanics. I put like 200 hours into that game despite it was a mess of a product.
KI is well done but mechanically it's not as entertaining.

Overall product I would say KI. Better fighting mechanics is SFV.

 

[thelastword]

Street Fighter V by an entire generation, K.I cant even shine RYU's shoes and he has none.......Think about that for a second.....

 

[yurinka]

Street Fighter V had a rough start with several issues (now fixed, now we're only waiting for the oficial netcode sync fix, Capcom seems that will release something similar to that fix made by a modder) and lacked a ton of content at launch (but they added more than enough content over time).

But other than that, even without considering all the other many improvements, additions, features and rebalancing they added over time, SFV was a way better game at launch than KI.

As of now (until Capcom releases the oficial fix, we saw the netcode is great but only had that sync issue) KI only has better netcode, in everything else I prefer SFV.

I didn’t like the fight money idea either and the connections felt horrible compared to last gen.

Fight money allows you to unlock by playing post launch DLC content that in any other games you can only get by paying (either in a full game payment for a tweaked game revision or as paid DLC). I don't see why people like you don't like to have the option of unlocking for free paid DLC.

 

[Bryank75]

You're gonna have people angry about how SFV launched but it became the best game out of them. It's an awesome fighter, better than SFIV IMO.... I know that's not a popular opinion but it's how I feel.

 

[ethomaz]

Street Fighter.
Gameplay is king and they nailed it.

 

[mekes]

It’s nowhere near being one of my favourite SF games but, SF5.

 

[Rentahamster]

KI has a retail version.

So?

 

[VertigoOA]

...

Who the fuck voted for Killer Instinct?

 

[Alexios]

Smash. KI is poor man's Mortal Kombat which is poor man's FG, SFV is solid but is not even the best SF.


Unless we don't count Switch for some reason. But still Smash.


Unless we don't count WiiU for some reason. But still Smash.

 

[too much eslim]

...

Who the fuck voted for Killer Instinct?

Did you play both?

 

[too much eslim]

I haven't played both so I can't compare.

 

[thelastword]

Easiest way to test a fighter is to see who's still playing it, are any persons still playing K.I? How many are on Twitch compared to SFV.....SFV's mechanics are way superior, that gives it longevity, games have come after SFV, some fighters people hyped them up like no tomorrow and now nobody is playing them anymore...SFV is still standing...….It's not just Capcom Cup, it's just not EVO, all these games had tournaments surrounding them too......SF is just better and more engaging in everyway and that's why people stay....

 

[too much eslim]

Easiest way to test a fighter is to see who's still playing it, are any persons still playing K.I? How many are on Twitch compared to SFV.....SFV's mechanics are way superior, that gives it longevity, games have come after SFV, some fighters people hyped them up like no tomorrow and now nobody is playing them anymore...SFV is still standing...….It's not just Capcom Cup, it's just not EVO, all these games had tournaments surrounding them too......SF is just better and more engaging in everyway and that's why people stay....

Not accurate. At all Street fighter is the more popular fighting game on the most popular console. All the fighting game enthusiasts will have a PS4. So while there is still aKI scene it's smaller in comparison. Plus if a game isn't at Evo the scene dwindles even more. Once KI was no longer at Evo the scene died a bit.

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Smash. KI is poor man's Mortal Kombat which is poor man's FG, SFV is solid but is not even the best SF.


Unless we don't count Switch for some reason. But still Smash.


Unless we don't count WiiU for some reason. But still Smash.

Smash isn't even a fighting game and MK is a poor man's MK.

 

[captainraincoat]

Smash. KI is poor man's Mortal Kombat which is poor man's FG, SFV is solid but is not even the best SF.


Unless we don't count Switch for some reason. But still Smash.


Unless we don't count WiiU for some reason. But still Smash.

I never played a smash game until this gen....now I can't put it down

That's the real game of the generation

 

[The Pleasure]

Smash. KI is poor man's Mortal Kombat which is poor man's FG, SFV is solid but is not even the best SF.


Unless we don't count Switch for some reason. But still Smash.


Unless we don't count WiiU for some reason. But still Smash.

No

 

[-Troid-]

Street Fighter by a mile. It had a bare bones launch, but the mechanics stomp all over KI.

More like borrow gameplay aspects from KI (V-trigger is like Instinct, V-reversal is like Shadow Counter), and made them slower. Both games are very offense heavy (unless SFV changed meta-wise, I havent played it in a bit), but KI is so much faster, and the Combo/Counter Breaker system facilitates the speed by letting you catch your breath, yet still requiring you to think about mind games constantly. KI feels like someone made a 1v1 Versus style game (in terms of speed and combos) that was actually balanced.
SFV feels like an offense heavy, auto-pilot SF4.

 

[alienator]

i miss the Fighting EX Layer love in here

 

[The Pleasure]

More like borrow gameplay aspects from KI (V-trigger is like Instinct, V-reversal is like Shadow Counter), and made them slower. Both games are very offense heavy (unless SFV changed meta-wise, I havent played it in a bit), but KI is so much faster, and the Combo/Counter Breaker system facilitates the speed by letting you catch your breath, yet still requiring you to think about mind games constantly. KI feels like someone made a 1v1 Versus style game (in terms of speed and combos) that was actually balanced.
SFV feels like an offense heavy, auto-pilot SF4.

bitch please. You could do an Alpha counter back in 1995 which was a faster V-Reversal. They should have copied the KOF version of it known as Blowback where it was a hard knock down that used one bar of meter, but it was a one reversal where people couldn't bait it out unless they really thought about it.

KOF still plays better than KI when it comes to combo/counter system where you could do an evasive manuever which was a roll, or a blowback attack which hard knocked enemies down. Both have their utility and both are used in certain circumstances.

And SFV goes back to the Super Turbo level of bullshit but it feels less fair because it's a modern game. Remember Boxer's headbutt loop? Or Dhalsims Yoga Noogie loop that bullshits people into rage? Or Deejay's NICE HOUSE/Upkicks bullshit? Or the Eggbeater combos that Ken had?

 

[-Troid-]

bitch please. You could do an Alpha counter back in 1995 which was a faster V-Reversal. They should have copied the KOF version of it known as Blowback where it was a hard knock down that used one bar of meter, but it was a one reversal where people couldn't bait it out unless they really thought about it.

KOF still plays better than KI when it comes to combo/counter system where you could do an evasive manuever which was a roll, or a blowback attack which hard knocked enemies down. Both have their utility and both are used in certain circumstances.

And SFV goes back to the Super Turbo level of bullshit but it feels less fair because it's a modern game. Remember Boxer's headbutt loop? Or Dhalsims Yoga Noogie loop that bullshits people into rage? Or Deejay's NICE HOUSE/Upkicks bullshit? Or the Eggbeater combos that Ken had?

Tbh I never really played KOF, so I can't comment on it really. And SFV having BS like ST like you said is why I don't like it as much as Third Strike or USF4.

KI has crazy Bullshit, but every character has crazy bullshit so it all evens out along with the Combo/Counter Breaker system assisting in that as well. SFV just seems like SF4 with bullshit tacked on.

As an aside both KI and SFV were barebones at launch but I think KI handled it better since it had a minimum entry fee of $20 for the first season, and each season after, plus the option to play it free with rotating characters.

At the end of the day though I think Fighting games are very subjective, since most differences between them are less surface level and more meta. What meta you prefer really determines what game you'll gravitate towards, hence how the poll can be so evenly split.

 

[Davernos]

Netcode still is a fucking mess on SFV side. Can't say the same about the brilliant netcode KI has.

 

[Scotty W]

What about Eternal Champions?

 

[Afro Republican]

So?

So your previous comment was not accurate.

 

[Synless]

No

Yes.

 

[Afro Republican]

Easiest way to test a fighter is to see who's still playing it, are any persons still playing K.I? How many are on Twitch compared to SFV...

Twitch isn't an indicator of anything.

K.I> has more active players than SFv and continues to grow in number over.

A long awhile ago when KI had 6 or 7 million players SFV still didn't even sell 2 million units so unless you think millions of people pirated the game it's kind of impossible to believe that SFV has more active players than K.I., the only way it could come close to that is the fact that KI is around 2 years older than SFV and may decline over time as they are getting ready for the Series X console and updated have slowed, but it would still likely have more active players until then.

 

[Rentahamster]

So your previous comment was not accurate.

Yeah it is. You can't compare sales in an apples to apples way (if sales was a metric one wants to use) since one of them is also free to play.

 

[The Shift]

What about Eternal Champions?

Wow!

 

[Afro Republican]

Yeah it is. You can't compare sales in an apples to apples way (if sales was a metric one wants to use) since one of them is also free to play.

You can compare Retail sales.

KI has a retail release.

This isn't hard.

 

[Rentahamster]

You can compare Retail sales.

KI has a retail release.

This isn't hard.

We don't live in a reality where a free to play sku doesn't also exist alongside it, which alters customer behavior significantly.

This isn't hard.