More Than Just Netcode: Looking at the Fundamental Problems Fighting Games Face in Online Environments and How Developers and the FGC Can Continue to Adapt Amidst the Pandemic

Source: @tempusrob

   The Fighting Game Community has always been largely intertwined with local play, especially with the scene being born in the 90s arcades. In-person competition has been a defining aspect for the genre and local venues played an extremely vital role in fostering the player base of fighting games. The FGC has helped people meet others, compete, and grow in both their skill and appreciation for the games that they play. 

    However, our world has dramatically changed in a way that has forced everyone, including the FGC, to adapt amidst the outbreak of COVID-19. Both major tournaments and local venues have been forced to close their doors, with players having to find ways to keep the scene alive and healthy in an online-only environment. The challenges that the FGC faces in 2020 are incredibly different when compared to other eSports that continue to thrive despite the pandemic. This largely stems from the nature of fighting games as a whole as well as how both developers and fans have structured themselves around the genre. 

    Even before the worldwide pandemic, fighting games haven't seen the same kind of worldwide recognition that other eSports have. This initially seems strange given how fighting games are seen as the progenitors of competitive gaming. While some have attributed this to the barrier of entry that new players face when approaching the genre, the reality is that nearly every other esport has become successful because they were developed with online competition in mind. 

Esports with substantial online features continue to grow with more viewers
on Twitch despite the pandemic 
Source: Statista 

    With people staying home in quarantine, online communication is more important now than it ever has been before. Many games such as Fortnite, League of Legends, Valorant, and more have continued to thrive because they were built from the start with online play in mind. The developers of these games have also been able to capitalize on this with continued support in the form of events and major tournaments that can still be hosted online with the tools that the games provide. Fighting games, on the other hand, were first developed in a time when online play wasn't even a factor and the genre as a whole will always be at odds with online play because of the design of its gameplay. 

Fighting games were primarily designed with local play in mind
Source: I Play Winner

      Fighting game design emphasizes precision with the slightest difference of inputs and timing affecting the outcome of the match. This design was birthed in arcades and thrives in local settings but faces numerous challenges in an online environment where the slightest amount of lag and delay can affect the gameplay. 

    The genre as a whole will never work flawlessly in an online environment but that isn't to say that it is impossible to have a good experience online with fighting games. Rollback netcode, for example, provides a significantly better online experience when implemented correctly. Rollback was built with fighting games in mind and makes online play more fluid by tracking and predicting a player's inputs and rolling the game back to a previous state if the inputs were predicted incorrectly without stopping the match. This works immensely better than the delay-based netcode which slows down the game to match both players' connection. 

    

Code Mystics Explains Netcode: Input Delay vs. Rollback

    Despite this, many fighting game developers, especially those in Japan, have continued to use delay-based for years. It's hard to imagine why small scale fighting games like Skullgirls and Them's Fighting Herds have better netcode than games with significantly larger budgets like Super Smash Brothers Ultimate and Tekken 7. Just recently, fans were even able to give Super Smash Brothers Melee, an almost two-decade-old game that didn't even have online when it came out, rollback netcode through a project called Slippi. However, the fact that these larger games have such poor netcode shows that online play is of low importance for these developers which actively hurts their player bases. Rollback netcode is only one part of the issue, however, as the online experience for fighting games is significantly more hampered by the online interface and options presented to players.  

Source: Slippi.gg

    The online environment for many fighting games is plagued with smaller issues that make the overall experience less enjoyable and user friendly. Many games don't provide tools such as ping display to help players determine the strength of a connection before entering a match, causing them to join many games with poor connections that could have been avoided. Unbalanced matchmaking and ranking systems can also negatively affect a game's player base by encouraging players to use cheap tactics and playstyles such as camping and disconnecting mid-match to increase and preserve their online rank.

     Some titles make it a challenge to even find matches with friends through confusing lobby designs. Even the most serviceable lobbies don't allow for simultaneous matches, which results in players watching the game more than playing it in large lobbies. Poor options for spectating also significantly inhibit the ability for these titles to become successful eSports when compared to larger titles. Fighting games have inherent issues with online play and while poor netcode is an issue, it can be argued that the clunky online interfaces and lack of features in many fighting games actively hurt the game's online community more than their netcode. 

Confusing lobbies will only make people want to play your game less 
Source: Kotaku UK

    

    While the FGC can voice their opinion on what they want to be changed in the games that we play, there's only so much we can do before actual change happens. As fans, we should vocalize our support for the fighting games that DO have good online netcode and features. Pushing for rollback is important but the reality is that it would be incredibly difficult for developers to drastically rework their online infrastructure during the pandemic. However, if developers want their games to be successful, good netcode is a must for future totals in this current age. 

    It would be more beneficial in the current moment to advocate for features such as improved lobbies as these features can be implemented more easily as developers work from home. Proper online functionality can even help fighting games gain respect as an eSport by giving major tournaments like EVO the tools to run online smoothly. 

EVO Online and other major tournaments can run much smoother with better online features
Source: EVO

    Until then, however, there are measures we can take to ensure that the scene continues to grow strong despite the hindered circumstances. Many local venues have continued to host online weekly tournaments and participating in them can help support them so that they may be able to open safely again in the future. Until the day when we can safely play matches locally with each other, it is vital for fighting game fans to support the scene in any way that they can. While pushing for better online can help our voices be heard, netcode is far from the only issue. It would be beneficial to direct our attention to features that developers can easily implement in order to improve the online experience of their titles