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Would you rather have unlockable characters or every base roster character unlocked from the start?
- Thread starter Neoxon
- Start date
I used to love unlocking characters in Smash Bros, but once Brawl came out, it was so easy to cheese vs matches. All I wanted to do was unlock Sonic, so after that it felt redundant. I guess I wouldn't mind having all characters unlocked from the start.
The answer should be somewhere in the middle, but since games are starting to go towards "unlocked from the start" I decided to vote in favor of unlockables.
If a game is being positioned as an e-Sports game and the competitive audience makes up a large slice of your core buyers, then yes I see the sense in having no unlockables in a game like Street Fighter.
If your game is catered and bought by casual players and/or longtime fans, and the e-Sports crowd makes up only a sliver of that pie, then no I don't think having zero unlockable characters makes sense. To do the opposite would be to cater to a very loud and vocal minority of the playerbase, possibly to the detriment of the other player groups.
I think it would be a detriment to Smash Bros. and Mario Kart to have everyone unlocked from the start, firstly because there is the surprise of seeing who the unlockables are (especially for Smash) and secondly because it removes an element of single player progression.
If a game is being positioned as an e-Sports game and the competitive audience makes up a large slice of your core buyers, then yes I see the sense in having no unlockables in a game like Street Fighter.
If your game is catered and bought by casual players and/or longtime fans, and the e-Sports crowd makes up only a sliver of that pie, then no I don't think having zero unlockable characters makes sense. To do the opposite would be to cater to a very loud and vocal minority of the playerbase, possibly to the detriment of the other player groups.
I think it would be a detriment to Smash Bros. and Mario Kart to have everyone unlocked from the start, firstly because there is the surprise of seeing who the unlockables are (especially for Smash) and secondly because it removes an element of single player progression.
I like to have most characters unlocked at the start, and to have bosses or clones be unlocked via the progression system.
Something similar to KOF13's system where you are expected to perform well enough to have Saiki and Billy, would be ideal.
Something similar to KOF13's system where you are expected to perform well enough to have Saiki and Billy, would be ideal.
If a fighting game doesn't have unlockables the chances of me buying it are pretty much zero. It doesn't necessarily have to be characters, I love the loot system in Injustice for example but there needs to be something as I don't really buy fighters for the competitive modes since I'm just generally not good enough to compete.
I played many of the soul calibur games for a long time because of all of the cool stuff you could unlock. Same with MK, DOA, and MVC 2.
I played many of the soul calibur games for a long time because of all of the cool stuff you could unlock. Same with MK, DOA, and MVC 2.
But chances are that casual players just want to play as the character they want to play, and would like to avoid having to meet requirements just to access this sort of content.
How do you even have a preferred character the day the game comes out? Who knows how the character could have been overhauled. It seems extremely disorganized to me to accept money from people yet not have access to a save with all the characters.
I prefer to play and unlock characters. Gives me a reason to play multiple times, with different characters to meet different requirements.
I don't play these games online or in multiplayer much so I would prefer some unlockables as long as thier not unreasonably difficult to access. Gives a sense of progression.
I like feeling I've earned something in games. Just as long as there's no microtransactions tied to it as then the psychology changes to "this is a grind to make me pay".
I like feeling I've earned something in games. Just as long as there's no microtransactions tied to it as then the psychology changes to "this is a grind to make me pay".
Depends on the game, for me. A few thoughts:
- I do like having everything available, but I also like the idea of secret characters. Smash did this well, with clones/spin-off characters.
- Have a tournament mode so everything's accessible quickly when the need arises. Or if your game is mainly eSports oriented as Gartooth mentioned, just have everyone available from the start.
- Don't do MK8's progression system. Only villains do that.
- I do like having everything available, but I also like the idea of secret characters. Smash did this well, with clones/spin-off characters.
- Have a tournament mode so everything's accessible quickly when the need arises. Or if your game is mainly eSports oriented as Gartooth mentioned, just have everyone available from the start.
- Don't do MK8's progression system. Only villains do that.
I love games like MK Deception in which I have this sense of progression and rewarding as I unlock half the roster, play it gradually, etc. But I recognize this is a highly single player approach, and doesn't make any sense for fighting games nowadays in which the competitive scene and online gaming are a focus. So I'm also fine having characters unlocked from the start with cosmetic changes being unlockable.
I prefer unlockables,though it is convinient that everything is unlocked from the start
As other posters have said,it gives you a sense of progression
Personally,I miss them because almost everything now is just locked behind DLC and FG's nowadays barely has any secret characters/unlockables
As other posters have said,it gives you a sense of progression
Personally,I miss them because almost everything now is just locked behind DLC and FG's nowadays barely has any secret characters/unlockables
I don't really play many fighting games anymore, but I think having unlockable characters is the way to go. If everyone is unlocked from the beginning, I'm more likely to pick one character and stick with them. But whenever a new character is unlocked, it makes me excited to try them out. Costumes just don't give you that jolt of excitement that a whole new character does.
It depends. Unlockeables characters can be a fun incentive to finish a game (like in DMC or in MGR - Gray Fox costume - ). In general, unlockeables items, difficulties and secrets are really cool. In fighting games, however, i'd rather have everything unlocked for the very beginning and have other things to do in order to get better (not rewards for doing missions, finishing modes etc, outside of records to beat). This i do not like it in games like Smash Bros. Or Soul Calibur II. In those games i like to unlock things via Event modes, or Weapon Master mode.
It also depeds on the way the developers approach this point. For example, NBA JAM OFE its all about unlocking characters, cheats, secrets, balls, teams, etc...But the effort it takes in order to unlock EVERYTHING in the game was a damn shame because of EA way of doing things.
It also depeds on the way the developers approach this point. For example, NBA JAM OFE its all about unlocking characters, cheats, secrets, balls, teams, etc...But the effort it takes in order to unlock EVERYTHING in the game was a damn shame because of EA way of doing things.
Unlocked from start. Having to spend time in modes or with characters you don't like isn't a great time. If people want unlockables through SP content then it could be cosmetics and such instead.
It depends on the game for me. Games like Street Fighter that don't really have a story, I don't see a reason to unlock characters. Since it's either tournament-level players or casual players who just want to play, it's better to have everything unlocked right from the beginning so they can get straight into the game. Games like Naruto Storm 4 have a story, so if all characters are unlocked straight from the beginning, it could be a potential spoiler for those who play versus matches before the story. A perfect example is in Naruto Storm 3, where one of the mystery character's real name is revealed in the character selection screen, and this is a major spoiler unless you complete the story mode first. This character is only unlocked after you find out who he really is from the story, so players won't get spoiled if they go straight into versus mode after cracking open the game.
I honestly don't mind either way, so I think it just depends on the game itself. Though I do like the feeling of progression lent to games with unlockable characters, as others have said, there are other ways to implement unlockables that are just as good. Costumes and other customization options are equally suited to being unlocked through the course of play.
I think all base content that's needed to play under standard tournament rules should be unlocked at the start. I see people saying Soul Calibur 2 is an example of doing this well, but from a tournament organizer's standpoint it was a huge pain in the ass dealing with 3 characters being unavailable without save data. Tekken 7 has the right approach - leave all base content unlocked and use outfits and stuff to reward you for playing.
I usually don't care about offline content in fighting games (aside from 2p versus) so i prefer all characters unlocked from the start. Don't have a problem with outfits and all that as unlockables, though. Also they can always make all characters available if you're playing online or offline versus, so both parts could be happy.
I haven't read the full thread; has anyone mentioned cheat codes?
Because I feel like that's the best compromise. Have a long cheat code that temporarily unlocks all characters and stages for one play session (for tournaments, this would be hugely helpful), but have lots of characters be permanently unlockable by playing the game.
Because I feel like that's the best compromise. Have a long cheat code that temporarily unlocks all characters and stages for one play session (for tournaments, this would be hugely helpful), but have lots of characters be permanently unlockable by playing the game.
I like good single player content in fighters and new characters are good rewards, especially if they are surprises.
They shouldn't be a grind though, no points system and store style unlocks. Best to have "Beat secret boss with these conditions" or "Beat level X of challenge tower", or story mode progression.
They shouldn't be a grind though, no points system and store style unlocks. Best to have "Beat secret boss with these conditions" or "Beat level X of challenge tower", or story mode progression.
Smash Wii U didn't have all characters unlocked.
Not gonna repeat what most people said here but I'm not a fan of forcing people to unlock characters. You know how many times I had to unlock characters for tournament setups over the years?
It's a bad way of padding out the game, and if that carrot on a stick is the only thing of value to the game, the game sucks. Developers really should at least offer a cheat code to not waste time for those of us who don't fall for the carrot on a stick. I get why people like the Smash model but it's only cool the first time. Some of us don't like having our characters locked on a friend's console with less free time.
Unlockable characters/progression for your normal saves, but there's a cheatcode (that you have to enter each time you start up a game) if you want them all unlocked right away.
It felt good when I finally got to the point where I didn't have to enter in the code in SFEX+Alpha when wanting to play versus with all characters available. (still remember those cheat codes)
It felt good when I finally got to the point where I didn't have to enter in the code in SFEX+Alpha when wanting to play versus with all characters available. (still remember those cheat codes)
Unlock them from the get go. In fighting games, I just want to go "to the lab" with a character I like.
In other games with unlockable charaters, it's a fine line. Taking some Musou style games, they sometimes lock characters behind completion, some are even locked as one of the final rewards, if not THE final reward. That sounds great, right? You are rewarded with an awesome character for completing most of the game, that's a nice reward, right? Not if you like that character. Oh, look, you unlocked this guy, who you will play like 3 free missions with and move on from the game, cuz you are done with it. Compared to having hima vaialble from the get go and letting you enjoy him while game is still fresh.
In other games with unlockable charaters, it's a fine line. Taking some Musou style games, they sometimes lock characters behind completion, some are even locked as one of the final rewards, if not THE final reward. That sounds great, right? You are rewarded with an awesome character for completing most of the game, that's a nice reward, right? Not if you like that character. Oh, look, you unlocked this guy, who you will play like 3 free missions with and move on from the game, cuz you are done with it. Compared to having hima vaialble from the get go and letting you enjoy him while game is still fresh.
OP
OP
Now that Smash Ultimate has been out for a while, I feel like it's a good time to revisit the discussion since most of us probably already unlocked everyone in Smash Ultimate by now.
After having to sit through that process, I now feel more strongly than ever that everyone should be available from the start in the base roster. I just wanted to get to playing rounds against my little brother, but we couldn't with so much of the roster locked away.
After having to sit through that process, I now feel more strongly than ever that everyone should be available from the start in the base roster. I just wanted to get to playing rounds against my little brother, but we couldn't with so much of the roster locked away.
I'd like to vote for more than one on the count that I prefer unlocks but if the game is fun I don't care as much. I feel like unlocks in a game that I enjoyed gives me more incentive to rerun the game if they play differently in a reasonable way.
On the other hand most people I know enjoyed gathering together, playing with fighters they would normally avoid and then the collective excitement when the "Challenger Approaches" screen pops up.
I'd still like fully unlocked rosters. I'd pay for them. It's rare that my friends all gather in one place, so time spent on trying to unlock characters is time not well spent.
On the rare occasions where I buy a fighting game, I want to start beating up my friend who is sitting on the couch next to me instead of playing story missions just to have access to all characters.
Depends on the game and the method of unlock, but I generally lean more in favor of having everything unlocked from the start than not.
In the case of fighting games, it's fine if there are unlockable characters for the sake of people who enjoy doing that, but if that's a method a fighting game chooses, if only for the sake of TO's and the like and making their lives easier (while also giving a nice choice to those who just want to get right into the action with their favorite characters), there should be some "cheat code" or other hidden option or something for people to bypass (and which isn't just throwing more money at the game or anything like that).
On the other hand, for something like say Mario Kart, it depends on the implementation and how it's handled. Like, something like the traditional method of unlocking characters through completing Grand Prix cups against AI racers sucks and is completely unsatisfying, because you're just racing AI, and while dealing with all the nonsense luck-based item might be fine when you're playing against actual human players and you can all laugh at each other, it's kind of a different thing entirely when it's just the CPU and you. On the other hand, changing to a more Smash-based system of unlocks, where there are multiple different methods of unlocking characters or something to that effect, that would be something I'd be more cool with.
I just don't find the Grand Prix stuff satisfying in Mario Kart, and having to win 150cc cups and deal with AI on that level and either somehow manage to beat the odds and somehow manage not to get unlucky at any point during that, or otherwise grind so much at the game and become so good at it that bad luck doesn't really matter, neither of those are very satisfying and what I'd consider fun ways of unlocking those characters at all, since it's all against AIs on top of it all. But while I would probably just prefer for all the characters themselves to be unlocked by default personally and keep the unlockable stuff to vehicle parts myself, if the unlockable characters were handled a similar way in Mario Kart to how said parts are handled, that would be something I'd be more okay with.
So when it comes to that kinda game, it definitely is much more about the method of unlock than anything to me I guess.
In the case of fighting games, it's fine if there are unlockable characters for the sake of people who enjoy doing that, but if that's a method a fighting game chooses, if only for the sake of TO's and the like and making their lives easier (while also giving a nice choice to those who just want to get right into the action with their favorite characters), there should be some "cheat code" or other hidden option or something for people to bypass (and which isn't just throwing more money at the game or anything like that).
On the other hand, for something like say Mario Kart, it depends on the implementation and how it's handled. Like, something like the traditional method of unlocking characters through completing Grand Prix cups against AI racers sucks and is completely unsatisfying, because you're just racing AI, and while dealing with all the nonsense luck-based item might be fine when you're playing against actual human players and you can all laugh at each other, it's kind of a different thing entirely when it's just the CPU and you. On the other hand, changing to a more Smash-based system of unlocks, where there are multiple different methods of unlocking characters or something to that effect, that would be something I'd be more cool with.
I just don't find the Grand Prix stuff satisfying in Mario Kart, and having to win 150cc cups and deal with AI on that level and either somehow manage to beat the odds and somehow manage not to get unlucky at any point during that, or otherwise grind so much at the game and become so good at it that bad luck doesn't really matter, neither of those are very satisfying and what I'd consider fun ways of unlocking those characters at all, since it's all against AIs on top of it all. But while I would probably just prefer for all the characters themselves to be unlocked by default personally and keep the unlockable stuff to vehicle parts myself, if the unlockable characters were handled a similar way in Mario Kart to how said parts are handled, that would be something I'd be more okay with.
So when it comes to that kinda game, it definitely is much more about the method of unlock than anything to me I guess.
I made my big rant thread on unlocking characters in Smash Bros back in December and I still stand by it.
You can go here and read up on it.
The only real changes they made since launch is they made the unlock fights easier to do, and DLC Characters have no unlock fights.
I'm still surprised there isn't a Tournament Friendly mode that has everyone unlocked for the competitive scene.
Keep unlockables to cosmetic stuff only. Or make the progression stuff it's own side mode like World of Light. Multiplayer should have everyone from the start. Espicially in the online age where odds are you are going to be playing with people that have everyone unlocked already.
You can go here and read up on it.
The only real changes they made since launch is they made the unlock fights easier to do, and DLC Characters have no unlock fights.
I'm still surprised there isn't a Tournament Friendly mode that has everyone unlocked for the competitive scene.
Keep unlockables to cosmetic stuff only. Or make the progression stuff it's own side mode like World of Light. Multiplayer should have everyone from the start. Espicially in the online age where odds are you are going to be playing with people that have everyone unlocked already.
I love to unlock stuff.
I think the best solution for everyone would be implementing a cheat code that unlocks every character right from the start for tournaments and people that want to but if you want to unlock a bunch of characters with playing the game you get bonus ingame currency and/or faster character progression incentives in games that have some kind of progression.
I think the best solution for everyone would be implementing a cheat code that unlocks every character right from the start for tournaments and people that want to but if you want to unlock a bunch of characters with playing the game you get bonus ingame currency and/or faster character progression incentives in games that have some kind of progression.