History DuelingWorks / FightingGame

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' (February 1997) & ''VideoGame/Tekken3'' (March 1997) / ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'' (September 1997) & ''VideoGame/GarouMarkOfTheWolves'' (1999)

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' (February 1997) / ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'' (September 1997) & ''VideoGame/GarouMarkOfTheWolves'' (1999)

** '''Implementation:''' ''Mortal Kombat 4'' took the step into the third dimension, while ''Street Fighter III'' stayed in and perfected 2D (it was one of the best-looking 2D games ever at the time of its release). Both games did away with a substantial part of their established cast in favor of new faces, but ''Street Fighter III'' especially so (only Ryu and Ken returned, although later updates reintroduced Akuma and Chun-Li). While ''Mortal Kombat 4'' was now 3D, [[TwoAndAHalfD the gameplay still largely took place on a two-dimensional playing field]] and, with the exception of a sidestep maneuver and the introduction of a weapon system, the gameplay was largely unchanged. ''Street Fighter III'', on the other hand, had substantially altered gameplay with the introduction of dashing, "Super Arts" (players were given a choice of one of three Super Combos pre-match, with their selection also affecting how large their super gauge was and how many supers they could stock), and the new [[PunchParry parry]] system. Meanwhile, ''Garou: Mark of the Wolves'' followed in ''Street Fighter III''[='s=] footsteps, replacing the roster with a new generation of fighters (with Terry being the only returning character) and featuring some beautifully animated 2D artwork. The game also forsook ''VideoGame/FatalFury''[='s=] iconic plane-shifting mechanic in favor of traditional 2D movement, and also features a "Just Defense" mechanic similar to ''Street Fighter III''[='s=] [[PunchParry parrying]].

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighter6'' (June 2023) / ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1'' (September 2023) / VideoGame/Tekken8 (January 2024)

** '''Implementation:''' All three games break new ground for the narratives of their respective stories: ''SF[=6=]'' explicitly takes place after ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', a notable divergence from the [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV previous]] [[VideoGame/StreetFighterV games]] being {{Interquel}}s set between ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' and ''III''. ''[=MK1=]'', meanwhile, is a ContinuityReboot taking place after the CosmicRetcon at the end of ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11: Aftermath''. ''Tekken 8'', itself, bills its story as the GrandFinale in the greater ongoing tale of the world-altering family feud amongst the Mishima bloodline. All three games also introduce new mechanics that help them stand out from previous titles; ''[=SF6=]'' has the Drive System, a set of universal skills that add a more strategic flair to fights; ''[=MK1=]'' has "Kameo Fighters", AssistCharacter[=s=] based on series characters from past titles; and ''Tekken 8'' has the "Heat System", which allows players to activate a SuperMode once per round that opens new strategies and combo potential while encouraging offensive, aggressive play/ Of note is the platforms on which these games are released: ''[=SF6=]'' does not have a Platform/NintendoSwitch version, but will be available on the previous-gen Platform/PlayStation4; while ''[=MK1=]'' is next-gen exclusive, and its platform releases include the Switch. ''Tekken 8'' is also next-gen exclusive, but does not have a Switch version.

** '''Implementation:''' All three games break new ground for the narratives of their respective stories: ''SF[=6=]'' explicitly taking place after ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', a notable divergence from the [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV previous]] [[VideoGame/StreetFighterV games]] being {{Interquel}}s set between ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' and ''III''. ''[=MK1=]'', meanwhile, is a ContinuityReboot taking place after the CosmicRetcon at the end of ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11: Aftermath''. ''Tekken 8'', itself, bills its story as the GrandFinale in the greater ongoing story of the world-altering family feud amongst the Mishima bloodline. All three games also introduce new mechanics that help them stand out from previous titles; ''[=SF6=]'' has the Drive System, a set of universal skills that add a more strategic flair to fights; ''[=MK1=]'' has "Kameo Fighters", AssistCharacter[=s=] based on series characters from past titles; and ''Tekken 8'' has the "Heat System", which allows players to activate a SuperMode once per round that opens new strategies and combo potential while encouraging offensive, aggressive play/ Of note is the platforms on which these games are released: ''[=SF6=]'' does not have a Platform/NintendoSwitch version, but will be available on the previous-gen Platform/PlayStation4; while ''[=MK1=]'' is next-gen exclusive, and its platform releases include the Switch. ''Tekken 8'' is also next-gen exclusive, but does not have a Switch version.

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighter6'' (June 2023) / ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1'' (September 2023)

** '''Implementation:''' Both games embark on new ground for the narratives of their respective stories, with ''SF[=6=]'' explicitly taking place after ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', a notable divergence from the [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV previous]] [[VideoGame/StreetFighterV games]] being {{Interquel}}s set between ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' and ''III''. ''[=MK1=]'', meanwhile, is a ContinuityReboot taking place after the CosmicRetcon at the end of ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11: Aftermath''. Both games also introduce new mechanics that help them stand out from previous titles; ''[=SF6=]'' has the Drive System, a set of universal skills that add a more strategic flair to fights; while ''[=MK1=]'' has "Kameo Fighters", AssistCharacter[=s=] based on series characters from past titles. Of note is the platforms on which both games are released: ''[=SF6=]'' does not have a Platform/NintendoSwitch version, but will be available on the previous-gen Platform/PlayStation4; while ''[=MK1=]'' is next-gen exclusive, and its platform releases include the Switch.

** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' SerialNumbersFiledOff ports of ''VideoGame/KarateChamp'' released for the UsefulNotes/Commodore64 in 1985.

** '''Implementation:''' Though spearheaded by Creator/{{Sega}} and Creator/{{Nintendo}}, respectively, each game was actually made by a western developer (''Eternal Champions'' was developed by Sega's America-based Interactive Development Division, whereas ''Killer Instinct'' was made by Nintendo's newly-acquired second-party developer Rare.) ''Eternal Champions'' was developed specifically for the [[UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis Mega Drive/Genesis]], while ''Killer Instinct'' was released in arcades first, and later ported to the [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]] (rather ironic, since Sega's primary market have always been arcades, whereas Nintendo had otherwise stopped making arcade games by that point). Gameplay-wise, ''Killer Instinct'' relied heavily on {{combo}}s, while ''Eternal Champions'' played more similarly to ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' with the addition of a "special attack meter" to prevent players from abusing special attacks. In lieu of ''Mortal Kombat'', both games also had violent {{Finishing Move}}s, though the ones in ''Killer Instinct'', while featuring large amounts of blood, had relatively little gore compared to both ''Mortal Kombat'' and ''Eternal Champions''.

** '''Implementation:''' Both were released in 1995; ''Toshinden'' for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation, ''Soul'' for arcades (and ported to [=PlayStation=] the following year, [[MarketBasedTitle rebranded as]] ''Soul Blade'' for the North American and European markets due to trademark issues). Although not obvious at first, ''Toshinden'' actually takes place in the (then-)present, while ''Soul'' takes place in the 16th century. ''Toshinden'' also has a clear anime-based style while ''Soul'' went with more stylized realism (similar to its sibling series ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'').

** '''Implementation:''' East vs. West, ''[[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Namco]]'' vs. ''[[Creator/MidwayGames Midway]]'', Samurai vs. Knight (literally, in this case). To oversimplify: ''Soul Edge'' is ''Franchise/{{Tekken}}'' with swords, ''Mace'' is ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' with swords. It's also worth noting that the home port of each game was released exclusively on the UsefulNotes/PlayStation and UsefulNotes/{{Nintendo 64}} respectively.

** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' [[UsefulNotes/ConsoleWars Console-specific]] {{Mascot Fighter}}s, each with a roster of characters associated with the console it is on.

** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' Sequels to TwoAndAHalfD fighting games with rosters featuring comic book superheroes and supervillains for UsefulNotes/TheEighthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames.

** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' The two biggest {{Platform Fighter}}s of UsefulNotes/TheNinthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames, both of them also being {{Massive Multiplayer Crossover}}s.

** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' New {{Platform Fighter}}s of UsefulNotes/TheNinthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames, both of them also being {{Massive Multiplayer Crossover}}s consisting of a non-video game studio's various series (Creator/{{Nickelodeon}} for ''VideoGame/NickelodeonAllStarBrawl'', Creator/WarnerBros for ''VideoGame/{{Multiversus}}'').

** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' Next-generation iterations of classic FightingGame franchises from the 1990[=s=], made for UsefulNotes/TheNinthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames
** '''Implementation:''' Both games embark on new ground for the narratives of their respective stories, with ''SF[=6=]'' explicitly taking place after ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'', a notable divergence from the [[VideoGame/StreetFighterIV previous]] [[VideoGame/StreetFighterV games]] being {{Interquel}}s set between ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' and ''III''. ''[=MK1=]'', meanwhile, is a ContinuityReboot taking place after the CosmicRetcon at the end of ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11: Aftermath''. Both games also introduce new mechanics that help them stand out from previous titles; ''[=SF6=]'' has the Drive System, a set of universal skills that add a more strategic flair to fights; while ''[=MK1=]'' has "Kameo Fighters", AssistCharacter[=s=] based on series characters from past titles. Of note is the platforms on which both games are released: ''[=SF6=]'' does not have a UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch version, but will be available on the previous-gen UsefulNotes/Playstation4; while ''[=MK1=]'' is next-gen exclusive, and its platform releases include the Switch.

* ''International Karate'' (1985) / ''The Way of the Exploding Fist'' (1985)

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterII'' (1991) / ''VideoGame/FatalFury'' (1991) & ''VideoGame/ArtOfFighting'' (1992) & ''Franchise/TheKingOfFighters'' (1994)

* ''VideoGame/BattleArenaToshinden'' (1995) / ''[[VideoGame/SoulSeries Soul Edge]]'' (1995)

* ''VideoGame/MarvelSuperHeroes'' (1995) / ''Avengers in Galactic Storm'' (1995)

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighterIII'' (1997) / ''VideoGame/MortalKombat4'' (1997) & ''VideoGame/GarouMarkOfTheWolves'' (1999)

* ''VideoGame/Injustice2'' (2017) / ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomInfinite'' (2017)

* ''VideoGame/PokkenTournament DX'' (2017) / ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcomInfinite'' (2017)

* ''VideoGame/BlazBlueCrossTagBattle'' (2018) / ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' (2018)

* ''VideoGame/SlapCity'' (2018) / ''Icons: Combat Arena'' (2018)

* ''VideoGame/SamuraiShodown'' (2019) / ''VideoGame/GranblueFantasyVersus'' (2019)
** '''Capsule Pitch Description:''' 2D fighting games that return to a more classically grounded style with high damage, stricter movement and shorter combos compared to the "anime" fighting games that have dominated the genre since the late 2000s.
** '''Implementation:'''
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* ''VideoGame/GuiltyGearStrive'' (2021) / ''VideoGame/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaibaTheHinokamiChronicles'' (2021)

* ''VideoGame/StreetFighter6'' (2023) / ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1'' (2023)

** '''Implementation:''' ''VideoGame/SuperSmashFlash 2'' is a sequel to ''VideoGame/SuperSmashFlash'', which [[SeinfeldIsUnfunny hasn't aged well]] and [[CanonDiscontinuity is best forgotten]].