Your preferred fighting game tourney style

This is becoming an issue that is getting more and more support for a change. Now, I know, I should post this in SRK, but I can't read more than 3 posts on that site most of the time before my brain shuts down.

For a bit of background, recently the big japanese tourney SBO, and MANY other japanese ones have been held in 3v3 format. Additionally Us tournaments are regularily holding team tournaments alongside the main singles. There are two styles of 3v3, standard, which is best of 1 elimination, when a player loses, hes out for the rest of the round, whichever team elims the entire other wins. Also, there is korean, which is 3v3, with an anchor. The anchor is a player who basically plays twice, so he can start, and finish, or play 2 at the end, whatever order you want. Also, only one of any character per team.

Now, for singles, there are a few benifits. First, it allows you to determine the two best players of a tourney (for the most part). It also does not allow a lesser player to freeride up with a good team. Finally, it allows you to pick multiple chars, and you get more of a feel for your opponents. The biggest problem with singles IMHO is counter characters. Basically (ST players might be able to chime in) some characters beat others. Only the loser can switch. What this means is if player A loses, he chooses the counter to his opponent, then gets countered for the final round. Congrats, you just played 3 rounds of character select fighter. Some say there is strategy in this, but I fail to see how it compares with team tournaments character selection strategy...

On to teams. By now, you have probably seen my bais a bit towards this format. The best part of the team tournament is character selection and order strategy. Now, instead of having direct counters, you have to take the whole range of characters into account when picking your 3. Additionally, the order you play them matters, and hopefully forces you to pick an optimal order for your team. Also, it allows people to master single characters (My personal route). While this may seem like a disadvantage, mastering specific character can give them a feel of the player. Something like, thats "Diago's" ryu, or "Wong's" magneto. This adds even more diversity to the gameplay, with people playing less japanese cookie cutter and more something attuned to thier own playstyles. A Downside is the tremendous stress on the anchor. This is an extremely nerve wrecking position to play, as you have the weight of 3 on your shoulders.

I am bringing this up now because Evo seems to be considering making 3v3 the standard for GGXX#R, so this might become a reality. Any thoughts?

I think one of the major problems for doing a major tournament primarly in a team format is that you lose a lot of the "dead money" -- a lot of the not-so-top players would have to jump through logistical hoops to even enter the tournament, since you now need three people to enter. It also adds more failure points to any given match -- instead of having to have two people ready for a match, you need six. At least the logistical troubles are partially offset by the reduced running time (there are fewer games played overall).

Stress on whoever anchors the team really should be a non-issue -- at that level, I doubt anyone needs coddling. If they blow it for their team... somehow, I think they will be able to cope (and/or not job so hard next time).

What may need to be junked instead is the "loser picks" rule that encourages picking counter-characters. All character selection should either be double-blind straight up or free selection (where either player can change their mind once they see who their opponent picked).

-Dippy

I can honestly say I have never participated in a fighting game tournament of any kind.

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Originally Posted by Master

I can honestly say I have never participated in a fighting game tournament of any kind.

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IAWTP

I've never done official fighting game tourneys, just basic arcade runs that basically became tourneys on the fly, which was pretty cool. I can't imagine a 3-on-3 touney style working the least bit well in execution.

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Originally Posted by Jeremy

I've never done official fighting game tourneys, just basic arcade runs that basically became tourneys on the fly, which was pretty cool. I can't imagine a 3-on-3 touney style working the least bit well in execution.

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Oh it works, and it's done all the time.

I prefer singles, though. Since I don't really participate in tournaments anymore I just like spectating. Singles are way more fun to watch, unless you get some sort of team rivalry going like (like an East Coast vs. West Coast thing).

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Originally Posted by Master

I can honestly say I have never participated in a fighting game tournament of any kind.

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Also, there are still tourneys?

And arcades?

It's been so long since I've been in a tourney I don't even remember how they work. :(

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Originally Posted by Roufuss

Also, there are still tourneys?

And arcades?

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The arcade industry isn't dead -- it's just been bludgeoned unconscious.

It's gotten to the point where dediciated players will either have events in their own homes or rent out space at a local hotel or function hall. Maybe this will move online once developers start making these games with online play in mind (then again, most major FPS tournaments are all in meatspace -- so I do not know how much that holds true).

You can still operate an arcade sucessfully today (?!), you just have to cultiviate a community built around that enviroment based on a select few games (or genres thereof), and not be stupid when it comes to buying product. Unfortunately, very few people in that business show the capacity for either. There are other models that work (such as a multi-entertainment establishment (Dave and Buster's, Gameworks, etc.)), but none of those other models providie something core players give a damn about. (The $64,000 question is if core players are worth giving a damn about.)

-Dippy

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Originally Posted by Dipstick

The arcade industry isn't dead -- it's just been bludgeoned unconscious.

It's gotten to the point where dediciated players will either have events in their own homes or rent out space at a local hotel or function hall. Maybe this will move online once developers start making these games with online play in mind (then again, most major FPS tournaments are all in meatspace -- so I do not know how much that holds true).

You can still operate an arcade sucessfully today (?!), you just have to cultiviate a community built around that enviroment based on a select few games (or genres thereof), and not be stupid when it comes to buying product. Unfortunately, very few people in that business show the capacity for either. There are other models that work (such as a multi-entertainment establishment (Dave and Buster's, Gameworks, etc.)), but that's the only model I know of that works while providing something core players give a damn about. (The $64,000 question is if core players are worth giving a damn about.)

-Dippy

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I don't know about Dave and Buster's, but Gamework's is a very shallow arcade. They have mostly shooting, racing, and lightgun games, and the only fighters they had when I went were Tekken 4 and Soul Calibur 2.

They had Marvel Vs Capcom 2, but the right hand stick was broken, and when I went back a year later, it was still broken 0_o

I couldn't see any core players going there, as most people went to drink, eat at the restaurant, and play DDR or a lightgun game just for fun while being wasted. It dosen't help it's 2 blocks from about 10 heavily populated clubs.

I always thought that, by now, tourneys WOULD start going online, seeing as how in a few monthsr, every major fighting game except for MvC 2 will be online through Xbox Live.

And I would say the arcade industry is dying, because the last arcade game that people have actually shown interested about is Tekken 5, and from there the future looks bleak indeed (I expect SNK Battle Coliseum will see a quick turn around from arcade to home).