Alan Andujar

FIGHTING GAMES ARE COOL, AND YOU SHOULD PLAY THEM.

Promotional art for Marvel vs.Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes which features characters from marvel and capcom universes standing sideface and looking towards eachother

Interested but not sure where to start?

Do not fear!.

If you've ever wanted to start playing fighting games but don't know how, first, follow these steps:

Get a console or PC, (If you're reading this on a computer, good news! You've already completed the first step!)
Find a controller. (You don't need fancy, expensive arcade controllers! Anything you have lying around is fine, people even play on just their keyboards!)
Pick a game!

Ok, that last one is a bit trickier. After all, there are a lot of fighting games to try out there. And many of them are very different from others. Seriously though... if there's anything you take away from this page, it should be this:

There are many, many options. Each with different pros, cons, and outright flaws.

But don't let that intimidate you! With so many options there's a good chance there's a game out there that just clicks with you.
I'd be doing you a disservice if I didn't at least try to point you in the right direction. So here are a few suggestions...

What should you play?

a still frame from the game Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, depicting multiple characters using attacks.

If it's you're first time exploring the fighting game scene, there are a few iconic series you're probably going to want to know about. These series are groundbreaking in their own right, with each of these games having become staples which largely define their respective type of fighting game (Yes, there are different types of fighting games. It's a very broad genre. Did I mention that there are a lot of these?)
First and foremost

Street Fighter. Iconic even among the icons in the gaming community, Street Fighter is arguably the most influential series in the history of the genre.
Tekken. While it wasn't the first fighting game to pit players against each other in 3 dimensions Tekken is quite possibly the series that first perfected this style of gameplay.
Super Smash Brothers. For a some traditionalists, the thought of including Super Smash Bros. in a list of fighting games is controversial, or outright incorrect. But I believe that the players have proven through intense competition at some of the biggest fighting game tournaments in the world that their game of choice Smash, as it's usually referred to, is without a doubt just as technically impressive and fiercely competitive as the classics of the genre.

Series	Style of Fighter	Main Site
Street Fighter	Traditional (2-Dimensional, 1-on-1)	Street Fighter Main Site
Tekken	Arena (3-Dimensional, 1-on-1)	Tekken 7 Main Site
Super Smash Bros.	Platform fighter (1v1, 2v2, FFA, movement-based)	Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Main Site