Video games have evolved dramatically over the decades since people started playing Pong on their televisions, but one genre that’s remained popular for several generations is fighting games. In these games, two players control colorful characters and battle to deplete the other’s health bar.
While multiple properties like Bloody Roar and Soul Calibur have fizzled out over time, some retro properties managed to stay relevant, releasing new iterations every other year. Here’s a look at some old classics that are still getting upgraded well into the 2020s.
King of Fighters
Launched: 1994
Latest Version: King of Fighter XV (2022)
It's one of the biggest fighting games from the 90s that still has to pull today. King of Fighters was SNK’s answer to the fighting game craze and brought together several characters from their other games, including Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting.
While it has all the telltale tropes of a retro fighting game, some consider KOF to have more unique combos than other fighters; plus, their characters are more fashion-forward—at least when it comes to anime fighters.
Guilty Gear
Launched: 1998
Latest Version: Guilty Gear Strive (2021)
Though many fighting games tend to focus on hand-to-hand combat, Guilty Gear was different in emphasizing the use of weapons. With characters designed by Daisuke Ishiwatari, GG was an anime fan’s wet dream with all these overdesigned characters and their variety of special weapons.
Arc System Works developed the game, and its title, BlazBlue, is also considered a spiritual successor to Guilty Gear.
Tekken
Launched: 1994
Latest Version: Tekken 8 (2024)
Virtua Fighter may be considered the first 3D fighting game, but Tekken is the only title in the genre that’s stayed relevant for several decades.
With a more physically realistic approach to hand-to-hand combat, Tekken is probably best known for its juggling mechanic, where players can launch enemies into the air and trap them with intricate combos.
Marvel vs. Capcom
Launched: 1996 (as X-Men vs. Street Fighter); Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Superheroes launched in 1998
Latest Version: Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite (2017); Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection Arcade Classics (2024)
Evolving from the main formula of Street Fighter, MvC as a franchise started with X-Men: Children of the Atom and kept mixing up rosters with Street Fighter characters, eventually evolving into the colorful roster that is Marvel vs. Capcom.
The last game, Infinite, came out in 2017, but with the collection's release this year, some fans think a new mainline MvC entry could be underway.
Mortal Kombat
Launched: 1992
Latest Version: Mortal Kombat 1 (2023)
Admittedly, Japanese studios have been dominating the fighting game genre. However, one American title that has embedded itself as video game royalty is still one of the biggest franchises today—Mortal Kombat.
Originally planned as a video game for Jean-Claude Van Damme’s Bloodsport movie, MK was a mix of B-movie violence and campy kung fu movies that captured players' imaginations with its colorful characters and shocking (at the time) violence.
The games have only gotten bloodier with modern entries, but they’ve also added a lot of crossover characters from other IPs. Even Van Damme officially appeared in the latest one.
Street Fighter
Launched: 1987
Latest Version: Street Fighter 6 (2023)
Considered the originator of the modern fighting game formula, Street Fighter is a video game juggernaut that has stayed relevant to gamers since the 1980s.
From Ryu’s Hadouken to Chun-Li’s Spinning Bird Kick, the game has spawned millions of fans and continues to attract players with massive tournaments and intricate fighting game mechanics.
For more articles like this, take a look at our Fighting Games page.