The 10 Best Fighting Games of All Time 2024 Play Now

Guilty Gear Strive to Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, we present our picks for the 10 Best Fighting Games Ever Made.

Fighting games have held a special place in gaming’s past and present, particularly since games such as Mortal Kombat 1 and Street Fighter 6 released just recently. As with other forms of combat sports such as boxing or martial arts, fighting requires quick thinking, quick reflexes and deep knowledge about both yourself and opponent options to compete at a high level – something many may find intimidating at first sight; nonetheless it has given us iconic series such as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat that define its genre today.

So in creating our list, we set some specific criteria: we excluded platform fighters like Smash Bros as it deserves its own list; only one game from each series represented; legacy can play an important role, yet they should still offer great mechanics that remain engaging; here is our top 10 fighting games list!

10.Mortal Kombat (2011)

Mortal Kombat 9 marked an inflection point in MK’s history, marking not just its story mode but all aspects that had defined Mortal Kombat since it first debuted: Puzzle Kombat, Motor Kombat and weird Create-a-Fatalities were scrapped for an approach focused on actual fighting – not puzzles or motorbikes or strange Create-a-Fatalities like before. Mortal Kombat 9 proved itself as the ideal move – its compelling story mode, copious amounts of fanservice content as well as revamped mechanics laid the basis for subsequent games’ development since.

MK9 wasn’t exactly an even fighting game in terms of balance; that was part of its charm! Indeed, its imperfections remain one of its main draws for fans to this day and one reason many continue playing it today.

9. Skullgirls

mes A glance at Skullgirls will demonstrate its unique charms; but its appeal extends far beyond aesthetics alone. Skullgirls has one of the most customizable fighting game systems ever designed: its characters all have multiple combo routes for maximum damage output while duo teams may include weaker characters who offer assists or combo extensions; when coupled with silky smooth gameplay it is no wonder Skullgirls still thrives 10 years later!

8.Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown

Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown marked the final arcade and console iteration of Sega’s flagship 3D fighter before Ultimate Showdown rebuilt it on Yakuza’s Dragon Engine for modern consoles. Virtua Fighter is often cited as having had an enormous influence or perhaps even creating the 3D fighter genre; Yu Suzuki (creator of Shenmue and Space Harrier), along with Toshihiro Nagoshi, both longstanding heads of Yakuza series helped develop it with grounded martial arts gameplay, vast movement options such as attack/counter options as well as characters who became instantly iconic characters.

Virtua Fighter 5 represents the pinnacle of this design, offering gameplay that stays true to its roots while remaining distinct from any other fighter out there and improving on online features of previous entries in this series. Although earlier single-player offerings of Virtua Fighter have been removed in favour of Ultimate Showdown being easy for modern hardware to access; its high ceiling for execution means moves requiring input windows as small as one sixtieth of second are possible along with characters fun for button mashing – making Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown essential viewing for fans of 3D fighters as an entire genre!

7. Killer Instinct (Xbox One)

2013’s Killer Instinct proved that its predecessor wasn’t just another Mortal Kombat copycat: one of the first mainstream fighting games to implement rollback netcode and with smooth online gameplay that remains amongst the smoothest available today, its Dojo mode remains amongst the finest teaching tools the genre has seen, not just teaching you Killer Instinct but fighting games overall! Furthermore, Killer Instinct boasts tons of single player content complemented by great visuals and music provided by Mick Gordon! Regardless of how or what way you play it looks great while providing great single player content! Plus all this content looks fantastic with great visuals while having great single player content by Mick Gordon!

Killer Instinct offers great gameplay experiences from its Ultra Combos to counter Breakers to learning new characters in training mode – as long as Microsoft releases another sequel… Now all we can ask for is that killer instinct makes its return as soon as possible…

6. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 stands out due to its intricate character balance (or lack thereof) and team construction features. A large portion of Marvel characters have unique, offbeat capabilities only they could pull off, creating endless strategic possibilities if three characters from any assist option combine with each other in various orders – giving players endless combinations to work against Capcom characters!

As one game you may feel completely in control as you execute an infinite combo perfectly and questioning life decisions when stuck blocking Soul Fists without moving in another game. Or you could start off the match by mixing up characters into death combos before one execution error on one opponent leads to all your team dying due to level 3 X-Factor comebacks; all these situations make the experience both brutal and rewarding; quickly flashy combo system will grab your attention for sure and take you for an amazing ride.

5. King of Fighters XIII

The King of Fighters series boasts numerous excellent entries, with fans often favoring 98 or 2002 as their go-to titles and the newly released XV winning over many. But for our money, KOF XIII remains one of the greatest fighting games ever released; thanks to its super detailed pixel art, quick pace of play, Hyper Drive combo system, and challenging combo trials (though they remain non-essential when playing this particular version) its legacy still lives strong today – as do its characters, team-based combat, beautiful animation & beautiful graphics all make sure this king stays put!

4. Dragon Ball FighterZ

Not only is Dragon Ball FighterZ finally an exceptional Dragon Ball and anime videogame, it is also an outstanding fighting game experience in its own right. From its gorgeous presentation and sounds such as haymakers, super dashes, and energy beams it packs quite the punch when fighting action escalates; with many scenes having the look and sound quality straight out of an animated show! You could freeze almost any frame without missing anything important during playback – nearly convincing players they were right there in an anime episode itself!

With its engaging presentation, extensive roster of fan favorite characters, 3v3 tag system and accessible auto-combo system which makes flashy combos simple for beginners – Dragon Ball FighterZ remains one of the most enjoyable fighting games to ever come out, even today – and remains competitive to this day despite recent announcement of rollback netcode changes. Even without stellar netcode support however, its passion and love of both Dragon Ball and genre come through each fight as its players demonstrate.

3. Tekken 7

Tekken is notoriously challenging as one of the hardest fighting game franchises. The 3D movement adds another level of difficulty; over 50 characters each with over 100 moves need practice just moving backwards properly! But its depth and complexity also makes for rewarding playthrough experiences; those willing to invest their time will certainly find great satisfaction here!

What sets Tekken 7 apart from previous entries is how much it enhanced accessibility without diminishing depth. Switching back from 2v2 mode in Tekken Tag Tournament 2 back to its traditional 1v1 form cuts back the number of moves players need to remember while leaving characters’ individual complexity intact, yet more accessible. Rage Arts and Rage Drives may create exciting comeback mechanics but won’t replace solid play; while slow-mo finishers create some memorable tournament moments; overall Tekken 7 strikes an ideal balance of welcoming newcomers while not alienating hardcore fans alike – making an excellent addition that’s both accessible yet deep!

2. Guilty Gear Strive

For over two decades, Arc System Works’ Guilty Gear series has produced groundbreaking fighting games; but Guilty Gear Strive marks Arc System Works’ breakthrough title as it finally sees mainstream popularity and widespread adoption. Strive boasts one of the industry’s premier rollback netcode implementations–something previously unseen even among mainstream fighters like Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter V – something unheard of until recently in mainstream fighting games like Street Fighter V or Mortal Kombat V/SCV in both modes allowing players to fully immerse themselves into this extraordinary universe of fighting games.

Strive not only refined the Guilty Gear series’ notoriously technical gameplay, making it easier for newcomers to pick up and understand without losing its depth or diversity of Guilty Gear’s absurdist cast – whether Sol Badguy (series poster boy and rushdown monster) or Goldlewis Dickinson’s coffin swinging, so there was much to discover even if only ever playing one character at any time! With Roman Cancels (which lets players cancel any action into another action) added into this equation is almost limitless freedom and expression among its players!

Strive has quickly made waves among fighting game community. Offering an impressive story mode, detailed teaching tools, countless concept art pieces to unlock, an impressive soundtrack spanning nearly every title in its franchise and some of the best visuals found anywhere, it has quickly made stride an international smash hit.

1. Street Fighter III: Third Strike

Picking just one game to represent one of the world’s longest running fighting game franchises was no simple task. After all, Street Fighter II first popularized this genre when it hit arcades back in 1991; and later revived by Street Fighter IV when home console versions hit shelves again back in 2009. But Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike stands out among them all as something truly outstanding. Daigo Parry made history and inspired an entire generation. But Evo Moment 37 gave us so much more. Sprite work remains among the finest animated around; backgrounds ooze style; and its jazz-influenced soundtrack features some of the finest music ever heard in any fighting game. Even its roster, underappreciated at first for being so few characters carried over from Street Fighter II as well as several oddball characters who make appearances, still holds up well today, offering options suitable to every playstyle.

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike is truly distinguished by its parry system, giving almost limitless depth and playability for newcomers while remaining accessible and enjoyable for veterans of previous fighting games. 3rd Strike showcased what was possible while also elevating one of gaming’s premier series to new heights; additionally it still holds up today despite having come out back then (re-released versions even support rollback netcode!) Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike remains, quite simply, the greatest fighting game ever created and should remain iconic forever more.