fighting

I have next to no idea what Invincible is. I know of Omni-Man, though only through osmosis and crossovers and such – but that’s the extent of my knowledge. I admit this to one of the developers of Invincible VS when I sat down to play the new game based on the comic book series, just revealed at Xbox’s most recent showcase. Briefly, they look a little crestfallen.

But, I then add – I bloody love fighting games. Their expression lightens. One can sense them relax.

“Well, then,” my Invincible VS guide grins. “We’ve got you covered.”

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It’s true that while beloved by many, the cast of Invincible is not as recognisable as might be found in some other fighting games. I saw and heard that refrain a little around Summer Games Fest – the idea that Sony had a new Marvel fighting game and Xbox had a much less famous comic book fighter. This narrative was usually presented as Xbox’s loss.

At the same time, however, a fighting game doesn’t necessarily need a strong property to survive. Did anyone know who Chun-Li or Guile were when Street Fighter 2 rocked the world? No – they were just strong silhouettes and personalities that players could gravitate towards. What mattered were those delicious mechanics – the character interplay, the balance, the combos, the comebacks – and Invincible VS already appears to have that crucial energy in spades.

In a limited build with only a handful of characters and stages available, it’s already clear that there’s a foundation for something special here. To take the obvious shortcut, allow me to cut to the chase and describe this game as Marvel-esque. The most obvious comparison is to Marvel vs Capcom 3, in fact – it has similar auto-combo systems, launchers, floaty space jumps, and so on. Its assist, tag, and reversal mechanics are also similar-ish. It’s also three-on-three, which for my money is absolutely the optimal setup for tag fighting.

Marvelling at these screenshots, are we? | Image credit: Skybound Games

This is why the representative from Invincible VS studio, Quarter Up, had grinned when I said I liked fighters: this is clearly a mechanically rich game for us fighting sickos. I only had around twenty-five minutes to get to grips with it, but by the end I was putting together combo strings that were held together with tags, assists, and the odd super move. If I was caught in a nasty juggle, I was managing to every now and then nail the timing to trigger a reversal and get my opponent off me.

I should note that all of this was played on a normal controller. The demo room was home to not a single fight stick, in fact. They’ll be supported, the developers say, but the game is being built with controllers in mind. The controls offered give you various strengths of attack and a dedicated special button, while assist-related actions are up on the triggers. There’s a lovely simplicity to it – though like all the best fighters, huge depth lies just beneath that surface. That initial stickiness can hopefully be honed to help draw players in, bringing in the casuals and then slowly initiating them into true fighting game competition over time.

In short, it clicked. That initial mechanical click is arguably the single most important thing for any fighting game to nail. Because these are such mechanically pure games, if you don’t like the core system in some way or another, it can be astronomically difficult to recover. But after under half an hour, I’m convinced Invincible VS has it.

Is there… space… for another tag fighter? | Image credit: Skybound Games

This perhaps shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. Quarter Up is a new development studio, but it’s been named for a classic arcade action and is actually led by some fighting game veterans – folk who worked at Double Helix Games back when it was in charge of Xbox’s Killer Instinct. KI ended up handed off to another studio later in its development, and only went from strength to strength over the years – but the foundation for that strength was doubtless in the foundation that Double Helix-laid.

The choice of IP shouldn’t come as a surprise – Quarter Up parent company and bankroll Skybound Entertainment is first and foremost a comic book company that is making an eager push into gaming. Skybound is best known for The Walking Dead, but it also owns and publishes Invincible – so the tie-in was obvious.

One thing that is clear from the demo is that it’s early days. The Quarter Up team stress that it’s still figuring a lot of stuff out – be that balance, or move sets, or deeper issues. When I ask about the level of violence – Invincible is known for spine-ripping, decapitating, blood-splattered action – they say they’re committed to what they’ve shown, but also mindful that it might not be the friendliest for Twitch-streamed fighter tournaments. Some toggles might be required.

It’s clear this is a team open to that sort of thing, however. Open and excited. Most important is that the foundations are there. As with any fighting games, further hurdles must be cleared now – filling out the cast, keeping things varied, interesting, and balanced. Then there’s the very difficult job of ensuring that everybody will be satisfied with the style and amount of content on offer. But the first and most difficult hurdle appears to have been cleared – and I’m looking forward to seeing more.

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