Since their arcade height in the early nineties; camps loyal to Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter have been at furious odds.
The classic rivalry continues to play out on home consoles, at major live events, and in the routine scrutiny of the fans and their representatives in the enthusiast press. Gamesradar recently put Scorpion in their Top 7 Fighting Game Characters behind Street Fighter's Ryu; while the mascot pair faced off in a live-action fantasy fight thanks to IGN START.
It's fair to say Street Fighter IV was at the forefront of the current fighting game renaissance, seizing control of 2009 and 2010 with the sequel that restored the franchise to full power. Thanks to last years Mortal Kombat reboot, the American series bounced back from a change in owners, finding traction with its updated fighting engine and freshly reinstated brutality (absent from Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe prior).
MK continued to find success in 2012, maintaining a dedicated community following that supported its entry into a second consecutive appearance in the Evo Championship Series. A fitting build to the official twentieth anniversary of the series in the second half of the year. Sniff the winds of change, however, and another player is clearly making a move for the top spot -- and they aren't fighting one on one!
On the crest of Tekken Tag Tournament 2, IGN have thrown down a triple threat tale of the tape, measuring each series by the numbers [full story].
It's easy to forget Tekken was just a couple of years behind the seminal 2D fighters, building toward a polygonal dynasty in the an era of dying arcades and PlayStation home dominance. That could be, in part, due to the relative few titles that make up the Tekken franchise, at least when compared to the massive sprawl of Street Fighter revisions and Mortal Kombat expansions.
Tekken Tag 2 brings the tag team formula back home for the first time since the launch of PlayStation 2. In many ways, it's been a return to favor for Tekken, after falling somewhat out of favor in recent years. It clearly has a world of momentum behind it right now, but does that hype equal supremacy over its rivals?
You can probably conclude the preference of Mortal Kombat Online pretty quick, but don't let a home ground advantage rule the visitors out just yet! Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Super Street Fighter IV, Dead or Alive 5, Killer Instinct, PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, and many more series all have healthy representation within the MKOmmunity.
So, we put it to you: In the battle of the current big three (as determined by IGN), whose knuckle-filled cuisine reigns supreme? Is there another fighter that deserves representation? Deliver your conversational combos on the forums!
