When Fighting Games Didn't Yet Exist
The discussion about what was the first fighting game is a long one, especially in a time when genres, now traditional, were experimental novelties. In 1984, we had Yie Ar Kung-Fu and Karate Champ modernizing one-on-one combat, and the following year it was The Way of the Exploding Fist's turn. All these games achieved moderate success in arcades and home systems, but none of them achieved a success that would define a new genre. In that same year, 1984, Takashi Nishiyama was working at the Irem studio and released perhaps his first arcade hit, Kung-Fu Master. The game represented another genre, close to fighting games, that would be successful a little earlier: the beat 'em up.Kung-Fu Master and Trojan, two of Nishiyama's first works.
Soon after the good success he had with Kung-Fu Master, Nishiyama left Irem and joined his former colleague and then president of Capsule Computers — Capcom, to those in the know — Kenzo Tsujimoto, where he could develop a new project called Trojan, which closely resembled his previous game in many aspects. As a natural evolution, the game also followed the side-scroller format, where the protagonist defeated hordes of enemies through kicks and punches. Curiously, the console version featured a mode where two players could face each other in a one-on-one dispute. But in 1987, in a magical year for a Capcom that would introduce titles like Bionic Commando and Mega Man to the world, Nishiyama also had an ace up his sleeve and the evolution of an idea that would only make clear his ambition to experiment and go to the limit of what he enjoyed doing. And so, Street Fighter was born.
Small Step for the Genre, Giant Leap for the Future
Street Fighter was born from the experimentation and influence that Nishiyama had acquired in his previous titles. Although important, the first game in the franchise was not a game-changer: its gameplay wasn't the best, its graphics and sound were standard for arcades of the time, but its proposal, personality, and even boldness in trying something different left a mark that was not forgotten.The legendary Street Fighter arcade cabinet: note the unorthodox buttons.
For the first time, there was a prototype of a story, however shallow even by the standards of the time, where the game put the player in the shoes of a fighter who traveled the world facing enemies with different characteristics, requiring diverse strategies. And, this time, mundane punches, kicks, and blows weren't enough: protagonist Ryu was also capable of performing special moves, like the iconic Hadouken. These movements were so difficult to execute that they became true rewards capable of making the player win the round. And the innovations weren't just in the software, as machines designed by Capcom featured a giant button that reacted to the intensity of the force the user applied to it. Of course, this idea didn't last long.
But unfortunately, before the internet, the first Street Fighter was relegated to obscurity, despite being another success in the arcades of the time. Its successor, in turn, captivated the world in a way that, even after more than 30 years, remains relevant with a lively and present community. A shadow had been cast on the first game, but its impact was very important. Definitely, Takashi Nishiyama needed to walk with the first Street Fighter for the second to run and become the cultural phenomenon it is to this day.
Icons of gaming to this day, Ryu and Ken were creations of Nishiyama.
In 1991, Street Fighter II: The World Warrior took the world by surprise and was one of those first cultural phenomena originated from video games, like Pac-Man and Super Mario Bros. But despite being a direct sequel, Nishiyama would not return to be part of the team that defined the popular genre. In the same year, after having left Capcom and joined a company with much still to prove, SNK Corporation, he would release a spiritual successor to his first fighting game, which, not surprisingly, would also give birth to another symbol of the nineties. And thus, Fatal Fury: King of Fighters was born.
Second Advent and Establishment of Legacy
Terry Bogard and Billy Kane long before they faced gods and megalomaniacal scientists.
Fatal Fury lived up to the legacy of its "half-brother" and had some similar ideas, showing that, putting experiments aside a bit, Nishiyama already knew what he wanted to do. It was all there: heroes traveling to various places, facing opponents one-on-one and using special moves with commands that were much more intuitive this time, all to defeat the final boss. But Fatal Fury: King of Fighters elevated the proposal of the first Street Fighter to the square, and this time, we had three playable protagonists, each with their own story, personality, and special moves, a more complete plot, including characters and scenarios that would initiate the franchise's mythology, and graphics that lived up to the turn of the decade. While Street Fighter II preferred a more direct approach, prioritizing its cast full of iconic characters — which contributed greatly to its success — Fatal Fury brought a new world for its fans to engage with, something that yielded rewards not long after.
After Fatal Fury: King of Fighters, Takashi Nishiyama became a producer at SNK, working on franchises like Metal Slug and Samurai Shodown. However, in yet another contribution not only within the company but to the world of games, he started the franchise that would be the corporation's most known name to this day: The King of Fighters.
The King of Fighters, the first major crossover in gaming history.
In another one of those cases that seem like a movie plot, Nishiyama would help bring what would be a crossover between his title Fatal Fury and the company's own rival, Art of Fighting, another big SNK hit in the early decade. This partnership would help establish the grandeur of The King of Fighters franchise. In six titles, from the '94 to '99 editions, the producer helped consolidate the style of fighting games, alongside other giants of the same era, such as Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter itself, in addition to establishing the first golden age of the genre.
But in the late 90s and early 2000s, fighting games would change drastically, evolving very quickly. Meanwhile, the architect of the style remained in only a few producer roles. It was the era of 3D fighting games, like Tekken, Virtua Fighter, and even Mortal Kombat, gaining an extra dimension. In addition to representatives from Capcom and SNK elevating their games with more complex and daring mechanics and previously unimaginable crossovers.
A New Adventure and the Critical Point of the Genre
It was then that in 2000, Takashi Nishiyama left SNK — which was already facing a turbulent period — and founded Dimps, an abbreviation for Digital Multi-platforms, a new studio focused on producing games freely for various other companies. Nishiyama continued in his role as producer and, through Dimps, released works that are now considered classics, such as Sonic Advance and Dragon Ball Z: Budokai, as well as games based on anime, such as Digimon, InuYasha, and Knights of the Zodiac.The Rumble Fish, despite having gone unnoticed in the West, already showed Dimps' capability in fighting games.
In 2004, Dimps also released its first more traditional 2D fighting game, after some that followed the 3D trend. With the curious title The Rumble Fish, the game had a system that was easy to learn but difficult to master, which earned it a cult following that endures to this day, between controversial re-releases and the first time its 2005 sequel had a release for home consoles. By the way, did you know that The Rumble Fish is slightly based on the 1983 film of the same name, directed by Francis Ford Coppola?
But the first decade of the 2000s was not exactly favorable for those who enjoyed a head-to-head dispute, in one of the genres that most maintained roots in arcades. With the sharp decline in the popularity of arcade cabinets and the popularization of consoles that offered games with much more "substance" in terms of gameplay, fighting games were becoming a niche again, with few titles being released, successful franchises like The King of Fighters and Mortal Kombat having releases controversially evaluated by fans and audiences in general, and the owner of the ball (or the arena) here, Street Fighter, lost in a drought of relevant titles and creating the longest hiatus between titles in the main franchise.
And just like in a good cinematic script, Takashi Nishiyama saw his name once again involved with something he had started almost 20 years earlier and in one of those "bookends" that seem more like a coincidence: Dimps would work with Capcom on the development of Street Fighter IV.
The Resurrection and Return to Relevance
20 years after their first appearance, Ryu and Ken still reigned with their Hadouken and Shoryuken.
This time, Nishiyama held an executive producer role, alongside the legendary Yoshinori Ono, in the game's production. According to Ono, Dimps was responsible for all the programming and balancing of the game, in addition to working alongside Capcom itself in the entire artistic conception of the game. And the partnership could not have been more successful.
Street Fighter IV was perhaps the first major fighting game of the 21st century, receiving almost perfect scores from various publications around the globe, awards for best game of the year, and selling almost 10 million copies globally, totaling all its versions. The game would receive various updates, extra characters, and gameplay that made veteran fans reunite and newcomers fall in love for the first time with the franchise and fighting games in general.
After Street Fighter IV, fighting games would once again see a golden age emerging on the horizon. Now with the support of a community that found a substitute for the arcade machines so necessary for competition — one of the charms of the style — in the online gaming that modern consoles provided and a flood of successful titles like Mortal Kombat, The King of Fighters XIII and Guilty Gear Xrd, Killer Instinct, Skullgirls, in addition to Street Fighter V itself.
Takashi Nishiyama and Hiroshi Matsumoto, at some point in the 1980s: colleagues from Capcom, SNK, and Dimps.
Takashi Nishiyama architecturally designed a genre that today has professional championships like EVO, very important figures like Daigo Umehara and Justin Wong, a subculture totally dedicated to going deeper and unraveling techniques and mechanics of its games, and an infinity of subjects to talk about. Today he still maintains his position as executive producer at Dimps and continues to add to his resume games that are successful with this audience that largely exists due to his work.
