It’s no secret that fighting games are currently the biggest they have ever been. With the rise of EVO, streaming of tournaments, and ease of access to the internet increasing around the globe, there are a lot of people playing fighting games.
While the humble beginnings of fighting games are based in local scenes and grassroots tournaments, many players look to a game delivering a decent online experience to have their fill, which is why the state of netcode still isn’t satisfactory for many.
Fighting game players look to a game’s online to deliver, and it’s because of this that netcode is important. The genre requires pinpoint precision and specific inputs and functions off of a player’s ability to read their opponent and counter their actions. This becomes increasingly difficult the worse a game functions online and can lead to not only frustration but players dropping a game altogether because of their poor experience.
It’s unfortunate, as the tools to make a seamless online experience are already present, with GGPO becoming open source and free to use, developers need to know how seriously a good online experience can affect the longevity of their game, and why delivering it can not only boost a game’s lifespan but the initial sales and even DLC.
I will be going over multiple examples of games that have either triumphed, failed, or somewhere in between, and how their netcode added to the end result. I want developers to understand that good netcode shouldn’t be an optional consideration, but a necessity if they want their game to succeed, and this article will seek to do just that.
But before we get into some examples, let me explain some terms that some readers might not be familiar with regarding netcode, just so I know everyone will understand.
Delay Based Netcode
Delay Based netcode is essentially netcode that uses both player’s connections as a bridge to maintain a game. This means that the game takes both player’s connections into consideration and delays the controller inputs so neither player has an advantage.
This netcode has the advantage of being easier to implement, but if either player’s connection is bad, this can cause drastic slowdown and lag, leading to a frustrating and usually outright unplayable experience. Delay based netcode can be good but is entirely dependent on both players to do so, and the further the players are apart, the worse the experience becomes in most cases.
Most Japanese developers use delay-based netcode, primarily because it works fine in a smaller country like Japan, but in a country like the United States, this kind of netcode usually struggles.
Rollback Netcode
This is the type of netcode that GGPO is, and primarily considered the best type of netcode for a few reasons. First off, rather than both players syncing up to one simulation, rollback has both players run separate simulations that it syncs up. This means that inputs are marked when they are received and the netcode synchronizes both player’s connections, leading to games that have considerably less to almost no delay, and making it easier for players to pull off complicated inputs successfully.
This kind of netcode even usually lets you set your own delay, making the connection consistent and easier to acclimate to, rather than having to get used to different amounts of delay you get with delay-based netcode.
This doesn’t mean it’s perfect, however, as even with this type of netcode, if a player has a terrible connection, rather than experiencing lag, either one or both players may experience hits being canceled out or their opponent teleporting as the netcode struggles to try to maintain the connection. It isn’t perfect but in most cases, rollback is superior in its capabilities to deliver a satisfying experience which is why it’s regarded so highly.
Now that we have gotten that out of the way, I will be comparing games of similar styles, and explaining how their netcode either helps them or hurts them, and how their community has either thrived or suffered as a result.
BAD
Street Fighter V
Consoles: PS4/PC
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Middling to Low
Street Fighter is usually considered the gold standard when it comes to fighting games, the original, the origin of combos and the most recognized fighting game franchise of possibly all time. It’s unfortunate that its netcode hasn’t lived up to its pedigree, well, ever.
Now I know what you’re thinking, “but it’s rollback, didn’t you say rollback was better?”, and while that is true, it’s still possible to do rollback poorly….which is what SFV managed to do.
Even with the recent update to the game’s netcode, SFV has struggled to maintain an enjoyable experience for its players and has only been able to keep going because of the base game itself being improved so drastically its last few seasons.
A perfect example of a game managing to somewhat succeed in spite of its netcode, it doesn’t do it any favors and has frustrated players since the game launched only now finally attempting to be fixed, and only improving the experience for some while actually making it worse for others. Let’s hope that this isn’t the case for Street Fighter 6, as we do have an example of Capcom doing rollback netcode extremely right later on.
GOOD
Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition
Consoles: Xbox 360/PS3
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Extremely High
That’s right, you are reading that correctly, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition was not only released during the last console generation but it delivered a better online experience 16 years before SFV was even released.
An online experience delivered from the netcode wizards at Iron Galaxy, this port of the most popular version of SF3 that some regard as the best fighting game of all time delivered an online experience that at the time was considered the closest to reaching online nirvana.
The netcode is extremely solid, unnaturally solid like I’m not sure how much I can communicate this fact. It’s so good that it still stands higher than most modern fighting games netcodes and I haven’t seen a single example of a delay based netcode ever topping it.
If you have a chance just give it a try, the game itself is fantastic and you can still regularly find matches on the 360 version and the PS3, although the 360 is considered to be superior version due to Xbox Live being better than PlayStation Online during this generation. This is the reason that many people still want a port of this to next-gen, and why the Anniversary collection was considered a disaster. Speaking of which…..
BAD
Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection
Consoles: XBO, PS4, PC
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Poor
The Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection is a huge collection of Street Fighter games, and many people were excited, but after promising arcade-perfect versions of the games and online for Street Fighter games that hadn’t been playable online before, Capcom blew it.
Besides the issues with the games themselves being emulations that didn’t run close to arcade-perfect, the online was a mess of a netcode. You wouldn’t find anyone playing any of the games online after a week of the game’s release and many players went back to playing the superior 3rd Strike Online or something else entirely.
There isn’t much to say about this one, it just sucked, and they somehow managed to make rollback even worse than SFV, which in itself is shocking.
GOOD
Garou: Mark of the Wolves Re-Release
Consoles: PS4, PS Vita
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Great
A re-re-release of an old classic for PS4 and Vita recently, (seriously the Vita?), this version of Garou was released to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Fatal Fury series, and man did the team at Code Mystics do a damn good job with the netcode.
Adjustable delay, viewable ping before matches start, and clean matches that follow as a result, Garou has never felt so good. A great classic fighter, the game itself feels fantastic with the simple addition of a proper rollback netcode and I would recommend people give it a try, especially at the low price of $15.
BAD
King of Fighters XIV
Consoles: PS4, PC
Netcode Type: Delay
Quality: Poor to Middling
King of Fighters XIV is a great game, it has great mechanics, a lot of interesting and varied fighters, fun combos, good music, stages, and everything else. But one thing holds it back, its netcode. Another example of a great game being held back because of its netcode, KoF XIV’s delay based netcode keeps it from being great and is the primary reason why a lot of people that don’t play it online.
You will find a few people playing here and there, but they are simply used to playing in terrible delay, and that’s about it. I’m seriously hoping that KoF XV does something new with its online, and SNK’s experimentation with Garou and rollback netcode is encouraging so I hope it extends into their next big title.
GOOD
Power Rangers: Battle for the Grid
Consoles: XBO, PS4, PC, Switch (w Crossplay!)
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Fantastic
Power Rangers: BfG is a fantastic 3v3 fighter with a lot of love for the property, cool characters from many different series, and to top it all off, fantastic online with even crossplay across all consoles. Even if you aren’t a Power Rangers fan, I encourage you to give the game a try if you love Marvel vs. Capcom style insanity, because there’s something to love for everyone here.
The team at nWay Games has crafted an amazing online experience that even manages to have crossplay across all versions, a first for the fighting game genre. The base game itself is only $20 so I once again tell you to try it out if you want to see netcode and crossplay done extremely right! The rollback netcode performs fantastically, offering little problems for even players playing countries apart, even on entirely different consoles, and it’s a golden example of how online should be done moving forward.
BAD
Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3
Consoles: 360, PS3, PC, XBO, PS4
Netcode Type: Delay
Quality: Extremely Poor
Now, I don’t think Marvel 3 is a bad game. I will say that upfront. I will say, however, that it’s online is horrific, and has held it back since its initial release. In its defense, it was released early on when netcode for fighting games was still in its infancy so it runs pretty ok for what it is and when it was made.
However, Capcom gets no excuse, NO EXCUSE, for re-releasing the game on PS4, XBO, and PC with the same awful over-a-decade-old netcode. They even know how to do netcode right, which is the even more confusing part! The port should have been updated with at least current netcode, but wasn’t, so while Marvel 3 could have seen an online resurgence with new netcode, it will stay regulated to only being played regularly among its most devout fans. It’s a damn shame.
GOOD
Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite
Consoles: XBO, PS4, PC
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Great
This, this right here is also a damn shame. Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite and Marvel 3 are almost mirror opposites. While Marvel 3 has a fantastic roster, art style, and gameplay with balance issues in both the roster and gameplay that killed it along with the online, Marvel Infinite is almost the opposite.
Marvel Infinite has a somewhat poor roster and ugly graphics with a poorly implemented story mode. But I will say it until the day I die, the games mechanics, gameplay, and online are the best we have ever gotten out of a Marvel game and it’s a damn shame that Capcom stopped support for the title because I love it.
That’s right, I love Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite, crucify me now because I even have two copies of the game, one for XBO and another for PS4 and you can’t make me regret it. The online is fantastic and smooth and great, and the game is so much fun to play. It’s too bad that those things couldn’t save it, but I still think that if Capcom had stuck with it as they did with SFV, it could have bounced back. Such…a…damn…shame.
BAD
Arc System Works Games, That’s Right, All of Them…except Under Night (Guilty Gear Xrd Revelator 2, Dragonball FighterZ, Granblue Fantasy Versus, BlazBlue Cross Tag, etc.)
Consoles: XBO, PS4, PC
Netcode Type: Delay
Quality: Middling
That’s right, Arc System Works games can all be put under the same category, and that’s because they all use the same type of netcode, the netcode of the delayed variety. Fighting games lately have become more of a global affair, with players all over the world trying to play their fantastic fighting titles.
The limits of delay-based netcode become apparent on the world stage, and because of this their games are held back from greatness because of poor online experiences due to them using the same netcode for years.
This is even true in Grandblue Fantasy Versus, a game that I have had the chance to play that isn’t even out yet but has the same netcode. It’s hard to find good matches when the netcode limits your options.
I would say that Arc System Works could become the biggest name in fighting games if their netcode didn’t constantly hold them back with one exception…
GOOD
Under Night In-Birth
Consoles: PS4, Switch, PS3
Netcode Type: Delay
Quality: Great
Under Night In-Birth is the one example I have found that shows Delay at its peak. The netcode is very good, usually only peaking at around 3-4 frames of delay which makes matches smooth and extremely playable. This makes the smaller community extremely faithful, and the fighter has seen a lot of growth due to the ease with which players can fight each other with a good connection, and because of that, the scene has grown.
There are even talks of the developers looking to implement GGPO which would honestly make the games online legendary and possibly give it the best netcode a fighter has ever seen. A good example of a game flourishing thanks in part to its good netcode instead of despite it.
BAD
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Consoles: Switch
Netcode Type: Delay
Quality: Poor to Abysmal
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is almost the perfect game. It has the biggest roster, the most stages, a fantastic and fluid system that feels great to play, and DLC characters to die for. It’s too bad all of that is completely dragged down by an online system that is so poorly implemented that it feels like a last-generation online experience. Delay that at its worst can feel 1-2 seconds behind, (60-120 frames!), and even at its best only feels barely competent, Smash Bros. Ultimate manages to do everything right but this.
It’s a testament to how much I love this game that I continue to expose myself to this toxic love/hate relationship and if it was any other series or any other game, I would have given up playing online a while ago.
Online lobbies that have connections that make no sense, (sometimes someone that lives a few minutes away will be awful while someone that lives a state away will be fine), and literally no casual matchmaking, it boggles my mind that the same team that worked on everything else also made the online.
GOOD
Skullgirls
Consoles: 360,PS3, PS4, Switch, PC
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Great
Skullgirls is a fantastic game with a great art style, good roster, and good mechanics. It also boasts one of the best online experiences courtesy of GGPO. Having the same netcode since it’s initial launch on last-gen, it still holds up when it was released on PS4. A great team fighter that was designed to echo the style of Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Skullgirls is another fantastic package with great netcode that will only cost you $10. Try it out if you get the chance!
BAD
Tekken 7
Consoles: XBO, PS4, PC
Netcode Type: Delay
Quality: Middling
Tekken 7 is another big fighting game franchise that is considered a staple very much like Street Fighter. The game is fast and requires precise inputs and reactions, the cast is vast and most use a specific real-world martial art, and the game is based around spacing and combos making it considered one of the more skill-based fighting games.
Unfortunately, like Street Fighter, Tekken 7 is held back by it’s netcode. The netcode itself isn’t terrible, but it’s still not good either. Playing with my friends that are relatively close to where I live still produced noticeable lag in a good amount of matches, so I would assume any farther and it would become a huge problem.
Which is too bad because I genuinely enjoy playing Tekken 7 when it works, I just can also see myself becoming increasingly frustrated because of online lag and delay. The lobbies themselves aren’t very good either, sending you back to re-select your character each time and taking almost forever to start a match, just adding more frustration to the pile.
GOOD
Mortal Kombat XL, 11 and Injustice 2
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Good
Mortal Kombat had been one of the series with impressively bad netcode up until when Mortal Kombat X upgraded to Mortal Kombat XL. With a massive increase in quality thanks to creating a completely separate rollback netcode, Mortal Kombat XL received a huge quality improvement, and the team at Netherrealm has continued building upon it ever since. Injustice 2 was the next game to receive the fantastic netcode, boasting smooth matches for almost every connection type, and Mortal Kombat 11 has the best of it all, boasting the ability to play even from America to Japan with almost no difficulty. Mortal Kombat got their netcode working right, and it has remained a fantastic title with great online since its release.
BEST
Killer Instinct
Consoles: XBO, PC
Netcode Type: Rollback
Quality: Godlike
That’s right, we have saved the best for last. The crown jewel of fighting game netcode, the best feeling online of any fighting game I have personally ever played, and a game that is almost universally praised for how good its netcode is despite being released at the beginning of the generation as a launch title for Xbox One. Killer Instinct has had fantastic netcode since Day 1 due to the aforementioned netcode wizards at Iron Galaxy.
Whatever they did with optimizing the rollback netcode in their previous fighting game offerings, all that experience and know-how went into the making the netcode for KI and it’s hard to even now to find a fighting game that does netcode better. Almost any connection is playable and you would be hard-pressed to find a connection that would make it unplayable unless you were specifically trying to test the system.
Probably the shining example for netcode for fighting games even going into the next generation, Killer Instinct has netcode that I wish every fighting game developer could find a use for, and the hope that we will eventually get it is fresh in my mind.
Summary
Netcode is super important for a fighting game to continue their sense of community, to bridge players across the world and for a fighting game to continue to thrive well past its initial release date. It not only simply connects players for matches, but it lets those that don’t have friends that play fighters find new friends to challenge.
Developers moving forward even now have access to GGPO for free. The netcode itself is completely open-source and free to use, the only requirement is that they have to give credit for its use, which means that no fighting game developer has an excuse for their online being a poor experience for their fans, as they have the tools open to them, no matter the budget and no matter what company. They just have to use it, and there is almost no reason not to.
The next generation of fighting games has the tools to make the online experience completely seamless, and the only reason why a fighter wouldn’t have good netcode now is basically inexcusable. I personally look forward to a chance to fight all opponents on even ground, and I will look forward to kicking all of your collective asses.
Honorable Mentions: Them’s Fightin Herds, Fantasy Strike, and Omen of Sorrow are all fighters that also take advantage of GGPO and I would recommend checking out these indie fighters as well!