15 Upcoming Fighting Games of 2023 and Beyond

[drop-cap]F[/drop-cap]ans of fighting games never really have a lack of great options to choose between (especially when you look at the last few years), and sure enough, there'll be no lack of promising new games in the coming months and years either. Plenty of fighters are confirmed to be in development, offering experiences of different styles and scope, and here, we're going to take a look at some that we have our eye on. STREET FIGHTER 6 Obviously, we have to start fight Street Fighter 6. Capcom's legendary fighting series will be back in June with a new mainline instalment, and everything that we've seen of it so far has looked excellent. From its expanded single player offerings to its mechanical tweaks and improvements to its suite of multiplayer content, Street Fighter 6 is shaping up to be one of the biggest games of the year. TEKKEN 8 Another major fighting series that's getting a new release in the near future is Tekken, and though we don't know as much about Tekken 8 as we do about, say, Street Fighter 6, Bandai Namco is still making some pretty exciting promises. Based on what we know about it so far, it looks like it's going to be a major step up over its predecessors where its technical aspects are concerned, and we can't wait to see what kind of improvements that enables. MORTAL KOMBAT 12 Though not formally unveiled yet, Mortal Kombat 12 was, funnily enough, got a recent accidental confirmation from WB Games itself, confirming previous reports that it was indeed in development. Of course, other than the fact that it's in development, we know absolutely nothing about the game so far- but given the pedigree and track record of the series, you can't help but be excited about what its next instalment will bring to the table. NEXT FATAL FURY GAME https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIYob_1GNYA Fatal Fury as a series has been dormant for far too long, and the prospect of a new game coming in the near future is an exciting one. Again, this is a game that we know very little about so far, but when it comes to fighting games, Fatal Fury is a game that's very easy to put your trust in. PROJECT L With the likes of League of Legends and Valorant, Riot has exhibited an uncanny knack for nailing gameplay systems with pretty much very genre it's tried to tackle, so it's no surprise that people are excited about what the developer will be able to do with Project L, its first ever fighting game. Nailing the balancing and enjoyability of gameplay mechanics is key to developing a solid competitive fighter, and if Riot can do that as well as it has done in other genres (more often than not, at least), Project L will be a game worth keeping an eye on. EVOLVER Evolver might not be as high profile of a game as several other titles listed in this feature, but if you're a fan of the genre, it's one that you should be keeping an eye on. A demo of the cyberpunk fighter has been available on Steam for a while, and behind the scenes, it has been making slow and steady progress. Those who've got their hands on the game until now have had very positive things to say about its unique mechanics and how it utilizes its cyberpunk setting, so it's clear that when it launches in full (whenever that is), it's going to have quite a bit to live up to. WWE 2K23 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIYob_1GNYA Like The Undertaker, the WWE 2K franchise came back from the dead last year in convincing fashion, with WWE 2K22 delivering the series' best entry in a long, long time, and sure enough, it looks like WWE 2K23 will be building on its success in several ways. Mechanical tweaks and polishes are promising an even more accessible and enjoyable experiences, while the game is once again going to offer a sizeable package of meaty modes for players to dive into, including a new Showcase focused on John Cena. For fans of wrestling games, this one is probably going to be a must buy. AEW: FIGHT FOREVER Though the WWE 2K series has been taken over by Visual Concepts, the developer who originally worked on it isn't done with wrestling games either. Yuke's is currently working on AEW: Fight Forever, and everything that's been shown of it so far has looked promising. Promising arcade-style gameplay, a full creation suite, and a healthy selection of modes, it has the potential to be one of the best wrestling games from Yuke's in recent memory. FINAL FURY By definition, Final Fury is likely going to be a very niche game, primarily since it's a virtual reality title- but a VR fighter is something that instantly grabs attention. Played from a first person perspective and built around motion controls, it's obviously going to be very different from what you'd ordinarily expect to see in fighting games. If it fails to properly execute its unique ideas, it may very well end up falling flat, but at the same time, if it can do justice to them, it'll be one to watch out for. SCLASH https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIYob_1GNYA What Sclash lacks in AAA sheen and polish, it seems to be making up for with its fresh ideas. Visually, its hand-drawn aesthetic instantly catches the eye, while from a gameplay perspective, it's built entirely around samurai fights where even a single hit is enough to knock you our your opponent out. Its pick up and play nature is looking to set it apart from other games in the genre, while the pacing of its fights, too, promises to be different from what genre fans might be used to. BLAZING STRIKE Blazing Strike has been on the radar for fans of the genre for some time now. For genre veterans who year for the classics, this game is checking a lot of the right boxes. Inspired by classics of the arcade age, not only does it feature a visually striking aesthetic, Blazing Strike is also looking like the sort of mechanically crunching fighter that you don't see too often in today's day and age. Whether it can live up to that promise remains to be seen, but expectations are certainly high. POCKET BRAVERY Speaking of games that appeal to genre veterans, Pocket Bravery is doing that in several ways as well. Of course, the visual style gives that away right off the bat, from even from a gameplay perspective, there's plenty here that fans of the arcade era will find quite appealing. With vibrant character designs, a control scheme that's promising a unique experience, and the blend of physical and elemental combat, Pocket Bravery seems to have quite a bit working in its favour from what we've seen of it so far. METAL REVOLUTION Metal Revolution is a mobile fighter being brought over to other platforms, so by its very nature, it's probably not going to be the kind of dense experience that genre veterans might be looking for- but it's still one worth keeping an eye on. Promising gameplay that's easy to learn and difficult to master in a cyberpunk setting that lets you battle as and against a variety of different robots, Metal Revolution definitely has a very unique flavour to it. DIE BY THE BLADE Here's another one that we've had our eye on for a while. Die of the Blade is another game that's built around one-hit kills, and it's going about that in some very interesting ways. The core focus of the experience is a variety of Japanese melee weapons, each bringing unique strategies for battles, and tasking players with mastering fights in different ways. It's promising methodical, tactical fights where even a single mistake can sway the tide of the battle, and if executed properly, that's an idea that can make for an excellent game. UNDISPUTED Boxing fans haven't exactly had an embarrassment of riches in the gaming space, but Steel City Interactive's Undisputed has got plenty of people quite excited. Having only recently launched in early access, Undisputed has been praised by those who've dipped into its offerings almost unanimously so far, with special praise being reserved for its authenticity, mechanical depth, and visuals. It's got off to a great start, and the hope is that it will continue to improve on the road to its full release (whenever that happens).