So a question I’ve been asked over my years of playing fighting games is “Which one is your favorite?” I have personally thought about this question quite a bit and I felt like I’d do a top to to finally put this question to rest. Please note that this is MY list. If your personal favorite isn’t on this list, that’s ok. Alright, without further delay, let’s take a look at my top 10 fighting games.

10.) Marvel Vs. Capcom Infinite (2017)

Ok, so right off the bat this list may seem odd at first, seeing as a lot of people believe this to be one of Capcom’s worst fighting games ever made, but hear me out. I love this game and yeah, the graphics may look a little odd because they tried to make it look realistic but the gameplay is extremely fun. Being able to switch to your other character now off of any move feels amazing and even just basic combos feel very cool and using one of the infinity stones you pick at the beginning of the match to change up your game plan is the perfect mix of fun and strategy. It’s not perfect by any means, but it is very fun and takes my number 10 spot.

9.) Soul Calibur 6 (2018)

So when I got Soul Calibur 6, I quite literally sat down with the character creator for 3 hours just making one character because of how much customization there is. On top of making your own character, the gameplay is great. Everything feels so free with the movement and the combat and every character has their own weapon and all play different from one another. Combos aren’t even that much of a focus and it still feels immensely fun. I’ve had a blast playing this with friends and I have no problem giving this my number 9 spot.

8.) Ultra Street Fighter IV (2015)

Street Fighter IV was one of two big saviors of fighting games as a whole and really revived the genre. Ultra Street Fighter IV is just a more complete version of it and feels so fun to play. With an expansive roster of 44 characters with some old and some new, there’s definitely a playstyle for everyone. It also added ultra moves which are classy super moves that each character gets two of and can be used for most situations. With a really good training mode and great movement, I think this is a very entertaining game to watch and play and anyone can jump in and have some fun so it can have the number 8 spot.

7.) Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (2012)

Another instance of me liking a game that everyone else hates. I believe that Tekken Tag Tournament 2 has a great balance of fun characters and mechanics to fight with, that being able to tag out to your other character for unique combo routes. It also has an expansive roster with 59 characters so the combinations of teams of two you can make leaves for so many possible match ups. I feel like the movement also feels very fluent and at times, to me anyway, is better than Tekken 7. This is also another instance of a game I’ve played where casual people can enjoy it just as much as the intermediate and pro players. I personally love this game and for that, I have to give it my number 7 spot.

6.) Dragon Ball FighterZ (2017)

I’d just like to preface this by saying that you don’t have to know anything about Dragon Ball to enjoy this game because when I started playing, I certainly didn’t. This game, however, is a blast and is possibly the fastest fighting game I’ve ever played. The movement is extremely fast and brings a type of gameplay that feels very rewarding and combos are some of the most rewarding things in this game and can often be very long to the point where it looks like a cutscene. Also, being able to make your own combos and really experiment with which characters work well together makes it perfect for my number 6 spot.

5.) Samurai Shodown V Special (2004)

Samurai Shodown V Special makes you feel like every hit matters because you can lose 60% of your life from one hit if you’re not careful. You have to be on point and on edge during every second. With every good fighting game, movement is key and this game has great movement. This is a more slow and methodical game but just feels so rewarding. You can also disarm your opponent which severely limits their offensive options and when you lose your weapon, it can be a tough time getting it back. Every character feels unique and makes every matchup that much more interesting to watch and to play and that’s why it’s getting my number 5 spot.

4.) Super Smash Bros Ultimate (2018)

First of all, Smash IS a fighting game. Second of all, what can I say about this game that hasn’t already been said? The gameplay is so solid and it honestly is so fun. Ultimate has literally everything here for any type of audience. Pros and Casuals alike love this game and with the vast selection of 89 characters, there is almost an infinite amount of possibilities for matchups and different play styles from the people you meet. It still blows me away with how much content is in Smash Ultimate and I completely understand why this is a lot of people’s favorite fighting games. I played it consistently for 3 years so I’ve had my fair share of this game and even with that much play time, I still love this game. Combos just feel really good because you are free to move around the environment and use different moves for different situations and it easily takes the number 4 spot.

3.) Street Fighter III: Third Strike (1999)

Here are the entries that I think are the very best.. These are the games that I consider to be top-of-the-line. I already wrote a lengthy article about this game if you want to check that out where I go into greater detail about why this game is amazing, but I’ll just sum it up here. The gameplay feels great and allows you to use an almost infinite amount of ways to deal with a situation. There are many characters that do different things and even the two most similar characters, Ryu and Ken, are vastly different in how they approach certain situations. I feel like a broken record by saying that movement is amazing again but it’s true. Good movement is important in fighting games. It’s just got this feel to it that makes everything come together extremely well and it has my number 3 spot.

2.) Guilty Gear -Strive- (2021)

If you couldn’t tell already based on my article that I wrote about it, I love this game so much and I believe this is what fighting games should aspire to be in terms of greatness. The combo routes are very fun with the addition of roman cancels and everything just feels fun to do. Each character feels vastly different and games can sometimes go down to the wire. Everything looks great and the game feels loose but in a good way and it feels like there are very few things that the characters can’t do within the game’s mechanics. Everything just feels right and blends together nicely for a nice package. It definitely takes the number 2 spot for sure.

1.) Mortal Kombat (2011)

This is my favorite fighting game of all time. There is no doubt in my mind about that. Do you remember what I said about Street Fighter IV being one of two games that saved the fighting game genre? Yeah, this was the other one. Every character feels so unique and each brings a different playstyle to the table. There is a character for everyone. Every character from Mortal Kombat 1-3 is here, including 2 characters that hadn’t been seen in 2-D style before, 2 brand new characters, and two guest characters with one being Freddy Krueger from The Nightmare on Elm Street movies and Kratos from God of War. The music and the stages along with the swift movement and fun, snappy combos allow for so much fun. This game also added the X-Ray move, which is now a Mortal Kombat staple. The game is also full of single player content with a fully fleshed out story mode, challenge tower, unlockables, and so much more. I love this game with a passion and it takes my number 1 spot.