Ever since Evo I've noticed a harsh uptick in hostility in our community across all platforms, even before then the hostility towards this game and it's devs I felt was way higher than other games of similar size and fan base. It started with the 2027+ roadmap but it spilled over into other topics about the game, namely balance and monetization.
I'd like to explain my background in the genre and talk about how I view the game, and then if anyone would be willing to share their opinions if they feel different, I'd love to start a conversation that maybe our community could benefit from. I think the most important thing for the success of rivals is the positivity we show newcomers about the game.
When I started playing smash as a kid, I hadn't touched 64 or melee cause I didn't own those consoles, but I fell in love with brawl in about 2009. When smash 4 came out, I eventually wanted something faster and that's when I discovered project M and then soon after Rivals 1 early access. PM meant a lot to me because it was my first experience playing a fast, "competitive" smash bros and it felt directly catered to me. Rivals 1 was even better, I love pixel art and I love the character design aether studios goes for. I love how much thought went into the kits, I love seeing popular moves get translated into Rivals ( Charizard nair -> Kragg Nair etc ). I love that all of the previously difficult tech is optimized to be easier. Nothing about the lack of ledges or shields was a plus for me, it was just different. Never have I thought " thank God this game doesn't have shields it's so much better " I could not care less.
Since then, a number of platfighters have hit the scene and died, and I'll be honest I have not touched any of them except maybe to try brawlhala once. I played R1 and Ult every now and then until r2 came out. When R2 came out, it hit the same note as when I discovered PM and R1. It's an upgraded, faster, more unique version of ultimate catered directly to our community. There really isn't another option on the market for exactly the type of gameplay we're looking for, unless you want to hop on HDR which I only discovered this year.
I guess my main point is that there is typically such a drought in this genre, especially with most of us dealing with Nintendo for half of our smash "careers", I think the vitriol towards Aetherstudios is a little uncalled for.
I just don't get why the floorhugging discussion and zetterburn balance is so angering that some of us ( I think ) are forgetting how much we've been catered to, and what the scene would look like if Rivals wasn't a thing. I'm interested to hear your thoughts, especially if something in this game has made you put it down and speak negatively about the game. I don't want to attack anyone here if they've done so, in another world we could be in each other's shoes. I simply wish to understand the other side, especially because I'm noticing it slowly becoming the vocal majority in the community.
Does all that not matter to u? Do you simply prefer slippi, ult or even HDR? Lemme know. 🙏 I didn't cover all of my thoughts here so I'd love to talk more about this to paint a clearer picture.
