Free vtuber fighting game is the perfect Street Fighter 6 stopgap

Vtuber combating sport Idol Showdown caught me off-guard. With the Street Fighter 6 release date nonetheless a bit of method off, I’ve been hankering to ship a beatdown, however I’ve already sampled a lot of the greatest fighting games on PC. So to stumble throughout Idol Showdown within the new releases, realise it’s free, after which truly be impressed by simply how good this Marvel vs Capcom and Responsible Gear fashion 2D fighter is has been an actual deal with right this moment.

Idol Showdown is an unofficial fan-made mission primarily based on a few of the largest vtubers (that’s digital youtubers, or individuals who stream themselves utilizing an animated avatar) from Hololive, probably the most outstanding vtuber companies. Developer Besto Sport Crew says that the mission has been within the works for 2 years, and it’s out now as a free Steam game.

Leaping in, I’m already impressed by the sport’s catchy pixel artwork fashion and soundtrack. I hop into the sport’s tutorial mode and am instantly struck by its complete directions, responsive really feel, and general mechanical depth. Whereas Idol Showdown will really feel acquainted to Avenue Fighter followers with its quarter-circle motions and tremendous meters (known as the “superchat” meter after the title for donations despatched by followers throughout streams), it bears nearer resemblance to the likes of Marvel vs Capcom and Responsible Gear.

You get a light-weight, medium, and heavy assault, together with a particular button. Regular strikes will be comboed into same-strength or more and more robust assaults, or into specials. Those that choose to maintain mechanical execution to a minimal can use directional inputs with the specials to tug off the sport’s coolest strikes, or you should use double-tap and quarter-circle motions together with various assault strengths to manually dial within the assault you need.

The roster might be instantly recognisable to Hololive followers: whereas extra names are on the best way, the preliminary playable characters are Korone, Ayame, Botan, Fubuki, Suisei, Sora, Akirose, and fan-favourite retired dragon Kiryu Coco. Every has a collection of alternate color schemes primarily based on members they’re usually related to; so considered one of Coco’s palettes resembles Kanata, whereas Korone can costume up as her associate in crime Okayu.

The fight itself feels sharp and responsive, with animations and soundbites that can instantly put a smile on the face of followers. From Korone firing out ‘Yubis’ at her opponents or thwacking them with a baseball bat, to Suisei’s iconic “Hello, honey” when you choose her on the character display, it’s clear what a top-to-bottom labour of affection Idol Showdown is.

Different favourites make their method in with the associate system; you select a “collab associate” who will be known as in mid-fight for assaults, very like the assists in MvC. These embody Marine, Mio, Kanata, Iroha, Risu, Roboco, Miko, and English expertise Takanashi Kiara and Amelia Watson – Ame, for instance, can are available for a floor pound assault, or spend extra metre for her stronger time gradual potential. Different names will be discovered elsewhere: Mumei runs an in-game store, whereas fan-turned-star Ollie exhibits up usually within the post-game “stay chat” that seems on the finish of rounds.

Just about every thing you’d count on from an anime fighter is in right here – on high of the essential really feel of the fight, there are dashes and runs, grabs, overheads, restoration air techs and bursts, parry-style simply guards to reward completely timed blocks, and much more past. That is no easy knock-off; the time and care that’s gone into Idol Showdown is straight away obvious.

You possibly can play the sport in offline 1v1 in opposition to a human or AI participant, tackle a collection of Arcade mode-style fights, or attempt the Digital Frontier, a mode the place you journey by means of areas combating and accumulating gadgets. There’s a coaching room and the beforehand talked about tutorial, and there’s additionally the choice to create and be a part of on-line lobbies, which is in beta however makes use of the favored rollback netcode for a easy expertise.

So, whether or not you’re a Hololive fan, a combating sport aficionado, or (even higher) each of these issues, I actually can’t suggest Idol Showdown sufficient. Idol Showdown is out now on Steam totally free, so head over there and try it out – at that worth, what have you ever acquired to lose?

If you happen to’re in search of extra nice freebies, we’ve acquired the perfect free PC games for many extra picks. In any other case, be sure you brush up on the Street Fighter 6 roster and browse what we made from the Street Fighter 6 World Tour mode in our hands-on gameplay preview.