Fighting Games as A Tool for World Peace? Fuudo Gives His Take on SF6

Keita 'Fuudo' Ai is one of the most renowned fighting game pros in the business, so he has seen and heard almost everything and has been in the industry for a long time. Therefore, whatever he has to say is worth hearing.

He took some time to do an interview with Yahoo News Japan (you can read the article here) and spoke on fighting games and their rise and fall there. He also outlined his hopes for Street Fighter 6 and the impact it could have on the community. 

One of the most striking things he talked about was the potential of fighting games to unite geographical divides and bring people together. 

A great example was Knee's visit to the Pakistani Tekken community, which did a lot to foster a sense of brotherhood between two sets of people that might not normally have had a chance to mingle. Also, Punk, Big Bird, and Angry Bird are currently in Japan, and the fanfare that has followed has been so great to watch. Things like these are only possible with fighting games and are some of the strong points that make fighting games special. 

Another note of importance from Fuudo's interview was his hopes for Street Fighter 6. Fighting games were super popular in the 90s with Street Fighter II leading the charge. But things fell off in the 2000s and Fuudo even admitted that if he had been born later, he probably would not be a fighting game player. As for why he think fighting games fell off, he speculated that it probably had to do with the harsh nature of arcade culture which rewarded the strong and punished the weak. He also noted that the way people thought of games changed as there was more of an emphasis on team games which we see dominating the esports scene currently. 

Can Street Fighter 6 bring back the magic? Fuudo is not so sure, but he is certain that the FGC will grow with the release of Street Fighter 6 due to the new features added to the game which are a lot more casual-friendly. 

He believes that it would be almost impossible to recreate the phenomenon of Street Fighter II because of how many other options there are within gaming and entertainment as well. 

Fuudo ended his interview on a positive note stating that he is optimistic about Street Fighter 6, but would temper that enthusiasm until the game comes out.

You can catch Fuudo on his Twitter and watch out for him and his team, Nagoya Oja Bodystar Mildom in the grand finals of Street Fighter League Japan which will take place on the 21st of January 2023 with a free stream available a little later.