5 Easiest Fighting Games for Beginner Players to Get Into

Out of any genre, Fighting Games are among the hardest to pick up, with the technical knowledge of specific characters sometimes requiring hours of practice. That being said, some fighting games are helpful in how their complexities are presented, making it far easier for you to understand the basics quickly. Some titles even have great tutorials and side content that gives you the space to grow stronger at your own pace.

Beginners tend to struggle in fighting games because they immediately jump into ranked or competitive modes before knowing how to control whatever character they’re playing. This isn’t always their fault, as some titles in the genre fail to teach mechanics outside of moving, jumping, and basic strikes. Practice mode alone offers very little, so fighting games with multiple avenues of advice gives newcomers the information they need to get started.

5. Street Fighter 6

Arguably the most popular fighting game right now is Street Fighter 6, whose audience alone is a good sign for beginners to jump in. The sheer size of the player base for this game means that there have been a number of resources made for every character, allowing you to learn everything you need to become a master. However, the wealth of tutorials, combo trials, and breakdowns of every single move and attack in the game also gives you plenty to work with.

One of the best features in this game is also its single-player campaign — World Tour. This RPG mode lets you build a character and travel around the world, slowly but surely learning all the mechanics in the game while overcoming different challenges. World Tour in Street Fighter 6 teaches you nearly everything, from the unique Drive Meter to the special moves of various roster characters that you can use in other modes once you decide to pick a favorite.

4. Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising

Some fighting games offer simple versions of basic controls, allowing players to perform moves without confusing directional inputs. Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising is a perfect example of a game that does this, letting you access any fighter’s special moves with a single button and directional press. While you do get more benefits from using a unique directional input, the game gives you space to jump right in and still use everything in a character’s kit without having to learn motions right away.

Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising has very simple combo structure too, using automatic connections between attacks for every character. For example, you can press the Heavy Attack button three times to execute a basic combo, dealing decent damage in the process. With other commands only requiring one to two button presses, beginners won’t feel overwhelmed trying to dive deeper into this title’s other battle mechanics.

3. Guilty Gear Strive

Guilty Gear Strive thrives from its popularity much like Street Fighter 6, with four Seasons of new characters, stages, and balance updates having been implemented since launch. Every single aspect of this game is full of breakdowns of gameplay details, including informative descriptions about how every move works for every fighter. Video examples of moves and YouTube character breakdowns make this game incredibly accessible, which wasn’t always the case in the Guilty Gear series.

For other games, just having basic tutorials and move descriptions wouldn’t help beginners much. Yet, Guilty Gear Strive‘s strange fighting game roster includes characters who are night and day from each other in playstyle, meaning there is no one solution to playing the game without individual fighter knowledge. Multiple breakdowns of every universal system all gives players plenty to explore, giving them a foundation to work off of once they’re ready to fight real opponents.

2. Dragon Ball FighterZ

3v3 fighting games tend to be more complicated than 1v1 titles, so it may be surprising to see Dragon Ball FighterZ on this list. For those who’ve played it though, there are tons of beginner-friendly systems that let you enjoy the game’s bombastic anime-inspired action right away. Less tutorials give way to easy-to-understand moves during matches, such as Superdash, a single button that allows your character to rush directly to your opponent’s fighter.

Other mechanics like an instant teleport, auto combos that lead into super moves, ways to automatically charge your ki for meter, and a lack of complex input motions all make Dragon Ball FighterZ that gives players equal footing immediately. By streamlining its most impressive parts, this game feels fun whether you know what you’re doing or not. With each player using a team of three characters, you have more opportunities to play too, with assists adding extra elements that are simple to use no matter your skill level.

1. Footsies: Rollback Edition

“Footsies” is a term used in fighting games to describe the interaction between players where both try to control space between characters during a match. The mind games behind this concept are encapsulated in their purest form in Footsies: Rollback Edition, a simple fighting game that only has two buttons total. The goal of this game has zero confusing detail, as your objective is to simply land hits on your opponent by taking advantage of their poor movement.

Far from a cheap boss fight, this game is a test of skill with the shortest amount of tools at your disposal. A single button press performs a low kick, with pressing it again performing a basic combo if you land that hit to end a round. Holding the button and releasing it can perform unique attacks that K.O. your rival in one hit, but doing them prematurely will leave you exposed for an instant loss. By attacking at all, you expose yourself to getting hit back, diluting the back-and-forth mind games present in all fighting games.

Anyone trying to learn fighting games should download this cheap one, as its fundamentals translates to every other title in the genre. Mastering movement is the best way for beginners to get into other fighting games, but Footsies: Rollback Edition takes it a step further by teaching you the risks behind being too aggressive or defensive as well, encouraging players to learn complex ideas within a fun, arcade-like framework.

What fighting game did you start with as a beginner? Leave a comment below or join the conversation in the ComicBook Forum!