The fighting genre has been through a lot over the years. Like many other genres in the video game industry, there has been an ebb and flow to its popularity where some years are filled with stellar releases, and other years there is some stagnation. The same goes for the many subgenres within the realm of fighting games, as some have had more staying power than others. While games like Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter have carried the 2D platformer, franchises like Tekken and Soulcalibur have kept the 3D fighter alive despite their somewhat lesser popularity.

Among all fighting subgenres, perhaps the most tenuous is the platform fighter. This genre has always been unique to its 2D and 3D counterparts, combining 2D fighting mechanics with a greater sense of verticality. Platform fighters have always been a bit of an enigma in the grander sense of the industry, persisting on only one or two franchises that infrequently release new entries. Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has almost always been the face of the genre, but with DLC support coming to an end, the future of platform fighters can seem uncertain. Fortunately, there's reason to believe that platform fighters will continue to receive support for some time.

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The Staying Power Of Super Smash Bros.

super smash bros ultimate banner full

It would be no exaggeration to say that Super Smash Bros. as a franchise has carried the platform fighting genre. Its frenetic action and laundry list of familiar faces across Nintendo and third party IPs has made it a hit with casual and hardcore crowds, with the latter even going back to older entries regularly. While it may seem discouraging that DLC for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is ending, it's important to remember just how long Nintendo supported the game, and how much longer fans could support it. It's hard to find an experience of the same enormity as Smash Ultimate, and that fact alone should ensure that it, and the popularity of platform fighters, persists for many more years.

The Platform Fighter Newcomers

MultiVersus vs. Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl

While it's possible that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate could keep platform fighting games alive on its own for years to come, it's becoming increasingly prevalent that it might not have to. This year has seen an encouraging uptick in new reveals and releases that hope to mimic the success of Super Smash Bros. with platform fighters of their own that have similarly ambitious crossovers.

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl has already made an impression with fans of Nickelodeon's many cartoons, while maintaining the fundamentals of the current platform fighter. Although it may be a little light on overall content, features like rollback netcode show how the game hopes to not only mimic Smash Bros.' formula, but to improve on it with fan-requested features. The newly announced MultiVersus also hopes to throw its hat into the crossover platform fighter ring by combining Warner Bros. properties, co-op focused mechanics, and a free-to-play model. While neither game is Smash Bros., they're different and innovative, and sometimes that's all a game needs in order to succeed.

Looking at the state of platform fighting games now and for the next year, the genre seems like it's in very good hands. While it may never reach the same level of variety as first-person shooters or third-person adventure games, it doesn't have to. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate arguably has enough content to where the franchise doesn't need a new entry for many years, and games like Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl and MultiVersus seem to understand the core of what makes the genre so fun. So long as those fundamentals aren't lost, fans of platform fighters should be in good shape for quite some time.

MORE: The Case for an Xbox Crossover Platform Fighting Game