Fighting game

"Fighting game" is a term confusingly and interchangeably used, often depending on locality, to describe two separate genres of video games: "Versus fighting games" (or "fighters") and "Beat'em ups", in which players fight each other or computer-controlled enemies, usually employing some variation of the martial arts. Along with fixed shoot 'em ups, they are traditionally at home in the arcades, and are considered separate from sports games such as wrestling, boxing and "ultimate fighting" games.

The term beat 'em up is commonly used to specifically describe games in the scrolling fighting game sub-genre. However, among some players (particularly those from the UK), the phrase can refer to versus fighting games.

Beat 'em up

Main article: Beat 'em up

In this type of fighting game, typically known as a scrolling or side-scrolling fighting game, brawler, beat 'em up, or more rarely, walk-and-punch game, one or more players (most often two, but sometimes as many as six) each choose a unique character, and team up to punch, kick, throw and slash their way through a horde of computer-controlled enemies. The fighting occurs in a series of side-scrolling stages, some with a powerful boss enemy at the end. In the most common variation, players can move away and toward the screen as well as left and right, although earlier scrolling fighting games such as Kung Fu Master were more likely to allow only single-dimensional or linear (horizontal) movement, plus jumping.

Versus fighting game

Main article: Versus fighting game

In versus, or competitive type of fighting games, two players (sometimes more) each choose a character, and then fight against each other over several rounds. The winner of a round either knocks out his opponent (usually by depleting an energy indication bar to zero), comes closest to knocking him out, or (in some 3D titles) sends him out of the ring.

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Beat 'em up

Versus fighting game

See also