Tiers - Why they do and don't matter.

I always enjoy looking up tier lists made by high leveled players for the fighting games that I play. I love to see opinions that match my own and opinions that may or may not cause me to reconsider my initial thoughts. As it turns out, I find that most tier lists match very accurately with my own, with only a few deviations here and there.

My personal definition of what I think about tier lists is simple: They outline which individual character has the easiest time racking up wins utilizing a playstyle that meshes neatly with what's known as "the metagame". The term "metagame" is the description of the game being played in the communities head, where as the actual game itself acts as a sort of tool to help you play the metagame, not too different from the limbs of a fighter in a mixed martial arts match. Developers often have a metagame in mind, and in the games initial release the metagame slightly at the discovery of new techniques. It is for this reason that post release patches are often issued, so that the metagame could be further reinforced, as well as rebalance the strength and abilities of the roster.

But, I digress.

Tiers take on different meanings depending on the game that they originate from. Generally, a tier list in a two dimensional fighting game is a list that outlines which characters have the smallest amount of bad matchups, if any. Logically, having a discernible advantage over a large fraction of the entire roster would make a strong character. An advantage that tiers can provide would be to show players what to expect from each character in a roster.

Tiers aren't a good reason to choose a main, however. People often forget that choosing a character that holds their interest the longest means having more dedication to improving their skills with that character. I believe that people that truly love/enjoy the characters they use will reach heights in half the time it takes for a player that only uses high tier characters.

Tiers also don't necessarily mean they are the best. While a high tier character has more match ups in their favour, a player that has more experience with a low tier character against a high tier character is practically guaranteed a win over the player that uses the top tier but has next to no experience.

Lastly, tiers DO NOT justify the need for buffs and nerfs! As I said earlier, patches are only there to make steps towards realizing the metagame that the developers had in mind! Giving nerfs and buffs should only be implemented to define and develop characters further.

Tiers can be fun and interesting, but they are all just opinions at the end of the day.

Surely I'm not the only one?

The general opinion has been like this since day one, and no matter what the devs say in order to placate the fanbase, people keep finding more reasons to hate the upcoming reboot of Devil May Cry.

Devil May Cry holds a special place in my heart not for it's infamous difficulty but because of it's setting and the characters that inhabit it. When I heard that a new game was on the way, I was excited. And then when the Tokyo Game Show rolled around showcasing little reboot Dante's new design, I understood the changes made by Ninja Theory, the developers taking over the project.

What people don't seem to understand is that reboots are supposed to be different, not just more things that we expect and love. While the writing has taken a more vulgar direction, and that the unique weapons that will be employed in this game require a different mindset before taking them to battle, the over the top action of DMC is still going to be there. It just looks different, and the changed core gameplay promises to be a fresh new experience for veterans and newcomers alike. Surely that's reason enough to justify the black hair and cigarettes?

Perhaps the only gripes that I have about this reboot is that I find the writing to be extremely vulgar (f-bombs and s-bombs galore in E3 2012's gameplay trailer). Part of what I enjoyed so much in Devil May Cry was that the language Dante used was relatively clean, while his mannerism and tone still had enough bite to anger any demon he enountered. Unfortunately, that seems to be the direction that Ninja Theory is aiming for. Hopefully, it won't take away from my enjoyment.

When I saw the gameplay trailer, I was amazed by what I saw. The overtop combat that the series is known for is making a return, this time in true HD. Let's hope that it'll be polished enough so that I can dive into this game on launch!