{"id":166444,"date":"2025-02-11T17:40:26","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T17:40:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/?p=166444"},"modified":"2025-02-11T17:41:32","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T17:41:32","slug":"is-2025-the-year-of-fgcs-esports-rise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/02\/is-2025-the-year-of-fgcs-esports-rise","title":{"rendered":"Is 2025 the year of FGC’s esports rise?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/capcom-cup-x-prize-pool-min-large.png\" alt=\"Capcom Cup X prize pool\" class=\"wp-image-135373\" srcset=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/capcom-cup-x-prize-pool-min-large.png 1024w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/capcom-cup-x-prize-pool-min-medium.png 300w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/capcom-cup-x-prize-pool-min-medium_large.png 768w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/capcom-cup-x-prize-pool-min-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/capcom-cup-x-prize-pool-min.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Capcom Cup showcases its $2m prize pool. Image credit: Capcom<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c00db0\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>When you think of esports, the games that initially come to mind include MOBAs like League of Legends and Dota 2 or FPS titles like Counter-Strike 2 and VALORANT. But fighting games have consistently grown their own scene and it seems 2025 could be the year it becomes more mainstream. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c013d0\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Fighting games have always had a competitive following dating back to when people had to leave their homes to play video games at an arcade. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c019ad\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Street Fighter became many teens’ obsession in the 1990s and legends <strong>Adam Heart<\/strong> and <strong>Peter Rosas<\/strong> were popping up in certain cities. Capcom even held tournaments in the early 90s, including the Capcom U.S.A\u2019s California Street Fighter II Tournament won by Tony Tsui, who was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=W2ZKjgBm6Io\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">discovering a lot of highly complex techniques<\/a> at the time.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"keep-reading \" id=\"kr-67d9277c0255c\">\n <div class=\"heading\">Keep Reading<\/div>\n <ul class=\"d-flex flex-column\">\n <li id=\"post-165693\" style=\"order: 1;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/02\/red-bull-kumite-paris-10th-anniversary\" target=\"_blank\">FGC event Red Bull Kumite to celebrate 10th anniversary in Paris<\/a><\/li>\n <li id=\"post-151796\" style=\"order: 2;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2024\/03\/tekken-8-esports-world-cup-announcement\" target=\"_blank\">Tekken 8 announced for Esports World Cup<\/a><\/li>\n <li id=\"post-160611\" style=\"order: 3;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2024\/12\/street-fighter-6-returns-to-esports-world-cup-in-2025\" target=\"_blank\">Street Fighter 6 returns to Esports World Cup in 2025<\/a><\/li>\n <\/ul>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c0350b\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Despite being around so long and continuously having support from developers (ignoring <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2023\/11\/nintendo-esports-guidelines-smash\">Nintendo<\/a><em>),<\/em> fighting games like Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, and Tekken never seemed to get the same recognition as multiplayer games. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c03ae1\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>For example, <strong>Capcom Cup X<\/strong>‘s Street Fighter Grand Final had <a href=\"https:\/\/escharts.com\/tournaments\/sfv\/capcom-cup-x\"><strong>311,610<\/strong> <strong>peak viewers<\/strong> <\/a>while League of Legends Worlds 2024 had<a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2024\/11\/league-of-legends-worlds-2024-viewership\"> <strong>6.94m peak viewers<\/strong><\/a> and <strong>Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2024<\/strong>‘s Grand Final match hit <strong>1.05m peak viewers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-heading-67d9277c040e4\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n \n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-old-games-new-fans\"><span id=\"old_games_new_fans\">Old Games, New Fans<\/span><\/h2>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c0468b\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>The FGC (Fighting Game Community) has long discussed why their esports scene has never grown as big as League of Legends, Dota 2 and Counter-Strike 2. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly why, but many believe it could be the seriousness that comes with having a long-standing<mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\"><strong><em> <\/em><\/strong>and committed <\/mark>scene.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c04c28\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Decades of passion <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Fighters\/comments\/1536sht\/part_of_the_lack_of_popularity_fighting_games_has\/\">come with a bit of gatekeeping<\/a>. The scene often discusses the difficulty of different fighting games and the dedication it takes to be good enough to even compete at local events. It can be intimidating to even bother.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c05197\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>This has been something that Capcom and Bandai Namco are well aware of. Over recent years, the developers behind Street Fighter and Tekken have continued to implement features that made the games more inviting to new players, like Street Fighter 6’s Modern Controls which simplify the game to make matches more satisfying to newer players.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c0575f\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>On the esports side of things, Bandai Namco has made it a massive part of its mission for Tekken to create more accessibility in under-represented regions by building up local scenes that have qualifying tournaments. This has led to a lot of new countries sending top players to the Tekken World Finals each year. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/rangchu-tekken-finals-large.jpg\" alt=\"Tekken World Tour Finals winner Rangchu \" class=\"wp-image-166448\" srcset=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/rangchu-tekken-finals-large.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/rangchu-tekken-finals-medium.jpg 300w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/rangchu-tekken-finals-medium_large.jpg 768w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/rangchu-tekken-finals.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image Credit: One Esports<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c05ded\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>When asked about surprising countries at Tekken World Finals 2024, <strong>Senior Esports Manager Kasumi Yogi <\/strong>told Esports Insider: “We’ve seen some fantastic players from Africa. A lot of players from South America and Central America as well. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c06390\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>“What I learned myself is that there are way more regions that have super, super heavy hitters lobbying against each other, practising against each other. Tight communities that Tekken brings together. I love that stuff.”<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c069d3\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>When these countries have representatives at the largest tournaments, that means more fans from those countries tune in to watch the tournaments \u2014 and start playing the game themselves. With big fighting games like Street Fighter and Tekken appealing to new players and fans who may have previously felt underrepresented and intimidated, 2025 could see the fighting game scene get past its previously cold demeanour.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-heading-67d9277c06f9f\" class=\"esi-heading \">\n \n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-new-games-old-devs\"><span id=\"new_games_old_devs\">New Games, Old Devs<\/span><\/h2>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c07528\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>The demise of Super Smash Bros.’ FGC esports scene can be traced back very easily \u2014 not just a lack of support from Nintendo, but potenti<mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">al s<\/mark>abotage.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c07ab6\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>The pro-Super Smash Bros. Melee scene has been around for quite some time, with independent tournament organisers hosting Smash events for the past 20 years. It was always grassroots, however, due to no backing from developer Nintendo. <\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c08031\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>This meant smaller prize pools and no support for tournament organisers, which had to fund events out of pocket. This kept the Smash scene from growing as large as even other fighting games.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c085a6\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>While games like Tekken have over $1m (~\u00a3806,000) in prizing for its main circuit, some Super Smash Bros. Melee and Ultimate pros need full-time jobs to have the money to travel to events \u2014 where they’d often win just a few thousand bucks for placing first after days of grinding.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/hungrybox-67a96adcd9e6b-large.webp\" alt=\"Hungrybox pop off at tourney\" class=\"wp-image-166446\" srcset=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/hungrybox-67a96adcd9e6b-large.webp 1024w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/hungrybox-67a96adcd9e6b-medium.webp 300w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/hungrybox-67a96adcd9e6b-medium_large.webp 768w, https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/hungrybox-67a96adcd9e6b.webp 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image Credit: Stephen Sylvanie\/USA Today\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c08c26\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Super Smash Bros. has always survived simply out of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WCaBjIoPk8A\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">passion and spite<\/a>. But the game has declined heavily in the past few years thanks to <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2022\/02\/evo-smash-bros\">Nintendo actively attempting to stop it<\/a> from existing. By creating impossibly tough restraints on tournament organisers and causing chaos with its own failed circuit, the scene has become smaller than ever as <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2022\/11\/smash-world-tour-2023-cancelled-nintendo\">more organisers drop out<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c091ab\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Fighting games need their developers’ support to thrive \u2014 especially if they want to get anywhere close to the success of League of Legends and Apex Legends, which have tournament structures and circuits overseen by their creators. Riot has been one of the most successful at this, as proven by the ongoing popularity of League of Legends and the quick growth of VALORANT. Now, Riot Games has a fighting game on the way \u2014 <strong>2XKO<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c09735\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>The stylised and technical two-versus-two fighter features popular League of Legends characters and emphasises teamwork and strategy. It’s set to come out in the summer of 2025, but no specific date has been revealed.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c09ca7\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>With Riot undoubtedly supporting 2XKO’s esports scene, expect a highly structured season full of teams from the biggest organisations, decent prize pools, tournaments to watch \u2014 and plenty of hype. With more eyes on FGC thanks to Riot’s marketing, it seems like this could be the big break that the scene needs to become mainstream in esports.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n\n\n<div id=\"esi-paragraph-67d9277c0a218\" class=\"esi-paragraph \">\n \n<p>Is it possible that Nintendo will see the error of its ways as other FGC titles start to thrive in 2025? Super Smash Bros. is likely getting a new title \u2014 or new iteration of Ultimate \u2014 for the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2. This will revive some lost excitement over the fighting game and pump up the esports scene, but it will only grow so much without Nintendo’s blessing.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Capcom Cup showcases its $2m prize pool. Image credit: Capcom When you think of esports, the games that initially come to mind include MOBAs like League of Legends and Dota 2 or FPS titles like Counter-Strike 2 and VALORANT. But fighting games have consistently grown their own scene and it seems 2025 could be the … <a href=\"https:\/\/esportsinsider.com\/2025\/02\/is-2025-the-year-of-fgcs-esports-rise\">Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":135373,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","esi_template":"default","excluded":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[239,50,1667,55,106,237,240,53,18248,238],"tags":[20377,1251,1440,304,573,1195],"class_list":["post-166444","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe","category-features","category-fgc","category-esports-titles","category-latest-news","category-news-by-region","category-north-america","category-opinion","category-top-stories","category-uk","tag-2xko","tag-fgc","tag-fighting-games","tag-smash","tag-street-fighter","tag-tekken"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.1 (Yoast SEO v24.1) - 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