Street Fighter 6 developers confirm there will be no LP reset in ranked mode, say major balance patches planned for once a year
Street Fighter 6 has been in the hands of the masses for over a month now, and during the time we've all spent with the game so far, some important questions have arisen that fans have been hoping to hear answers to soon. Fortunately, a new interview with Street Fighter 6 Director Takayuki Nakayama and Producer Shuhei Matsumoto addresses some of the biggest burning questions we all have about Capcom's latest major fighting title.
On July 5th, Inside-Games sat down with the developers to discuss all kinds of topics pertaining to Street Fighter 6. In this interview, we learn about how the development team aims to release balance patches, as well as the putting to bed of the ranked points reset rumor.
Inside-Games' interview was conducted entirely in Japanese, but thanks to the translation work of our very own Nicholas "MajinTenshinhan" Taylor, we have the English answers for you to read over.
To kick things off, there has been a rumor going around since very early on that Street Fighter 6 would eventually be seeing its League Points — the points you acquire for winning ranked matches that contribute to ranking up — reset and everyone would start over.
During the Street Fighter 6 April showcase, the narrator of the show said, "We have character specific and random character ranked matches and ranked match phases, which will determine your rank for a period of time." The phrasing used here seemed to imply that ranks wouldn't be permanent, which is what helped spark the rumor in the first place.
It has now been confirmed that this is not the case. Matsumoto very directly stated that there will be no LP reset for ranked mode in Street Fighter 6, but before he did, Nakayama explained more about how and why ranked mode functions the way that it does.
Inside-Games: Let's talk a bit about ranked matches which have, at least up until now, been the main feature of fighting games. It feels like the LP gains and matchmaking range has become more lax in Street Fighter 6 compared to 5. What was your thought process that led to this?
Nakayama: Using Street Fighter 5 as a base, we looked at which parts probably did not feel good to the player or might make them withdraw from the game and aimed to improve them. The rematch speed being so incredibly fast is specifically because of this. Also, we didn't just look at fighting games but also researched other genres and what's common there for ranking systems.
— Shuhei Matsumoto.
Inside-Games: To get Master Rank in Street Fighter 5, I think you needed to be somewhere around 70% win rate, but in Street Fighter 6 it feels like you can get there even if you maintain somewhere around a 50% win rate. Even at these high rankings, there's definitely a lot of difference between player skill so I've heard a lot of long-time fans asking for ranks higher than Master as well.
Nakayama: Yes, we're developing certain systems for top level players. We touched on it in the Street Fighter 6 showcase before the game's release, but we're planning to add a Master League and within it have limited periods of times which we refer to as "acts" where players can gain points specific to the league and wager them in matches against each other.
Inside-Games: Speaking of that, there's rumors going around that there might be an LP reset at some point.
Matsumoto: There will be no LP reset. This is a new system we're preparing for Street Fighter 6.
Nakayama: Since before the game's release, we already knew that passionate fans are going to reach the top ranks fast. The pro gamer Haitani has already brought all of the characters to Master Rank, it made me think "He plays way too much!" haha. But we'll be bringing this to you in the near future so please look forward to it.
For the first time since before launch, Nakayama makes mention of "Master Leagues," which will be designated for top ranked players. From the sound of it, Master ranked players will be able to wager points against other Master-level players within this league, which is something we haven't quite seen in a Street Fighter game yet.
So that's that. There will be no ranked points reset, and those who have had concerns with achieving Master rank being a bit too easy should have those concerns quelled with Master Leagues.
But what about balance patches? Some feel the game needs a balance patch right now, but Capcom already has plans for these in place as well.
According to the developers, we should be seeing one major balance patch about once a year. This is mainly due to the tournament season and it not being the best idea to change things drastically when the season is ongoing.
Here's what Nakayama and Matsumoto had to say on the matter:
Inside-Games: I think a lot of players are interested in balance adjustments as well. Do you have a specific direction in mind?
Nakayama: Our general idea is once a year. It's not good to shift balance during tournament seasons, so we want to keep that in mind moving towards Capcom Cup. But when there are issues like the unintentional throw tech problem from the other day, we will work to fix them immediately. There might still be small changes here and there, but that's our general aim.
Matsumoto: To put it a different way, our vision is to have a "full cast balance change" once a year.
Nakayama: Also, regarding balance, we will be trying to generally buff rather than nerf as much as possible.
Inside-Games: Buff... E. Honda... GULP
Nakayama: Since before release, we spent over 2 years playing hundreds of matches every day and tweaking things back and forth so I don't think there will be anything too extreme. It seems a lot of people are struggling against E. Honda, but looking at the data both E. Honda and JP's win rates have decreased quite a bit since the first days after the game's release. Also at Red Bull Kumite the other day, Marisa was the winner. It'll be interesting to see if her popularity rises from that.
It looks as though fans will be waiting until after Capcom Cup for Street Fighter 6's first big balance patch. On top of that, it is nice to know that the developers are aiming to target the entire cast for changes with these patches, and that they're looking more to buff than to nerf.
At this point in time, Street Fighter 6 is on the verge of receiving its first big shake up in the form of its first DLC character release. Rashid is the first of the four incoming DLC fighters to launch, and he will become available on July 24.
