Arc System Works has revealed plans to release no less than five titles to Steam from now until Summer 2016. Fighting game and River City fans, you better start saving up.
Without further ado, here are the games and their release dates:
River City Super Sports Challenge: All Stars Special (December 2015)
This is Arc System Works’ remake of the original Downtown Nekketsu Koushinkyoku: Soreyuke Daiundoukai, a sports game released on the Famicom, and the first River City game they’ve made since acquiring the license.
BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend (February 2016)
This should need no further introduction, as one of the major anime themed fighting games of the past few years and essentially Arc System’s flagship video game. Well, it would be if not for:
Guilty Gear Xrd Sign (December 10, 2015)
While this PC port may be a little too late for many gamers' tastes, especially with Guilty Gear Revelator on the horizon, it's still a significant release for the studio. Competitive gamers may feel compelled to catch up to the series on PlayStation 4, but that doesn't mean it will stay exclusive there forever.
Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late (Summer 2016)
Often shortened to UNIB, Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late is a newer 2D fighting game franchise, chronicling the fight between the beastly Voids and their human counterparts, the In-births. You can learn more about its unique and well balanced gameplay systems here.
Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code (Spring 2016)
Finally, this is the crown jewel of the announced games. Melty Blood Actress Again last saw an updated release in 2011, but retained a niche following among Japanese fighting game fans throughout the years.
Did you notice anything interesting from this list? All of them have been released on PlayStation platforms on one form or another. This represents a brave step forward for Arc System Works, following those of fellow smaller Japanese developers Nihon Falcom and Treasure bringing their games to the West via Steam. Even Umihara Kawase has found its way to the platform, a sign that Japanese developers are now, more than ever, more interested in the Western PC market.
For this reason, however, the decision to only bring Guilty Gear Xrd Sign to Steam today perplexing and counterintuitive. Gulty Gear doesn't do so well on PlayStation that it's worth making exclusive. On the contrary, Street Fighter V's dual platform release should be an indication there's enough of a market on PC to cater to them as well. Many other fighters, like Mortal Kombat, make it a point to release simultaneously on multiple platforms as well.
Which of these games are you most looking forward to on Steam? Do you think Arc System Works should look into matching PC and console release dates in the future? Any other niche Japanese developers you want to see make the jump to Steam? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.
