It’s that time of year again. If you’re anything like me, you probably have a lot of people on your holiday shopping list and you don’t know what to get for half the people on that list. I suppose you could get a nice sweater for Aunt Ruth, getting her back for all those bad sweaters you’ve collected over the years, and you might be inclined to an engraved hip flask for Uncle Carl, since he’ll need some of that happy juice to make it through another boring year with Aunt Ruth.
But what about the fighting game fan in your family? This is the kind of guy well versed in the art of hadoukens and shoryukens, so you have a reasonably good grasp on his interests. What does this Street Fighter fanatic want during the Christmas season? Since I’m the resident fighting video game enthusiast here at Futurelooks, the task has been bestowed upon me to create a gift guide for this demographic. Brush up on your battle skills, because the malls are going to be brutal.
Collectible Figurines for the Win
“Me bouncy!”
Easily one of the most iconic characters to come out of the SNK family of fighting games is Mai Shiranui. This fame doesn’t really come from her ability to hurl your fans and run elbows into your face; it comes largely because of her, um, buoyant endowment? Even if the King of Fighters fan in your life isn’t a total horndog, there’s a lot of enjoyment to be had from collecting some cool figurines from these popular games.
If you’d rather get something a little more suitable for a PG-13 audience, you shouldn’t have any trouble finding a wide range of interesting action figures and collectible figurines from the full pantheon of fighting games. Here are a few from the SNK King Fighters franchise; I think the Kyo figure is particularly cool.
Alternatively, you can opt for both realistic and cartoon-inspired characters from the Street Fighter universe. With the revitalization of that franchise via Street Fighter IV and the upcoming Super Street Fighter IV, we’ve also been blessed with a nice collection of mini-statues and figurines. Look for a detailed version of Zangief for some outlandish facial expressions.
Tekken 6 Special Edition Bundle
Even though it’s been out for quite some time, everyone is still talking about the Mad Catz Fight Stick Tournament Edition, saying that it is the best arcade stick money can buy when it comes to having the arcade fighting game experience at home. The Street Fighter IV art is quite nice and the Marvel vs. Capcom 2 version looks pretty cool too. However, it’s still a wired controller in a world of wireless connectivity.
If your budget allows for a $150 gift, one of the best presents for any fighting game fantatic is the Tekken 6 Special Edition Bundle. Available for both the PlayStation 3 (in black) and the Xbox 360 (in white), this bundle provides not only the awesome Tekken 6 video game and an exclusive art book, but it also comes with a wireless Hori Fighting Stick with special Tekken-inspired graphics. This is the first wireless arcade stick for the PS3 and Xbox 360.
Considering that the game by itself could easily run you somewhere in the $60-$70 range, you’re really buying the wireless arcade stick for under $100. That’s actually a pretty good deal, especially since you get to enjoy a wireless fighting experience. Hori is well-known for its quality and the company assures us that you will experience next to zero lag.
Wearing Your Fighting Game Fandom with Pride
Want to give a cool give to the Sonic Boom warrior or Sub-Zero kombatant in your life? Don’t want to break the bank doing it while still offering something that is reasonably original and unlikely to be found elsewhere unless you happen to hang out with a lot of other fighting game geeks? Then consider a simple t-shirt inspired by our favorite games.
I was able to find the Street Fighter IV-inspired t-shirt above through a quick search on eBay and you can probably find it through a variety of different online stores as well. Just as you can easily find a range of retro shirts that kick it with Mario, Pac-Man, or Space Invaders, you can just as easily find something with a great graphic from Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, or Soul Calibur.
Some of the best shirts are the ones that come with some kind of convergence or crossover appeal. The brown shirt above, for example, is meant to take some inspiration from the logo for Major League Baseball while showing lone wolf Ryu busting out a fireball. The little directions in the bottom-right corner are an added bonus, since the “hadouken” motion is positively iconic for fighting game fans.
The Cosplay for the Everyday Warrior
Sometimes, a regular old t-shirt just won’t do. Sometimes, they’ll want a little bit more to express their dedication to the Satsui no Hado. Sometimes, they want to put on a remarkably stiff wig so that they can imagine they are performing a Raging Demon of some kind or another.
Yes, it can be Halloween every day for the Street Fighter fanatic in your life. Yes, he’s going to get some strange looks from random passers-by and it may look especially odd when a black Akuma happens to walk down the street, but so be it. This is fighting game fandom to the nth degree. It’d also make for a great costume for when (not if) the recipient makes his way over to Comic Con.
The Akuma/Gouki costume shown above can be found at HalloweenCostumeSale for about fifty bucks and it comes with the gi top and bottom, rope belt, fighting gloves, and a prayer bead necklace. Unfortunately, the flaming red wig is not included.
It’s Almost Like Gaming on the Go
You know those keychain remotes that can be used to make a variety of sound effects? They usually get you to press a single button and then it can let out some kind of amusing sound. Well, this Street Fighter keychain takes that to a whole new level.
Sporting the appearance of a mini arcade stick, the keychain comes in four varieties: Ken, Ryu, Chun-Li, and Dhalsim. Instead of hitting a single button to let out a sound, you actually go through the motions to “perform” a special move. Do a shoryuken to get the keychain to yell out, “Shoryuken.” This includes not only the regular special moves, but also the super arts! Better still, this keychain is only about $13
If All Else Fails, Find Some More Fighting Games
Taking a chance on a more creative gift, like the Mai figurine or the Akuma costume, may solicit more surprise on Christmas morning, but you may be more inclined to take the safe route during this holiday season instead. Depending on the console of choice, your favorite fighting game fan may want a copy of BlazBlue, King of Fighters XII, Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny, Virtua Fighter 5 Online, or reaching much further back, Dead or Alive 4.
Whatever the case, remember that not all gamers are made alike. The big fan of Halo 3 ODST might not be all that excited about Forza Motorsport 3, just as the guy who fought Justin Wong might not be particularly enthralled with Final Fantasy XII.
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Futurelooks Holiday 2009 – Gift Guide for Fighting Game Fans – Photo Gallery
