An All-Time Low for 2v2 Tag Fighters...

Well, the sun has blown up, Hell has turned blue and this one is gonna be devastating. If you're living under a rock, 2XKO is ceasing active development on December and the Lux trailer dropped. I watched it and they killed it with Lux being a shoto-inspired character. The trailer was met with buzz over Lux's 2XKO style and her shoto-inspired kit. She looks dope as heck, but I would've known that Darius would be rude to Lux during his intro dialogue with her down the line. Lux's release is in September 8. After that, it's off to Samira to be the final character before development ends. I gotta wonder if Samira is like a pseudo-Polynesian like Illaoi. Yeah, move over, Moana. We have a new warrior in town.

I said I have a small fire of hope recently because a #Save2XKO petition was made and it's somehow growing. Since Samira will be the final character before active development on 2XKO ends, Sajam is making calls for more characters like Sett and Riven. I'm making calls for more characters as well and it's not just Riven and Sett, but Ashe, Garen, Lucian, Gangplank, Miss Fortune, Kennen, Leona, Malcolm Graves, Vayne and Sona. Evo France is around the corner, so since 2XKO is in the lineup, we should use Evo France to help tackle Riot's revenue goals so that we can convince Riot to continue actively developing 2XKO.

If Evo France doesn't work, let's hope the game makes it at Evo Vegas again so that we can use it to help Riot's revenue goals and bring 2XKO back into active development. It did well with Skullgirls when it was chosen to be at Evo Online to bring the game back into active development.

2XKO isn't the only 2v2 tag fighter that was on the chopping block as another one was also on the chopping block, SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level.

This is a fan-made 2v2 tag fighter that pits SEGA and Capcom characters against each other and uses a combat similar to Tatsunoko vs. Capcom for the Wii. Like others, the game had a rocky launch because of bugs. The hotfix has remedied various bugs the game has launched with. We got a teaser for the new feature coming in the next major update, the palette editor. This was met with a lot of buzz with those comparing it to the palette editor in Melty Blood: Type Lumina. I have future plans for this one as well and planned to cover improvements the game needs in a future post, but... one unfortunate and devastating piece of news came up. SEGA vs. Capcom has been shut down.

This devastated news has set the internet ablaze. MadXRuler has implied that the game went places. It came along really nicely that it was showcased at the Wonder Convention and at the Akihabara Arcade. To be clear, neither Capcom nor SEGA had any affiliation with this game. It was essentially a fan-made game to support both companies and not infringe on both of their copyrights. I'm also impressed at the work they had done with this incredible fan made tag fighter.

Almost months later since release, SEGA and Capcom have a response to the fan made tag fighter. SEGA's response? Nothing. They actually adored the developers' work they had done with their fan game as they remained silent. This is the grace for SEGA, so we can move on. Capcom's response? Can you guess? I think you can guess what Capcom's response is. They somehow issued a cease and desist order over their characters and likeness and shut it down. I... I just... I don't get it. Look, I gotta speak candidly for a moment because I have a few words to say about this and I may be off script here.

2XKO literally resonated well with a passionate core audience the moment the game launched on console. It became buzz-worthy of being an innovative 2v2 tag fighter with co-op features and League of Legends characters. But it's not enough to cover revenue goals, contributing to laying off half of the team to cite momentum not reaching the level for sustainability and ceasing active development due to its low player retention not meeting Riot's revenue goals as a responsible choice. SEGA vs. Capcom also essentially resonated well with a passionate core audience and drew over 6,000 players. That number of players is more than enough to render a high player retention and a commercial success. 

And Skullgirls continued active development despite challenges because Autumn Games owned the Skullgirls IP in the first place, not developers Autumn worked with in the past. Not only that, Rivals of Aether 2 is getting more characters that will be free at launch announced at the Evo Announcement Show.

The thing is, both SEGA and Capcom made a response to the fan-made game. SEGA said, "Hey, your fan game is amazing. We should support that." SEGA's response was a good one. But do you know what Capcom said? They said, "We're gonna have to give you a cease and desist order for violating our IP rights." Then they shut it down! This is what has become an all-time low for us fans of 2v2 tag fighters as 2XKO and SEGA vs. Capcom were on the chopping block for some time only to be left in the dust when Marvel Tokon and Invincible VS aren't! You cannot tell me, "Akali, Sakura Shinguji, Magik, Atom Eve, yeah, potato potato!" But listen, I don't want a put a slant on these characters. I love these characters. They fit well with my playstyle. But two 2v2 tag fighters being left in the dust is objectively a bad thing!

I understand player retention not reaching Riot's revenue goals for 2XKO's long-term development and sustainability, so I don't want to put a slant on that neither. But what I'm putting a slant on is the part when Capcom shut down a very successful and perfectly fan made game like SEGA vs. Capcom because of its use of Capcom's characters and likeness! This is exactly what I have experienced in Escape from Ever After and Bug Fables, two Paper Mario-inspired games I genuinely had fun playing.

There's NO stark reason to slap a cease and desist sticker on a commercially successful, albeit non-profit fan game that was just going places just because it's using Capcom's characters and likeness and then outright shut it down. There's no purpose to this. 2XKO went places during the Alpha Lab playtests that feedback kicked in. Again, no slant to 2XKO's active development ending in December due to poor engagement not hitting Riot's revenue goals with the opportunity for us to bring community support to 2XKO. But shutting down SEGA vs. Capcom over its use of Capcom's IP? Not an excusable one!

To layer on top of this poop sandwich, with Marvel Tokon and Invincible VS as the bread and 2XKO and SEGA vs. Capcom as the toppings, Capcom, the move you made was absolutely inexcusable! It was butt cheeks! It was so frustrating that the palette editor was in the works and I asked for Duo Play, until it was scrapped because the game was shut down because you put your darn little C&D sticker on a perfectly polished fan-game that was successful and not intended to violate your IP rights.

Now, listen, I understand IP rights to characters, but it SHOULD NOT be an ideal reason or excuse to terminate their non-profit fan game they poured their hearts into! I can't believe Capcom shut down on a commercially successful and perfectly polished fan game over its use of characters.

I gotta calm down. What I have experienced got me genuinely fired up. In fact, I need to keep my mind off of what made me mad because it's planning a livestream to cover Marvel Tokon and Invincible VS. With 2XKO and SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level left in the dust after being on the chopping block for quite some time, we have to divert and focus our attention to two superhero-based tag fighters that aren't 2v2. I had characters I want for both games, let it be Miss Fortune, Honey, Lucian, Falcon, Garen, Ulala, Sona, Zero, Sett, NiGHTS, Vayne and Bayonetta and everyone else from their giant pile of legendary characters on both sides!

The point is... "sigh* Capcom, you shouldn't had shut down a very successful fan game developers had been working their butts on just because it uses your legendary characters. Please show fan games that feature your characters with a lot of respect instead of slapping cease and desist orders on them. And as for you, Riot, I thank you for the wonderful League of Legends tag fighter that couldn't get another year of development. I wish the 2XKO team good luck on their future endeavors and hope they come back stronger and better for their next game.

Marvel Tokon - First Impressions and Thoughts

"drinks water* Marvel Tokon is dope. In fact, the game is so good and popular, I think it's gonna get a lot of love from fans, so today, I'm gonna share my first impressions and thoughts about what do I think of Marvel Tokon so far.

First off, if you have been living under a rock, Marvel Tokon has recieved critical acclaim from various critics, indicating that this game has been killing it with a Sonic Heroes-esque format in story mode that has five stories, 4v4 tag mechanics and a decent cast of Marvel heroes and villains. A while back, I made a post that claimed that Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls became the new heart of the FGC. And it will be since the game is making its first appearance at Evo France 2026.

Danger_Bot over on the official Marvel Tokon Discord announced that a patch is coming on Friday, which is today, to include fixes to performance issues on PC and provide PC and PS5 stability improvements.

And there are reactions to the post that are overwhelmingly positive because the patch they pushed in had alleviated performance issues that became the continuous point of contention since launch. It also have emojis of Marvel Tokon characters. The one with the most reactions is Black Panther. Both Black Panther and Magik came nip and tuck to each other.

Today's patch came out and it remedies the issues in the PC version and brings in stability improvements for both versions, including fixes for several crashes.

All of the reactions are positive, praising devs fixing the frame drop issues on PC. This post has the Wolverine emoji having the most reactions so far to honor his Battle Reborn Suit being available to all players for free and his new game by Insomniac coming out soon. It's a good thing I didn't play it online until the patch comes out to fix the issues. Enough with the patch. Let's get into the nitty gritty of this post.

Marvel Tokon is near perfect. The gameplay is decent and its 4v4 tag mechanics became the best. The characters and environment having a blend of American comics and Japanese manga are incredibly charming. The special moves are the best in the game. It has two ways to perform special moves, one button specials with directional influences like in Smash and motion inputs and attack buttons. Both are the same, but the motion input versions deal 1000 more damage than the one button special versions, which is how the "Good!" text appears in game. The comic book-style cutscenes in the story are the best in the game. I could just sit there and watch them as well.

So, when you assign your team on Battle Settings, the main menu screen displays the four characters on your team and the trim color varies by character you make as leader. That is the coolest thing about this. What you're seeing now has parts of the main menu screen colored blue because Magik is the leader of my team. Now, I will be the first to say, I am not a pro with Magik as I typically am with Annie in Skullgirls or Akali in 2XKO and will be with Atom Eve in Invincible VS when it comes to playstyles. But regardless, I had fun with her.

And what is even cooler is that it generates a front cover of your four-person team when you lock it in on the character select screen. It has the Marvel logo with the player number below it, a barcode on the lower left hand corner and the name of your team. I did find me a team already. What is the team I'm using?

Well, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, Hellbound Shapeshifters, featuring Magik, Ms. Marvel, Star-Lord and Green Goblin.

But there is a bit of a caveat to this. I am still working on learning Green Goblin since he rides on his glider in his Skill attack to contribute to his C-tier ease of use and his combos are a part of it. Star-Lord is relatively easy to learn. He gives you a nice dopamine rush when shooting projectiles as a typical gun and ball gamer. He is not a Noel-like, but he is fun, though. Ms. Marvel is essentially the Cerebella of Marvel Tokon with a lumpsum of punches. I did a livestream showcasing this team to use online. To make myself clear, the livestream dropped before today's patch came out. That's why framedrops were captured on stream.

I can't help but wonder what this team makes me think of. I can't quite put my finger on it. Oh yeah, it sounds a lot like the Adventures of Flynt Buckler. You know, the fictional storybook in Escape From Ever After entailed Flynt's mission to defeat Tinder the Dragon became a backfire and new characters join in? It exactly sounds like that.

See, Marvel Tokon is in a much healthier position and state now, thanks to the patch that mitigates performance issues, but unfortunately, with prepositions to being a 4v4 tag fighter, both teams share with one health bar. When you used the "It's Mahvel, Baybee!" term when Marvel Tokon was announced, it served as a spiritual successor to the Marvel vs. Capcom franchise. Marvel vs. Capcom has been a long line of tag fighting games for almost three decades, with games like Marvel vs. Capcom 2 being a masterclass in tag fighting. Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, however, sold poorly to not have a second season. Well, Marvel Tokon is a spiritual successor to Marvel vs. Capcom, but it's not Marvel vs. Capcom.

But to the general public, there's nothing that can come close to Marvel vs. Capcom 2, until one game that did. And that's Marvel Tokon. Marvel Tokon proved that you can make a new Marvel fighter to be a masterclass to the general public. Again, Tokon is the masterclass of a Marvel fighter to be met with overwhelming positivity. This shows that Marvel has been a product for decades with web-slinging, slicing with claws, causing destruction and so on. The success of Dragon Ball FighterZ allowed Marvel Tokon to come to fruition as the masterclass of a tag fighter because they have rich innovation, right tools and resources and a smaller team. Speaking of, I seem to realize something.

Remember what happened weeks after 2XKO came out on console? Half of the team was laid off due to its flop at launch. The cause of this is that 2XKO has started development when the team was large, but due to layoffs, active development ends in December after a year due to low player retention falling short of revenue goals, leaving a long chain of disappointment and sadness and the game to remain available and online for the foreseeable future. They knew that larger teams have no idea what they are doing while smaller teams have the tendency to stay focused on making games properly without the distractions. That's how Highguard became an utter commercial failure to contribute to shutting it down.

Here's the thing. Marvel Tokon was developed by Arc System Works, a small studio that Sony doesn't own. They only helped publish it, which makes it a stark difference in comparison to a modern AAA titles today. Now, imagine if a smaller and focused team started developing 2XKO. Upon launch, the game would have an overkill player retention and momentum would reach the level needed for long-term sustainability because small scale teams are always focused. This is something that is basically intended to explain how Overwatch became an utter commercial success in the first place.

Marvel Tokon isn't the only tag fighter that was developed from the start by a small team. Invincible VS and even SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level were developed from the start by small teams of Quarter Up and 4CYDE Studios. 2026 now has a trifecta of tag fighters that were developed from the start by small teams that have the tendency to take creative risks and drive a high-to-overkill player retention at launch. However, they have made a rocky launch like 2XKO did. I expect to see Invincible VS, at the very least, have years of support like Marvel Tokon and SEGA vs. Capcom.

Remember what I said that Sona could be the Ulala of 2XKO? I had a interest in seeing Sona in 2XKO like I had with Miss Fortune, Leona, Graves, Vayne, Garen, Lucian and a treasure trove of characters I want and in seeing the singer in SEGA vs. Capcom, until I heard that 2XKO is ceasing active development in December. That prompted me to delete posts that talks about the future of 2XKO and Diaphone to quit his job.

Fortunately, after looking through the history of Marvel characters, I found a character that could potentially be the Ulala of Marvel Tokon, and that is Songbird. Yes, Songbird could be the Ulala of Marvel Tokon. She is in fact, known for her musical abilities you'd see in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2. See, I have a stark interest in seeing Songbird in Marvel Tokon in some way, shape or form as I have with Luna Snow, Psylocke, Winter Soldier, Punisher and a treasure trove of legendary Marvel characters.

Not only we have Marvel Tokon because we also are experiencing another tag fighter on the DC side of things. And that is DCKO, a 2v2 tag fighter with various characters across the DC Universe. Suffice to say that DCKO is going to be left in the dust as it's gonna be a Mobile game.

Now, if there is one thing I want in Marvel Tokon, I would say an online co-op game mode. An online co-op game mode in Marvel Tokon sounds like a great idea to me. It allows four players on the same team to battle against four players, like how KOF and Dragon Ball FighterZ handled having an online co-op game mode to have three players against three players and how 2XKO handled Duo Play where two players work as a duo. Think about it, I can team up with three of my friends and take on four of our opponents. That would be straight up crazy, don't you think?

In conclusion and summary, Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is dope. I loved the comic book stylization and the designs that have a blend of American comics and Japanese manga for characters. I am loving every second of it. These are my first impressions and thoughts regarding Marvel Tokon. Evo France is around the corner and that's where Marvel Tokon will have its first appearance at. And now that the patch came out to fix issues, the real fun starts and I can take it online.

Why Did 2XKO Flop at Launch?

A lot of people became disappointed that 2XKO is ceasing active development in December due to a low retention. So what happened? Why did 2XKO flop at launch? Let's jump right in.

Before we can actually answer why 2XKO flopped at launch and cite the factors that contributed to its low player retention at launch, we need to go back to the beginning of the game's development.

2XKO started out with six characters in Alpha Lab 1. It became a starting point for the game's development. After Alpha Lab 1 concluded, feedback went all over the place and the devs evaluated their feedback for the next playtest, Alpha Lab 2. It introduced a cast of seven characters, with Jinx as the newest addition. It was a disappointingly smaller playtest as Riot was working on an infrastructure. If we go straight to Early Access, it was criticized for having a small character roster when other tag fighters have a large roster of characters.

So now, we can answer this question. Why did 2XKO flop at launch? There is one thing we need to get out of the way. The game was criticized for having a small roster, especially when choosing two of them. You can't have a tag fighter, in this case, 2XKO, with a small character roster. It's has been the point of criticism for small rosters on a tag fighter, so whoever did this, pays the price.

The small free pool of six characters made it harder for new players to try out the game. That's another subject of 2XKO's low player retention along with having a small character roster at launch. 2XKO launching with eleven characters and a free pool of the first six characters contributed to its flop. This brings me to monologue how development of 2XKO should've unfolded before launch.

February 2025 - 7th and 8th character reveals
March 2025 - 9th and 10th character reveals + Alpha Lab 2
April 2025 - 11th and 12th character reveals

May 2025 - 13th and 14th character reveals

June 2025 - 15th and 16th character reveals
July 2025 - 17th and 18th character reveals

August 2025 - 19th and 20th character reveals
September 2025 - 21st and 22nd character reveals + Closed Beta

October 2025 - 23rd and 24th character reveals + Early Access

Again, a small roster of characters and a small free pool of the first six characters are the two things that made it harder for new players to approach. Other tag fighters I know have a largeer character roster at launch. Invincible VS launched with 18 characters, Hunter X Hunter: NEN Impact launched with 16 characters, Marvel Tokon launched with 20 characters, and 2XKO should've launched with 24 characters and they all should've been free by default because a small roster at launch with the first six characters being free by default is the factor that made it harder for new players, contributing to its low player retention.

In reality, we're having 17 characters this year and will remain that way. The suggestion to how it should've been during development has seven characters. It makes it a total 24 characters. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom has 24 characters if you're excluding the two juggernaut characters, PTX-40A and G. Lightan. With 24 characters free at launch and post-launch characters to be unlocked with Credits, KO Points and through Recruitment Events, 2XKO would have a high to overkill player retention so that it would recieve content for years to come and the team would remain intact. That said, I decided to list the seven characters that should've been confirmed before 2XKO launched.

1. Katarina

Right off the bat, I'm going to talk about the only character that has been absent, Katarina. I seem to figure out why Katarina had to be absent. If you look back at the earlier stages, Katarina's kit did not fit well in a tag fighter that she had to be Thanos-snapped from the game. I have been chasing her for quite some time, until I realized that her kit didn't fit will in a tag fighter, so they had to scrap her from the game. While I am lamenting Katarina's absence, there is one silver-lining to all this.

The first is that if Katarina's kit did fit well in a 2v2 tag fighter, then maybe 2XKO would've had an even number of characters in Alpha Lab 2, Closed Beta and Early Access and cease active development at 18 characters, because Katarina's absence would contribute to having an odd number of characters and that's the one that became a hiccup. That's why I talked about her first.

Character roster that should've been (Includes Katarina):

Ahri
Akali
Blitzcrank

Braum
Caitlyn
Darius
Ekko
Illaoi
Jinx
Katarina
Lux
Samira
Senna
Teemo
Thresh
Vi
Warwick
Yasuo

Before we get to the next six characters, let's take a look at the SEGA and Capcom sides that should've been if Katarina hadn't been absent and the key points across the board. We'll start with the SEGA side.

Ahri, Blitzcrank, Caitlyn, Ekko, Jinx remain. Lux, Senna, Thresh and Warwick move. The SEGA side would've been Ahri, Blitzcrank, Caitlyn, Ekko, Jinx, Lux, Senna, Thresh and Warwick.

Akali, Braum, Darius, Illaoi remain. Katarina introduced. Samira, Teemo, Vi and Yasuo move. That would've been Akali, Braum, Darius, Illaoi, Katarina, Samira, Teemo, Vi and Yasuo on the Capcom side.

SEGA side:

Ahri
Blitzcrank
Caitlyn
Ekko
Jinx
Lux
Senna
Thresh
Warwick

Capcom side:

Akali
Braum
Darius
Illaoi
Katarina
Samira
Teemo
Vi
Yasuo

Key points:

Ahri on the SEGA side = NiGHTS
Blitzcrank on the SEGA side = Vectorman
Caitlyn on the SEGA side = Gain Ground
Ekko on the SEGA side =  Pulseman
Jinx on the SEGA side = Jet Set Radio
Lux on the SEGA side = Space Channel 5
Senna on the SEGA side = Bayonetta
Thresh on the SEGA side = Mansion of Haunted Souls
Warwick on the SEGA side = Altered Beast

Akali on the Capcom side = Power Stone
Darius on the Capcom side = Knights of the Round

So we now have the SEGA and Capcom sides and the key points for when Katarina hadn't been scrapped. This is the only info to have without a subjective information.

2. Kennen

Kennen is located at background of Bandlewood Crossing, indicating that Riot has deconfirmed none of the characters. He would've been confirmed up front and could be a Sonic-like in 2XKO, but he will never make it to the roster because active development on 2XKO will cease.

3. Ashe

A while back, I mentioned that 2XKO never had a bow and arrow character. In this case, Ashe can be the one that the game would've answered with. She could swing her bow and fire arrows with S1 like how Caitlyn swings her rifle and fired it with S1. I would love to see the Frost Archer, but my hopes have been kaput because the game is ceasing active development and it's not a good thing.

4. Leona

2XKO never had a Targonian character and Leona would've been the first Targonian to ever come to the game if Riot revealed two characters per month up until Early Access where it should've had 24 characters instead of 11. I do love to see the Radiant Dawn, but she won't see the light of day. Heh, light. You get it because Leona has the power of light in her sword.

5. Garen

So, Lux is on her way to 2XKO and I said that her brother is likely to debut as his sister did. However, we are getting Lux, but her brother will never make it as the game is going to cease active development. I just want to experience the brother and sister duo too...

6. Miss Fortune

When the game had its Alpha Lab 1, the Brazen Hydra is one of the stages in Bilgewater. And if you look at the background on the far right, there are wanted posters for Gangplank and Tahm Kench. Miss Fortune should've been in the game in the first place because of the tavern in Bilgewater having wanted posters. Not including her in the first place along with others would contribute to the game's small roster and the misdirection Riot has taken, especially with the tavern in Bilgewater. Our red-haired pirate will never make it.

7. Sett

Sett has been the most popular request and that's something I have heard when watching 2XKO Pools. He, in fact, would've been the desired fourth Ionian character if development of 2XKO keeps going. I was gonna choose Lee Sin, but Sett is the highly requested.

Character roster that should've been:

Ahri
Akali

Ashe
Blitzcrank
Braum
Caitlyn
Darius
Ekko
Garen
Illaoi
Jinx
Katarina

Kennen
Leona
Lux
Miss Fortune
Samira
Senna
Sett
Teemo
Thresh
Vi
Warwick
Yasuo

As I have said before, the 24 character roster is good for a tag fighter. This is how it should've been in Early Access if Riot revealed two characters before Alpha Lab 2 and two characters every month up until Early Access, so I have decided to divide the 24-character roster into the SEGA and Capcom sides that should've been across the board and state the key points. We'll start with the SEGA side.

Ahri, Jinx and Samira remain. Ashe, Garen, Kennen and Sett get added. Braum, Darius, Lux. Thresh and Warwick move. The SEGA side would've had Ahri, Ashe, Braum, Darius, Garen, Jinx, Kennen, Lux, Samira, Sett, Thresh and Warwick.

Akali, Illaoi and Senna remain. Katarina, Leona and Miss Fortune get added. Blitzcrank, Caitlyn, Ekko, Teemo, Vi and Yasuo move. That would've put Akali, Blitzcrank, Caitlyn, Ekko, Illaoi, Katarina, Leona, Miss Fortune, Senna, Teemo, Vi and Yasuo on the Capcom side.

SEGA side:

Ahri
Ashe
Braum
Darius
Garen
Jinx
Kennen
Lux
Samira
Sett
Thresh
Warwick

Capcom side:

Akali
Blitzcrank
Caitlyn
Ekko
Illaoi
Katarina
Leona
Miss Fortune
Senna
Teemo
Vi
Yasuo

Key points:

Ahri on the SEGA side = NiGHTS
Ashe on the SEGA side = Skies of Arcadia
Darius on the SEGA side = Valkyria Chronicles

Garen on the SEGA side = Shining the Holy Ark
Jinx on the SEGA side = Jet Set Radio
Kennen on the SEGA side = Sonic the Hedgehog
Lux on the SEGA side = Space Channel 5
Samira on the SEGA side = Valkyria Chronicles
Sett on the SEGA side = Streets of Rage
Thresh on the SEGA side = Mansion of Hidden Souls
Warwick on the SEGA side = Altered Beast

Akali on the Capcom side = Power Stone
Blitzcrank on the Capcom side = Mega Man X
Caitlyn on the Capcom side = Alien vs. Predator (Arcade game)
Senna on the Capcom side = Darkstalkers
Yasuo on the Capcom side = Onimusha

We now have the standings for the SEGA and Capcom sides and the key points to them that should've happened in the first place if Riot revealed two characters before Alpha Lab 2 and every month up until Early Access because again, a small roster on a tag fighter contributed to its low player retention at launch. Then something hit me.

The roster went heavy on Arcane characters, with Lux being the sixth one. That was in 2021 when Ekko was introduced. Jinx was introduced in Alpha Lab 2. Vi was introduced in Closed Beta. Warwick was introduced in Early Access. Caitlyn was introduced in Season 1. And finally, Lux will be introduced in September's patch. It is kind of weird that 2XKO would be influenced by Arcane because of the graffiti in the lobbies. But listen, I don't want to put a slant on Arcane. I liked Arcane. I thoroughly enjoyed the fight scenes in it and the part where Caitlyn and Vi had sex with each other, contributing to wanting Caitlyn in 2XKO because of Vi.

Expectations:

• Two character reveals per month after Alpha Lab 2 starting in April up until Early Access
• 22 characters and 14 stages during Closed Beta
• 24 characters and 16 stages during Early Access
• All characters and stages in Early Access free by default
• Heavy reliability on League of Legends characters
• Cross-region support
• Arcane Bundle costs $50
• Materializing Katarina
• Custom lobbies
• All above points contribute to a high to overkill retention to continue active development for years to come

Mistakes:

• 8th character reveal in June
• 9 characters and five stages during Closed Beta
• 11 characters and seven stages during Early Access
• First six characters and first four stages free by default
• Heavy reliability on Arcane characters
• Region-locked
• Arcane Bundle costs $100
• Scrapping Katarina
• Private lobbies
• All above points contribute to a low retention to shrink the team and cease active development

If Riot hadn't made any mistakes and met up with the expectations I have listed above during development, 2XKO wouldn't flop at launch. And even if player retention is low enough to not cover rising costs, they could rely on the community like how Blizzard did with Overwatch.

And that is my story about how 2XKO's development should've been and how did it have a low player retention at launch with factors that I have pinpointed. While it is a darn shame that 2XKO is ceasing active development, it's not as bad as the part where WB Games has had a small chip on their shoulder on what happened to MultiVersus as Riot is giving me a refund. What happened to MultiVersus, you ask? It's all of it is what happened. Whether it's predatory microtransactions, the misdirection they were going with the game and abysmal marketing at launch.

But Coach TJ Puma has started a #Save2XKO petition to rally talent and support. Maybe a new 2XKO team can pick up where the old team left off and learn from their mistakes the old team has made like the ones I listed above, who knows?

2XKO is Ceasing Active Development...

So, Season 3 and Lux are fast approaching and we have been waiting for news about them since the Coven Bundle came out. An announcement popped up and unfortunately, it is not looking good. Let's jump right in.

I'm back with a brand new post that has some bad and heartbreaking news. So, with fighting games rolling around like tumbleweeds in the wind this year, the fighting game community has been thriving, especially recently with the release of Marvel Tokon, Invincible VS, Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game and SEGA vs. Capcom. But specifically, I like to point out to the direction of the tag fighter on this post, the League of Legends tag fighter, 2XKO.

So, this game has came out of Early Access and launched on console in January, being met with positive buzz for innovative tag mechanics and co-op gameplay. However, as soon as the game launched on console, things took a turn for the game. Half of the 2XKO team was laid off. Momentum has not reached the level need for long-term development despite the buzz.

As we're approaching the time when Season 3 comes out, We were desperately waiting for Season 3 info to drop along with Lux's launch. Riot Games has posted a message on X, hoping it's Season 3 news and... can you guess what they announced? They announced that 2XKO is going to cease active development with the intention of leaving the servers online for the foreseeable future and refunding those who made purchases on the Starter Pack and KO Points before August 20th.

Wow. I don't know what to say about this matter. I gotta remain calm in a Buena Vista mood about this while candidly sharing how disappointed I am after seeing this devastating and bitter news that just hit me.

Alpha Lab 1 came out on PC and console and during the course, feedback went all over the place. Then Alpha Lab 2 became a disappointingly short playtest as Riot was working on the infrastructure to get the game prepared for Closed Beta as the first step of rolling out the game to everyone with giving those who playtested a guaranteed access to the game. Then Early Access launched exclusively on PC and a lot of players were itching to play the game on console and TOs were eager to set up the PS5 versions on offline tournaments. The console sneak peek video has made 9.8 million views on YouTube. This should've reflected as player engagement.

And do you know what happened? Weeks after console launch, half of the 2XKO team was laid off, citing momentum has not reached the level needed for sustainability. Then they were going to remain committed to developing 2XKO and gave us a sneak peak at Akali and Senna. Six months later, active development on 2XKO is going to end due to low player retention. When I said that if a game, like, I don't know, Crash Team Rumble could cease active development, then anything was possible, I didn't mean 2XKO.

The thing is, Riot looks at the League of Legends characters and said, "Hey, we should bring more League of Legends characters to 2XKO." And do you know what happened after the console sneak peek? They turned around and confirmed yet another Arcane character that was Caitlyn Kiramman. Look, I don't want to put a slant on Arcane or Caitlyn. I liked Arcane. Caitlyn is the character I wanted because of Vi and the fact that I wanted to find out how she would perform in 2XKO. But confirming another Arcane character is how that happened.

I can't believe Riot sat there and confirmed Caitlyn over Leona, Lulu, Gangplank, Miss Fortune, Garen, Katarina, Sona, Vayne, Graves or a treasure trove of legendary characters just sitting right there in League of Legends and they decided to do that with the Sheriff of Piltover? Again, no slant to Arcane. If you hadn't watched it, you should. Then eight months later, Riot's just like, "Well, we tried, so we have no choice to cease active development and go back to the drawing board." I seriously don't understand why that Caitlyn, of all characters, had to be confirmed.

There are literally just a lot of characters just begging to be in the roster. I wish they can do another year or so, but that will never happen. That level of retention couldn't cover rising costs that doing another year would cost Riot more at the rate of retention, so they have no choice but to cease active development as a responsible choice, meaning that there will be no more new characters or stages. Not even Major events in the Competitive Series can help cover costs.

Skullgirls had a low player retention, but the game had continued active development regardless because a publisher like Autumn Games is the holder of the Skullgirls IP, not developers that Autumn worked with and they literally made that happen in the first place. The same went for Rivals of Aether 2. I never played Rivals of Aether 2, but we're getting more characters in that game because Aether Studios is the publisher that owned all rights to the game and they are gonna be free. They announced two new characters before Rivals of Aether 2 Top 8 at Evo.

I made a post on X sharing how disappointed I am about 2XKO ceasing active development due to low player engagement. Even Diaphone is quitting his job to play this game in light of this news and I don't even blame him. Literally weeks after Marvel Tokon and SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level came out, 2XKO is ceasing active development in December and I am very disappointed.

Final SEGA side:

Ahri
Blitzcrank
Caitlyn
Ekko
Jinx
Samira
Teemo
Vi
Yasuo

Final Capcom side:

Akali
Braum
Darius
Illaoi
Lux
Senna
Thresh
Warwick

Final key points:

Ahri on the SEGA side = NiGHTS
Blitzcrank on the SEGA side = Vectorman
Caitlyn on the SEGA side = Gain Ground
Ekko on the SEGA side = Pulseman
Jinx on the SEGA side = Jet Set Radio
Samira on the SEGA side = Valkyria Chronicles
Vi on the SEGA side = Jet Set Radio
Yasuo on the SEGA side = Blood Will Tell: Tezuka Osamu's Dororo
Akali on the Capcom side = Power Stone
Darius on the Capcom side = Knights of the Round
Lux on the Capcom side = Star Gladiator
Senna on the Capcom side = Devil May Cry
Thresh on the Capcom side = Ghosts n' Goblins
Warwick on the Capcom side = Darkstalkers

Here are the final standings for the SEGA and Capcom sides and the key points. All of this have been finalized as 2XKO is going to cease active development in December because of the fact that the game couldn't have a sufficient player engagement. It has been a Maggie and the Ferocious Beast mess of things that weren't even half-baked because 2XKO not having a sufficient player engagement contributes to sunsetting active development despite early buzz. For that, I am cancelling my future plans.

My condolences and I'm sorry to the team that struggled to maintain player engagement of this game they pour their hearts and souls into and to Diaphone quitting his job. It sucks to end like this. I wish them the best of luck finding new ways to come back stronger for their next game. I have a follow up post that have the factors that cite 2XKO's flop at launch coming soon. If there's one good thing, at least Riot is bringing League of Legends characters to Fortnite, also another way of saying they're sorry.

I got to keep my act together. I have three reasons to keep my act together. One of them is actually Marvel Tokon. I played the Open Beta before and I am genuinely impressed by the quality that I already found a team for when I get the full game. Since the game is having a ten-year development cycle, I'll be looking forward to seeing more characters and other pieces of content.

The second reason is SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level. In the first livestream, Madxruler and FaRe'N'HiTe have straight up confirmed a bevy or a treasure trove of characters, and it's working; NiGHTS, Honey, Zero, Ristar, Ulala, Shadow the Hedgehog, Falcon and even B.D. Joe have been confirmed. This is definetely something that Riot should've done when developing 2XKO prior to release.

The third reason is a new leadership. I still have a little fire of hope on this one. One user has created a #Save2XKO petition to rally support and talent. Since 2XKO is ceasing active development, maybe a new team can pick up where the old team left off to continue active development under the new and dedicated team and leadership. If this new 2XKO team picks up where the old one left off, maybe they can give the game a second wind patch to throw in several new characters that should've been confirmed in the first place and turn KO Points back on, who knows? It worked well with Skullgirls that again, Autumn Games owns the Skullgirls IP, not developers they worked with. I'm not confirming anything, just saying it's a possibility.

Joe's Monologues - 8/16/26

I'm back with a brand new Joe's Monologues that I felt passionate about doing. We are in the second half of 2026 and approaching autumn, the time when everything cools down and the forests change their color of the leaves to yellow and orange and they fall down to the ground on the way to winter. Let's get into the post.

Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling

Let's kick it off with talking about something I did not do during my main playthrough on Bug Fables. On stream, I had to do something that I haven't done on my main playthrough in the first place. That is befriending Chompy. It is an optional companion not part of the main story, but it's a side quest. On stream, I have befriended Chompy and got the Tardigrade Shield. These are the two things I have not covered in my main playthrough. If I have befriended Chompy and acquired the Tardigrade Shield in the first place, then maybe I wouldn't have any problem beating the Everlasting King.

I am on the verge of uploading the rest of my Bug Fables Let's Play and I am closer to uploading every one of them. I also have planned to record and upload shorts in regards to this game on my gaming channel where gameplay shorts are being uploaded on it. I have uploaded one so far, but there are a lot more I have planned. Also, I'm about to upload a video that you'll never believe... 

As a reward for beating the game a while back, I have submitted my logo request for this game to Broken Saw. Guess what? My request has been fulfilled. Let's take a look at the video covering the logos.

SEGA vs. Capcom: The Next Level:

4CYDE Studios has released their fangame and I am amazed by all of their work they have done. But it was a terrible release because there are a few bugs like the one bug where Sakura Shinguji would not flinch when taking damage, and summon her mech like crazy. I have captured all of that and uploaded a short covering that on my gaming channel. Upon upload, it went viral despite not having my mic on. Thankfully, the bug has been fixed as they pushed out a hotfix before working on the next update that is certainly to have two new characters as you're seeing the slots with a question mark on it on the character select screen to indicate that they are coming soon.

Since Beat temporarily replaces Akira Yuki, it's likely that he's gonna return to the game in the next major update. The one on the Capcom side is unknown. It is only a matter of time before Season 1 gets into its post-Alpha glory. That's the Alpha phase they were referring to.

As you beat Arcade Mode, "To Be Continued..." appears. But what does it apply to? What does that exactly mean? Well, the game currently has 10 characters and will have more characters to come during the course of Season 1.

Here are the voice actors that voiced the respective characters. On the list, there are 12 of them. But something's not right. If we look at the bottom of the SEGA side of the cast, we can see that Sapphire is being credited for voicing Honey from Fighting Vipers, yet she is not even in the game yet. Why is it on there?

Well, a while back, 4CYDE Studios was looking for a voice actress to voice Honey for the main menu screen. Sapphire applied to be Honey's voice actress for the main menu screen. That's why it's on there. Ladies and gentlemen, we might be experiencing an indication that Honey from Fighting Vipers is confirmed to also be a playable character, which has me very excited for this.

Update Regarding Sony Ending Discs:

After Sony made and update that they are going to stop producing PlayStation discs for games that release in 2028 and onwards, it was met with record backlash, with the Change.org petition having over 500,000 signatures, the planned blackout boycott and multiple lawsuits. Then they posted after six days with the fighting stick, ignoring backlash like they are going to forget about the backlash-worthy announcement they made. The lawsuit against Sony is going strong. Even Stop Killing Games is joining the rebellion against Sony's all-digital future. However, the CFO said that there is a majority of digital purchases in Q1 of this and their decision is final.

However, a former Square Enix executive named Jacob Navok said that PlayStation culling discs is gonna make the PlayStation Store cheaper. Wait, what? I actually agree with this, but what's the point of people getting angry at Sony's decision to kill discs if it's gonna make the digital store cheaper?

What am I Going to Do Next:

What am I doing next? Well, there's an indie game that I am planning a Let's Play series on, which I can't reveal yet. There's a post that contains wanted posters for future 2XKO characters in the works and it's what I'll probably post next. There's also a post in the works that I want get something off my chest. I tied up most loose ends for the 2XKO livestream to couple with the Sonic Racing CrossWorlds livestream and put $30 on hold for when I get paid next month to buy Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls on Steam and have my initial team of Magik, Star-Lord, Ms. Marvel and Green Goblin in the full game. The regular story is that I made Magik as leader of the team and the truth lies a little more than that. You'll see what I'm talking about.

Conclusion:

Well, this one has a lot to go through. Before I end this post, I am going to share what am I gonna do when Sony culls discs for games releasing in 2028. After hearing from the former Square Enix executive stated that Sony ending discs in 2028 is gonna make digital purchases affordable, I am coming to a decision. I am remaining as a PlayStation fan. But on one condition. Sony must follow Xbox's footsteps by having a disc-to-digital feature. It's the only way to win back players.