Why does everything need its own fighting game?

I’m not afraid to say it: the recently announced Avatar: The Last Airbender fighting game looks wack.

We have heard about the Avatar: The Last Airbender fighting game in the past, but it didn’t seem very promising. Maximum Entertainment even said it was being canceled at one point and we all sorta just moved on. I mean, we already got a bunch of fighting games anyway.

Then over the weekend, Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game was announced. And it looks like a super lazy, sloppy game with the visuals of an iPad app. The animations are stiff and minimal, the backgrounds are sparse, and the fighting looks sorta boring. But of course, some Avatar fans are crying, shaking, and throwing up over it.

We don’t need an Avatar: The Last Airbender fighting game

This year is already being bombarded with fighting games. There are 2XKO and Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, which are duking it out to be the next big team-based fighter. There’s also Invincible VS on the way, meaning we’re already getting pretty well-known fighting titles based on League of Legends, Marvels, and the animated Invincible series.

And now, Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game is coming out in the summer of 2026. It will come with a 12-person roster, DLC fighters, a single-player campaign, and multiplayer with “best in class netcode” and crossplay. And honestly? It feels downright lazy.

Let’s be real: making a fighting game is a lot easier than creating an immersive RPG or open-world adventure. I’m not saying it’s easy to make a good, complex, and balanced fighting game. But the general idea of a fighting game is clearly doable for even the smallest of studios.

It almost feels like a copout: Avatar has such a rich world and expansive lore, but fans are just getting a simple, bland fighting game that looks like it was animated by a bored fan? 

As I said, it’s easy to make a fighting game. But it’s hard to make a good fighting game. Many have tried and failed. Remember all those “Smash killers?” We had Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 1 + 2, which are surprisingly still around but nobody gives a fuck. Then we had MultiVersus, which shut its servers down earlier this year. Not that anybody really cared.

It seems like a gimmick at this point that developers can’t resist. Take some popular IP and put it in a fighting game format. You all loved when Mario and Samus and Pac-Man beat each other up, right? Well, what about Aang? What about SpongeBob? OMG can you imagine the Banana Guard from Adventure Time fighting Rick Sanchez!? So random! Y’all like that stuff, right?

Right?

I get it. The “everyone is here” tagline from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was iconic. It shaped the game’s scene. It stirred up emotion within us. But that doesn’t mean you just try to recreate that moment over and over and over… Haven’t you learned anything from live-action Disney remakes or Marvel movies? The magic dies as you keep milking it.

I truly don’t even know why I’m writing about Avatar Legends, in all honesty. This is sure to be a flash in the pan release that doesn’t really go anywhere. It’s not like it’ll have a competitive scene or esports tournaments. Or players at all. Is it worth even continuing to type? Should I stop?

But I guess I wanted to make this point: stop oversaturating the fighting game scene. I get some people – like four or five people – may have some fun with this. And that’s totally okay. Still, it doesn’t mean we need games like this at all. Let’s leave the FGC alone.