Copyright escapistmagazine
Earlier this fall, Capcom upset the fighting game community by announcing that the Street Fighter League: World Championship 2025 and Capcom Cup 12 would be pay-per-view. Basically, the cheap and undersupported FGC would have to pay to watch the biggest Street Fighter 6 tournaments of the year. The largest pros in the fighting game scene reacted with frustration, including Adel "Big Bird" Anouche: "This isn’t going to be a positive thing for them.” As the anger over the pay-per-view continued for over a month, Capcom decided to share an update regarding the new system and it doesn't really help. Capcom reacts to pay-per-view complaints On October 26, Capcom wrote a long statement on X explaining its decision to use pay-per-view for big tournaments - and it does reflect the community's initial thoughts that Capcom is copying its structure in Japan in hopes the rest of the world will also gladly pay for matches. "Our goal is to grow these tournaments into internationally competitive events by reinvesting in participating players and teams, our partners, and related business areas," Capcom stated. "We sincerely acknowledge the many opinions we have received from everyone and are carefully discussing the matter with all relevant parties. "As a result, the coordination process is taking some time." https://twitter.com/CapcomFighters/status/1982422369953358253 Capcom also noted that the pay-per-view ticket prices that were promised earlier were still not available. The company asked for "continued patience" but I didn't even know the FGC was patient to begin with. Oh, and then they said that pay-per-view tickets for the Street Fighter League: Pro-JP Playoffs & Grand Finals will be available on November 12th. Yipee! The community responded exactly how you'd expect: I'm not paying I'm not watching Streamers won't be able to livestream your matches Make money with sponsorships and exclusive skins instead Imagine paying to watch a mirror match full of throw loops You're going to lose money Nathan "Mister Crimson" Massol said: “Most of our business model teams are based on visibility. By locking the finals behind a pay-per-view stream, you’re actually going against your players; the same players who invest thousands of hours making Street Fighter more popular.” In other words, Capcom's response said a whole lotta nothing. Not even the prices. Can't wait.
