Did Akira Nishitani Lie in the 1994 Capcom vs. Data East Lawsuit?

Summary

Capcom’s argument is also complicated by the fact that Guile’s Flash Kick move, which comes up more than once elsewhere in the documents, actually sort of does have him paralleling the control inputs. That move is done by charging down and then hitting up and a kick button, and Guile mirrors this in the game, crouching down in most circumstances before leaping upwards for the attack. This is the exception, but it’s nonetheless worth acknowledging that some Street Fighter II special moves do have the character reacting on screen to the “charge” portion.Nishitani also rebuts Data East’s claim that various Street Fighter moves were based on real-life martial arts attacks.I understand that Data East asserts in its summary judgment motion that seven moves from Street Fighter II are “standard” martial arts moves: Sagat’s Tiger Knee, E. Honda’s Knee Bash, Vega’s Air Throw, Vega’s Floor Slide, Balrog’s Dashing Punch, Zangief’s Backwards Throw, and Zangief’s Body Leap. In designing these moves, we did not attempt to duplicate standard moves. Rather, we created the moves with fanciful expression that would not be possible in real fighting moves. For example, we designed the positioning of Vega’s body as he sails along in the air and grabs the opponent in a way that would not be possible in real fighting, and we did not take the move from any particular realistic fighting style. And then Nishitani goes for broke, alleging that games like Fighter’s History will bring about another video game crash, despite the fact that other games besides Fighter’s History seem to be biting Street Fighter. (For what it’s worth, Cockburn expresses a similar sentiment in his deposition.)I think that games like Fighter’s History are bad for the video game industry. What video game players want are challenging games that offer something new and original. Fighter’s History does not. If Data East is allowed to continue to market Fighter’s History, it will encourage Data East and other companies to m...