At one point Capcom must have thought they were making a wise decision when they re-released the Happy Holidays Fighting Pass for Street Fighter 6; still, it did not generate any merry sounds, quite the opposite. The reason behind the return was mainly to allow the players to obtain the missed character items, however, such a good intention was met by a great deal of disgruntled players’ comments who believed that the game was not offering substantial content updates and that it was the two areas of costumes and balance patches that were the most needed next.

Moreover, the announcement regarding the Happy Holidays Fighting Pass was released through X. It was possible to claim the items from the previous edition that had not been obtained. It was thought to be a wintry celebration with a tiny tree emoji. Yet, the responses were nothing more than a great pile of coal. Gamers are obviously not happy, and this is the vibe.

The primary reason for the discontent? All of it was limited to the avatar. Moreover, it was not even new avatar stuff. It is a pass that is being repeated. One gamer, Cody, literally made this point while asking: ‘Do you still remember when the characters actually wore Holiday costumes? Cammy, Cody, and Juri, for instance, have really nice Christmas costumes.’ And they are right. The inhabitants of the avatar world are wondering where the real costumes for the fighters are. A user, Redette, even stated: ‘Your refusal of character costumes is really impressive.’ Ouch! And yet true.

Cosmetics are not the only issue, but that is a major part of it. Gamers are looking forward to a proper balance patch. The last one was poorly received, and the silence ever since has been very loud. A reply from SquintoBe4n only contained a request: ‘Please make a real balance patch.’ Some people were pointing at the bugs, like tournaments that have been broken since the game was launched with no fix, as Victor said. And then there are complaints about Modern controls of launch characters being felt as incomplete in comparison to DLC fighters. Hicone asked for help for Modern Blanka who does not have important moves. It is really a mess.

And then there is the whole… vibe of it. The pass itself. A user named SuckaSurprise noticed something strange: ‘What’s the matter with it not rewarding fighter coins for passing level 20? Is that a new rule going on?’ Another reply from Theory proposed that this could be a trend for reissued passes. This means not only is it old content but the reward system might even be worse? Not a good look.

The feeling that Capcom is just not paying attention is all over. ‘Y’all literally never give us what we want,’ said Cold Garfield. Jeff FM was more dramatic, crying, ‘I’m crying bro these niggas are barely giving us CRUMBS for content 😭😭😭😭😭😭’ The frustration is becoming too much. Even the issue about monetization was raised, with Daimadozen posting a meme and asking: ‘Do you guys fucking HATE money?’ The message is clear: players WANT to spend money on the cool things like character skins but Capcom is not offering anything.

Some replies became… more original. One user, Evil_Goro, wrote in Spanish ‘A Capcom hay que dormirlo como a los perros,’ which means ‘Capcom has to be put to sleep like dogs.’ Harsh. Another one, Death Star, was curious when the ‘Japan bubble’ would burst and how soon the game would be left behind. This is a high level of pessimism that shows how estranged the relationship between players and developers has become.

Among the anger, there were a few practical questions. Mitch Kling asked if the Final Fight pass would return. Another user, systim30, tried to find the silver lining and thought that maybe after this pass, Alex would finally come. But these were just drops in an ocean of negativity.

The root of the problem is expectation. Street Fighter 6 launched with a bang, but for many the post-launch content drip has felt like a tease. During the holidays, bringing back an old avatar pass when other games are showering players with gifts and updates feels like a wrong move. Kenshirou X called it ‘the complete opposite of Christmas spirit’ and claimed that it should be free rather than being behind a premium reward track.

So, what is the lesson? Capcom’s effort to be cheerful with a returning Fighting Pass for Street Fighter 6 has totally misfired. It did not bring any joy instead; it created a heap of player complaints about missing costumes, necessary balance changes, and a general impression that developers are out of touch. The community’s needs are not extravagant. They want just costumes for their favorite fighters, a tuned-up fighting game, and the feeling of being heard on platforms like PlayStation and Xbox.