Arcade fighting game developers employ a meticulous multi-layered approach to create balanced combos that maintain competitive integrity while ensuring player satisfaction. The process begins with fundamental frame data analysis, where developers calculate startup frames, active frames, and recovery frames for each move. This mathematical foundation determines which attacks can legally chain together based on frame advantage principles.

Damage scaling systems represent another critical balancing tool, where subsequent hits in a combo deal progressively reduced damage. This prevents infinite loops and ensures no single combo can decide an entire match. Developers implement hitstun decay mechanics that gradually reduce the stun duration of consecutive hits, allowing opponents potential escape opportunities after extended combinations.

Character-specific balance is achieved through proprietary testing software that simulates thousands of match scenarios, identifying overpowered interactions before public release. Developers create combo "budgets" that limit the maximum potential damage from any single opening, often capping combos at 30-40% of a character's health bar.

Playtesting occurs in multiple phases, beginning with internal quality assurance teams who stress-test combo viability, followed by professional player feedback during closed beta sessions. Modern developers increasingly use telemetry data from online matches to identify unbalanced combo patterns post-launch, issuing balance patches to adjust frame data or damage values as needed.

Environmental factors also influence combo design—developers consider arcade stick versus controller input precision, display latency in public arcade cabinets, and regional playstyle differences when tuning combo difficulty and reliability. The ultimate goal remains creating combos that feel rewarding to execute while maintaining counterplay opportunities, preserving the strategic depth that defines competitive fighting games.