How do I create a fighting game in 3D?

Or it could be in 2D.

Make some 3d models with lots of animations. Connect those animations to gamepad presses. Check the models for collisions and depending on what you find do more animations. Add some scoring and fancy backgrounds and you are done.

Of course each step in the process could take anywhere from months to years depending on your experience. In general a question like this is impossible to answer becuase it requires a couple of books worth of knowledge.

Start small - write some simple games and progress from there until you are asking much smaller questions about small parts of your game.

The ZMan:

Start small - write some simple games and progress from there until you are asking much smaller questions about small parts of your game.

 That's great advice. Many people come around asking what seems to be a simple question but in reality the question is very complex and can't be answered in a single day.

 But if you start with a small project and build upon it, then you'll be making progress on your own. Start with some of the tutorials. It doesn't matter if the tutorial isn't specifically for a fighting game, any tutorial will do to get you in the groove of things. Once you get the basics down you'll have very very specific issues to come ask questions about, instead of a enormously broad question.

 Best of luck.

~Marshall