Oh, boy. This is a blast from the past. It was the summer of 1998 (maybe 1999, tough to say – I’m old), and I remember working at Waldensoftware in Fayette Mall in Lexington, Kentucky. Someone had decided that they were going to turn in their Sega Saturn and trade in the import Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter. I had a cartridge for my Saturn that would allow me to play imports, because that was a thing in the 90s, and didn’t know what to expect. What came out of it was something to behold.
Having the opportunity to play Marvel characters and go against Street Fighter peeps was a geeky fighting overload. I had grown up with Marvel characters and had discovered Street Fighter in the late 80s. Much like peanut butter and chocolate, putting these two groups of characters together was as delicious as it was delightful. The bonus for the Japanese version of this game was a character named Norimaro, a Japanese comedian who was only licensed to the Japanese release. For years, I kept that Saturn alive and kicking solely for Norimaro. This character was whacky, hilarious, and a treat in a fighting environment. When I had to end up selling that game for big bucks (had to pay rent), I feared that I would never see my goofy fighter again. It was sad. I was sad. Everything was sad. We will come back to this in a bit.
Anyway, Capcom did everything right by combining these two worlds and found a lovely niche with the Marvel universe with how they could use their character IP properly to deliver some solid fighting game experiences. And did they use them. There were seven initial releases (I’m sure more are coming) and each game brought its unique style of gameplay, mostly good, and animated entertainment that is still very relevant right now (Deadpool revived this).
It was so relevant that they took all these seven fighting releases from the Marvel and Capcom universe and put them into one collection called the Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics. They released this $49.99 steal-of-a-deal this past week and having spent a good week with it, I can safely say it’s a wonderful collection. It not only contains a faithful representation of the titles, both English and Japanese versions but also includes art and music to keep any fans of the Marvel/Capcom series happy. And most importantly, thank the maker, they even brought back Norimaro into the character mix. Happy times, indeed.
So, sit back, tape up those hands, and get ready to rumble because we’re in for a wonderful fistfight of a review.
Classics
While not all the games brought in this collection are gold, there’s no doubt that they are classics. With this collection, you get the following titles:
- X-MEN® CHILDREN OF THE ATOM (1994)
- MARVEL SUPER HEROES™ (1995)
- X-MEN™ VS. STREET FIGHTER® (1996)
- MARVEL SUPER HEROES™ vs. STREET FIGHTER® (1997)
- MARVEL™ vs. CAPCOM® CLASH OF SUPER HEROES (1998)
- MARVEL™ vs. CAPCOM® 2 New Age of Heroes (2000)
- THE PUNISHER™ (1993)
The early games were good test runs to see how Capcom could mix things up in the Marvel Universe and redesign their fighting structure with their own Street Fighter series. And the entire combined universe started with the 1994 arcade game X-Men Children of the Atom. This initial stepping-off point for the Marvel/Capcom crossover changed how the fighting genre would work, well at least ‘borrowed’ from other fighters and improved it. The classic had early gameplay elements that would carry over to future titles. The best of the bunch was the power meter that when maxed out would unleash a brutal attack, a move that was unique to the hero you were playing, that could take a good chunk of energy off an opponent. This concept was born from the SNK days of early Samurai Showdown (1993), where getting hit or hitting an enemy meant you would slowly build a powerful move. The move was intended to bring you back into the fight but sometimes worked as a terrible distraction when fighting. It was a big move on Capcom’s part to include this type of meter in their hit gaming structure, and one that would evolve and pay off with the next iterations of Marvel games.
The next game in the collection arrived in 1995 with Marvel Super Heroes, which took the previous gameplay concept and pushed it even further. The single meter for each superhero had now turned into a multi-numerical bar (1-3 layers of power), meaning that you could keep building the meter and build multiple meters upon each other. This allowed for the gameplay to get more strategic and brutal, as you could unleash one super-powerful attack or multiple mid-tier powerful attacks depending on button combination and intentions. Watching health levels became important in the equation, as your opponent could take you down at any given point if they built their meter up properly and strategically. As for the heroes, they were nearly the same as in the first game. The meter change helped speed up gameplay a bit, while the inclusion of infinity stones was an experiment that helped add buffs to the overall mix (you could use them as you fight – their effects were temporary, as was their presence). This arcade game grew the series and gameplay structure a lot but certainly failed in some areas, especially with those buffs. Those buffs were cool, but they were more about adding health, shield, and whatnot than adding anything over the top or cool. They would not survive beyond this game.
Once Capcom learned a few things and decided to exclude the infinity stone buffs (proper), in 1996 X-men vs Street Fighter was born. This was the beginning of a perfectly structured game that hit the sweet spot of fighting with strategy in mind. In this game, the 1v1 was pushed to 2v2, the multi-level power moves were back, and some new fighters appeared in the mix. Most of the new fighters were fair and balanced, but one stood out like no other and tipped the scale of overpowered. This was the first appearance of Gambit. He was a fighting character who could deliver tough blows with his staff and take down enemies from afar with his deck of power cards. I adored this character and used him relentlessly in the game. He pretty much hit all the right notes with style, moves, and power. Anyway, his inclusion and the fact that you could have a partner to switch back and forth between making this game something so much better than its predecessors. It lasted longer, created unique combinations of fighting styles one player could choose, and just seemed faster and better. It was a hell of a leap forward for the Marvel/Capcom fighting game alliance.
And then things shifted into fifth gear.
Two versions of the 1996 classic, Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter arrived on different shores. The English version was almost identical to the Japanese version with one exception – NORIMARO. Norimaro was born from the likeness of comedian Noritake Kinashi and was only licensed to the Japanese version of the game. His character was a whack-a-doodle goofball that threw pencils, protractors, and dolls at the enemy, while sometimes blindly flailing his fists towards anyone within punching distance. He was a character (in the funny sense) and was one of the more powerful fighters in this title. It took Capcom nearly 30 years to get him to the United States in this collection, and it was worth it. Because of Norimaro, more fighters, better/sharper gameplay, and everything that was retained before this release, this game might be the pinnacle of the collection. While there isn’t a Gambit to be had, there is still a good balance of both Marvel and SF fighters. This is probably my favorite in the entire collection. It just has everything and feels balanced in every possible way.
After the best game, and what appeared to be a year between releases, in 1998 Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes arrived, and a few things had changed. The list of fighters changed up, though the usuals were kept (Ken, Ryu, and a few others). Capcom expanded its universe to include other IP, such as Mega Man and Captain Commando, while also expanding the Marvel cast to include Venom and the returning champion Gambit. The cast changed, the structure stayed the same, and the only big points of interest revolved around the new characters and their power moves. Nothing had shifted too hard with gameplay elements. Just visuals, characters, and new power moves. Of course, in 1998, we were like children watching an adult dangle a set of keys, so it didn’t take much for us to be entertained. Thus, this was popular, if not only because of Venom and Gambit’s presence.
The last fighting game of this collection arrived in 2000 with Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, where the cast had become far greater than in previous years, pulling a lot of IP from both Marvel and Capcom and including the three-person team structure, another concept built by SNK. There was also a fighting type choice that each character had which allowed for three fighting styles per character. This was certainly filled to the brim with new things. Now, out of everything in this collection, this might be my least favorite game. The biggest reason behind that sentiment is that the controls dramatically changed, which you will find out when you play all the previous titles and then hit this one. Accessing additional characters and help during fights had become most of the familiar control scheme, as that brought chaos and intensity before the player could even decide between a low, mid, or high point of attack. While this can certainly be switched around in this collection, doing so in the arcade was an impossibility. In short, it was different, and the controls were a bit backward. I do know this is a lot of gamers’ favorite title in this series, but I must go against that grain. It was packed full of characters and strategy, but the controls were just off enough not to enjoy it. I’m going to sound old typing this, but it seemed a bit too much.
Anyway, to round out this collection, it also features the 1993 arcade game The Punisher. This is the oddball of the Marvel/Capcom family, as it is more about fighting Kingpin in a Final Fight style of structure and progression than it is a straightforward fighting experience. It’s fun, it’s incredibly cheaty with its imbalance of main character and enemies, and it was built to constantly kill Frank Castle so that you could keep dropping money into it. It’s a departure when you need to break from the traditional fighting scheme, but it’s only a once-through in comparison to the constants. It’s good but not great.
All this said the collection is solid with all these games included. I think the 90s and the single 2000 experience showed off the heyday of Capcom fighting games, as well as the industry’s growth with the genre. Seeing it all improve slowly in chronological order is a wonderful trip down memory lane. Every fan of this series is certainly going to be pleased with how this collection was gathered and presented. It’s pure beauty, especially when you get both Japanese and English versions of each game.
Also because of Norimaro. My GOD. So good.
Extra goodies
As previously mentioned, each game comes with its own set of art and music to enjoy. The art, which I usually don’t give much attention to in collections like these, is fascinating to see – especially the animated characters from storyboards. There’s quite a bit of history here in each game, and seeing plans, character storyboards, and actual animation just adds so much history and value to the collection.
The music portion was solid as well, as video game music lovers will certainly appreciate the access given. Would I listen to it at night to get pumped up or go to sleep? Nah, but I appreciate it being an extra.
Beyond these obvious goodies, the game also features a strong online mode, which has different types of gameplay choices. Those are:
- Casual
- Ranked
- Custom
- High Score Challenges
- Leaderboards (for High Score and Ranked)
While not groundbreaking, they do add value to some old games and make them entertaining to go up against people across the world. I wouldn’t dare enter the foray of violence, as I had enough of getting my ass handed to me in the 90s with in-person competition, but it’s good value for those who enjoy it.
Anyway, let’s wrap this review up.
Conclusion
Marvel versus Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is a superb release from Capcom. It has all the 90s Marvel/Capcom arcade classics, a decent Punisher game, and some goodies that were only featured in Japan (mainly Norimaro). The collection will please any gamer who enjoys classic fighters. The younger crowd may not love it, as fighting games have become more complicated and competitive, something not as prevalent in these, but it’s a great way to revisit some classics for those who enjoy doing so.
