Powerstone, SNK, SF3 Alpha And More … Sold!
Off the back of my recent review of ‘Super Technos World’ I’ve been intensely enjoying some retro gaming. Be it retro revival, all time classics or hidden gems. So seeing ‘Capcom Fighting Collection 2’ in my inbox had me joyous to say the least. Capcom were no strangers back in the day for fighting games releasing what are still considered some of the best the genre has to offer. A lot of which I had first hand experience playing as a youngster trying to figure out how I just shot a fireball while button smashing. Fast forward to now I can confidently quarter circle punch into a hadouken. Saying that, I’m yet to master some of the more intense frame perfect combos. Less about my competence and lack of mastery at fighting games lets dive in to ‘Capcom Fighting Collection 2’.
Capcom have come out of the gates swinging with this collection. Eight classic games from their quite frankly, untouchable back catalogue of fighting games. We are exploring the 32-bit era with this collection. Games range from some of the grandest pixel art on display and the early days of polygonal 3D.
Capcom opted for arcade versions of these titles to port. Initially I had hoped for the console version for the extra unlockables and features I remember from some of these games, as thats where my nostalgia comes from. It didn’t take me long to come round to the fact the arcade versions may have been the better choice though. How the arcade versions looked and played dwarfed any extra features the console ports had and realistically its all about the gameplay in games like this.
Arcade games in the fighting genre are normally incredibly difficult to swallow up players money back in the day. The ports are no different and can easily batter you into submission. With the accessibility of editable difficulty and unlimited tokens in free play even the most novice or brawlers can make it through all of the titles Capcom are offering up. The ability to customise damage output of the player character is also another very welcome accessibility option. The final customisable option that jumped out at me is the ability to have secret characters playable. Being a super over powered character when playing single player is a big fun yes in my eyes. It’s almost like Capcom wanted anyone and everyone to be able to make it through any of these games and I applaud that.
The games that Capcom have brought to the table in this package are some of finest examples of this era of fighting games. Like my previous retro reviews I will just give a topline summary of my thoughts on each game. Spoiler alert its mostly positive.
Capcom VS. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro – One of the first time games saw the clashing fists and feet of Street Fighter and Fatal Fury. A quite frankly fantastic fighter with a giant rooster. The ratio system is great for balancing fights but I find it a tad annoying when I have a one or two member team against four total weaklings. With this series the best is yet to come though.
Capcom VS. SNK 2: Mark Of The Millennium 2001 – Side scrolling fighting at its best. I would anticipate this is the main event for a lot of people with Cacpom Fighting Collection 2 on their wish lists. Graphically the game seamlessly brings the highest quality pixel art fighters in beautifully rendered 3D backdrops. Selecting from six different grooves changing how your super gauge fills gives you freedom and choice on your play style. The fluidity of the combat is like running water with an experience thats hard to beat now in modern games. The character line up is bursting at the seams with seemingly endless combinations of team make up. Without a shadow of doubt, this is one of the best fighting games that has ever been or ever will be.
Capcom Fighting Evolution – A crossover event game from the time bringing Street Fighter, Red Earth and Darkstalkers together. The roster is a small fan favourite selection from each of these franchises. The fighting is good and whats expected from a Street Fighter based game. However there is something about this game that I cant quite put my finger on. It’s good but not at good as the other games and I don’t know how to word it or why I think that.
Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper – This game is truly the culmination of everything Street Fighter had done up until this point. The graphics are absolutely stunning and still hold up even against more recent pixel art endeavours. The roster of characters is large and has that signature mix of serious martial artist and wacky fighter. The combat is very smooth and fast, probably a series highlight in my opinion; I just wish I was better at it.
Powerstone – This is where my personal bias will leak everywhere. I freaking love Powerstone. Many a evening I spent playing the dreamcast version back in the day with my friends. Although it isn’t a perfect 3D brawler by any stretch of the imagination, I had never played anything like this at the time. I find it very hard to take my nostalgia goggles off for this game. Combat is basic in terms of have a punch and a kick with equitable items like a rocket launcher to get the edge. The whole game evolves when you get the titular power stones transforming your character into a cool over designed power house of super moves. I would urge anyone to play this to see the early days of games within this genre as in my eyes it is truly the blueprint of 3D arena brawlers.
Powerstone 2 – So i love Powerstone thats no secret … I love the sequel even more. It takes the original game and jacks it up to the next level. Four fighters at once, more weapons, more characters, evolving and changing levels. This is what a sequel should be, expanding everything that made the first great and going to town with it. The fact I can play this game on modern hardware now makes me ecstatic. If I was to throw a minor criticism in, this is the one game I would have preferred the console port opposed to the arcade port. Collecting all of the weapons and grinding the shop out again would have brought me so much joy. Alas the arcade Powerstone 2 is still amazing and well worth anyones time, truly the shining gem of this collection. Thank you Capcom for letting me experience this game again.
Project Justice – I wasn’t familiar at all with this fighter. A team based 3D fighting game that revolved around rival schools and students duking it out. Something that stood out to me was how easy it was to pull off a team based move, even countering enemies doing this was fairly easy. It made the game feel a lot more modern than it actually is. A enjoyable romp that I will certainly have a few more arcade runs of.
Plasma Sword: Nightmare Of Bilstein – I found Plasma Sword one of the weaker experiences. Saying that the game isn’t bad, its actually pretty decent but its hard not to compare it to the lofty heights of the rest of this collection. Plasma Sword heavily reminds me of ‘Tekken’. The graphics the gameplay everything feels very similar to ‘Tekken’. It was nice that a slightly more unknown game was added but I cant help but think it will be ultimately forgotten considering what you could be playing.
