Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is here and once again Capcom has delivered several classics, but these are not the big name titles. No, these are the titles with cult followings and devoted fanbases that cling on to hope of seeing more. There are some omissions that are rather curious, but there are explanations which we will get to.
First off, we must mention the inclusion of Power Stone 1 and 2. These beloved 3D fighting games have often been called Capcom’s Super Smash Bros in terms of how it plays, and that is okay as a surface level comparison. It does bear a resemblance in some mechanics and both can be thought of as party fighting games, but there are of course key differences.
Power Stone 1 and 2 are 3D fighting games that are all out brawlers and chaotic fun. You need to grab gems, power up and use what you can to defeat everyone else. These games can get super intense and yet they are always a blast to play.
The stages in the Power Stone games are some of the most creative and the gameplay mechanics are easy to understand. I cannot understand why Power Stone has been left in the past, as fans have wanted it back for a long time. Now at least, we have two of the most unique fighting games ever made and with amazing online play that has rollback netcode, with online casual, ranked, lobby play and online leaderboards, which are added to every game in this collection.
Also included here is Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper, which is being released outside of Japan for the first time officially. Street Fighter Alpha 3 was one of the best 2D Street Fighter games, and so to get this version officially in the west with online play is excellent. The refinements made here are well done, and what we have is a masterpiece that every Street Fighter fan needs to play at least once.
Capcom Fighting Evolution is unfortunately a low point for this collection, as this is one of the worst fighting games ever made, let alone that Capcom made. The problem is that it combines several different rosters from different games, but does not create a unique playstyle, meaning each roster uses entirely different mechanics. These do not blend well at all, and the result is that Capcom Fighting Evolution is a game that you would do best to just ignore and move on.
Two of Capcom’s better 3D fighting games are included here as well, with Project Justice and Plasma Sword. The thing that caught my attention immediately was that these are both sequels and the original games were not included here. Plasma Sword is better known than Star Gladiator, but Rival Schools has better name value than Project Justice.
From what I was able to find out, Star Gladiator seems to have emulation issues and so that may be why it was not included here. As for Rival Schools, I have seen multiple explanations but none that gave a definitive answer. Sorry,. Sakura won’t be in a 3D fighting game in this collection.
Project Justice is a 3 v 3 team based fighting game that has some very interesting things going for it. While Rival Schools had a Team Up option to use with two characters, Project Justice has two Team Up options and a Party Up option with all three characters. You can also use one of your partner characters to cancel an opponent’s Team-Up Special by using a Team-Up command yourself.
Project Justice is a game that is very much of its time, but maybe that time should come back again. This is a fun game and we could all use a third game in the Rival Schools series. At least the characters have been appearing in Street Fighter since this game.
Plasma Sword is essentially Capcom’s answer to Soul Calibur, and another game that badly needs to come back. It may seem like a simple 3D sword fighting game, but there are some very deep mechanics here. The special abilities may take some time to figure out, but thankfully we have the training mode option in this collection, to help learn the ropes as it were. Funny thing to mention is that the abilities are derived from Star Gladiator’s origins when it was originally being made as a Star Wars fighting game. It is flashy, it is over the time, but it also has real depth to it, and Capcom could do a lot by bringing this series back for a third entry.
Now we have come to the two crowning gems in this collection with Capcom vs SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro and Capcom vs SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium.These crossovers between Capcom and SNK stands as some of the most unique fighting games ever made, particularly Capcom vs SNK 2 with its groove system, that radically changed the game depending on which groove you used.
It should be noted that while all the games included in Capcom Fighting Collection 2 are straight arcade ports, Capcom vs SNK 2 uses the balancing from the EO update. This may not be to purists’ likings, although those who discovered the game on console with the EO version like myself will have an easier time getting back into it. Still, these are the pinnacle of Capcom’s 2D fighting games and manage to blend all the different mechanics and characters together brilliantly. It does not matter what games you bought this collection for, Capcom vs SNK 1 and 2 are what you need to play the most.
Because the games in Capcom Fighting Collection 2 are arcade ports, there is not any of the single player content that was introduced in some of the console ports. Controversy over the EO balance choices aside, this works out well for the most part and gives a purer experience for those wanting the original games. That being said, Plasma Sword and Project Justice are games where the console versions would have been nice to have as well.
Capcom Fighting Collection 2, as stated, contains a wide variety of online options, along with training modes for each game. These training modes have onscreen input displays & hitboxes and are great for getting an understanding of how to play. There is also a large amount of bonus content such as art, background information and more, that really expands on the overall experience here.
Even with a strange choice for Capcom vs SNK 2, and the inclusion of the dreadful Capcom Fighting Evolution, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is still a must play for Capcom fans and fans of fighting games. The museum modes are among the best in a retro collection and the games are mostly preserved beautifully. Capcom still has some fighting games that they can re-release in the future, so here is to Capcom Fighting Collection 3 at some point. Please?
Disclaimer: A review key was provided
