A Fighter Divided Amongst Itself
Written: Feb 04 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Old school fighter, multiple playing styles, lots of characters
Cons: Old school graphics, lack of extras
The Bottom Line: A old school for fighter for die hard fans only.
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| gorocco's Full Review: Capcom vs SNK 2 for PlayStation 2 |
Once upon a time, there were two companies vying to be the king of 2D fighting games. They fought mercilessly, launching game after game, sequel after sequel. Capcom used its primary weapon, the Street Fighter series – the one that started it all. SNK responded with its beloved King of Fighters games. Fans from either camp clamored for a brawl between the two superpowers. Alas, these battles would only be staged in the form of fan fiction (and for those with M.U.G.E.N.).
After many years, the cries of the masses have been answered with the release of Capcom vs SNK. But that wasn't enough... The masses clamored for more in order to answer the age old question of just who really is better.
Millenium Battle 2001 Begins
Capcom versus SNK 2 (CvS2) features an expanded roster of 46 immediately selectable characters and two hidden ones. All 33 characters from Capcom vs. SNK are back, including many fan favorites such as Ryu, Ken, Morrigan, Chun Li (redrawn to mimic her SF3 incarnation), Terry Bogard (Fatal Fury), Nakoruru (Samurai Shodown), Kyo Kasunagi (King of Fighters), and Ryo Sazaki (Art of Fighting). A host of new characters enter the fray, including Maki (Final Fight 2 for the SNES), Kyosuke (Rival Schools), Eagle (SF1), Yun (SF3), Haohmaru (Samurai Shodown), Rock Howard (Mark of the Wolves), Hibiki (Last Blade), and Chan and Choi (KOF).
There are quite a few questionable choices on the Capcom camp. Anybody out there remember Maki (anybody play Final Fight 2)? How many Kyosuke fans are there? Anybody out there wishing they threw Strider Hiryu into the mix or other Darkstalker characters?
The SNK additions hit the mark better in featuring a diverse cast that are both aesthetically pleasing and fun to play. I just wish Setsuna from Last Blade made the cut instead of Hibiki. I also wish they didn't make Haohmaru a shadow of his former glorious self.
All of the characters are drawn in the old Capcom, CPS-2 style -- the same style used in Darkstalkers eight years ago! Despite the flashy backgrounds, the characters stick out like sore thumbs with their limited colors and highly pixelated sprites. I guess Capcom wants to milk these sprites for another few sequels. When compared to 2D graphic beauty of Guilty Gear, CvS2 looks pathetic.
Luckily, the characters have made such changes for the better. EX modes that ruined the characters in CvS are gone. Most of the characters (in particular the SNK fighters) have an expanded movelist that includes both the regular and EX forms. No longer do you need to choose between the Terry with the Rising Tackle and the Terry with the Power Dunk; this Terry can do both! The SNK characters feel and play more like their original incarnations now.
Capcom characters still feel "behind the times." After all this time, most of the Capcom crew have not learned any new tricks. Old stalwarts such as Ryu and Zangief become a bore to play. How many times can you repeat Fireball, Dragon Punch, etc.? Couldn't the ultimate martial artist learn a new trick or two after almost a decade?
CvS2 expands on the groove system from its predecessor. Now, we have six grooves to choose from, plus the ability to create a groove (once unlocked). In addition to Capcom (C groove - Alpha type gameplay) and SNK (S groove - KOF95 style), we have A groove (Custom Combo mode), P groove (SF3 style with parrying), N groove (KOF97 style), and K groove (a mix of Samurai Shodown's Rage system and Mark of the Wolves' Just Defend system). With all of the different grooves, CvS2 increases the lifespan of the characters as each style alters your strategy.
CvS2 features an arcade mode that allows you to choose between ratio mode, one on one, and three on three tournament combat. The ratio mode lets you pick up to three characters for a team. In addition, you can also distribute four ratio points amongst your team, the more points the more powerful the character. The days of underpowered Ratio 1 characters is over; now you just have underpowered character designs.
Battles are still played out KoF style. Each member goes mano-a-mano until every member of the opposing team is disposed of. This is old school, 2D fighting, round 2. There are no strikers/helpers here, but 2D fighter features such as air-blocking and chain combos are here. Looking for monster 50+ hit combos where your foe doesn’t touch the dirt for a looong while? Look elsewhere. This is another homage of the technical 2D fighter. We are talking careful spacing, pokes and feints. We are talking about the cat and mouse play with moments of hard hitting attacks and combos to punish that one moment of weakness. We are talking good old fashioned fisticuffs!
When playing solo, it is hard to appreciate the depth of the fighting engine. The computer AI is slightly smarter this time around and will use its attacks much more effectively. However, except for the hideously overpowered final bosses (Shin Akuma or God Rugal), nobody provides that much of a challenge.
Perhaps Capcom heard the outrage over the tedious Secrets menu employed in CvS and Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Secrets are unlocked by beating the game and its various modes. On the good side, you no longer have to play for weeks trying to accumulate enough points to unlock that hidden stage. On the bad side, there are not a whole lot of secrets to unlock -- just two bosses and a couple of bonus modes.
Graphics and Audio
Characters are animated with the style and flair of Capcom’s Street Fighter Alpha series. The sprites are all nicely detailed, but they look extremely dated (this is the sixth or seventh time we are seeing some of these sprites). They animate well, but after all this time and with Guilty Gear sitting on the shelf, I'm expecting better now.
Backgrounds are very nicely detailed. This go-around, they are lacking the level of interaction from its predecessor. The nifty spotlight effects and the auras that surrounded combatants as they fought in front of a fire are not there. This lack of attention make the game feel as if it was just thrown together to milk the franchise.
The music in CvS2 is above average. It is hard to really get into the tunes as they are stage rather than character specific. At least it is not the horrible elevator music that was used in Marvel versus Capcom 2. The voice samples are heard very clearly. In CvS2 there is a lot more voice used. And I mean more than just a lot of grunting as there are some characters who do some trash talking prior to matches (most of it is in Japanese, so I cannot understand it).
Final Thoughts
Capcom versus SNK 2 is a solid fighting game for fans of old school, 2D fighters. If it came out a couple of years ago, it would have been a great fighter. Now, it is very mediocre. The many grooves is nice and adds a lot to gameplay, but most of the characters feel [and look] old. Capcom has done little to change that. This is a must have for die hard 2D fighting fans. Everybody else should wait until this hits the bargain bin.
Recommended:
No
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gorocco
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Location: Stony Brook, NY
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