Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics (PC)

By Daniel Parker 12th Oct 2024 | 4,458 views 

  

Growing up in the 90s, no video game series resonated with me quite like Marvel vs. Capcom; the franchise excellently combined my beloved Saturday morning cartoons with iconic video game characters from that era of gaming. While I casually followed the series as a kid, it was Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Superheroes on the SEGA Dreamcast that finally reeled me in. Seeing my favorite character, Venom, alongside Mega Man, who I grew up playing on the SEGA Genesis and PlayStation, was mind-blowing.

   

  

As I grew older, my appreciation for the series deepened. I transitioned from button-mashing to understanding fighting games and formulating proper strategies. However, after the release of Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite in 2017 (which was honestly too heavily influenced by the Marvel Cinematic Universe) and with competition from Dragon Ball FighterZ, the series entered a hiatus after failing to gain enough traction with fans. Thankfully, the release of Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics has reignited my enthusiasm for the franchise.

  

As the title suggests, this collection consists of six Marvel vs. Capcom "arcade classics," as well as The Punisher, which had only been available in arcades prior to this collection's release. Features exclusive to the PlayStation releases of the 90s aren't included in this collection. The PS1 lacked the required RAM to store four characters, so Capcom included exclusive gameplay features as compensation. This means that, most notably, final bosses like Apocalypse and Onslaught aren't playable, nor is the one-on-one, round-based gameplay. Honestly, it would have been nice to have seen those feature included, as these are just emulated games at the end of the day, and I personally haven't spent more than 20 minutes with the PS1 versions of these games in my entire life.

   

   

In terms of graphics, other than the low resolution of Marvel vs. Capcom 2's 480p 3D-rendered backgrounds and character select screen adjustments, I haven't noticed significant changes from the original versions, as all of the other games are sprite-based. All of the titles in this collection run at a mostly-locked 60 FPS, with some legitimately nice-looking filters and border art for those who are interested in using them. However, frame rates do drop in certain conditions, mirroring the slowdown of their original arcade versions, so each game in the collection functions normally. 

  

Game-breaking bugs, such as Gambit flying out of game boundaries in Marvel vs. Capcom 2, have been addressed. However, it’s peculiar that Ruby Heart's bug, which disables the enemy from backdashing, still exists, and Juggernaut's Cyttorak Power-Up glitch - which was patched out on launch day - has been reintroduced as a toggle-option in a post-release patch. Each re-release of Marvel vs. Capcom 2 brings with it changes, some of which can be significant dealbreakers, as we saw previously with the PS2 and Xbox versions, as well as the iPhone version that released over a decade after the PS2 game. The one included here is arguably the best home release aside from the Dreamcast version, which came out nearly 25 years ago.

   

  

Online functionality for this collection is decent, featuring roll-back net code, just as the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions did, but nowadays such a feature is expected. Unfortunately there's no cross-play, despite the collection being available on multiple consoles. At least you can pre-select which specific games you'd like to queue for matches in — a notable improvement over Marvel vs. Capcom Origins, where you were only able to see games and players for the title you had selected. But Marvel vs. Capcom Origins did at least include a replay feature, something that is sadly lacking from this compilation.

   

Some players may also be disappointed with the Revision 3 version of X-Men vs. Street Fighter that's included here, as many infinites from the more popular Revision 2 were patched out. On the upside, Revision 3 still has infinite combos like every other game in the series. And in Marvel Super Heroes Vs. Street Fighter, the Japanese-exclusive guest character Norimaro is finally now officially available for play outside Japan (by selecting the Japanese version from the menu). As for the other titles in the collection - X-Men: Children of the Atom, Marvel Super Heroes, Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, and the side-scrolling beat-'em-up The Punisher - I noticed no changes from the original arcade versions, save for the RAM error crash that Venom and Red Venom can cause being patched in Marvel vs. Capcom. While veterans will know about this glitch, it’s disappointing that Spider-Man’s web ball can still indefinitely freeze opponents if combined with Venom’s grab. I'm unsure as to why some glitches in this collection have been patched, while others haven't (and don't even have toggles); it's confusing and inconsistent. Game-crashing issues being patched makes sense, but then why does being frozen in place until your opponent decides to hit you get a pass?

  

  

The biggest issue I personally have with this collection revolves around how the games handle input methods. There are a lot of titles here, and I play Marvel vs. Capcom 2 differently from any other game in the collection (I've discovered that my mind doesn't switch to Marvel vs. Capcom 2 mode if I'm playing on a keyboard, so I use a controller for Marvel vs. Capcom 2, but not the other titles). The issue is that there are no macro buttons available when playing on keyboard, so instant super-jumps and dashes require three simultaneous key presses. I'm constantly failing to pull off Hyper Combos, but am otherwise able to play the games normally. Even though the macros are available when using a controller, I don't actually use them in Marvel vs. Capcom 2. 

   

Additionally, you cannot remap the taunt or menu buttons, which means I have to use two hands (with my left on the F1 key) to select an assist in Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, when ideally I'd like to have all of my buttons - macros included - mapped to the number pad and directional keys.

  

   

Moving past those frustrating design decisions and turning to some of the bonus features of this collection, all of the fighting titles feature a training mode. These training modes include input display, as well as visible hitbox and hurtbox data, although certain robust features typical of present-day fighting games are absent, including record-and-playback for enemy actions and position resetting. The collection also includes over 500 pieces of archived artwork from the vault, and a nearly complete music library, minus the original network theme from the Japanese version of Marvel vs. Capcom 2. 

  

Given my extensive history with both this series and fighting games in general, I think this collection is best suited to players with similar levels of experience, as getting Block-stun-locked by a team of Sentinel, Blackheart, and Juggernaut is probably enough to infuriate new players into issuing a refund. With all of the random changes made to Marvel vs. Capcom 2, though, I can’t help but wonder why a comprehensive rebalance patch hasn't been introduced that doesn't nerf players’ practiced strategies from over the last quarter-century (other than perhaps a reduction in chip damage and hyper combo-meter building), but rather buffs lower-tier characters as a toggle-option. Of course, such changes would meet initial resistance, much like when Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was originally released (many fans hated the out-of-place 3D backgrounds, jazz music, and 4-button gameplay – all things that are liked about the game today), but fighting games today receive regular balance patches, so it wouldn't be too big a deal and would slowly gain traction over time.

 

  

Finally, as Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is available across various consoles and PC, I sincerely hope these games remain accessible for longer than two years before they disappear again. They're all truly excellent titles that have stood the test of time. Here's hoping this collection is a success and finally leads to an eventual sequel entry that fans truly deserve.