"I was expecting Street Fighter, but instead got Regular Fighter..."

My expectations weren't fulfilled...

So, here we have a two-dimensional fighting game for the Nintendo Gamecube marrying characters from Capcom and SNK respectively, a genre made hugely popular by Capcom's ever-famous Street Fighter series that) depending on opinion, dominated the videogame fighting genre through the early 1990's and beyond.

There have been previous incarnations of the 'VS' series; namely Marvel VS Capcom and X-Men VS Street Fighter to name but two, although I couldn't name the formats these were released on; aside from saying simply, arcade! Look around this website for more info on these and other games if you please.

Anyhow, context aside, let's get to reviewing the game! I am not dividing this review into sections as otherwise it becomes disconnected from the overall flow but will try to cover the main areas one would expect from a review.

Visually, the presentation of the game is clean, the characters are based in 2D with 3D rendering of the backgrounds fought in and from what I have seen there is no slowdown during attacks or special move animations, which, frankly would not be acceptable so that's not really a valuable comment now is it?

There are a vast array of characters to select from (obviously ranging across many fighting games, with various costumes and there's even a colour editing option) but one of my problems with it is; if there are so many characters, where are their 'stages'? I will admit to playing little/no SNK fighting games (to my knowledge) but everyone from the Street Fighter series had their own stage, so why are we stuck with generic backgrounds with quite simply, awful music? My frames must be turning rose-tinted here but the stages and music accompanied with the character(s) added to their (his)tory, so what's the deal? Admittedly I can't answer my own questioning of the game but do make the assumption that the problem can hardly be put down to space as (obviously) the Gamecube is powered by its own super-mini-funky discs, with much more space than the mediums of old.

The gameplay is still there! Luckily, (for me) if I close my mind to the strange menu construction, generic backgrounds and worse music, and focus on really, what it should be all about; the fight, then there is nothing else to equal it - pure and simple one on one (or more if you choose to) combat and you beat your opponent until their energy bar is depleted. Special moves are all gloriously present and correct, (even if I can't pull them all off)... And that's about the game's selling point in my (humble) opinion. I quite liked the 'story mode' of the whole tournament thing in previous SF games, now it seems to just be some random tournament hosted by an announcer who really annoys me. Do not misinterpret me, however, it is a STRONG selling point!

Now then, much has been said in relation to the issue of the controls in this game, being that the standard Gamecube controller does not in any way aid the playing experience and can alienate the sense of control one has over their protagonist...I went out and bought one of the much talked about Hori digital pads in order to re-create the feel of the Super Nintendo control pad to play this and GBA games, which to me, proved to be the most successful option. I did not get on with the original Gamecube controller due to the clicking feature of the L&R buttons and the odd sizes of the face buttons for this game (though the R&L buttons were more of an issue since I use those most). To put
it simply, seeing as its all about subjectivity, its all down to you, the player. If you are able to succeed in the game using the GC controller, then that's great; if not then consider buying a Hori digipad, it's as simple as that.

I have only ever used the A(r)C(ade)-ism for controlling my fighter in this game, since its what I'm used to, (damn traditionalists...) and find easiest. I did once experiment with the whole C-stick to-do-special-moves G(ame)C(ube)-ism designed specifically for the Gamecube controller but did not get the point of it. As one Amazon.co.uk customer commented (aren't they all unreliable there?) 'you could win the match by letting your dog lick the C-stick and you just watch' or something along those lines. Which, although an exageration, may be true; I have neither the time nor patience to experiment with that...Anyhow like I say, try them for yourself and ask questions to the people here on Gamefaqs (who ARE reliable) if you have problems.

There are various -isms for the character control featuring various special moves, combination strings and certain elements (such as higher jump, parry or roll for instance) but my commentary on these would be insufficient as I have only experimented with a few. Check the manual for advantage and disadvantages and as the manual says, pick the style that seems to equal your playing style best.
Experimentation, it seems, is the key to success here!

My advice on the whole after all this rambling? Rent it. Or buy cheaply 2nd hand, or buy expensively brand new if you can. Hell, this is all only my opinion anyway! FYI I got it for £20, which isn't so bad.

If you are a 2D fighting game purist please don't start flaming me simply for not liking this game - I do like it but I just can't see past my own aged expectations for the game. Most importantly, the gameplay is still well and truly intact.

Perhaps I shall go out and buy Turbo Revival for the GBA instead! I thank you for taking the time to read this.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 02/27/04