Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001

"Good game, but by no means outstanding"

Continuing the the tradition of the vs. series, Capcom has brought us Capcom vs. SNK 2. So, does it live up to its predecessors? Does the console translation live up to the arcade version?

Gameplay

At its core, Capcom vs. SNK 2 is your standard 2-D fighter. But if you know your Vs. series, you know that there's going to be multiple characters involved, right? Right. The Capcom vs. SNK series involves the multiple characters in its Ratio system. That is, you can choose from 1 to three character, and then you have to distribute your 4 ratio points between them. While the first C. v S. divided the characters into categories (i.e. Ryu is a 2 point character, Bison is a 3 point, et cetera) now you distribute the points as you choose. However, unlike past Vs. series games (excluding the first Capcom vs. SNK), you are not able to change characters at will. Instead, you fight with your first character, then when that one is defeated, you move on to the next one. It's an okay system, and it DOES work, but it just doesn't have the same feel as the other games.

This forces you to strategize on the best combination of characters. One four-point character, Two characters, a three-point and a 1 point? Or maybe three characters.

Of course, In the home version, they give you the option of getting rid of that, where you can choose either one on one or three on three, as well as the Ratio battle. This seems to kinda defeat the main core of the game, after all, if you change the system, is it really the same game anymore?

The other major factor in Capcom vs. SNK 2 is the style system. Instead of just giving you a super gauge and telling you what your character can or can't do, they let you choose. There are six styles, or ''Grooves''. Each features there own style of super gauge, and allow you to do things such as rolling or air blocking. After you complete the game (really complete it), you are also able to create two of your own custom styles. The game uses a point system to make sure that you can't create some super god style.

There were a couple of instances of slowdown, but they are rare and really don't affect gameplay that much, but they DO happen. The thing that really bothered me was the amount of load times involved. There's a load time for almost EVERYTHING. Choose your mode, load the characters, choose your characters, load your opponents, see what stage, load the stage, fight and beat someone, load the next character, lose a character, load the next character, etc. While none of these load times are very long, the fact that they happen for almost every major event is annoying. Speaking of annoying, that announcer just won't shut up. He gets REAL annoying after a bit.

In the home version, there are a few modes. There's an Arcade mode (i.e. normal), a Vs. Mode to whomp your friends with, a training mode to sharpen your skills, and a Survival mode to test those skills. There's also a replay mode so you can watch battles from Vs. mode, and a color edit mode, to give your characters there own look.

Characters

Well, since it's a fighting game, characters are very important. The decision to get this game will probably be based on if they have a character you like. With 46 characters, plus two secret ones, they didn't leave many out, but they did leave some. Notables on the Capcom side include Ryu, Ken, Akuma (got all of them this time!), Cammy, and Chun-Li from Street Fighter (of course, if you didn't know where THEY came from, you need to go back to basics), Kyosuke from Rival Schools, and Morrigan from Darkstalkers. In fact, most of the Capcom side is made up of people from Street Fighter (including Dhalsim and Blanka, go Blanka!), which is kinda disappointing. Basically, they got rid of all the superhero and non-serious fighters that were a part of the Marvel vs. Capcom series, such as Strider, MegaMan, and Hayato. They did add a few that I'm not familiar with, such as Jun, Maki, and Eagle.

I'm not as familiar with SNK fighting games, so bear with me if I don't know where the people are from. On that note, the notables on the SNK side include Mai, Kyo, Ryo, Terry, Rugal, and Iori from King of the Fighters/Fatal Fury and Nakoruru and Haohmaru from Samurai Showdown. Again, I'm not too familiar with the SNK fighting series, but these all I've heard of before.

Graphics

The graphics ARE an odd mix. While the characters are 2-D sprites, the backgrounds are fully 3-D and polygonal. The sprites move smoothly and fluidly and are well done. The backgrounds are interesting to look at, but don’t look too long unless you want to lose your match. The background are also very involved, with different things happening as you fight, such as a ship pulling up or a jeep racing through the desert. It's entertaining, and definitely well done.

Sound

The sfx are on the mark and make sense. The character voices are actually understandable, even! You can definitely hear the announcer's voice, though soon after you hear it you'll wish you couldn't.

The background music is fine and encourages the violent mood, but it's nothing real memorable. Nothing to bad, but not too hot either.

Replay

It's a Fighter! Of course it's got some good replay, but in CvS2's case, it doesn't have much more than some. Beating the hidden bosses is a challenge, but once you've done it once, there isn't much motivation to do it again. Still, if you enjoy playing as the different characters, there ARE over 40 of them, so you should be able to play it for a while.

Summary

Capcom vs. SNK 2 is a good game. But, it was a good game in the Arcade. Maybe it's just me, but when I get a game that's been ported from the Arcade, I expect a little more extras. Two secret characters, a survival mode, and a Color edit mode just don't cut it. Of course, it's still a good game, but I was left wanting more than what I got. Rent this before you think of buying it.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 06/22/03, Updated 06/22/03