Marvel vs. Capcom 2

"Rehash capcom style"

Intro:
Marvel vs Capcom 2 is a port of the Naomi title which was on dreamcast back in summer of 2000. It contains 56 fighters from the marvel universe and from capcom games. The fighting is 3 on 3. Last fall it came to ps2 and now Capcom puts it on xbox. Is there anything new for the xbox version? NO. But it was a great game to begin with. The game itself is fairly standard with an arcade and verses mode, but there is a shop where you unlock characters, stages, art gallery pictures, and different color costumes. Xbox live was planned for the game but was canned due to the fact Activision has exclusive rights to the marvel license therefore capcom could not add new material to the game. So how does this fighter stack up?

Graphics:
The backgrounds are sharp and 3-d very vivid with a lot of colors. The characters while loaded with animation look dated. There is no slow down at all however even in the most intense action.

Control:
Like most capcom fighters the control is dead on perfect you can't fault it if you're not pulling off a special move or super combo it's your own fault. The standard xbox pad works fine with this game and you can fully customize the controls to your liking.

Sound:
All the whacks and smacks and voice overs are present and do the job adequetely.

Music:
Very diverse offering different tracks most of it is good for the fast paced fighting but some of the vocal songs are somewhat annoying.

Replay Value:
High

Difficulty:
Adjustable but still hard even on lowest setting.

Presentation:
This is where the game faulters. Only two modes of play no new material basically it's a port of a now 4 year old arcade game. While the shop idea for unlocking things is nice there is no ending hurting the single player mode. Plus the AI is sometimes a pushover or goes on rampages no matter what setting the difficulty is at. The character selection is good though 56 characters is a great deal so you will some you like no matter what your taste.

Closing Comments:
If you like capcom fighters you probably already own this game. Capcom did nothing new with this title. But if you are okay with the fact your paying 40 bucks for a 4 year old arcade game then get it. It is a great 2 d fighter. No where else can you play Wolverine vs Mega Man or Hulk vs Juggernaut. I would recommend this game to anyone who ever read marvel comics or played street fighter. It's an old game for sure but it is still better than most of the new xbox games out lately.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 06/03/03, Updated 06/03/03