Capcom has continued its endeavour to restore and preserve its fighting game legacy. As it did with the previousFighting CollectionandMarvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics, the company has brought together eight classic titles that — unless you have access to the original hardware —you can’t legally play anywhere else.
Capcom Fighting Collection 2presents some titles that aren’t very well-known if you haven’t played Capcom’s entire 90s game library. The two Power Stones, Capcom Fighting Evolution, and Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein are games that I’d have never imagined being able to boot up on my PlayStation 5. Now, I can spend hours learning combos with characters I haven’t tried in decades, and then play with them against other people around the world.
All the games come with the Fighting Collection treatment: support for any type of screen, different filters and sound options, online modes, a functional training mode for games that never had them, and control configuration that lets you use super moves with only one button.
For this preview, I was able to try Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro, Power Stone 2, and Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein. While I’ve spent hours in the first, I never had the chance to play the other two, so I’ll speak about them with fresh eyes.
Here’s the complete list of games included in the collection: Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro, Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001, Capcom Fighting Evolution, Street Fighter Alpha 3 UPPER, Power Stone, Power Stone 2, Project Justice, and Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein.
Being Nostalgic About The Beginning Of The Millennium
Capcom vs. SNK was a big deal back in the day because it let fans of The King of Fighters, Fatal Fury, and Street Fighter test their favorite characters against each other. We saw Ryu and Ken going face-to-face with Kyo and Iori, and Chun-Li and Cammy testing their strength with Mai.
The Millennium Fight 2000 Pro edition is the upgraded version that was released for Dreamcast and PlayStation 2 in 2001. This is the best version you can play because it added a few new characters (Dan from SF and Joe Higashi from Fatal Fury), new moves for the existing roster, and other gameplay adjustments.
Capcom vs. SNK is one of the most unique crossover games due to its Ratio system. Following a system of four points, you can create your team of up to four characters. How many you choose and which ones depend on the amount of points you have left, with the strongest characters costing four points while most of the roster costs one or two. This system is deep because you can create a wild variety of teams, and using one character against a team of four with only one HP bar is a challenge that you need to try for yourself.
In the current age of fighting games, the big studios have abandoned sprites in favor of 3D and 2.5D models. I can’t explain what I felt when I saw these classic sprites moving and attacking on my 4K display. Just watching the alley scenario, one where you can see the shadows of both characters in the walls of the background, brought tears to my eyes.
Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro is still a classic due to its roster and the handful of systems that you need to master to learn how to play. While many FG fans will prefer its sequel (also included in the collection), this is a great place to start.
Remembering The Era Of 3D Weird Characters
Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein is the sequel to Star Gladiator, and it’s a 3D fighting game that has more in common with Soul Calibur than Street Fighter. You jump into a small arena in a 1vs1 battle against humans, cyborgs, aliens, and everything in between. Characters have a wide variety of weapons, and you’re able to perform combos with special moves.
Nothing particularly interesting so far, but I was surprised as soon as I went to the character selection screen and started going over the available 24 faces. You can select humans with cool outfits and plasma swords, like protagonist Hayato Kanzaki, Claire, and June Lin Milliam… or you can go weird with whatever Saturn Dyer and Prince are. These green aliens look like members of an intergalactic circus, and they fight with plasma yo-yos.
I chose Prince for my first arcade run because his ugly face showing his tongue and harlequin outfit caught my attention. Then I realized that he fought with moon-shaped yo-yos, and the deal was done. Prince can attack with his weapons while spinning on the ground and doing gymnastics, checking the distance from enemies. He can also turn into a ball and bounce, for some reason. There’s nothing like playing a fighting game for the first time with the one character that moves in the most obnoxious way you have ever seen.
Nightmare of Blistein features a mechanic called Plasma Field. If you hit your opponent with it, you transform the scenario into a small box and get a buffed version of your character for a limited time. For example, Prince can now deploy powerful bombs that deal massive damage. Other characters become giant, like the alien Gore Gajah, and robots like Vector gain bigger projectiles.
Plasma Sword surprised me with its variety of characters and the chance to deal massive damage with its Plasma Field, which you can activate with only one button and some Plasma Gauge. I see myself spending some time with this title until I have tried every single character.
Capcom Also Created Great Party Games
If you have never tried Power Stone 2, imagine Super Smash Bros, but 3D. You pick up a character and fight against three rivals in arenas with many levels and environmental hazards. Your character has a limited number of moves they can perform, but there are plenty of items to grab too, such as blast cannons, rocket launchers, magic staves, swords, and bombs, among others, to knock down your opponents.
You can also get a buff once you grab three Power Stones. This gives you super attacks and powerful moves. But you need to be careful because the rest of the fighters will also try to grab them, and they can make you drop the ones you have already picked up if you get too much damage.
One of the things that I liked the most about my time with Power Stone 2 is how the environment changes as the battle goes on. For example, you can start on a moving plane, then the four characters are free-falling for a few minutes, and you end up in a completely different stage. There are times when the game changes perspective, and you’re playing a side scroller, escaping from a huge ball as if you were Indiana Jones.
The battles end when two of the four players are still alive, and it gets interesting when you are playing the arcade mode and you reach a boss. These are huge creatures with specific weak points that you need to hit. Your previous rival now becomes a temporary ally, although you’re able to still knock them out if you want. This creates an exciting dynamic that reminds me of games like Mario Party, making Power Stone 2 a great option for when you invite friends to your house.
Another Collection Hit?
I had a blast as I played the first Capcom vs SNK after many years and discovered two gems that I only had references about. When it comes to the restoration part of the package, I think it’s remarkable: the games work great, the controls are responsive, and the chance to play them online is amazing. Plus, the efforts to restore old pieces of work like these and keep them available on modern platforms is invaluable work.
On the other hand, this collection seems to present the same issues as the previous two: if it’s your first time playing any of these games, good luck. While I would argue that Plasma Sword and Power Stone 2 feel very easy to pick up and start playing, this is not the case with the first Capcom vs. SNK (and the same goes for many of the other games in the collection that I couldn’t try but already know).
The chance to spend hours in a bare-bones training mode is a great addition since none of the games here had one. You can also pause at any time and check move lists and pictures explaining the basics of the mechanics. I just wish these games could get some type of tutorial for newcomers, teaching the basic concepts and then letting you experiment in real matches. But there are obvious technical reasons why this isn’t possible, and while you have to learn on your own, we at least have something that wasn’t common back in the day: YouTube videos with great people explaining everything.
You’ll be able to play these and the rest of the classic titles when Capcom Fighting Collection 2 launches on May 15 on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and Steam.
