In the world of fighting video games there are basically two factions: Capcom and SNK. Capcom has dominated the popular market with the many incarnations of the “Street Fighter” series, but SNK has never been too far out of the spotlight with yearly editions of “The King of Fighters” series.
In the new game “Capcom vs. SNK,” the two companies have buried the hatchet and combined forces. Capcom has brought characters from the “Street Fighter” games to fight some of SNK’s “Kings of Fighters.” Finally, players can pit Ryu against Terry Bogard, or Chun Li against Mai Shiranui. The results of these battles have been awaited by gamers such as this reporter for some time.
However, the results of this combination are disappointing. The two different gaming universes contain fundamental flaws when combined with each other. Many of the Capcom characters use projectiles such as fireballs, whereas the majority of SNK’s characters don’t. This leaves them at a severe disadvantage in all respects because their attacks don’t cover as much distance. There isn’t even an effective way for an SNK fighter to cancel out a Capcom projectile.
A further disadvantage for SNK’s characters is the complexity of their moves. Some basic moves are similar to Capcom’s, but the more important — meaning more damaging — moves are difficult to execute. This makes it easier for Capcom characters to do more damage and win more easily.
One area where the programmers succeeded in combining the two styles is in the “groove” selector. Capcom and SNK have distinctly different ways of executing super combos that require a certain level of power displayed on a meter below the fighting screen. Capcom’s style is an automatic charge that allows the user to make a choice of how much energy to use in increments. The SNK style is a manual charge that allows the user an unlimited amount of potential energy but requires time to charge, which leaves the fighter defenseless. In the game, any character can use either style regardless of company origin.
A small piece of eye candy in the game is the variation in artistic styles used to display the characters. Depending on the groove a player selects, the characters are drawn in either the Capcom or the SNK style. SNK has always drawn its characters more realistically, such as in the recent “Final Fantasy” games, whereas Capcom draws fighters much more like cartoons. But regardless of the groove, the characters appear the same when fighting.
The characters selected to be a part of the game are ample, but there will be people who disapprove of who made the cut. Capcom characters such as Mega Man or Strider were thrown out because they aren’t Street Fighters, but many fighters from the Alpha series of “Street Fighter” were excluded. SNK also leaves out some popular characters from the “King of Fighters” series, such as Joe Higashi and Andy Bogard. To be fair, games always have hidden characters that may satisfy disappointed fans, but they aren’t there to start, and the steps necessary to access such characters may be difficult.
A feature unique to this game is the manner in which the characters are selected. When starting a match, the players choose how many “slots” they want available, from one to four. Each character in the game needs a certain amount of open slots to be selected. The lowest characters need one, most need two and some need three. The four open slots would suggest that there are characters who need all four open, adding to the likelihood of hidden characters. This feature is an interesting way to deal with the unevenness of battles, but it isn’t the right way to handle the problem. Within any one company’s ranks, most characters have a fighting chance against any other, but the previously mentioned difficulties with the two companies’ fighting styles are a problem that won’t be solved with slots.
Despite the faults of this game, it is a good thing that it was made because, as has been shown by the market, video games are expected to make sequels. Honestly, people never talk about the first “Street Fighter” game unless they are discussing why they have never seen it. So, while this game fails to meet the high expectations that were set out for it, we can hope that in the future it will come back to us new and improved.