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Capcom has so many fighting games, that despite there already being 2 different Capcom Fighting Collections, they still have games that aren’t yet included in a collection. It’s ridiculous how robust Capcom’s fighting library is when you think about it. It’s even more impressive when you realize Capcom Fighting Collection 2 packs some really solid hits!
Capcom’s honestly been on a roll with their collections. Nearly every single one of them had great titles, great gameplay enhancements, and crucially (for me at least), great artwork in their extras section!
Does Capcom Fighting Collection 2 live up to the standard though?
What is Capcom Fighting Collection 2?
Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a compilation of eight fighting games from the company’s library. The compilation is developed and published by Capcom and is available now on PC, the Playstation and Xbox consoles and the Nintendo Switch.
Our copy, as always, was kindly provided by the awesome folks over at Capcom!
Lightning can strike twice it seems, especially when it comes to Capcom. I mean, after pulling off the nearly impossible feat of releasing the Marvel vs Capcom Arcade Collection (the licensing for that was probably insane), I never thought that a Capcom collection would surprise me ever again.
How wrong I was.
Capcom Fighting Collection 2 proves that there are still jaw droppers in Capcom’s repertoire. 8 of them are reproduced here, faithfully emulated just as they were in the arcade. Performance is flawless, with no issues running on our rig.
Here are their titles:
- 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
- Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein
Having played all of these games in the arcade and their home versions during their heyday, I can say that none of these titles are stinkers. OK, maybe one is a stinker – Capcom Fighting Evolution. There’s just no way to gussy this game up to make it palatable to any fighting game fan.
I’ve always felt it was a lazy and uninspired fighter. The UI is terrible, the art is crap (the character portraits are visibly cut off during the matchup screens, the stages are pure, unadulterated blasphemies on the eyes) and the gameplay hellishly unbalanced.
There’s a story behind this unfortunate entry (it’s a mishmash of a two cancelled games) but the gist of it is that it sucks and is not worth your time.
Everything else on the collection is though!
The two vs SNK titles are incredible and still hold up really well even now. They’re the sole reason why you need to buy this collection. Incredibly flexible gameplay (the Groove system and the Ratio mechanic lets you customize your gameplay style and how strong your characters are), great art from both SNK and Capcom artists and incredibly slick presentation.
These games are Capcom at the top of their game back in the 2000s.
The Power Stone games are great as party games and online play (which is available for all titles) makes them even better! Power Stone, however, is an exercise in frustration when it comes to balance. The fast characters (like Wang Tang) are incredibly overpowered in the hands of the AI or a pro. It makes matches supremely frustrating so be warned!
Power Stone 2 fares better because it has 4 players per match, making it harder to dominate.
As for Plasma Sword and Project Justice, they’re great in gameplay but visually lacking. Even on release, the games were visually crap, but time has made that even worse. Blocky 3D characters, poor texture work, uninspired backgrounds…thankfully the combat’s brutal and fun.
If I had to pick, Project Justice is the better of the two though. Its team battle format and team based specials give it a much more distinctive punch than Plasma Sword, which is just a regular (though decent) fighter.
Unless you’re a hardcore fighting game aficionado, you might not have even heard of these titles before. Rest assured, they are fun to play.
However…there’s a caveat.
It’s one that anybody who owns any of Capcom’s previous compilations knows very well – the versions included in the compilation are the arcade ROMs.
On one hand, it’s a win for digital preservation.
On the other hand however, that means we’re missing out on the (mostly) superior home console versions. Power Stone 2 had extensive additions made to its Dreamcast port. Project Justice as well. Even Street Fighter Alpha 3 is better on consoles.
The only exception to this is Power Stone. The Dreamcast port of the game was abysmal. Super long load times, slowdown and barely any home console additions. The arcade version of Power Stone is superior in every way.
I understand that Capcom wants to preserve the arcade experience, but why not also include the console versions? Or in the case of the game being multiplatform, just the best version (which is usually the Dreamcast port)?
With games nowadays going upwards of 100GBs, surely it’s not an issue of storage? It can’t be emulators too, because even my ROG Ally X can emulate Playstation 2 and Dreamcast titles without breaking a sweat.
Why isn’t Capcom going all the way to include all the versions of each title? You’d think the company would want to showcase how the console versions expand on the arcade experience with better modes, exclusive characters and the like.
I just don’t get it.
I also don’t get why Capcom picked these particular titles to include and not others? I mean including Project Justice and Plasma Sword is strange to say the least. These games are sequels, so why are their predecessors not included in the compilation?
If Capcom wanted 8 games for the collection, simply remove either Project Justice or Plasma Sword and insert the series predecessor for the remaining game! That way you’d at least get a semi-coherent collection.
Rival Schools United By Fate (predecessor to Project Justice) and Star Gladiator (predecessor to Plasma Sword) are both fine titles and really deserve their time in the spotlight. Why weren’t they included? Both releases were available in the arcades too so it’s not like they’re console exclusives.
In the event that these games do get added to a compilation down the line, it’s going to be a hassle because their sequels are already in this compilation! Capcom’s no stranger to double dipping so, that’s probably not going to stop them from rereleasing those games again.
Speaking of rereleases, when are we getting the Arika-developed Street Fighter EX series too? The series has always been the dark horse of the Street Fighter franchise but that doesn’t mean they should be ignored and forgotten.
Or what about Capcom’s incredible robot fighter Choukou Senki Kikaioh (or Tech Romancer as it’s known in the west). I have a particular soft spot for Tech Romancer (due to its incredible theme song) and I have been waiting for ages for the game to get included in a compilation!
How can you not get pumped after watching this?!
All of the robots are riffs on famous mecha or tokusatsu. An Ultraman-like hero, a Mazinger Z looking robot, a Veritech fighter clone from Macross, a Metal Gear Rex-esque mech…hell, you even got a Magical Girl thrown in for good measure! So why are we not getting a port (or better yet, a sequel!) to Choukou Senki Kikaioh?!
For goodness’ sakes Capcom!
We’ve seen multiple versions of Street Fighter Alpha 3 already in compilations, but not even one glimpse of Tech Romancer! Even Red Earth has gotten its time in the sun!
The next compilation better have the game or I’m going to riot!
As with most of Capcom’s modern compilations, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is filled with Quality of Life additions. The chief one is of course the toggle to make secret characters selectable.
It was available in past compilations and it’s back for this one too. The feature’s great since you don’t need to bother with codes or button presses any more.
There’s also a Museum mode where you can take a look at the production art designs. I highly recommend this. You can finally see side by side both Capcom’s and SNK’s take on the characters from the Capcom vs SNK games.
Capcom’s drawings are more cartoony and stylized, while SNK goes for the more realistic representation.
I honestly think Capcom edges out SNK for most of the character designs, though SNK does have some character art that blows the Capcom ones out of the water.
On that subject, the game also performs swimmingly on the ROG Ally X. There aren’t any performance issues, everything loads fast and moves appropriately fluid. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a great portable game if you want it to be.
The Bottom Line.
Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is another solid compilation from Capcom. The games in it run flawlessly and online play means you can play with anybody around the world at any time, something that wasn’t possible for the original games. If you have an handheld PC like ROG Ally X, the collection becomes even better, as you can now take it on the road with you too!
The biggest issue I have are mainly related to the choice of titles. Having sequels without their predecessors is weird and I honestly can’t think of a logical reason for it. I’m also disappointed that only the arcade ROMs are included, as the console ports (especially for Power Stone 2) are much better and more fleshed out with content.
Disappointments notwithstanding, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a superb compilation, with a number of classics (and one dud) included. If you’re a fighting game fan, getting the collection is a must!
TLDR:
Great performance but only arcade ROMS are present. Weird title choice too!
The Good:
- Capcom vs SNK games are incredible.
- Arcade perfect in every discernible way.
- Online play.
- Museum has good amount of content.
The Bad:
- No console ports included.
- No Star Gladiator or Rival Schools United By Fate.
- Capcom Fighting Evolution is crap.
Salehuddin Husin, EIC
Sal's been in the industry since the early 2000s. He's written for a ton of gaming and tech publications including Playworks, Hardwarezone, HWM and GameAxis. Recently, Sal served as a juror for the Indie Game Awards at Taipei Game Show 2020. A geek and hardcore gamer, Sal will play everything, on any platform.
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