(Como's Fighting Game Thoughts

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WHY YOU SHOULD FUCK WITH: CAPCOM VS SNK 2: MARK OF THE MILLENIUM
(This is True Love Makin')

In the 90s, the fighting game genre were experiencing a golden era of being the most popular thing in the world. In a lot of ways it was the predecessor to the MOBA boom that defined eSports in the 2010s, defined by how much of the culture revolved around the accessibility of arcades and and the unique perk of many games being able to co-exist within the same spaces in one venue. They were social, a breeding ground for many friendly competition and rivalries to add a extra flavor among your Metal Slugs and House of the Deads eating quarters in their own right and..

We all know the dream had to end, right?

[Image Description: Screenshot from SVC: Chaos, God is kicking Rock Dad Florida Man Terry Bogard from Heaven]

In a lot of ways, those final embers worked their way into the end of the golden age. The angrier end of times energy of games like Third Strike with it's 1999 apocalypse plot and Garou: City of the Wolves with its decaying suburbia and grunge persona were reflective of the slow realization that time is running out. Marvel vs Capcom 2's credits roll and the afterparty is weaved with a melancholic jazz. SNK vs Capcom, the SNK made counterpart of the series, drops SVC Chaos with a utterly depressing apocalyptic world of rot where Guile is casually fist fighting god to survive what's left of this dying reality (yes, really).

[Image Description: A Youtube Thumbnail and link for a groovy version of Ryu's theme Capcom vs SNK: Millennium Fight 2000]

And defying the energy, is Capcom's counterpart duology. In sharp contrast, it chose to be a celebration by combining two casts from competing companies in the arcade scene. 
(It also was made because a joke in a Magazine was taken seriously and they felt obliged to make it real due to people asking.)


Capcom vs SNK itself is a game with one of the most stylish UIs and Aesthetics ever put into a video game by embracing the rising digital age mixed with the look of televised competition (Something its sequel will also put a spin on) and it deserves a conversation of its own at another point- it's the result of a genre developing and maturing its identity over a rapid period of heavy competition.

[Image Description: Screencap from CVS1, 6'3 rock dad florida man Terry Bogard in his signature jeans, vest, and red hat is doing his iconic burn knuckle attack where he lunge punches someone from across the room. Kyo of King of Fighters fame is unfortunately his victim in this scary alleyway setting.]

Like SNK's King of Fighters, the game uses a team format that is less like the Marvel vs Capcom Tag Fighters and more like a elimination battle similar to manga arcs like Yu Yu Hakusho's Dark Tournament. You enter with a set of characters and play until you've KO'd and eliminated the entire opposite team. In King of Fighters, you account for position via roles. Your point character should be someone who is reliable without meter and potentially be able to build plenty for the others to use as they please. Your anchor is someone who will make the most of that meter, cashing out and exploding heads left and right should it come down to a last stand situation. If you love the fantasy of playing out matches similar to those of a anime squad tournament, maybe rip open Fightcade or the modernized ports on Steam My recommendations?

King of Fighters 98 for old school gameplay that is the crux of more recent games.

King of Fighters 2002 for a dream roster and speedy gameplay.

King of Fighters 13 for its sprite art and being the culimination of a lot of SNK's 2D era.

King of Fighters 15 for a modern with a huge cast take that keeps the core principles but with a lot to ease the curb comparatively.

98 and 2002 are pretty popular on Fightcade, with their Ultimate Match editions on Steam being the most rich in terms of characters and having significant rebalancing.

13 and 15 both have rollback baked in from the go. 

However in Capcom's take, there's two major features that spin this dynamic on its head.

[Image Description: Screenshot from CVS1. A large character select with rows ad columns cycling in from the horizin speeding toward the opponent, the current highlighted character is Chun-Li with the number 2 next to her indicating she is a average stregnth character under the game's Ratio system. ]

The Ratio System: where you are allowed a budget of 4 points to build your team similar to those old memes where you have a prompt. On paper, this allowed characters to have a certain powerscaling to them based on a mix of canon and star power. Do you grab 4 little guys and get the most potential stability? Grab a Boss character like Bison and a small scrapper like Cammy to fill in a role? Team fighters are a deckbuilding action game, and this dynamic adds a new weight to your character select.


The Groove System: You pick a set of mechanics based on your preference of SNK and Capcom, with both primarily impacting how your meter system works. The intricacies are to be saved for later, but..

[Image Description: Screenshot from CVS1: A menu with tons of tv broadast screens prompting the user to pick between "Grooves", one labeled Capcom and the other labeled SNK.]

As interesting as all these things were on paper, they didn't allow as much creative teambuilding and freedom as folks liked.
This is where Capcom vs SNK 2 really fleshes things out with a total overhaul and the crux of why this game is so beloved and praised to this day:
Capcom vs SNK 2's new Groove system has 6 options, each representing a playstyle and modeled after a particular Capcom or SNK game. To speed right through them:

[Image Description: A menu listing the various groove options that will be elaborated on in the following sections, the names of the grooves make CAP and SNK respectively]

CAPCOM GROOVES:

C-Groove, based off the Street Fighter Alpha games where your character has a very well rounded set of tools through a standard dash, a dodge roll, and the ability to build and hold 3 bars of Super meter to use as you please. It's a fairly standard and efficient grove that is among the more popular and competes with the next one for most played. A all-rounder for those who prefer methodical fundamental play

A-Groove, based off the V-ism system from Street Fighter Alpha 3. While there's massive overlap with the previous Groove, this one has the ability to enter a state where moves cancel into each other so freely that you feel like you're playing Devil May Cry at times. It's a Groove optimized heavily for combofiends who have the dexterity to flex big explosive freestyle loops.

P-Groove, based off systems from Street Fighter 3: Third Strike. It has the capacity to parry defensively to create unique entry situations and it has a single level 3 super that splatters opponents... however, it has very little else going for it, meaning it lives and dies by your ability to capitalize on Parry mechanics and then confirm into a face melting Super off a mistake. For those who really love Third Strike parrying.

SNK GROOVES:

S-Groove: Based on King of Fighters '94, a well rounded groove with infinite level 1 supers at low health and the ability to charge your meter at any point akin to one of those anime arena fighters like Dragon Ball Z Budokai. You're given a good amount of movement tools like a sprint, a short hop, teching knockdown, wakeup rolls, and a spot dodge system that may feel familiar if you're a casual used to Smash Bros (which is so massively inspired by SNK games that can be its own conversation.) If you're willing to give up Okizemi (a term meaning follow up potential after knocking a opponent down), you'll always be loaded with meter.

N-Groove: Based on King of Fighters '98's Extra Mode systems. A strong groove if you want something mobile and efficient at a bit of everything without any real explosive sauce behind it. It has a meter stock system that's unique to it and makes it flexible on super usage, and it gets a passive boost to its damage. For those who want a All-Rounder that rewards movement and more offensive leaning fundamentals.

K-Groove: Based on Samurai Showdown and Garou: Mark of the Wolves. The most played amongst the SNK grooves, giving you a modest amount of mobility and a "Just Guard" parrying system that gives you a little health when you block with perfect timing. You only gain meter by taking damage, and when a character dies you lose all of it....

However, should you max it out you'll enter a rage state when your damage is obscene and you gain a defensive buff, allowing you to splatter a opponent with a super more than often. Its existence is a big reason few people bother with solo characters unless they're using this themselves.

That's a lot of variety, no? A true "have it your way" system, you get to play your game your way and the choice of team suddenly is given a different approach as some characters will massively benefit over some of these more than others.
And speaking of teambuilding...

[Image Description: A large Haohmaru, the Miyamoto Musashi insired protagonist from Samurai Showdown, smugly over a Ratio 4 Icon. The other player has picked Ryo, the standard guy in a gi with blonde hair from Art of Fighting at Ratio 3 and Maki, the blond ponytailed shinobu in a red Ninja uniform from Final Fight at Ratio 1.] 

The NEW Ratio System:
You have 4 points and can distribute them across a number of characters on a team sized 1-3. This is designed to circumvent the issue of people picking nothing but Ratio 1s and having a team of 4 that is weaker but stable compared to the super boss characters who take up your entire 4 points feeling like they're guaranteed to be whittled to death.


This means you can pick a Ryu solo as a Ratio 4, as a 1, 2, or 3 point character in a duo, and a 1 or 2 in a Trio. In general, 2 points is treated as the benchmark for a average power character in this series. Your trios will always have at least a 2 which is best saved for a powerful stabilizing character. Your duos can be two average characters or you can sacrifice one as a meter battery who eats a single point while your 3 point anchor rips tiny characters to shreds on 3 man squads.

[Image Discription: Mai, the Shinobu from Fatal Fury armed with a fan and a sexy ninja outfit that will guarantee you a cold in London, facing off against Yun from Street Fighter 3 who invokes a martial arts film protagonist, with a distinct blue baseball gap and braid. Their battle field is a London street on a cold day.]

And of course, you can just play one really strong boss powered version of any character and slice through health bars like butter. There is no joy like stabbing Akuma in the face and instantly turning his miserably little health bar into pixie dust off any hit. Be a motherfucker, it's up to you!

[Image Description:  Haohmaru, the Miyamoto Musashi insired protagonist from Samurai Showdown, smugly taking a near third of his opponent's health off a single stray hit]

And this is the true bliss of this game, from its colorful cast and visuals to its soundtrack to the sense of freedom for those who love creativity in teambuilding and room for near endless exploration. Whille the core moment to moment gameplay is effectively the mellow paced chess-like approach of Street Fighter with a big crossover cast, it's giving you so much to play with. It's the thrill of finding what works, finding what combinations of teams really make it for you without the chaos of tagging and assist systems.

Image Description: The insanely huge character select menu of Capcom vs SNK 2, every character's icon is framed in these diamonds lined together like a honeycomb with their portraits.]

And the roster size? Massive! While I have my issues (Lack of Mega Man anything, only one Darkstalkers character, not having characters like K' or Leona who would sell me on a third game fast) with a lot of archetype overlap, it's more than enough.

It's easily available as a game too!

Officially, the best way to snag it is the Capcom Fighting Collection 2 (which has both CVS1 pro and CVS2, as well as a bunch of other personal favorites like Project Justice and Alpha 3 Max) with modern netcode and a variety of features to make the experience intuitive and easy. 

But if you're looking for the main hub without spending a dime, 10 minutes setting up fightcade is more than enough to get all the matches you want.

There's a lot of interesting tech (including the roll special canceling shenianigans that define the meta among serious players on older builds) that I won't go over but I recommend Supercombo as a resource hub for this game.

I did this because I insist on covering Pokemon: Type Wild whenever I talk about Close Combat one day admittedly. I do plan to talk about the other Capcom and SNK crossovers at some point, my thoughts on modern SNK's current nightmare of a situation, and what the fuck SVC: Chaos is because... well, you'll see.

If we don't get to Pokemon fighters next (or I lose my mind and decide to work in Pokken into the conversation because it's unavoidable considering Close Combat's premise is built on the original pitch for that game) I'll bitch about Luke and Unika as new generation shotos instead.

[Image Description: A image with a lost of characters and prices. titled "You have 4 Dollars, who is on your team??". In the 1 Dollar tier is Cammy, Joe Higashi, Vice, and King. On the 2 Dollar tier is Terry Bogard, Ryu, Iori Shinigami, and Chun-Li. On the 3 Dollar tier is M.Bison, Sagat, Geese Howard, and Rugal Bernstein.]