*Sigh* After roughly a decade of development hell, Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds was finally announced first quarter of 2010. Capcom had showcased a major overhaul in practically every field that the "Versus" series was known and loved for, from design aesthetics to gameplay, while at the same time, giving fanservice to long-time fans. Over the course of 2010, Capcom did everything in their promotional power to hype up this new installment that has existed for 15 years, with periodical revelations of characters to be included to the roster, the seasonal trailers that built up much anticipation for a so-called "deep and complex" storyline, play-testing and the official GameSpot tournament early this year.
Sadly, the terms "Wasted Potential" and "Broken Promises" fit into context with a game like this, especially considering the amount of time spent on development.
To begin with, the overall design themes look very crisp and clean - favoring 3D models over the trademark 2D drawn sprites from previous incarnations. This means smoother, less-choppy animation from the characters. Rendered using cel-shading to give each model a hand-drawn look, as though they had come from comic book pages, this works for the most part, coupled with a comic book font for on-screen text. And I see this as a vast improvement in the design department. Although the menus have been ignored, what with their bland layout and lack of inspiration.
The character cast has a love-hate relationship with the audience, some being considered as "wastes of character slots" (M.O.D.O.K, Crimson Viper), clones of their more recognizable counterparts (X-23, She-Hulk) or fodder for the competitive scene (the ever-infamous Magneto, Storm and Sentinel). And the roster being reduced by 20 from the massive 56 in Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Yes, the character choices can be questionable. But the cast stands out for being far more diverse and allowing less-recognized characters into the spotlight. This is pretty much a quantity vs quality issue, with the development team striving for the latter. Made more obvious with the excellent casting (Maria Canals, Jennifer Hale, Tom Kane, JYB, Steven Blum, Tara Strong)
The sound of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is what the series should have always had, with two sound effects sets categorized as Classic and Dynamic, featuring semi-realistic hitting sounds, a "choral" clip for the more powerful maneuvers and many more. Fanservice defines what the music is - theme songs either remixes of music from the characters' original games or remixes of the themes used in past Vs. series games, and the infamous "Take You For a Ride" from Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Just like the sound effects, the music is categorized as Classic and Dynamic, the latter consisting of enriching, orchestral and atmospheric background music.
Gameplay is without a doubt the most changed element in this long-running crossover. MvC3 utilizes the same engine used in the highly-successful 2008 anime and video game character crossover, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, consisting of the borrowed button scheme (taken from games such as Guilty Gear and BlazBlue) and two assist buttons, all while maintaining the deviation between Normal, Special and Hyper Combo attacks. When considering the numerous bugs and glitches (which are still existent in this installment) that defined the competitive scene, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is one of the most technical and unbalanced fighting games of all time. TvC's engine is a much more simplified take on the crossover fighting, which in turn means that MvC3 is more casual-gamer friendly, perhaps even more so than Tatsunoko itself, especially with the inclusion of Simple Mode, allowing for easier execution in a matter of nanoseconds. Nonetheless, the emphasis on high-adrenaline, fast-paced, combo-based, three-character-team combat is still present. One particular drawback in gameplay is the X-Factor mechanic. Staying true to the original idea behind the term, this gives players a temporary, one-use-per-battle enhancement in strength, speed and health regeneration. Strengthened by every defeated teammate, the odds of making a comeback are increased greatly, to the point where it ruins the game and gives players something to complain about. The gameplay is more balanced than MvC2 in the sense that all characters have a fighting chance, but still unbalanced nonetheless in terms of how quickly the tide of battle can and will be turned.
Now what exactly leaves many a player disappointed with MvC3 besides the X-Factor? With the fighting game staples, arcade, versus, practice and mission modes, this game is fine, right? Unfortunately, no. Those are the only things available for you to do. Not acceptable in today's day and age. Looking back at the analogy I've made between the game and the terms I've described above ("Wasted Potential" and "Broken Promises"), one sees that the game is unfinished, either purposefully or out of sheer laziness, in terms of content. The so-called unlockables only take roughly 3 hours or less to obtain, with hidden characters unlocked in less than an hour. Most likely this is just Capcom's flawed business ploy put into action, i.e. taking as much money from its demographic through downloadable content (i.e. Jill Valentine and Shuma-Gorath) and rehashes. And God forbid we mention the promise of a deep and complex storyline involving Albert Wesker and Doctor Doom conquering both their respective home realms. No. Simple, two-page, no-dialog endings do not equal deep and complex, let alone what the endings themselves are about. Again, acceptable back then, but not today.
MvC3 is by no means a bad game. But it is also by no means "Game of the Year". Besides the presentation, sound, voice acting and gameplay, the lack of content, the trademark gameplay imbalances and glitches, Capcom's flawed business ploy, the fanboy following and the elitist competitive fools all bring the game down severely. I've been meaning to move on to Mortal Kombat, but Australia's Classification System is also flawed. How disappointing... All of it.
Sadly, the terms "Wasted Potential" and "Broken Promises" fit into context with a game like this, especially considering the amount of time spent on development.
To begin with, the overall design themes look very crisp and clean - favoring 3D models over the trademark 2D drawn sprites from previous incarnations. This means smoother, less-choppy animation from the characters. Rendered using cel-shading to give each model a hand-drawn look, as though they had come from comic book pages, this works for the most part, coupled with a comic book font for on-screen text. And I see this as a vast improvement in the design department. Although the menus have been ignored, what with their bland layout and lack of inspiration.
The character cast has a love-hate relationship with the audience, some being considered as "wastes of character slots" (M.O.D.O.K, Crimson Viper), clones of their more recognizable counterparts (X-23, She-Hulk) or fodder for the competitive scene (the ever-infamous Magneto, Storm and Sentinel). And the roster being reduced by 20 from the massive 56 in Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Yes, the character choices can be questionable. But the cast stands out for being far more diverse and allowing less-recognized characters into the spotlight. This is pretty much a quantity vs quality issue, with the development team striving for the latter. Made more obvious with the excellent casting (Maria Canals, Jennifer Hale, Tom Kane, JYB, Steven Blum, Tara Strong)
The sound of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 is what the series should have always had, with two sound effects sets categorized as Classic and Dynamic, featuring semi-realistic hitting sounds, a "choral" clip for the more powerful maneuvers and many more. Fanservice defines what the music is - theme songs either remixes of music from the characters' original games or remixes of the themes used in past Vs. series games, and the infamous "Take You For a Ride" from Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Just like the sound effects, the music is categorized as Classic and Dynamic, the latter consisting of enriching, orchestral and atmospheric background music.
Gameplay is without a doubt the most changed element in this long-running crossover. MvC3 utilizes the same engine used in the highly-successful 2008 anime and video game character crossover, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, consisting of the borrowed button scheme (taken from games such as Guilty Gear and BlazBlue) and two assist buttons, all while maintaining the deviation between Normal, Special and Hyper Combo attacks. When considering the numerous bugs and glitches (which are still existent in this installment) that defined the competitive scene, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is one of the most technical and unbalanced fighting games of all time. TvC's engine is a much more simplified take on the crossover fighting, which in turn means that MvC3 is more casual-gamer friendly, perhaps even more so than Tatsunoko itself, especially with the inclusion of Simple Mode, allowing for easier execution in a matter of nanoseconds. Nonetheless, the emphasis on high-adrenaline, fast-paced, combo-based, three-character-team combat is still present. One particular drawback in gameplay is the X-Factor mechanic. Staying true to the original idea behind the term, this gives players a temporary, one-use-per-battle enhancement in strength, speed and health regeneration. Strengthened by every defeated teammate, the odds of making a comeback are increased greatly, to the point where it ruins the game and gives players something to complain about. The gameplay is more balanced than MvC2 in the sense that all characters have a fighting chance, but still unbalanced nonetheless in terms of how quickly the tide of battle can and will be turned.
Now what exactly leaves many a player disappointed with MvC3 besides the X-Factor? With the fighting game staples, arcade, versus, practice and mission modes, this game is fine, right? Unfortunately, no. Those are the only things available for you to do. Not acceptable in today's day and age. Looking back at the analogy I've made between the game and the terms I've described above ("Wasted Potential" and "Broken Promises"), one sees that the game is unfinished, either purposefully or out of sheer laziness, in terms of content. The so-called unlockables only take roughly 3 hours or less to obtain, with hidden characters unlocked in less than an hour. Most likely this is just Capcom's flawed business ploy put into action, i.e. taking as much money from its demographic through downloadable content (i.e. Jill Valentine and Shuma-Gorath) and rehashes. And God forbid we mention the promise of a deep and complex storyline involving Albert Wesker and Doctor Doom conquering both their respective home realms. No. Simple, two-page, no-dialog endings do not equal deep and complex, let alone what the endings themselves are about. Again, acceptable back then, but not today.
MvC3 is by no means a bad game. But it is also by no means "Game of the Year". Besides the presentation, sound, voice acting and gameplay, the lack of content, the trademark gameplay imbalances and glitches, Capcom's flawed business ploy, the fanboy following and the elitist competitive fools all bring the game down severely. I've been meaning to move on to Mortal Kombat, but Australia's Classification System is also flawed. How disappointing... All of it.