ShareThis
All eight games offer a ton of fighting variety and represent some of the best the genre has to offer; bunches of unlockables, including music and artwork; rollback netcode offers smooth online fighting; excellent visual design work
Some of the games aren't quite as impressive as others, but it's going to boil down to personal taste on which ones click or don't
One of the nicest things about the Nintendo Switch era has been the abundance of preservation projects that have graced the console. Capcom has really been at the forefront of this among the larger studios, compiling huge chunks of its back catalog (including arcade titles) into glorious remastered collections. From Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy to Capcom Arcade Stadium, the range of content has been huge and the quality through the roof. Now, another compilation has dropped, Capcom Fighting Collection 2, and once again a delightful arrangement of classic fighting games from console and arcade has been assembled. There really isn’t a bad egg to be found here, so if you’re a fighting game fan, this collection is going to be a must.
Here are all of the games inside Capcom Fighting Collection 2:
- 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
All of these titles originally came out across a range of different systems including Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2, SEGA Dreamcast, and arcade. Some of these games have been on the rerelease wishlists of fighting fans for many years, especially titles like Power Stone. For some, simply having access to just one or two of the games here alone will be worth the price of admission.
What’s great about the selection of games here is that there’s a lot of variety on offer. Power Stone, with its 3D fighting arenas and melee combat, is a lot different than the more traditional 2D brawling in Street Fighter Alpha 3 UPPER and Capcom vs. SNK. All of the different types of fighting games will keep any sense of monotony from setting in for a long, long time. Any one game in this collection is a potentially massive time sink.
Alas, these are all the arcade versions of each game (with both the Western and Japanese iterations present), so that means console-specific modes like, say, adventure, are absent. It really shouldn’t be a deal-breaker for anyone, but for the strictest of completionists out there. Still, if would have been nice to offer both the home and arcade installments of each game.
Again, that’s a quibble. And besides, Capcom has beefed up these arcade titles with a variety of different features, so it’s not like these are barebones arcade ports. Dedicated training modes are present to help newbie fighters learn the ropes, replete with on-screen inputs and hit boxes to help guide players. Simplified, one-button combos are another option to help ease in fighters of all skill levels.
Other quality of life features have been included, too, like the now-requisite in retro compilations screen filters, save states, and, perhaps the biggest boon for players, rollback netcode. This last bit does a great job facilitating smooth online play, so if you have buddies you’d like to fight from a distance, or if you’d prefer to test your mettle with random opponents, Capcom Fighting Collection 2 has you covered in that department.
What really excites me as a player are the visuals in each of these games. All of these titles are masterclasses in pixel art, animation, and design. Sure, some of the 3D assets might show their age compared to the 2D stuff, but these are nonetheless some of the most impressive looking fighting games ever made. These are some of the most iconic designs of Capcom’s (and SNK’s) characters ever put to screen. And with the HD increase to the visuals, everything is crisper than ever.
When I was a kid watching these games come out new, my mind was consistently blown by the artistic prowess of the legends at Capcom. Artist like Shinkiro (who drew new art for this collection, which you can see below), Akira Yasuda, and others have been inspirations to me as an artist virtually my entire life. The museum feature in Capcom Fighting Collection 2 has been a wonderful excuse to sit and look through their works. All of the pieces assembled are works that were produced for the eight games in this compilation as they were released. It’s classic stuff that the industry sorely misses today with its fixation on digital and generative art.
Another element of this collection that stands out is how experimental some of the games are. The titles that straddle the line between 2D and 3D, titles like Project Justice, came at a time when fighting games were still trying to adjust to the 3D-dominant gaming landscape. This meant finding a sweet spot that maintained the straightforward accessibility of 2D fighting games while still embracing aspects of the third dimension to do something new. Project Justice, Power Stone, and Plasma Sword are all emblematic of these pioneering efforts.
There’s no denying that fighting game fans, especially old school ones, will get the most out of Capcom Fighting Collection 2. The octet here comes from a bygone era, one that was a mix of classic and new. They’re games that for those who played them will never be erased from their memories. However, even newer players will have a lot of fun with this compilation if they take the time to sit and engage with each game. Titles like Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro are timeless, and others like Power Stone are just waiting to entice a new generation of players. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a must for Nintendo Switch owners.
Nintendojo was provided a copy of this game for review by a third party, though that does not affect our recommendation. For every review, Nintendojo uses a standard criteria.
