The next evolution in fighting games!
- JP release: 4th July 2002
- NA release: 24th September 2002
- EU release: 7th March 2003
- Developer: Capcom
- Publisher: Capcom
- NGC Magazine Score: 79%
- Mods Used: Widescreen Code
The controls of this fighting game seem like they’re catered specifically to me. They’re nice and simple: punch and kick on the shoulder buttons, the face buttons for movement options and the c-stick lets you perform your special moves without the need for a combo. The ability to perform special moves with ease was exclusive to the GameCube version of the game, as the GameCube controller isn’t suited for this style of fighting game, especially with the tiny D-pad. You can change to the default controls, but an arcade stick is recommended for that.
Capcom Vs SNK 2 EO features a ton of characters, chosen from the scores of characters that Capcom and SNK have made. For Capcom, this is mainly Street Fighter, while SNK is more varied (although I personally don’t know any of them, other than Terry due to his Smash Bros announcement). As far as I can tell, they’re all characters that translate well to this style of fighting game, which means that the characters all look remarkably consistent with each other. At the same time, there’s no fun oddball characters like Mega Man (which you’d find in the Marvel Vs Capcom games).
While I’m not the right kind of person to judge fighting games, this feels quite solid and is quite enjoyable. At least when using the C-stick to “cheat” special moves.
Fun
But is it worth buying? Moaning aside, yes – it’s the best classic fighter on GC so far. If you can forgive the visuals, persevere with the controls or afford better-suited controllers or arcade sticks, then this is great for newcomers to the series, and it offers more than enough depth for masters to be playing it a number of years down the line.
Geraint Evans, NGC Magazine #72
Remake or remaster?
It’s included in Capcom Fighting Collection 2
Official Ways to get the game
This is available in PC, Switch, Xbox and PlayStation as part of Capcom Fighting Collection 2.
Europe
Japan
North America
GameCube Games by Date
2002: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2003: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2004: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2005: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
2006: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec
So, the reason that most of the Capcom characters in this game are Street Fighter, is because they’re reused assets. Most of their sprites are taken straight out of the Street Fighter Alpha series (with some exceptions, like Ryu and Chun-li). This is why the Capcom side feels so one-note.
The SNK characters, in turn, had all of their spritework made from the ground up. They’re not the same sprites as in the KOF series, nor from any of the other series they’re usually featured in. As such, they all look clean and consistent (like you say), and also you can tell that they had a bit more fun when selecting which characters to use (such as Haohmaru, Nakoruru, and Hibiki, who all come from sword-focused fighting games, rather than any modern street-fighting aesthetic).
That said, the majority of SNK characters do fit that “90s action film” aesthetic*, so filling the Capcom roster with SF characters made quite a bit of sense anyway, from that visual standpoint. Furthermore, the new sprites and newcomers that Capcom chose to build from scratch from their side (Eagle, Kyosuke, Maki, etc.) are also characters that fit that “martial arts” vibe, rather than something off-the-wall, like Jill Valentine or Mega Man.
As a result, the only characters in this roster who deviate from that chosen aesthetic are the three swordfighters I mentioned (Samurai Shodown & Last Blade)… and Morrigan (Darkstalkers). They decided to just throw Morrigan into the game, with her 1994 sprite unchanged, and she visually clashes with every other character. This is the game that crated the running joke of “Morrigan’s sprite is never getting updated” (and in fact, it never did. She simply transitioned into 3D in 2008, and never went back).
*This is mostly a long-running intended effort from SNK as well, as they’ve been doing their best to have their flagship characters share a space in the KOF series. For example, Athena is a magical girl in a cartoony 80s arcade platformer, but in the KOF series, she’s reimagined as a pop-idol musician with a Chinese fighting style, complemented by magic/psychic powers. So, for this game, there was no issue in making Athena fit into the world of martial arts, because SNK had pretty much created the blueprints for that already.