‘Marvel vs. Capcom 2’ Comes to Xbox Live

Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Comics and Video Games together in perfect harmony. We are just one made-for-TV movie starring Hugh Jackman and Jean-Claude Van Dame away from a property that encapsulates everything The Flickcast loves. In early 2000, Capcom released in arcades their fourth and final game in a series of games pitting Marvel’s finest against Capcom’s bravest.

With a total of 56 playable characters, 28 from Marvel’s side (with two versions of Wolverine) and 28 from Capcom’s (including 4 brand new made for this game) and 3 on 3 gameplay, Marvel vs. Capcom 2 quickly became an arcade favorite and is considered by some the best fighting game ever created. Now, 9 years later, it’s re-release has filled both the comic and video game communities with buzz about the game.

The game, which comes out on July 29 for a mere 1200 Microsoft Points, will not be receiving the Super Street Fighter 2 HD Remix treatment that Capcom gave to the Street Fighter franchise with completely new artwork. Instead, it will stay pure to its original retro graphics, although it will now be formatted for a widescreen television. No black bars on the sides or tacky boarders built in to it.

The backgrounds, all rendered in 3D will be upscaled and look much better than the original release. And for the Dreamcast purists out there, the rerelease will be based off the Dreamcast version of the game with two notable exceptions. From the start, all 56 characters will be playable. No all consuming grinding through the game to unlock characters for multiplayer matches. And of course, there will be online multiplayer which is a dream for many Marvel vs. Capcom 2 players who defeated all comers within driving distance before the advent of online console gaming.

So after surviving San Diego Comic-Con and spending probably way too much money while there, those of us at The Flickcast will get about two days to recover before July 29 when we boot up our XBox 360s and begin an online gaming marathon the likes of which online fighting games have never seen before.