Capcom Fighting Collection 2 Review

Capcom has always been a big name in fighting games. The company has experienced more haymakers than most developers have had hot dinners. After the success of Capcom Fighting Collection and Capcom Arcade Stadiums, it was only a matter of time before another compilation came out. 

Capcom Fighting Collection 2 is a collection of eight games from Capcom's early 2000s library. This was a time when arcades were still popular and Power Stone tournaments could settle schoolyard arguments. The first collection focused mostly on Darkstalkers, but this one loves a mix of cult favorites, fan favorites, and a few "black sheep" that snuck in with a lot of enthusiasm. 

A collection that begs the question, "Remember this gem?" and most of the time, you'll happily answer, "Yes!" The thing that makes this collection stand out is that Capcom is willing to show off games that haven't been widely available in decades. Games like Project Justice and Capcom Fighting Evolution haven't been re-released or ported to new consoles since they came out the first time. 

Fans have been begging Capcom to find a way for them to play these old fighters legally and without much trouble, and they mostly listened. It's not a perfect return, but these games are easier to get into than they've been in years. It's important to keep games alive these days, but it's easy to forget to do so.

Most fighting games don't have very deep stories, but some do try to weave a story in between the fights. For example, Project Justice stands out with its anime-fueled high school drama, which tells a crazy story of rival academies, secret groups, and family betrayals, all wrapped up in comic book panel cutscenes and Saturday morning cartoon logic.

Power Stone and its follow-up have some light treasure-hunting stories, but the funny fights and crazy stage changes are what you're really here for. The eternal war between the World Warriors continues in Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper. It's not going to win any Hugo Awards, but there's something charming about the way it builds tension between the famous cast. Go somewhere else if you want to find Shakespeare. For those who want a story where someone gets hit with a rocket launcher and then turns into a superhero, this is the right museum exhibit for you.

People remember these silly, sincere stories even though they don't always make sense. A wrestling coach and a boxing chef work together in Project Justice to fight unfair school uniforms. It's not as clear in CVS2, but dream matchups between Capcom and SNK fighters are linked vaguely. 

With all of its flaws, Capcom Fighting Evolution still manages to feel like more than just a bunch of random games put together. You don't have to make these into character studies, but you can. These are the kinds of stories that go best with a smile and a bunch of arcade coins.

Capcom Fighting Collection 2 lets you play as dozens of different fighters in eight different games, each with its own style, gameplay, and chaos. You can fight one-on-one or with a team, and you can also climb arcade ladders, go for high scores, and sometimes find glowing stones that make your character a one-person wrecking crew. 

Finally, each game now has a built-in training mode that lets you practice moves, watch hitboxes, and change how dummies behave. All games have one-button specials that make flashy attacks easier for new players. The only ones that don't have them are the Power Stone games, which focus more on random item use and environmental strategy.

Power Stone 1 and 2 aren't like other 2D fighting games because they have moving 3D stages, props to throw, and power-ups to grab. When you play these games, stage awareness is often more important than knowing all the combos. The other games stay true to their 2D roots, but their tone and depth are very different. 

Both Capcom vs. SNK and its follow-up, CVS2, have team-based mechanics and groove systems that change the way you play and the moves you can use. You can choose from different ISM modes in Street Fighter Alpha 3 Upper. These modes change how you combo, block, or charge supers.

Capcom Fighting Evolution is like Frankenstein's monster because it combines characters from different series while keeping each series' own rules for how to play. The way you fight here is as varied as the characters. Capcom vs. SNK 1 and 2 let you put together a team of characters and give them "power ratios," which change how strong they are and how many of them there are. 

One fighter with full ratio could be your best, but spreading your points among three balanced characters gives you more options. CVS2 adds grooves, a system that lets you choose from six different ways to fight, which is similar to how other Capcom and SNK games work. 

Along the same lines, Alpha 3's ISM styles let you change your character's defense and options. Tag-style team systems and different levels of ground or air combat are added to Project Justice and Capcom Fighting Evolution. Also, fighting styles in Darkstalkers are different from those in other Capcom games.

For example, a Street Fighter II character might fight like it's 1991 while facing a Darkstalkers character who jumps around the screen like a bat on caffeine. For Power Stone 1 and 2, chaos is what you get instead of combo strings. Pick up items, avoid traps, collect power stones, and when you transform, you become an anime boss. It's really fun.

What works for everyone is having a spread. One great thing about fighting compilations is that no two games feel the same. The control fidelity is good, especially since input lag is taken into account in games like CVS1 compared to their console counterparts. The hitbox display feature in training mode is great for people who love breaking down every frame, but it's a shame that it's only available in Street Fighter games.

But there are some slip-ups. Capcom Fighting Evolution doesn't feel as smooth as its competitors, with bland stages and annoyingly long load times. Forced four-player fights in Power Stone 2 can be a mess, especially when AI and targeting make things more frustrating than fun. 

Because arcade-only versions are being used, some of the most popular single-player console modes are missing. These include Power Stone's Adventure Mode and Alpha 3's World Tour. Because of this, some games feel like their bones instead of whole experiences.

This set doesn't offer much in the way of XP or progress—what you see is what you get. Since most of these are arcade ports, progress is tracked by quarters spent and enemies killed instead of experience bars. Still, Project Justice keeps its story mode and some continuity by having dialogues that can go in different directions and more than one ending.

The console version of Power Stone 2 doesn't have a shop system, so there's no way to build up items over time. Since there aren't any progression hooks, this game's replay value comes from getting better at it, trying to beat your high score, and playing with other people.

If you weren't hoping for a full remaster, this collection doesn't let you down in terms of looks. These are clear arcade ports that have been updated with more modern display options. You can make it look like CRT scanlines or clean HD pixels with eight different visual filters, depending on how nostalgic you are. 

The characters still stand out with strong lines and bright colors, and while some backgrounds (cough, Capcom Fighting Evolution) are boring, most stages are still beautiful. Power Stone really shines with its 3D environments, and it still plays surprisingly well for a game that came out before smartphones.

The sound design for all of the games is consistent, lively, and full of everything from loud hit sounds to corny victory lines. The fact that the in-game music player has full soundtracks for each game is a great bonus for fans who want to groove to some arcade hits. 

But the fact that you can't export or download the music is a missed opportunity. A proper sound test mode with historical context or remix options would have made the feature more than just a nostalgic way to listen. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 was made with a lot of love for arcade fans who lived and breathed the 2000s scene.

Capcom Fighting Collection 2 brings back old favorites like Capcom vs. SNK 2 and Power Stone with respect, adds useful training tools, and gives online battles polished rollback netcode. But it also takes on some bad habits from the original, like having few save slots and not being able to play with other people, and it skips over beloved console content in favor of straight-up arcade ports.

There's no doubt that this is a great collection of fighters, but it could have been even better with a few extra features, like better gallery commentary, more single-player content, or support for more than one platform.