Completion time: 17:30

On a console filled to the brim with fighting games, Capcom might have been the undisputed king of the Sega Dreamcast fighting game scene. From lesser known titles like Project Justice, to obscurities like Tech Romancer, to versus style games, like Capcom vs SNK, you had a plethora of selections to choose from, and just about all of them were worth it, especially Capcom vs SNK.

The one thing I disliked about CVS was how they handled the roster. To play the game, you have to select fighters that were all classified under the numbers 1-4, and pick no higher than 4 in total. A number of pretty fun characters were relegated to number 1, with less to choose from the higher you go. The thing is though, the lower the number, the weaker they are in both offense and defense. There are no rounds here; you fight until the other team is beaten. So if the player chose a 3 and 1 fighter, they basically would lose in two rounds, while the opponent with 4 4’s get four rounds. It weakens too many fighters, and picking anything but a 3+1 or 2+2 pointless.

Beyond that though, CVS plays damn well. It adopts a 4 button layout (two light, two heavy), though you can pull off medium attacks depending on the direction held when pressing a weak button). Combat is rock solid, with an outstanding audio/visual package, especially those killer backgrounds. The roster size is adequate, but pales to its sequel.

Capcom vs SNK was a stellar first attempt at brand warfare between the two companies. It’s often the forgotten of the three console releases, but that shouldn’t mean it’s vastly inferior or feeble in what it provides. It’s another Sega Dreamcast title that fetches about as much as a current gen video game asks for these days, and with Capcom vs SNK 2 existing, I’d recommend picking that one up for sure, perhaps on the PS2 or Xbox, to save a little bit more money. Nonetheless, the first versus game between Capcom and SNK was still a huge success.

Rating: 9