Shortly after the fighting game X-men Children of the Atom, Capcom wasted no time in putting out more games featuring Marvel’s pantheon of super heroes. This game in particular is one of the more slept-on Capcom fighters (although not to the degree of Project Justice and Tech Romancer). Taking control of one of six Marvel heroes (Spider-man, Hulk, Iron Man, Captain America, Wolverine, Psylocke) or one of six villains (Shuma Gorath, Blackheart, Juggernaut, Magneto, and Thanos and Dr Doom via use of a code), you must fight your way up the ladder to meet Thanos in a plot loosely based on 1992’s Infinity Gauntlet storyline.
The game play is similar to most other Capcom fighters, with six attack buttons, three for punches, three for kicks, each differing in speed in power. Special moves are done via quarter and half circle motions, as well as charging. However, since these are superheroes, don’t expect your garden-variety martial-arts maneuvers like in street fighter. Your fighter can jump up to several feet high, ‘normal’ attacks fire projectiles, special attacks can cause serious damage, and super moves take up the entire screen. It’s not as zany as in Darkstalkers, but you’re still not gonna see any of these moves in the next Street Fighter game. The main difference that sets this game apart from other Capcom fighters, although it isn’t much, is the addition of the Infinity Gems. They appear throughout the match, and grant your character special powers when you use them. Of course this regulates multiplayer games into bouts of “who can get to the gems the fastest” although an experienced player can destroy any newbie player who plays in that manner.
This game is often overlooked due to the fact that at the time of it’s release, it was just one of many 2-d fighting games. However, it was a Capcom fighter. Moreover, it was a good game based on a Marvel property. Capcom of course went on to use the engine to produce several more Capcom fighters, most important of which being the Marvel Vs Capcom games. This is still a good game to check out if you run across the arcade cabinet, even better if you can find a copy of any of the home ports. Also of interest is the SNES spin-off “War of the Gems”, which is a side scrolling beat-em-up in the vein of Capcom’s “X-men Mutant Apocalypse”.
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In 2004, developer Raven created the smash hit X-Men Legends. This game took Marvel’s merry mutants and sent them throughout the X-men universe in 4-player action rpg goodness. The game featured customizable stats, upgradable powers, and a huge load of fan service. Raven followed up the following year with X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse which addressed the small amount gameplay issues found in the original XML and featured a story which included even more of the X-Men universe, including elements from the Age of Apocalypse storyline. In 2006, Raven decided to let the whole Marvel universe get in on the act with Marvel Ultimate Alliance. This game allowed fans to experience their favorite (and not so favorite) Marvel super heroes in a way they never imagined possible.
