Darkstalkers, Cyberbots, Puzzle Fighter : titles to give shivers of excitement to the old of the old who frequented the arcades… and enough to pique the curiosity of the youngest. With the Capcom Fighting Collectionthe illustrious video game publisher offers us an impeccable lesson in the history of fighting games.
We can only praise this effort of preservation: wrapped in a solid set, this collection brings together 10 classics that are almost impossible to find (or overpriced) and that still draw inspiration from game developers today.
Above all, we find the legendaries Darkstalkers (the Darkstalkers original, Night Warriors, Vampire Savior, vampire hunter 2 and Vampire Savior 2), a series of fighting games featuring Brothers Grimm-style horror and fairy tale characters, all with a pixelated Disney-inspired aesthetic and fast-paced, strategic and fun gameplay.
flawless.
There are also more niche titles (all in their original Japanese or American versions), including the half-RPG half-fighting game solo game Red Earth and the giant robot duel game Cyberbotsbut also the very excellent Puzzle Fighter II (a game Tetris which brings together Capcom’s most outstanding fighters) and the adorable Super Gem Fighter Mini Mix with its distorted characters. Hyper Street Fighter II,
which no longer needs an introduction, comes to close the
spectacle.
In addition to the online mode, save functions and other small comforts that emulation brings, there is also an impressive selection of illustrations and sketches drawn by the developers which allow us to learn more about the story. behind these games. You can also listen to their soundtrack.
A desert online
Too bad, however, that the online mode is deserted on PC. Even in the evenings and weekends, too few players are online for us to be able to find a match quickly.
Fortunately, it is possible to play alone against the artificial intelligence while waiting to be matched with a player in the flesh. But the wait is long: last weekend, we only managed to make two matches during the time taken to complete the solo modes of Vampire Savior 2 and of Red Earth.
A real waste, especially since the online mode of Capcom Fighting Collection is frankly excellent, with a “rollback” type network code (rollback netcode) which ultimately eliminates the latency caused by a bad connection between two machines.
It must be said that there is a free program, Fightcade, which allows you to play these retro games online with similar ease and fluidity and which should tempt many players. On the other hand, you must provide your own copies to use this connected emulator; a gray area on the legal level if you already have them on their original medium… and a rough sea if you want to be a pirate.
Let’s bet that to get Capcom Fighting Collection will give us a clear conscience. And nothing prevents you from using it to have fun in person, in front of the TV.
Olivier Sylvester