Marvel Super Heroes Vs. Street Fighter
  
   
   
REVIEWWhile X-Men Vs. Street Fighter was enjoying a run as one of the most exciting 2D tag-team fighting games ever made, enjoying widespread success as a smash hit in arcades, Capcom fans were shocked and ecstatic to hear news about a sequel, called Marvel Super Heroes Vs. Street Fighter. With a name like that, the epic crossover between the two companies now seems bigger than ever... with more potential than ever. MSH Vs. SF (for short) features an updated character roster and an exciting new selection screen, bringing in iconic heroes from Capcom's Marvel Super Heroes (1995) to duke it out with Street Fighter's most hip warriors.

 

Dream match-ups galore!

  
At its core, MSH Vs Street Fighter isn't a whole lot different from the prequel, but it does offer a variety of new content. Gameplay system updates include several new moves for returning characters, new combos, and the Assist Attack mechanic, enabling partner characters to jump in during gameplay for a quick attack or special move - adding new strategy and combo possibilities to the fast-paced tag-team gameplay. Marvel Super Heroes Vs Street Fighter feels fluid and fast, like the prequel. With a speedy assist attack now at your disposal, the gameplay and combo possibilities have never felt so "open". Character balance as a whole was improved this time around, with broken infinite combos from X-Men VS Street Fighter being removed... however, top players found some new ones for this game too, of course).


However, all characters are pretty good and the game is very fun to play. The overall quality and presentation of Marvel Super Heroes Vs Street Fighter is in line with past installments, but stands out on its own with a unique art style and soundtrack (all brand new). The game also debuts a new announcer, who actually kinda steals the show with his enthusiasm and charisma. The game's announcer passionately yells out each character's full super move title during a super combo finish (see featured video). "Shinkuu-Tatsumaki-Senpuu-Kyaku!!!! ... "Hyper Stars & Stripes!!!!" ... "Crawler Assault!!!". I'm not sure any other fighting game announcer could ever come close to the hype of this guy.

 
 

Enter the assist attack!

 

Along with a catchy new character selection theme, characters were given all new BGMs. Many of them have a sort of "jazzy" tone to them, but they're definitely catchy and manage to suit the pace of the game quite well. Just like in X-Men Vs Street Fighter, after one character is KO'ed, their partner's theme song kicks in right as they jump into the fight! ...Still a cool effect. The hand-drawn backgrounds from the prequel have returned, but were tweaked visually with new lighting effects, coloring, and background details. The artists even fit in some cool character cameos from both Capcom and Marvel. Overall, Marvel Super Heroes Vs Street Fighter looks, sounds, and plays differently enough from X-Men VS Street Fighter to make it feel like a completely new game.


Who wouldn't want to team up Ryu & Spider-Man and duke it out with Zangief & Hulk? This game was the first time these dream match-ups happened. With MSH Vs Street Fighter, Capcom was taking major strides into their crossover legacy. While the inclusion of Marvel's most popular icons is one of the best parts of the game, one of the game's biggest flaws is (obviously) the removal of many characters from past Versus Series installments... both on the Capcom and Marvel sides.

Shadow is a badass secret character!

 
Sadly, most of the crew from X-Men VS Street Fighter have gone M.I.A (maybe it's part of the storyline but probably not), and if you mained any of these characters, you were most definitely "disappointed" with MSH Vs SF upon hearing the news. While any fan of the first crossover would've enjoyed seeing ALL previous characters return to the roster (including those from X-Men: Children of the Atom), it was still nice to see other characters getting a chance to "shine" in the limelight. In any case, this installment set up some exciting possibilities for future entries to the Versus Series, taking necessary steps towards the series' full potential... and leaving fans wanting more. 

 

 
 

Page Updated: October 30th, 2022
Developer(s): Capcom
Publisher(s): Capcom
Artwork by: Bengus (CRMK), Akiman
Platform(s): Arcade, PlayStation, Sega Saturn 
Release Date(s): June 25th, 1997           Arcade
Oct. 22nd, 1998
             Saturn
Jan. 31st, 1999
               PS1
Feb. 25th, 1999
              PS1
Characters Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, Zangief, Dhalsim, Akuma, Dan, Sakura, Bison, Cyclops, Spider-Man, Captain America, Wolverine, Hulk, Shuma Gorath, Blackheart, Omega Red, Shadow, Apocalypse, Cyber Akuma, Mephisto, Norimaro ( / console)

Featured Video:

Related Games: Marvel Super Heroes, X-Men Vs. Street Fighter, Marvel Vs. Capcom, X-Men: Children of the Atom, Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Marvel Vs. Capcom: Infinite, Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom, Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars, Capcom Vs. SNK, Capcom Vs. SNK 2, Street Fighter 3, Street Fighter 3: 2nd Impact, Mortal Kombat 4, Darkstalkers 3, Pocket Fighter, Real Bout Fatal Fury Special, The Last Blade, Groove On Fight
  

Gameplay Engine  8.5 / 10
Story / Theme  9.0 / 10
Overall Graphics  9.0 / 10
Animation  9.0 / 10
Music / Sound Effects  9.0 / 10
Innovation  8.5 / 10
Art Direction  9.5 / 10
Customization  8.0 / 10
Options / Extras  8.0 / 10
Intro / Presentation  9.0 / 10
Replayability / Fun  8.0 / 10
"Ouch" Factor  8.5 / 10
Characters  8.0 / 10
BOTTOM LINE

 8.7 / 10

 Review based on Arcade version    

 

Final Words: I really enjoyed Marvel Super Heroes VS Street Fighter... almost as much as X-Men VS Street Fighter. At first, the game seemed like a lazy rehash (and of course it was sad seeing most of my X-Men Vs. Street Fighter favorites not returning)... but I quickly learned to appreciate this game for many reasons. Entertaining. Still beautiful. And new characters get their chance to shine. 

The character roster, music, announcer, and gameplay are all particularly memorable... and still "stand out" to this day. I had some good times with MSH VS SF, and I think most fans of Capcom's Versus Series would say the same thing.

Of course, Capcom wasn't done with this epic crossover. A few years later and MSH Vs Street Fighter was succeeded by Marvel Vs Capcom... followed by one of the all time biggest and baddest competitive fighting games of all time, our beloved Marvel Vs Capcom 2. The latter brought back nearly every character in the series history, making all of our fanboy wildest dreams come true anyway (even if our feelings were hurt in this game).

In retrospect, we didn't know how good Capcom 2D tag-team fighting games were about to get... but in 1997-1998... Marvel Super Heroes Vs Street Fighter was a great thing to see happening, and definitely an important stepping stone that made timeless games like MVC2 and MVC3 even possible.
~TFG Webmaster | @Fighters_Gen
 

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