Capcom vs. SNK 2

Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001
Arcade flyer
Developer(s)	Capcom
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Designer(s)	Hideaki Itsuno
Composer(s)	Satoshi Ise
Platform(s)	Arcade, Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Nintendo GameCube
Release date(s)	Arcade August 2001 Dreamcast JP September 13, 2001 PlayStation 2 JP September 13, 2001 NA November 6, 2001 PAL November 30, 2001 GameCube JP July 4, 2002 PAL August 30, 2002 NA September 23, 2002 Xbox JP January 16, 2003 NA February 11, 2003 PAL March 7, 2003
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer (2 players)
Rating(s)	CERO: A ELSPA: 11+ ESRB: T OFLC: M
Media/distribution	GD-ROM, DVD, Nintendo optical discs
Cabinet	Upright
Arcade system	Sega NAOMI
CPU	Hitachi SH-4 @ 200 MHz
Sound	Yamaha AICA @ 45 MHz
Display	Raster, horizontal orientation, 24 bit color

Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001, known as Millionaire Fighting 2001 (カプコン バーサス エス・エヌ・ケイ 2 ミリオネア ファイティング 2001) in Japan, is a sequel to the fighting game Capcom vs. SNK. This game was released on NAOMI hardware in the arcade. It was later released for the Sega Dreamcast (Japan only) and PlayStation 2, with the GameCube and Xbox receiving an updated version titled Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO.

Gameplay

Capcom vs. SNK 2 combines characters and gameplay elements from various Capcom and SNK fighting games, mainly the Street Fighter and The King of Fighters series. Other elements, most noticeably different fighting styles, incorporated elements from other games as well, such as Street Fighter III, Garou: Mark of the Wolves, and the Samurai Shodown series.

In contrast to the original Capcom vs. SNK, characters no longer have a specific "Ratio." Instead the player can select up to three characters in a team and give an amount or ratio (up to four) to each as desired. In console versions of the game, players can also choose a 1-on-1 game or a 3-on-3 game in Arcade Mode with the Ratio System removed.

Unlike the first game, which was based on The King of Fighters-style two-strength, four button system of punches and kicks, Capcom vs. SNK 2 is based on the three strength, six-button system of punches and kicks, native to the Street Fighter series, and the SNK characters have been tweaked to fit the 6-button style. The overall system is derivative of Street Fighter Alpha. However, a number of different fighting styles called 'Grooves', which mimic other Capcom and SNK games, are included in the engine. These dictate both the character's Super Gauge system, and special techniques, such as dashes, running, and guard cancels, called "Subsystems." There are six in total, each designtated with a letter, along with custom grooves that can be programmed in home versions of the game. Each player designates prior to the match which groove his or her team will use.

Characters

Capcom side

• Akuma (Gouki in Japan) - Super Street Fighter II Turbo
• Balrog (M.Bison in Japan) - Street Fighter II
• Blanka - Street Fighter II
• Cammy - Super Street Fighter II
• Chun-Li - Street Fighter II
• Dan Hibiki - Street Fighter Alpha
• Dhalsim - Street Fighter II
• Eagle - Street Fighter
• Edmond Honda - Street Fighter II
• Guile - Street Fighter II
• Ken Masters - Street Fighter
• Kyosuke - Rival Schools (Batsu Ichimonji and Hinata Wakaba also appear as summonable characters in one of his super combos)
• M. Bison (Vega in Japan) - Street Fighter II
• Maki - Final Fight 2
• Morrigan Aensland - Darkstalkers
• Rolento Schugerg - Final Fight
• Evil Ryu (console only) - Street Fighter Alpha 2
• Ryu - Street Fighter
• Sagat - Street Fighter
• Sakura - Street Fighter Alpha 2
• Vega (Balrog in Japan) - Street Fighter II
• Yun - Street Fighter III (Yang also appears as a summonable character in certain special moves and super combos)
• Zangief - Street Fighter II
• Shin Akuma (Shin Gouki in Japan) - Street Fighter Alpha 2

SNK side

• Athena Asamiya - Psycho Soldier
• Benimaru Nikaido - The King of Fighters '94
• Chang Koehan and Choi Bounge - The King of Fighters '94
• Geese Howard - Fatal Fury
• Haohmaru - Samurai Shodown
• Iori Yagami - The King of Fighters '95
• Orochi Iori (console only) - The King of Fighters '97
• Joe Higashi - Fatal Fury
• Kim Kaphwan - Fatal Fury 2
• King - Art of Fighting
• Kyo Kusanagi - The King of Fighters '94
• Hibiki Takane - The Last Blade 2
• Mai Shiranui - Fatal Fury 2
• Nakoruru - Samurai Shodown
• Raiden - Fatal Fury
• Rock Howard - Garou: Mark of the Wolves
• Rugal Bernstein - The King of Fighters '94
• Ryo Sakazaki - Art of Fighting
• Ryuhaku Todoh - Art of Fighting
• Ryuji Yamazaki - Fatal Fury 3
• Terry Bogard - Fatal Fury
• Vice - The King of Fighters '96
• Yuri Sakazaki - Art of Fighting
• Ultimate Rugal (God Rugal in Japan) - The King of Fighters '94

Character sprites and graphics

Because Capcom vs. SNK 2 features a roster composed of characters from numerous games and hardware eras, the appearances of several of Capcom's characters have been considered substandard in comparison to the newly drawn SNK characters. Instead of choosing to redraw its characters, Capcom took the approach of reusing old character sprites from previous games and inserting them in among the other characters. The result created a significant disparity, particularly in the case of characters like Morrigan, whose low-resolution sprite from the original Darkstalkers games appears washed out and lacking in detail when compared to Capcom's newly drawn characters, such as Maki, Eagle, Ryu, Ken, and M. Bison. This has led to criticism of Capcom's art department.^[1]

Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO

Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO is the same game but with minor changes in gameplay and the inclusion of an EO ("Easy Operation") system that allows the player to perform specific attacks by simply moving the right analog stick in a certain direction. Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO also removed the Roll Cancel glitch that was in the original versions.

Like all other home versions of the game, CvS2: EO also contains four bonus characters: Evil Ryu, Orochi Iori, Shin Akuma (Shin Gouki in Japan), and Ultimate Rugal (God Rugal in Japan), powered-up versions of four regular characters. Shin Akuma and Ultimate Rugal are the boss fighters, and display tactics typical of bosses from SNK Playmore's fighting games. However, the damage taken by Shin Akuma and Ultimate Rugal is increased to balance their above-average speed and special attacks.

Before selecting a team, the game offers a selection of "Grooves", which change the way the game is played, as well as "AC-ism" or "GC-ism" Grooves; GC-ism simplifies the control scheme, originally designed for the GameCube gamepad. In the Xbox version it's called EO-ism.

In addition, the Xbox version of CvS2: EO also includes online play for up to 2 players on Xbox Live as well as progressive-scan (480p) support, which was noticeably absent in the PlayStation 2 version.

Reviews

While the game is virtually identical across all four consoles, the Gamecube version received lower review scores due to the native control scheme of the Gamecube controller, not designed for traditional fighting games. The PlayStation 2 version received more review scores, while the Xbox & Dreamcast versions got middle review scores.

Reception
Review scores Publication Score GC PS2 Dreamcast Xbox GameSpot 5.4 out of 10[2] 8.1 out of 10[3] 7.9 out of 10[4] 8.7 out of 10[5] GameSpy [6] [7] [8] IGN 6.6 out of 10[9] 8.4 out of 10[10] 8.6 out of 10[11] Aggregate scores GameRankings 71.8% (37 reviews)[12] 82.2% (42 reviews)[13] 79.9% (44 reviews)[14] Metacritic 68% (20 reviews)[15] 81% (22 reviews)[16] 80% (26 reviews)[17]

• Famitsu - 35 out of 40
• Electronic Gaming Monthly - 8.16 out of 10
• Game Informer - 7.75 out of 10
• Official PlayStation Magazine - 4.5 out of 5

References

1. ^ "Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001 for PlayStation 2 Review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/action/capcomvssnk2markoftm/review.html?q=capcom%20snk%202. 
2. ^ "GameCube review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/gamecube/action/capcomvssnk2eo/review.html. 
3. ^ "PlayStation 2 review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/action/capcomvssnk2markoftm/review.html. 
4. ^ "Dreamcast review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/dreamcast/action/capcomvssnk2mf2001/review.html. 
5. ^ "Xbox review". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/action/capcomvssnk2eo/review.html. 
6. ^ "GameCube review". GameSpy. http://cube.gamespy.com/gamecube/capcom-vs-snk-2-eo/598800p1.html. 
7. ^ "PlayStation 2 review". GameSpy. http://ps2.gamespy.com/playstation-2/capcom-vs-snk-2-mark-of-the-millennium-2001/556206p1.html. 
8. ^ "Xbox review". GameSpy. http://xbox.gamespy.com/xbox/capcom-vs-snk-2-eo/5620p1.html. 
9. ^ "GameCube review". IGN. http://cube.ign.com/articles/372/372433p1.html. 
10. ^ "PlayStation 2 review". IGN. http://ps2.ign.com/articles/166/166519p1.html. 
11. ^ "Xbox review". IGN. http://xbox.ign.com/articles/385/385410p1.html. 
12. ^ "Aggregate score for GameCube". Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/557563.asp. 
13. ^ "Aggregate score for PlayStation 2". Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/516510.asp. 
14. ^ "Aggregate score for Xbox". Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/562243.asp. 
15. ^ "Aggregate score for GameCube". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/cube/capcomvssnk2eo. 
16. ^ "Aggregate score for PlayStation 2". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/capcomvssnk2. 
17. ^ "Aggregate score for Xbox". Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbx/capcomvssnk2eo. 

External links

• Official website for Capcom vs. SNK 2: Millionaire Fighting 2001 (Japanese)
• Official website for Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO: Millionaire Fighting 2001 (Japanese)
• Official website for Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO: Millionaire Fighting 2001 (Xbox) (Japanese)
• Capcom vs. SNK 2 at the Killer List of Videogames
• Capcom vs. SNK 2 guide at StrategyWiki
• Capcom VS. SNK 2: Millionaire Fighting 2001 at MobyGames