Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001



Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001 (Millionaire Fighting 2001 in Japan) is the sequel to the fighting game Capcom vs SNK, and the sixth game in the Capcom's VS. Series.

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 called Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO.

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.

Contrary to the previous game, characters no longer have a specific "Ratio". The player can select up to three characters in a team and give an amount or ratio (up to four) to each as he/she pleases. In console versions of the game, players can also choose a 1 on 1 game (like Street Fighter) or a 3 on 3 game (like The King of Fighters) in Arcade Mode with the Ratio System removed.

Capcom Characters

 * Ryu - Street Fighter
 * Ken Masters - Street Fighter
 * M. Bison (Vega in Japan) - Street Fighter II
 * Sagat - Street Fighter
 * Vega (Balrog in Japan) - Street Fighter II
 * Balrog (Mike Bison in Japan) - Street Fighter II
 * Akuma (Gouki in Japan) - Super Street Fighter II Turbo
 * Chun-Li - Street Fighter II
 * Guile - Street Fighter II
 * Sakura Kasugano - Street Fighter Alpha 2
 * Cammy - Super Street Fighter II
 * Dhalsim - Street Fighter II
 * Eagle - Street Fighter
 * Maki Genryusai - Final Fight 2
 * Yun Lee - Street Fighter III
 * Zangief - Street Fighter II
 * Dan Hibiki - Street Fighter Alpha
 * Blanka - Street Fighter II
 * Edmond Honda - Street Fighter II
 * Kyosuke Kagami - Rival Schools
 * Morrigan Aensland - Darkstalkers
 * Rolento Schugerg - Final Fight
 * Evil Ryu/Satsui no Hadou Ni Mezameta Ryu (console only) - Street Fighter Alpha 2

Capcom Boss character

 * Shin Akuma (True Gouki in Japan) - Street Fighter Alpha 2

SNK Characters

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

SNK Boss character

 * God Rugal

Gameplay
Capcom vs. SNK 2 is based on the three strength system of punches and kicks (weak, medium, and hard) native to the Capcom games Street Fighter II and Street Fighter Alpha. 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 (energy for super attacks, or desperation attacks), and special techniques (such as dashes, running, and guard cancels) called "Subsystems". There are six in total, 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 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 other of Capcom's newly drawn characters, such as Maki, Eagle, Ryu, Ken, and M. Bison (even Chun-Li and Yun have new sprites, which are based on their CPS-3 sprites from the Street Fighter III series). This has led to criticism of Capcom's art department by critics.

Capcom vs SNK EO
Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO is the same game but with minor changes in gameplay and the inclusion of an EO ('easy operation', or 'extreme offense' for Western releases) system that allows the player to perform specific attacks by simply moving the right analog stick (C Stick for the GameCube) 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, Riot 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.

Critical Reception
Edge reviewed the GameCube version of Capcom vs SNK 2 EO in issue 114, awarding it only 3 out of 10. It was felt that the special move shortcuts diminished the impact of basic punches and kicks, destroying the game balance; no subtlety, nothing to learn, and no reward. The two player mode was especially criticized: "How can you celebrate some glorious special move victory when all it took was a single movement?".