Marvel vs. Capcom 2: Age of New Heroes is considered to be a pillar for the competitive fighting game community. It features the iconic rosters of Marvel Comics and Capcom's library of games and pits them against one another in 3-on-3 team battles. However, this game and other retro Marvel Comic games from Capcom have been delisted and have no longer been able to be purchased from digital storefronts since 2013. This all changed with the release of Arcade1Up's newest cabinet of Marvel vs. Capcom 2, which was announced at the premiere fighting game tournament EVO.
This cabinet is officially licensed by both Capcom and Marvel, and Arcade1Up's Vice President John Diamonon recently detailed how it came to be. In an interview with EventHubs, Diamonon notes that while the Marvel games team was focused on the newer releases, they were also happy to lend a hand to the retro-focused crowd. He notes that the first Arcade1Up cabinet that contained Marvel Super Heroes was a big success, which contributed to the decision to re-release Marvel vs. Capcom 2. After Arcade1Up got approval from Marvel, they worked with EVO Champion Justin Wong in refining the emulation and implementing Wi-Fi online battles.
Diamonon acknowledges that the online campaign to bring back Marvel vs. Capcom 2 by Maximillian Dood a year ago had caught a lot of momentum, with these requests managing to reach the ears of Marvel and Capcom. He suspects that everyone at both companies was very happy with the result, with this cabinet being able to introduce the classic fighting game to a generation of new fighting game fans.
When Diamonon was asked about the possibility of Marvel and Capcom teaming up for another Marvel vs. Capcom game, he noted there would be a lot of challenges in doing so, most of them being "political" in his words. One of the things is Capcom's focus on eSports, along with the company currently developing the upcoming Street Fighter 6. In addition, Marvel could be working on its own fighting game. With these two factors, he notes fans might not get another Marvel vs. Capcom game for a long time, if at all.
While it doesn't seem like a new game is on the horizon, this arcade re-release has plenty to offer. Not only does it feature Marvel vs. Capcom 2, but also several other titles in the series' history, such as X-Men vs. Street Fighter, the first MvC game, X-Men: Children of the Atom, and even two SNES Marvel games that were also developed by Capcom.
The Marvel vs. Capcom 2 cabinet from Arcade1Up will release in early October 2022.
Source: EventHubs