Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds – Hands-on Impressions from E3 2010

Let me explain something right off the bat. Somehow, I managed to completely miss out on Marvel vs. Capcom 1 and 2. Now let me also explain that I’ve at least been a huge fan of the majority of the other Capcom fighters out there. Now that we’ve cleared that up, last week at E3, I managed to get about an hour’s worth of playtime of Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds and had myself a virtual blast. It all began when I entered Capcom’s massive PR exhibit area, which allowed for line-free access to their upcoming hit titles, including Dead Rising 2, Okamiden, MotoGP 09/10, Bionic Commando Rearmed 2, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and a few others. I was immediately drawn to the huge Marvel set up and wanted to get my hands on the title, as my fellow editor and cartoonist for MMOMFG, Cam, had informed me that I MUST check this game out. Needless to say, I’m glad I did. As one of my top five titles I played at-show, MvC 3 did not disappoint.

When offered the chance to play by one of Capcom’s friendly PR folks, I told him I wanted to throw down in a head-to-head challenge against him. Being a classically trained Street Fighter 2 pro, a lot of the fighter’s skill sets were familiar to me from my old school days of 2D fighters. Luckily for me, it translated to a number of fighters in the playable version at show, including Dante, Hulk, Captain America, Chris Redfield, Felicia, Wolverine, Iron Man, Deadpool and Ryu. There may have been a few others that were accessible, but my brain has literally been fried from my E3 experience. What I do remember is that the game plays like a gem and it was one of the most fluid tag-team fighters I’ve ever played. I freaking loved Super Street Fighter IV, but it doesn’t touch how much fun I was having in the Capcom booth with MvC 3. Hell, I’m not sure if I played another title at E3 that provided as much fun.

It really didn’t help that I had begun trash talking my PR friend from Capcom, as I need to stay on good terms with him, so I can beat his ass again when the game comes out in 2011. Hopefully he’ll forgive me for getting the better of him in our best of three match tournament we had. MMOMFG proudly came out on top, like usual.

Back to the game though, the characters all have flawless animations and next-gen graphics to match the speed of the action. The fluid shifting between fighters for assist moves, and even switch outs (tag-ins), work perfectly in the 3v3 tag fights, with the game having you play as much on the defensive as you will be on the offensive. If you think you’ve got them lined up for a Super, they may quickly shift fighters and you’ll be left wasting your built up power on a non-existent enemy that just flashed off the screen. In my case, Capcom’s PR pro was capable of accurately blocking roughly 90% of my supers. I will say that I was able to pull off Chris Redfield’s Super a few times, which led to some clutch comeback victories. The use of Variable Combinations allowed for some key aerial combos amongst the available fighters in the heat of the action. Very nice!

In terms of what to expect, gamers will find what felt like a fully polished fighter this early in the production process, so the wait for 2011 should adequately provide the time to work out any last minute kinks. The hardest thing for Capcom now? Keeping Marvel vs. Capcom 3 fans like me from begging for an earlier release. Sadly, we’re all stuck in the same boat in having to wait. Nooooooooo!!!!! If you’ve got any questions about the game or how it plays, let me know, as I’d love to talk more about this title with true fans of the series, as well as late adopters. I do apologize for being late to the party…

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