Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds Questionarium

You can't miss the big franchises if they don't go away every now and then. Players pined for a new instalment of Starcraft, lamented the lengthy lack of the Duke, and wept tears of joy when Gran Turismo 5 was finally dragged to the starting line. Fighter fans don't have to wait long to taste the sweet return of one of the genre's most hallowed crossovers--Marvel vs. Capcom. To help make counting down the days easier, we answer some of your questions about this hugely anticipated brawler.

Taasi23: Will Wesker's speedy hyper (the one that looks kind of like "Maximum Spider" without the webs) track and hit an opponent in midair?

GameSpot AU: Yes, Wesker's Phantom Dance hyper can be performed while you're on the ground and in the air. It will track and hit rival players regardless of whether they're in mid jump or have both feet firmly planted on the ground. It is blockable in both forms.

X-23: Is there any way to block or avoid her level three? I've never seen it done in a gameplay video, but I'm sure there's a way.

GS AU: For those who haven't been following the gameplay clips, X-23's level three hyper makes her invisible for a short period of time. Before you go crying foul, you will see dust marks where she lands. She can't fly or hover in midair like some of the other characters, so you don't need to worry about her coming down from above unless she's jumping in. While the move is active, her launcher button function is replaced with what appears to be an unblockable attack that deals a stack of damage. The only defense is a good offense, and since we didn't seem to be able to counter her launcher attack, you'll want to either whip out your own hyper or play keep-away.

gummy_joe: Does the game accommodate those new to or inexperienced at fighting games, or is it more centred on a hardcore fighting audience?

GS AU: If you're not a fighting fan, you're probably in the wrong place with MVC3, but it's clear that Capcom wants this to be as accessible as possible at the beginner level. The most obvious clue is the inclusion of a Simple mode that lets you pull off a chunk of the game's flashier moves with single button presses--no more remembering combos or struggling with the timing. That said, Simple mode isn't going to give you access to everything. It absolutely helps level the playing field for newcomers, but when you're ready to drop the training wheels, there's a much deeper game available here.

blaqphantom: Do characters that have been ruled out of the game have a chance at being DLC? How many DLC characters are there going to be, and have they all already been chosen?

GS AU: Capcom has supported Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV heavily since launch with costume packs, so we wouldn't be surprised to see a similar, or even larger, approach with MVC3. How many characters is up to them, but so far it looks like Resident Evil's Jill Valentine and Shuma-Gorath will be reprising their roles here. Frank West was originally slated to be playable, but was apparently dropped due to the extra work required to get him to release. Ryota Niitsuma, MVC3's producer, hinted that law guy Phoenix Wright would be a great fit for the game, but nothing has been set in stone.

DeltaPhoenix08: Has the PAL version been slowed down at all compared to the NTSC-J version?

GS AU: We've been playing on a nondescript region version of the game, so we can't ascertain any noticeable difference between this and other demo versions in terms of frame rate or gameplay speed. We don't have access to an NTSC-J build, but we're sure the fans will quickly crunch the frame data to decide which (if any) version is fastest after it's released to the public.

punkhead66: What is the game better to be played on: the controller or fighting stick?

GS AU: "Better" really comes down to personal preference. A lot of the guys in the office grew up playing in arcades and milkbars (remember those?!), so we're most at home on a stick, but every now and again someone wants to play on a D pad and still manages to be competitive, so it's really down to your tastes.

deawsomekurt: Does it feel as fast as MVC2?

GS AU: From the time we've spent playing it, we'd even go as far as to say that it feels significantly faster than Marvel vs. Capcom 2. You shouldn't have any trouble keeping up, but the pace has definitely had a boost.

allthatdown: Have the two universes been brought to life well? Would you say one universe is more unique than the other?

GS AU: We'll save the gory story mode details for our upcoming review, but like in previous games in the versus series, the value is being able to pit your favourite superheroes against other characters they wouldn't ordinarily do battle with. Comic fans can imagine their own custom Marvel Civil War storylines or simply watch a dangerously jiggly world where Morigan and She-Hulk battle for your attention.

Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds launches in Australia on February 17 on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Keep an eye out for our full review soon!