The only people who will truly appreciate what this game has to offer are hardcore fans of the 2D fighting genre.
User Rating: 9.6 | SVC Chaos: SNK vs. Capcom XBOX
Gameplay - Solid, and that's the most important thing said about this game. Although a little unresponsive at first, (the XBOX controller doesn't help) and the online play is a little more whacked than should be, once you get used to it, you'll be surprised at what SNK/Playmore has done with the fighting system and mechanics. Too bad SNK/Playmore bagged the US PS2 release, as the PS2 controller would have saved me from having to spend on an arcade stick. The combos in this game are complex enough for the veterans of the genre yet accessable enough for newcommers. The characters' movesets are as awesome as ever and Guile has an ALL NEW SUPER MOVE!!! The character count gets as high as 36, and that's not bad at all. 24 characters round off the on-screen number, and there are 12 "pallette swap" characters, including Violent Ken (yes, there is finally an evil version of Ken), Mars People, Zero (from MegaMan), Shin Mr. Karate, Red Arramer (from Capcom's Red Earth) and Athena. All characters play particularly well, especially if you're used to the style of play that SNK has used since its inception. You chose only one character and the matches are fought in a 2-out-of-3 style like in any other one-on-one fighter. It would have been awesome to include a seperate mode that lets you chose a team and fight it out like in CVS2, though. Instead of choosing between a seemingly endless array of "grooves" like in CVS2, there is a universal gauge that works better than any gauge I've personally played with in any fighting game, and that's saying much. The gauge builds up with 2 stocks of super meter and once you max it out, it deminishes sort of like the S groove from CVS2, during which time you have access to an unlimited performance of super moves until it empties. Or, you can perform your characters special "Exeed" super move. This is a totally maxed out super move that deals an unprecedented amount of damage on your opponent, but can only be done when your life is blinking red. This move can, and most likely will very well be a match decider. Online play is thankfully included, yet it is a little more choppy than should be for and XBOX game, especially compared to how powerfully slick CVS2 felt on XBL. At least it's there, which says a lot more for this game than for Marvel Vs. Capcom 2. Graphics - I love the realistic approach to the characters and the visual style of the backgrounds SNK/Playmore used. Characters blend in pefectly with the beautifully drawn, yet too dull stages, but they do serve their purpose well, which is basically just to be there and get fought on... The hit, damage and particle effects are simply amazing! Sound - I love the sound effects and the voice acting is spot on. The gripe that most have about the soundtrack is understandable, as I seem to be the only one who particularly likes it, but I did love the Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 soundtrack, so uh..... Too bad there isn't a custom soundtrack option, but I like the original score enough. Everything is crystal clear here. Replay Value - With 36 characters to chose from, tons of modes including your standard Arcade, Versus and Survival, a "Color Edit" mode that works exactly like in CVS2 complete with the option to change the character's name, an unlockable "Gallery" mode and the option for online play you can't go wrong here. This game is one for true fighting game entusiasts only, as those are the only people who will truly appreciate what this game has to offer, which is a sad truth, but hopefully it will appeal to newcommers who decide to give this game a run for it's money, which is well worth it.
