If I have to explain. You don’t play Street Fighter.

So I guess it’s no secret that I like fighting games.   I find myself going on the Playstation Network and mixing it up rounds on Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3.  I frequent shoryuken.com because I like watching the game almost as much as I like playing it.  I want to bust out some nineties memories here so I apologize for the nostalgia goggles in advance.

Ah. Memories.

It was summer time and I was at Cedar Point, one of the baddest ass amusement parks in the world.   I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio so I was blessed to live so close to it.  This was the first time I saw the game X-Men vs. Street Fighter.  I had played the game Marvel Superheroes and Children of the Atom, both good games in their own right, but this game looked crazy.   I was seeing giant beams being flung about and showboating I have never seen before in my life.  The first time I saw Rogue’s ‘good night sugah’ my jaw dropped, or the finger-snap after Gambit used Royal Flush.  “See yah mon chere.”  That was when I realized Capcom was really cool.

It’s a trap!

                I had been into games, even fighting games, before that.   I had been a real game nerd without any doubt.   But the Vs. series really hooked me.   It made me realize how potent moments can be in games.   I won’t bore you with technicalities, but there are moments in fighting games that make people stand up and cheer.  There are times when people roar dissent when a move lands ‘that shouldn’t have’.  But these moments define why I truly love fighting games.

Later, a few years later in Cedar point I saw Marvel Superheroes Vs. Street Fighter in the same arcade.   When I saw Dan Hibiki on the roster they won a billion respect points from me.  The first time I saw the screen freeze and his giant portrait before his ‘Shinkuu Gaodoken’(A parody off of the poster boy Ryu’s Shinkuu Hadoken or Vacuum Fist ((Giant ass fireball/beam of death)) ) it was a case study in anti-climax in a good way.  To top it all off they gave him a parodied move of Akuma’s Raging Demon that beat himself up worse than his opponent!  This gave the opportunity to show off at whole new levels and I loved it.  I also found out later that there was a even jokier character that never made it stateside, Norimaru.

Dan “The Man” Hibiki in the flesh. Er… Ink.

Norimaru throws rulers at you. No joke.

Tony Daniels, the announcer for these games, was the perfect touch.   He would add insult to injury to taking out someone with a move by screaming the name of it along with text filling the screen.  This was a jab akin to Street Fighter 2 and any incarnation of Mortal Kombat’s  Perfect / Flawless Victory.  There they were like You Win!  …Perfect!  It was a quippy little after-thought.  Even more hilarious that the game would the same if you LOST.   You Lose.   …Perfect!

Yeah it seems impressive but back then six fierce punches could do it.

Keeping with a tradition that started with MSHvSF they kicked it up a notch with Roll in Marvel vs. Capcom.  Adorable housekeeping robot; Check.   Small enough that half the attacks miss her; Check.  Super cutesy and inspiring anime theme with vocals; Check!  Nothing quite beat a comeback with Roll when your theme was blaring irritatingly in the ears of your opponent.  It also helped you don’t want your adorable robot to EXPLODE INTO PARTICLES.  T_T

Oh it’s ON Now!

And that in itself was something I found really cool, in a kicking up a notch with the wrestling phenomenon.   When your character was expected to save the day his/her music would play to further inspire you.  Jin.   I salute you.

I pledge my allegiance… TO THIS BIG ASS ROBOT!

Marvel vs. Capcom 2, was a little bit of a mess.   I loved it when it was out but looking back now I realize it was a pretty bad game, even if it took the Roll thing to the next level with Servebot/Kobun and a Journey to the West proxy Son-Son.  Only 4-10 of the 50+ characters in the game were really good.   The game was not fun to play against people that knew what they were doing.  MSP indeed, and that wasn’t including Cable.  And I must have had brain damage when this game came out… because I mean… I can appreciate Jazz.   But lounge jazz for a fighting game?  Why did I like this again?

I’ve defeated a raccoon. SCIENCE!

Oh and Marvel vs. Capcom 3.   Oh you.   You started out with the troll-tastic M.O.D.O.K. and gave away Megaman’s roster spot to Arthur, (It’s true admit it) but you made it up to us by putting a lawyer in a fighting game…  and you did it well.

Who actually committed the crime… WAS YOU!

Everyone complains that he shouldn’t be in UMVC3 and that he’s complete trash, but if you protect the little Defense Lawyer that could, he will rock your face off.   It’s not even a gimmie like with another firebird that rises from the ashes.  When he gets that last hit and Maya obnoxiously showers him with confetti… you can’t even complain.   You just got served justice.

So uh… need any legal representation?

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*sniff* No one loves Skullomania. Skull-o-crusha…