Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars (Wii) Review
Well, what a wonderful, awkward and embarrassing situation I’m in here. Many who read my review for Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of Heroes will remember that I commented on how this game will probably never hit western shores, nor will it ever see a release outside of Japan in any form. Well, it appeared that Capcom never say never, and the appropriate licensing rights were secured, allowing Tatsunoko vs. Capcom to be released in the west. Do not be fooled, however, as this is not the same game as we saw almost a year ago. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars is much, much more.
Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars doesn’t really have a story driving the mayhem throughout, but instead just throws in twenty-six different characters from both Capcom and Tatsunoko properties and lets them battle it out to see who emerges victorious. It’s probably for the best, too, since while fighting games aren’t really that reknown for their story, a crossover fighting game’s attempt would probably be just plain horrendous. Each character has their own little motives for fighting and a small ’conclusion’ story upon completion of the game, however, so that should satisfy most fans as these little sequences are pure fan service. Expect to jump into the shoes of well known characters like Ryu, Chun-Li and Viewtiful Joe, while also dabbling into the relatively unknown characters of Doronjo, Yatterman and Polymar.
Ultimate All-Stars is a fighting game that takes place on a 2D plane but uses full three dimensional models for the fighters themselves. The developers of the game have chosen to go with a cel-shaded look for the models and it results in quite a nice effect that makes the Tatsunoko characters look similar to the cartoons they appear from, and it gives the Capcom characters a fresh new look. Environments are very alive and aren’t very static at all, creating quite a nice look for each fight, whether in the foreground or the background. In addition to the characters and their environments, all effects that are flying around the screen during those heated battles are amazing and a sight to behold. Ultimate All-Stars’ graphical capabilities are really pushing the Wii without any slowdown at all; most of the game runs at a silky smooth refresh rate of 60 FPS, a must for any decent fighter. In addition to the gameplay itself, Capcom commissioned their favourite western art studio, UDON, to create new ending sequences for the game, which look pretty damn nice, although it is a shame to see the actual anime sequences from the original game get shelved.
If you’ve ever played a game in Capcom’s famous VS. Series, you’ll probably know what to expect from Ultimate All-Stars. Players choose a team of characters, which can consists of members from either side, and battle it out while utilising special moves, hyper combos and cross combos too. Instead of the previous system of six buttons being used for attacks, Ultimate All-Stars instead uses only three; one for weak attacks, one for moderate attacks and another for heavy attacks. In addition to this, there is a fourth button dedicated entirely to partner-based attacks, including assists (more on those soon) and combination hyper combos. If you notice that I vaguely mention “buttons” instead of specific commands, I do this deliberately, as Ultimate All-Stars allows for a multitude of control methods. Not only is the casual-friendly Wii Remote and Nunchuk combination usable here, but the more serious Classic Controller and Gamecube Controller are compatible as well. Finally, for the utmost competitive player, there is arcade stick support too. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, the developers of Ultimate All-Stars really wanted anyone to be able to experience the game, regardless of skill or preference for control method.
Each player can have up to two members in their team, and can call upon them at anytime to perform a short move known as an “assist”, or to assist in larger “hyper combos” which we’ll go into later. In addition to these, there are several techniques that allow players to extend their combos, break free of enemy combos, totally negate damage dealt as well as tag out to the other team member. A lot of Ultimate All-Stars’ gameplay relies on players taking full advantage of their team mates, but at the same time opens up players to a whole lot of risk if they choose to do so. For example, if a player gets their team mate out to do an assist, but the opponent initiates a massive hyper combo, then both the player’s characters will take immense damage instead of one. As you would guess, this makes the game a little bit more strategic than other fighting games.
In addition to this, the player can fill up an energy meter at the bottom of the screen which can be used to pull off hyper combos, large scale attacks that usually fill the screen and deal immense amounts of damage. These hyper combos can be swapped mid-combo for another from another team member, as well as cancelled by certain techniques your opponent may use as well. All in all, it’s a very versatile system that facilitates all kinds of play styles that people may have when approaching a fighting game. And that’s just what’s so great about Ultimate All-Stars’ combat engine – it’s accessibility and usability. To delve briefly into the more technical side of things, Ultimate All-Stars’ main attraction for the more serious players is the “Baroque” technique, which sacrifices parts of the players life bar in order to extend combo moves beyond their original scope. When used correctly, this technique can be deadly and it really adds another element of playability to the game for those more competitive than the average player.
In addition to the rather standard Story Mode and Versus Mode, Ultimate All-Stars also features a time attack and survival mode for players who wish to test their skills in a bit of a different environment. In addition to this, and exclusively in the release of Ultimate All-Stars, the developers have incorporated online play over the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. And it’s pretty damn good.
Being a rather sceptical embracer of the Wii’s online functionality, I was surprised to find that the online system for Ultimate All-Stars was rather robust. The game features its own ranking system, a friends system that informs players when their friends are online as well as a “style setter” which watches how you play the game and then assigns you a “play style” based on that. Are you an overly aggressive player that uses a lot of hyper combos? Then you’ll probably be assigned a little fire icon on your profile badge, and this is how the style selection mode works. It’s then possible to search for matches (either international or close to home, you choose) and reject them if your opponent plays a style that you are not particularly fond of. Furthermore, separate to your friends list, players can manage a rivals list which consists of players randomly encountered that, after having a few good games, you’d like to keep in touch with and thus add to your rivals list. It’s a pretty comprehensive system that does its best to compete with the systems found on other consoles, and it even punishes people who quit games early by matching them up with people who do the same thing too! Now that’s karma!
But enough about the system itself, how does online play actually fare? We managed to play about ten-to-fifteen matches (both ranked and standard) and only encountered noticeable lag in one of them, which is a marvellous feat for the developers to accomplish considering how much is going on in this game. Almost all of your inputs are exactly the same as playing offline, and sometimes we’d even go as far as to say that it would be hard to tell when you’re playing online or offline if it weren’t for the usernames appearing at the top of the screen!
In addition to the main game, players of the original version may be disappointed to find that the mini-games that featured each of the characters have been removed in favour of a brand new mini-game known as Ultimate All-Shooters. In this mode, players take control of one of four characters in an old-school shoot-‘em-up game reminiscent of Capcom’s old Commando series. With support for up to four players, it’s a rather nice little unlockable, though we do miss the party-style mini-games of the original games. In addition to this, players can also complete the game countless times for “Zenny”, a currency that can be used in the in-game store to purchase different coloured costumes for characters, artwork, music and the other typical stuff you’d expect in the “bonus materials” section of a DVD. There’s a lot of cool stuff to unlock here and that will keep players playing for hours, not to mention the countless times the game must be finished to unlock all characters, which can be a bit of a pain for those just looking to jump straight into multiplayer with all characters available.
In an effort that was bound to impress some players but bound to upset others, Capcom and the developers of Ultimate All-Stars have removed the character themes that play when a player is tagged into a fight, and have instead opted for static tunes that play over the level and do not change. While this is, to some extent, less annoying than the original version, it also removes a bit of the ’personal’ feeling that each of the characters had in the original game, as well as making the game a little less frantic-sounding. The music it’s replaced with, however, is nice enough to do the job, and inspires nostalgia of the days that we all spent in arcades on games similar to this. So in that regard, the music is pretty good. As an aside, the characters all still speak Japanese, except for Frank West, which is probably because it was a bit too much of a hassle to track down the original voice actors for all the characters. To be honest though, it really isn’t that big of a deal overall and in no way detracts from the enjoyability of the game.
But for those returning from Cross Generation of Heroes, the original Japanese release of the game, what’s in it for you? Not only have Capcom and the community submitted balance tweaks to the game and made it play a bit more smoother, but five new characters have also been added to this release, and one removed due to licensing issues. Frank West and Zero (from Megaman) make a debut as representatives for the Capcom side, while Tekkaman Blade, Joe The Condor and Yatterman-2 (who replaces the Sneezing Genie) round out the Tatsunoko roster. In addition to this, as previously mentioned, online play has been implemented with little fault, which warrants a second buy alone, to be perfectly honest.
Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars is an almost perfect game. It’s accessible to everyone, those who want to take themselves further in terms of skill have the room to do so, and it’s got all the features I was disappointed that the original game has lacked. For what it’s worth, Ultimate All-Stars is without a doubt one of the most perfect fighting games I’ve ever played and definitely one of the best on the Nintendo Wii. Players who’ve not played the original, round this score up to ten. The game is perfect. Those who have, well, it’s still pretty perfect, but some of the things missing bring it down just a tiny bit. A game that should be in every Wii owner’s library. There is just no excuse as to why it shouldn’t be.
Without a doubt, no questions asked, one of the best fighting games available and one of the best on the Wii. Several little additions and, well, cuts from the original game bring this game down from being perfect, but this is really one that everyone should own. If youve never been into fighting games, this is the perfect entry-level title to try out. If you have, well, this is some of the most fun youll have with the genre.
Graphics 9.0
While nothing has really changed since the original release, Ultimate All-Stars features a great and colourful presentation thats sure to wow any Wii owners. Combine this with some nice models, environments and some well-drawn ending sequences and youve almost got a winner. Its just a shame those anime cutscenes from the original are missing.
Gameplay 9.5
Tight and well put together combat engine combined with some techniques that are simple to pull off but hard to master. The perfect example of how a fighting game should be open to people of all backgrounds and skills. Online play really shines here, and brings the score up even more.
Sound 8.0
While it is disappointing to see some of the character-specific tracks removed from the game, the games music fits the feel of the game perfectly. Voice acting, although in Japanese, is sound.
Tilt 9.9
A package crammed to the top with extra characters, costumes, artwork and other unlockables. The addition of online play and an online system that really brings the Wii up from where it previously was also adds to an awesome package packed with heaps to do.
Value 9.9
As with the original game, Ultimate All-Stars is one of the most enjoyable fighting experiences Ive ever had, and I cannot wait to play more online with friends when the time comes. The online mode was truly the only thing this game was missing and its great to see the developers realised this and created what is essentially the perfect 2D fighter.
