Tatsunoko vs Capcom Ultimate All Stars Wii

Released on 29/01/2010

• The Beat 'Em Up Resurgence

  
  

  

  Round 1 - Storied Reputation

  Fighting games like Tekken and SoulCalibur have enjoyed an unprecedented resurgence over the last two years. But before Mitsurugi's katana skills and Paul Phoenix's extreme hairstyle came into style, old-school gamers were playing The Way of the Exploding Fist and Yie Ar Kung-Fu on their humble ZX Spectrums and Commodore 64s. These early fighters - which were inspired by martial-arts films - then paved the way for the most important fighting game of all time.

  Street Fighter II: The World Warrior kick-started the golden era of fighting games in the early nineties. It achieved this with a cast of eight international fighters and an epic (and allegedly accidental) combo system. Street Fighter then matured into a globally adored series and inspired everything from Mortal Kombat and Killer Instinct to Virtua Fighter and Dead or Alive. But when the genre fell into decline in the years following the turn of the millennium, it seemed like the honeymoon period was finally over.

  

  Round 2 - Re-enter the Dragon Punch

  This all changed when Capcom pulled the pin on a grenade labelled Street Fighter IV in 2008 - because not only did the ensuing explosion revive the genre in spectacular style, it made it the strongest it's ever been. SFIV kept all the iconic characters and special moves from Street Fighter II, and by reworking the classic 2D controls with the new Focus and Ultra systems, it offered accessibility and depth in equal measure. But while Street Fighter IV set the benchmark, its 2010 follow-up, Super Street Fighter IV, smoothed out the kinks and offered unrivalled diversity.

  SSFIV could have been a lazy update. Instead it offered ten new faces and a choice of two Ultra Combos. This allowed each fighter to be played in two distinct styles. But Super isn't the end of the story, as it was ported onto Nintendo 3DS as Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition, and on June 7th, Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition will be released. The inclusion of Yun, Yang, Evil Ryu and Oni will bring the roster up to 39, making Arcade Edition the definitive Street Fighter.

  

  Round 3 - The New (and Old) Challengers

  Street Fighter IV was the game that led the charge, and in its wake, other fighting games followed. A particular highlight was BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger in 2009. This beautiful 2D fighter was the spiritual successor to the intense Guilty Gear series, and much like its eccentric forbearer, BlazBlue was brimming with innovation. It featured a rapid tempo and an ingenuous Drive system which made each fighter unique. Then, when BlazBlue: Continuum Shift tightened up the gameplay in 2010, BlazBlue established itself as the hardcore fighter of choice. An accomplished port of Calamity Trigger is also available for the PSP.

  But the award for “most accessible fighting game” goes to the long running Vs. Series. This Capcom-developed series began in 1996 with X-Men vs. Street Fighter. After a long hiatus, it returned to Europe last year with Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars on the Wii. But while Tatsunoko is massively popular in Japan, it only has a niche following in the West. So when Marvel vs. Capcom 3 launched earlier this year with its familiar cast of celestial wolves, bionic commandos, thunder gods and less-than-jolly green giants, it stole the show in style. Its rabid tag-team combat and X-Factor system also allowed for many astonishing combos.

  

  Round 4 - Fatal Fantasy

  Another classic that made a comeback this year is Mortal Kombat. This brutal fighter was on a slippery slope after switching haphazardly to 3D, but with a series reboot having just been released on the 360 and PS3, Mortal Kombat is back in the realm of 2D gameplay where it belongs. We get the classic Raiden torpedo dive and Liu Kang bicycle kick, as well as a new super gauge that allows for gory X-Ray attacks. But Mortal Kombat's crowning achievement is the variety of content it offers, because even after finishing the seven-hour Story Mode, a Tower of 300 challenges awaits.

  If a fully fledged narrative isn't surreal enough, how about a PSP fighting game based on Final Fantasy? Dissidia Final Fantasy is a 3D fighter that brought together the heroes and villains from Final Fantasy I through to Final Fantasy X. This allowed RPG fans to fight battles between Sephiroth and Squall using a unique combat system that centred on HP and Bravery attacks. The recent sequel, Dissidia 012 Duodecim Final Fantasy, included more characters - including Tifa and Yuna from Final Fantasy VII and X - as well as a significantly expanded single-player mode.

  

  Round 5 - Fight for the Future

  When you add all these excellent games to the likes of Tekken 6, The King of Fighters XII, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny, it's clear that fighting game fans are being spoilt for choice. But what's next for the genre?

  In the coming months we'll see the release of Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus on the Wii and PSP (May 6th), the manga-inspired Arcana Heart 3 on the PS3 and 360 (June 24th) and Dead or Alive Dimensions joining Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition on the new Nintendo 3DS (May 20th).

  After that, we have the Capcom-developed Street Fighter X Tekken to look forward to next year, as well as the long awaited Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and the Namco Bandai-developed Tekken X Street Fighter. All in all, there's never been a better time to own an arcade stick!

  Published: 01/04/2012

• Tatsunoko vs Capcom Ultimate All Stars Review

  Tatsuno-who?

  It's been a long time since we've been graced with one of Capcom's outrageously loopy VS fighters, but fear not beat'em-up fans; the Street Fighting kings have teamed up with anime legends Tatsunoko to bring us Tatsunoko vs Capcom: Ultimate All Stars for Nintendo Wii, and boy, is it a doozy!

  If you've never played a VS game, the premise is this. Take two line-ups of characters, one from the Capcom stable, the other from a seemingly disparate strand of pop culture, give them both insanely over-the-top fighting moves, add in tag-team battles, then sit back and watch the 32 hit aerial combos fly!

  Mad as it gets!

  Playing much like a high speed tag-team Street Fighter, TvC is as mad as games get, and it never gets old watching Mega Man knock lumps out of a 40 foot battle droid while a girl in a bird outfit throws a Yo-yo around. It's a non-stop fun-fest and a much less serious and hardcore game than the SF connection might suggest.

  You're probably all au fait with Capcom's stellar line up of fireball flingers, but Tatsunoko? Unless you're a die hard anime fan you're unlikely to know many of the line-up – only the Battle of the Planets/Gatchaman crew registered at all on our brains, and even then that's only because we're old enough to remember the late 70's cartoon series!

  Immense fireballs, missile attacks and laser beams cutting swathes of brightly coloured damage across the screen.

  Representing Capcom are Street Fighter stalwarts Ryu, Chun Li and Alex, aided admirably by Viewtiful Joe, Morrigan from Dark Stalkers, Mega Man, Frank West from Dead Rising, and more. Bigging up Tatsunoko are such colourfully caped and cowled crazies as Ken The Eagle, Ippatsuman, Tekkaman Blade, Hurricane Polimar, and the slightly rubbish looking Yatterman. It's a good mix of characters in all honesty, with plenty of variety in playstyles, despite the fact most of us won't have a clue who they are.

  However, while they're not as instantly recognisable to us Westerners as the Marvel characters from previous VS games, Capcom have ensured that they play "marvellously." Sorry. All the usual Street Fighter style movesets are present and correct, special moves activated with quarter circles, half circles, zig-zags etc, and the new characters from the Tatsunoko side quickly become second nature.

  What has changed is the button layout. There's no traditional six button system here, with TvC instead using a four button method, with light, medium and heavy attacks mapped to three of them. The fourth button is the partner button, calling on your second player for an assist attack, or swapping over to allow your fighter time to recover health.

  Hyper fighting

  Talking of the controls, playing with the Wii Remote is not ideal, as it doesn't have enough buttons to cope with the game, so much of the combat is automated for you from a few button presses. We suggest using a GameCube or Classic Controller instead.

  It's great fun slapping famous characters around in epic tag team battles

  As well as the standard and special moves there are the Hyper combos, and in typical VS fashion they're massively over-the-top, immense fireballs, missile attacks and laser beams cutting swathes of brightly coloured damage across the screen. Each character has a few different Hypers, and you can even chain them together with your partner for maximum effect. And it looks sweet too, which is a bonus.

  Looks, eh? Capcom's first fighter for the Wii console, TvC naturally can't match the HD good looks of Street Fighter IV, opting instead for an anime style, with bright cel shaded characters. TvC looks great in motion, and with some fantastic effects on show for special moves and supers, it looks as electrifying as any previous game in the series.

  For the real fight fans, there's plenty of depth, with Chain Combos, Air Combos, Cross-over Attacks and Team Combos all returning from previous Vs games. New to TvC are the Mega Crash, which lets you break out of an opponents combo, and the Baroque combo, which gives your fighter a different combo at the expense of some of your life gauge. Not something that everyone will necessarily need to use, but for the serious fighters, it's there to be mastered.

  A winner

  Gaming mode wise Capcom have included Arcade (play the CPU), Versus, Training, Survival and Time Attack, which should be enough to keep anybody busy. There's also a fairly solid online mode, so you can take your skills to the world stage! Other extras include the Shop where you can buy new character colours, artwork and extras, and a Gallery, where you can view said artwork. Oh, and there's a hidden shoot'em-up minigame somewhere too!

  You probably already know whether this is for you – if you like fighting games or anime, then you'll enjoy TvC greatly. It's great fun slapping famous characters around in epic tag team battles, and the depth of the fighting system will keep hardcore gamers occupied for ages. New players meanwhile will find the option of simplified controls and the resulting crazy combos a delight that negates the need for years of dedicated practice. Everyone, basically, is a winner. Go buy this now, and forget Smash Bros ever existed.

  GAME's Verdict

  

  • Plenty of characters to master.
  • Incredible fun to play.
  • Jun The Swan – we love her!

  

  • Not ideal on the Wii Remote - grab a GC or Classic Controller instead.
  • Tatsunoko characters may be a bit obscure (but really, don’t let that put you off!)
  • Yatterman – we don’t love him.

  Review by: Ian 32 hit Special' MacDougall
  Version Tested: Wii
  Review Published: 18.02.10

  Published: 18/02/2010

• New Release Round Up 29th Jan 2010

  Are you fighting fit? You'd better be because this week it's all about combat at Game. And we're not talking about a small schoolyard scrap, but massive all-out battles with hundreds of warriors online simultaneously; immersive science-fiction firefights in dingy deep-space cantinas; and legendary beat-'em-up battlers lining up against each other. Pull your gloves on, it's clobberin' time/p>

  Space battles
  Mass Effect 2 is the sequel to the critically-acclaimed, chart-busting and award-winning action/role-playing science fiction epic original, Mass Effect. Once more, Commander Shepherd must assemble an elite squad prepared to take on a near-suicidal mission to save humanity and its space colonies.

  Mass Effect 2 is a serious improvement on the already outstanding original, boasting faster and more fluid firefights and squad controls; huge new areas of space to explore, unravelling a new and terrifying plot; sharper and more serious choices that will mould the game to the way you play.

  Epic shoot-outs
  Combat doesn't get bigger than in MAG. It stands for "Massive Action Game". And with up to 256 online soldiers fighting it out on one battlefield simultaneously, MAG does exactly what it says on the tin.

  MAG is a first-person shooter that delivers larger, more action-packed battles: bigger maps, more vehicles, faster action. Airdrop into battle, grab a vehicle, find your squad and get ready for the fight of your life.

  And in MAG, the harder and more often you fight, the better you get: combat experience translates to promotions. Command eight man squads, 32 player platoons and even an entire 128-person army.

  Legendary brawlers
  In Tatsunoko Vs Capcom Ultimate All Stars, the ultimate fighting contest crashes onto the Nintendo Wii. Ultimate All Stars brings the ultimate beat 'em up legends to an arena with the ultimate in user-friendly fight controls for novices and the ultimate in skill, strategy and depth for hardcore brawlers.

  Four button controls are simple for fight novices to get to grips with, but for advanced masters, Aerial Rave air attacks, Baroque extended combos and Mega Crash defensive moves are designed to bring the pain.

  Tatsunoko Vs Capcom Ultimate All Stars features a line-up of over 20 legendary fighters with Capcom series legends from Street Fighter and more facing off against fighters from Tatsunoko's popular Japanese anime series.
  

  • Find out more about Mass Effect 2
  • Find out more about MAG
  • Find out more about Tatsunoko Vs Capcom Ultimate All Stars

  Published: 29/01/2010

As a valued customer we now offer you the facility to sign up to email price alerts. Please enter the price you want to be, or below, and if drops to that level we will let you know...