Introduction Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors was developed and published by Capcom on CPS-2 arcade hardware, released in Japan in July 1994 as the first entry in the Darkstalkers fighting game series. Set apart from Capcom’s already-established Street Fighter series by its horror movie monster theme, the game’s roster includes the succubus Morrigan Aensland, the Frankenstein’s…
Introduction Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors’ Dreams was developed and published by Capcom, released in arcades in 1995 as the first entry in the Street Fighter Alpha sub-series, set as a prequel taking place between the original Street Fighter and Street Fighter II. The game introduced a noticeably different visual style from its predecessors, using a…
Introduction Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter was developed and published by Capcom on CPS-2 arcade hardware, released in 1997 as the second entry in Capcom’s Vs. series, following 1996’s X-Men vs. Street Fighter. The game replaced the previous entry’s X-Men roster with characters from across the wider Marvel Comics universe, including Spider-Man, Hulk, Captain…
Introduction Saturday Night Slam Masters was developed and published by Capcom, released in arcades in 1993 with character designs contributed by manga artist Tetsuo Hara, best known for Fist of the North Star. The game reimagines professional wrestling as a fast-paced arcade fighter, letting up to two players grapple, throw, and slam their way around…
Introduction Captain America and the Avengers was developed and published by Data East, released in arcades in 1991 as a side-scrolling beat ’em up based on Marvel’s team of superheroes. Up to four players simultaneously control Captain America, Iron Man, Hawkeye, or Vision as they fight through a campaign built around thwarting the villain Red…
Introduction Puzzle Bobble 2, released internationally as Bust-A-Move Again, was developed and published by Taito, released in arcades in 1995 as the direct sequel to the original Puzzle Bobble. The core aim-and-match bubble-shooting gameplay remained unchanged, with Bub and Bob once again firing colored bubbles upward to clear the shrinking field above them, but the…
Introduction Puzzle Bobble, released outside Japan as Bust-A-Move, was developed and published by Taito, released in arcades in 1994 as a spin-off built directly from the world of Bubble Bobble. Players aim and shoot colored bubbles from a cannon at the bottom of the screen up into a shrinking field of bubbles above, matching three…
Introduction 1944: The Loop Master was developed by Eighting and published by Capcom, released in arcades in 2000 as a direct continuation of the 19XX series that began with 1942 back in 1984. Set in the closing stages of World War II, the game returns players to the vertical-scrolling shoot ’em up formula of its…
Introduction Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike – Fight for the Future was developed and published by Capcom on CPS-3 arcade hardware, released in 1999 as the third and final revision of Street Fighter III, following the original New Generation and its update, 2nd Impact. The game refined the series’ Parry system, a precisely timed defensive…
Introduction Magic Sword: Heroic Fantasy was developed and published by Capcom, released in arcades in 1990 as a side-scrolling action game built around a straightforward but addictive premise: fighting upward through a 50-floor tower to rescue prisoners trapped on each level while battling toward a final confrontation with the demon lord Drokmar. Players control a…
Introduction Three Wonders, known in Japan as Wonder 3, was developed and published by Capcom on CPS-1 hardware, released in arcades in July 1991 as an unusual multi-game cabinet offering players a choice between three entirely different games on a single board. Midnight Wanderers: Quest for the Chariot is a fantasy action-platformer following a hobbit-like…
Introduction Metal Slug X was developed and published by SNK for the Neo Geo MVS arcade system, released in 1999 as an enhanced remake of 1998’s Metal Slug 2, built specifically to fix that game’s notorious slowdown by trimming and rebalancing its most sprite-heavy sequences. Alongside the technical cleanup, SNK reworked enemy placement, added new…