Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars

System: Wii
Developer: Eighting
Publisher: Capcom
Genre: Fighter
Players: 1-4

A single cry of pain stuttering over and over as a player takes damage, enough speed lines and flashing lights to put a rave party to shame, tiny amounts of energy draining from attacks that could wipe out the sun – yep, we've got all the makings of an excellent fighting game!

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom must have been an absolute bitch for Capcom to bring over, what with the lack of mayor Mike Haggar as a playable character. “The vast Final Fight fanbase will bombard our message board with angry threads if we release this in its current Haggar-less state,” the new guy warned. But they went and did it anyway! I'm sure if you're reading this review, you at least know a bit about this game's history. As such, I won't be going too Wikipedia on your arse here. Everyone's heard of Ryu and Mega Man (including the Pope), but Ippatsuman and Casshan? Yeah, the Tatsunoko brand isn't too well known outside of Japan. It's a minor miracle to have such a release localised at all.

This is a fighting game anyone can pick up and play (unlike all those other fighting games that people... can't? What an awful way to open a new paragraph). It's not intimidating for beginners, but there's a crazy amount of depth to be explored. The game's about as complex as you want it to be. Most importantly, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom is fun. A lot of fun. I've always enjoyed fighters, from the serious (Shaq Fu, Rise of the Robots) to the goofy likes of ClayFighter. That said, I'm a casual fan of the genre, if you will. The technical jargon is completely lost on me, I've never been one for studying lengthy combo commands and I don't take the competitive nature of these games too seriously. It's all a good laugh. From my point of view, this game's a winner. It doesn't do drugs. Wait, yes it does.


The character roster is split evenly; on Capcom's side of the fence we've got the likes of thunder thighs Chun-Li, Viewtiful Joe and the newly added Frank West (from Dead Rising). The only character that struck me as odd was PTX-40A. Who? What? It's some novelty-sized robot from Lost Planet. I mean, really? It's not like Capcom is short of characters people actually care about, but oh well!

The Tatsunoko line-up is going to be pretty mysterious for most – lots of people wearing spandex and helmets. Still, Tekkaman (Teknoman) definitely tugged at my nostalgic heart strings, and I'm pretty sure I recognised Doronjo from... I'd best not mention where, actually. The total selection of characters doesn't come close to matching say, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, but it's a solid bunch. Also, it's worth pitting Roll against the goliath that is Gold Lightan at least once.

If you've played one of Capcom's previous Versus titles before, the fighting engine should feel pretty familiar. Attacks have been simplified down to weak, medium and strong, but other than that it's largely the same. Oh dear, look at me try and explain the inner workings of a fighting game, it's embarrassing. Matches are two on two; tagging out helps to restore some lost health, and both characters on your side can get together for an 'assist' attack. Meanwhile you'll be building up a super duper power bar to unleash hell on your opponent. Massive, crazy special moves that fill the entire screen. Apparently damage is dealt by the billions, as in, you might punch someone in the face and it'll do two billion... something to their emotional state of being. It's thought-provoking. Critics said “wow”.


A new 'Baroque' mechanic is there for the more hardcore players, along with some other fresh elements. Basically, Baroque is a high-risk manoeuvre that allows you to extend a combo beyond its usual length. Doing so will drain your health, but it can obviously pay off if you use it in the right situations. There's a fair bit to take in; the Training mode will likely come in handy. Tatsunoko vs. Capcom supports a range of control methods to try out, but I can't really recommend the default Wii Remote and Nunchuk combo. It'd be like the Fat Controller eating celery; just doesn't feel right. So just grab a Classic Controller or GameCube pad, then plug them in - I guess.

Modes! Arcade mode has you going through a number of stages until you reach the obligatory awful final boss (I'm not sure if Capcom's taking the piss here or what, but it's so bad). You'll spend a fair bit of time replaying this with all the different characters, as it leads to all sorts of unlockable goodies. That, and one of the best end credit sequences in any game, ever. Aside from this, there's a Survival mode, Time Attack and Versus mode for two player local fights.

Of course, one of – if not the- biggest addition to the Western version is online multiplayer. Capcom's put a lot of thought into it, which is refreshing to see in a Wii game. Winning fights earns points, which can go towards increasing your overall rank. On the other end, losing (and this includes rage quitting) will drop your rank down a notch. When searching for random battles the game will pair you up with an evenly matched opponent. There are Friend and Rival lists, and a detailed breakdown of your Wi-Fi history. The game handled itself quite well. A few matches had noticeable lag, and sometimes it just wouldn't connect at all, but they were in the minority.


This is the first Versus game with 3D characters, and they've absolutely nailed the animation. Everything zips about the screen so fluidly; there's so much happening at a crisp, constant 60 FPS. Character models have a hint of cel-shading, but some characters have certainly been given more attention than others. Poor Morrigan, you just can't win in either dimension! Frank West also looks like he has serious back problems. I suppose that's what happens when you spend all day hurling park benches at zombies.

The stages themselves are nice, they're all very active - some even go through drastic changes as the fight progresses. Voice work has been left in Japanese, but Frank's lines were thankfully recorded in English. It just wouldn't be the same without his disturbing self-praise. Shame they didn't bother with Viewtiful Joe. The music is... just sort of there. Some tracks stand out, others get lost in the explosion of sound effects. Nobody's going to take you for a ride.

Oh, there's also a bonus four player co-op shoot 'em up called Ultimate All-Shooters included. Set in the Lost Planet universe, it's really nothing too fancy, but it beats being shoved in front of a bus. Nobody wants that from a video game extra.

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars is dripping with style - you might want to get a paper towel. It's that special kind of stupid, wonderful over-the-top action that instantly reminds me of the Dreamcast. I don't mean that in a 'hurr looks like a toilet' kind of way; it just captures the feel of Capcom's output from that point in time. They haven't held back, the game's off doing whatever it damn well feels like. Everyone wins. This is an amazingly fun fighting game, give a whirl!


Score: 9/10 - "Absolute get"
Just bring the whole roll of paper towels, seriously.

Review by Lance McGill (Infernal Monkey)