Marvel vs Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics Review – Switch, Steam Deck, and PS5 Covered

The Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is a phenomenal compilation for fans of the series, and a great entry point for newcomers. This review covers experiences across Steam Deck, PS5, and Nintendo Switch.

Game Lineup

The collection boasts seven titles: X-Men: Children of the Atom, Marvel Super Heroes, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter, Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, and The Punisher (a beat 'em up, not a fighter). All are arcade versions, ensuring complete feature sets. Both English and Japanese versions are included, a significant detail for fans.

This review reflects approximately 22 hours of gameplay across the three platforms. While lacking deep expertise in these classic titles (this was my first playthrough), the sheer enjoyment, especially with MvC2, easily justifies the purchase price.

New Features

The interface mirrors Capcom's Capcom Fighting Collection, including its shortcomings (discussed later). Key additions include online and local multiplayer, Switch wireless support, rollback netcode, a robust training mode with hitbox displays, customizable game options, adjustable screen brightness (crucial for reducing light flickering), various display settings, and several wallpaper options. A helpful one-button super move option caters to newcomers.

Museum and Gallery

A comprehensive museum and gallery showcases over 200 soundtrack tracks and 500 pieces of artwork, some previously unreleased. While a fantastic addition, Japanese text in sketches and documents remains untranslated. The inclusion of the soundtracks is a major win, hopefully paving the way for future vinyl or streaming releases.

Online Multiplayer

The online experience, tested extensively on Steam Deck (wired and wireless), is comparable to Capcom Fighting Collection on Steam, a significant improvement over the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection. Options include adjustable input delay, cross-region matchmaking, casual and ranked matches, leaderboards, and a High Score Challenge mode. The convenient retention of character selections between rematches is a welcome touch.

Issues

The collection's most significant flaw is the single, global save state. This applies to the entire collection, not individual games, a carryover from Capcom Fighting Collection. Another minor issue is the lack of universal settings for visual filters and light reduction; adjusting these requires individual game configuration.

Platform-Specific Notes

• Steam Deck: Perfectly functional (Steam Deck Verified), offering 720p handheld and up to 4K docked (1440p used in testing). No 16:10 support.

• Nintendo Switch: Visually acceptable, but suffers from noticeably longer load times compared to other platforms. The lack of a connection strength option is also disappointing. Local wireless is supported.

• PS5: Runs via backward compatibility; a native PS5 version would have been preferable for PS5 Activity Card integration. Loads quickly, even from an external drive.

Conclusion

Despite a few minor issues, Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is a superb compilation. The excellent extras, smooth online play (on Steam, at least), and the opportunity to experience these classics make it highly recommended. The single save state remains the most significant drawback.

Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics Steam Deck Review Score: 4.5/5