Secretly discovered, this website provides fascinating insights into the development of one of gaming’s iconic titles: Marvel vs. Capcom.
Developer Choices and Constraints
The producer Kenji Kataoka reveals how character selection for the initial title, Clash of Super Heroes, was tightly regulated by contract:
- Essential Characters: Captain America, Spider-Man, Wolverine, and Hulk had to be included.
- Permitted Characters: Other heroes like Beast, Deathlok, or Iron Fist were given the go-ahead.
However, not all characters made it to the final roster due to licensing disagreements with Marvel. For instance:
- Excluded Heroes: Characters like Iron Man, Thor, Psylocke, and others, missed out on inclusion due to Marvel’s restrictions.
- Assist Characters: Thor, Psylocke, and Jubilee were eventually included as assist characters.
Final Boss Decision
The final boss decision was not without controversy, with the original choice of Galactus ultimately being discarded and replaced by Onslaught.
Given these constraints, do you think the final roster of characters in Marvel vs. Capcom could be significantly improved if certain licensing issues were resolved?
For some, yes.
They made a good game and perhaps licensing could have made a different one. I know there will always be people wishing Speedball or some other rando was included.