Review: Tatsunoko Vs Capcom - Ultimate Allstars

Capcom heads back to its "vs" roots with their newest offering, Tatsunoko vs Capcom. Any fan of Capcom's earlier fighting games, particularly Marvel vs Capcom 2 are going to find much to love in this new game. The cast of characters is exciting and diverse and include some new faces to the franchise as well as many old favorites.

Making its debut on the Wii, Tatsunoko Vs Capcom has a "2.5D" presentation which means 3D characters and backgrounds set on a fixed 2D fighting plane. This has the outcome of giving the game an old 2D fighter feel with a decidedly new and updated feeling. The control system, consisting of three attack buttons and a partner button, is simple by modern day fighting game standards which makes it palatable for new players. However, with some skill you can pull off some great moves which will be familiar to veteran "vs Capcom" titles.

The Capcom characters are plentiful and include mainstays like Morrigan, Ryu and Chun Li as well as some welcome new faces in the form of Dead Rising's Frank West (unlockable), Yami from Okami (non playable, boss only) and the quirky Viewtiful Joe. You might not recognize some of the more obscure Tatsunoko characters, but you'll at least (hopefully) remember Ken the Eagle, Joe the Condor and Jun the Swan from the old school anime Science Ninja Team Gatchaman a.k.a. Battle of the Planets (G-Force) here in the states. Both teams have additional characters that join in for special moves as well as unlockables, upping the character count significantly. Speaking of unlockables, there are plenty that encompass not only playable characters, but character artwork and bios as well which are all available through the game's store.

In short, Tatsunoko Vs Capcom is an absolute delight. When you consider the sheer amount of legal licensing red tape that had to be gone through to get all these characters in one place, it makes the game even that much more enjoyable. If fighting games are your thing and you're a fan of Capcom's "vs" series, this title is an absolute must have for your collection.