Having spent a
good deal of the late 80s in an arcade, I have to admit that these recent
releases of carefully packaged classics from Namco, Tecmo and Midway are
something of a joy to this old-school gamer. It not only introduces these
classics to a new generation of gamers but also gives those who experienced
these games in the arcade a chance to return to the good old days of coin-op
gaming without the loss of many a quarter. Now Capcom brings their collection of
classics to the Xbox with Capcom Classics Collection and the lineup from the
company that brought us Resident Evil, Devil May Cry and
Onimusha will blow you away.
There are 22
diverse games to pick from in this compilation disc, all of them come complete
with extras to unlock and a more than decent transfer that makes each game as
close to the original as possible. Many of these games are true gems and it’s
great to see them fully restored in all their glory. The lineup is impressive
and there are many titles that will be recognizable off the bat while some have
never been seen by American eyes. The result is a compilation with a lot of
games worth playing.
The lineup
ranges from three classic Street Fighter II games like Street Fighter
II: Championship Edition, the original Street Fighter II arcade
version and finally the Hyper Fight edition to various shooter ‘em ups
and hack ‘n slash games. We’re talking three great fighting games with favorite
characters like Ryo, Chun-Li and Ken. Speaking of fighting games, Final Fight
can be found in this collection as well. A wacky-yet-addictively fun brawler
featuring a gang of zany bad guys like the Andre the Giant-inspired Andore
Junior, Final Fight still remains to be one of those seriously fun
fighting games that managed to age gracefully.
On the shooter
front there’s the perfect war set that starts with the WWII-inspired Commando,
to the more modern Mercs and finally to the futuristic action of
Bionic Commando (the arcade version, not the NES version). Commando
is quite possible one of the hardest shooters featuring the Super Joe persona
and the game still remains to be the best gun-shooting, grenade-chucking around.
Meanwhile Bionic Commando, which has a futuristic Super Joe with a
retractable bionic arm that allows you to swing and shoot, is good but not as
great as its far superior NES brother (where Joe doesn’t look like a cyber
punk). Then there’s the high-flying WWII flying and shooting action of 1942,
its sequel 1943 and the Japanese-only 1943 Kai (which is a much
harder and far more prettier version of 1943).
There’s even a
shooter I totally forgot about until I found it among the list of titles. Gun
Smoke was a shooter featuring a lone cowboy called Billy the Cowboy that
scrolled up dusty streets shooting bandits and armed killers while collecting
bounties. Not only is it intact but it’s another enjoyable yet challenging
shooter you‘ll be playing often. One game I never forgot, however, is 1985’s
Ghost ’N Goblins. It’s here in all its addictive glory. It’s accompanied by
its sequel, Ghouls ‘N Ghosts and Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts. They once
again find your knight attempting to rescue your lady love, Princess Guinevere,
from Satan himself. These are timeless classics that never get old.
Oh, and there’s
many more, like the excellent Legendary Wings. Then there’s the so-so
titles like Son-Son, Section Z and Volgus. They’re not bad,
not by any means, but when it comes to fighting or shooting it’s games like
Trojan gamers will play the most – although Exed Exes and
Forgotten Worlds is brilliant. There are games I wished were included in
Capcom’s impressive anthology but it’s hard to complain when the games featured
here play excellently. There’s also some great bonus material that comes in the
form of each game’s history, art work, tips, a cast section and even alternative
versions of each game familiar music. You got to love that
Visually each
game naturally varies so there might be some games that look crude (like
Son-Son) while others look surprisingly pretty (like 1943 Kai). Just
about the real problem is that there’s some framerate problems. There’s also
some stutter, particularly in games where enemies overwhelm you with their
numbers. Other than that, though, the games look like they did when they first
came out.
The sounds are
what you might expect from the era, particularly when it comes to the sound
effects. The shoot ‘em ups have the basic gunfire sounds and plenty of
explosions. Yet it’s the music that stands out, especially favorites like Ghost
‘N Goblins, Commando and 1943. One of the neat extras is that you can unlock
alternate versions of theme songs from various games and they’re great.
Capcom’s history
is rich with games that are not only addictively fun but also memorable, and
Capcom Classics Collection is proof of that. Sure there are some games that
were left out of this anthology but there are some rare gems mixed in with
classic favorites that should make this a game you must not be without.
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Gameplay: 8.8
This
collections brings you back to the days when simple meant fun and even years
later the good majority of these games still hold up pretty well. Games like
Commando and Ghouls ‘N Ghosts feel right at home on the Xbox so be
prepared to relinquish sleep for countless hours of revisiting these true
classics.
Graphics: 7.5
Simple just
doesn’t apply to the controls seeing as the graphics are pretty primitive
compared to today’s standards. Still, a lot of these games actually do look
good. There’s some colorful games here with even far more colorful characters.
Overall, the collection does a great job recreating each game’s overall look.
Sound: 7.0
Each game’s
music will bring back childhood memories so a lot of the themes will sound
familiar. The same can be said about the sound effects, although the majority is
just composed of blips.
Difficulty:
Medium/Hard
Some of the
games are button-mashers but then again there are games where timing is
everything even though all you’re doing is scrolling from one area to the next
smashing anyone you come across (read: Final Fight or Trojan).
Many of these game are still pretty tough, which will bring back memories of
cursing 1942 for consuming so many of your quarters.
Concept: 8.5
The
collection’s lineup of titles is truly impressive and while some old-school
gamers will wish the compilation included some forgotten gems (like the NES
version of Bionic Commando, for instance) what’s here is excellent. The
inclusion of never-before-seen Japanese titles is also a plus.
Multiplayer:
8.0
Just about
every game has a two-player multiplayer option whether it’s the wait-you-turn
styled gaming or two-players-on-screen-at-once gameplay. It’s fun having a
friend join you in the action and thankfully there’s game here that encourage it
like Mercs and Final Fight.
Overall: 8.5
For those
experiencing these games for the first time or revisiting them several years
later, the Capcom Classics Collections for the Xbox is a trip back to the
early days of gaming goodness. A lot of these games are either a hit or a miss
depending on your tastes but there’s no denying that the gems found here are
worth their weight in gold. You’ll kick yourself for missing this one.
