Reviews// Capcom, SNK & Sammy revive the 2D beat 'em up

Multi-tap enabled battling is fun, to an extent, but the ostentatiously vibrant visuals can become too chaotic to really understand what’s going on. Whilst that may not matter to those who want to treat this game as a mindless button basher, for those who attempt to maintain complete control of what’s happening on screen, Isuka’s qualities may seem to hold distinctly less appeal.

Indeed, the purist may well take the opinion that SVC Chaos: SNK versus Capcom, is the most intensely distilled title of the lot, at least as far as gameplay goes. Created for Neo Geo hardware, the visuals have a strong retro feel, despite the fact that the arcade ascendant isn’t yet a year old. And because this is a new title, rather than a revision or re-pack, it may have greater value to the collectors. After all, if you’re a dedicated beat ‘em up fan, you more than likely own Dreamcast copies of most of the above: or at least versions very close to those that will be hitting PS2s and Xboxes soon. SVC Chaos, however, is only available on the Xbox.

For those well acquainted with Third Strike, SVC Chaos can initially seem rather simplistic. There are only four buttons, rather than six; the moves are less exaggerated and there are no additional tag-modes or superluous fighting style sub-options. Featuring a host of SNK and Capcom characters, some may struggle to distinguish this from the Capcom's CVS games. The main differences, however, will be fairly apparent for those more familiar with the various intricacies of these games. It immediately feels like an SNK game, not a Capcom one, whereas the CVS series clearly felt more Capcom. This means that if you happen to prefer SNK’s way of doing things, but also have an appetite for Capcom things, SVC Chaos could potentially become a new favourite. But it does also mean that this is the simpler option, and with its Neo Geo parent, it also looks the most crude. SVC Chaos, perhaps, would be best left for the completist who can't live a fulfilled life without it.

Despite our obvious enthusiasm for what these games represent, there are some glaring shortcomings evident in this re-release phenomenon. We are roundly critical of games that pump out shallow semi-sequels, and in reality, that’s what these are. The animation and graphics (and sound), with the notable exception of the Guilty Gear games, are well below par. The Xbox has presented us with Ninja Gaiden, Halo 2 and Dead or Alive; we know it can pump out awesome visuals. Awesome is not a word you would use to describe these games' visuals. In fact, disbanding our loyalty and being fiercely honest, they look really poo. This is pretty much what we saw 15 years ago, and although we’re pleased that the gameplay has retained its chaste and puritanical virtues, they should look a whole lot better than they do. Sammy’s done it, so why can’t SNK and Capcom? They may have originated as arcade ports, but this is 2004, and we’ve all got powerful consoles now. It may seem like a controversial suggestion, but if the belief is that a market for this sort of thing still exists (which it definitely does, even if it is fairly niche), why don’t Capcom or SNK actually make some new games of this style, using up-to-date hardware, redrawn sprites and a fresh visual approach?