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''SNK vs. Capcom'', or alternately ''Capcom vs. SNK'', is a series of crossover
video game A video game or computer game is an electronic game that involves interaction with a user interface or input device (such as a joystick, game controller, controller, computer keyboard, keyboard, or motion sensing device) to generate visual fe ...
s by either
Capcom is a Japanese video game company. It has created a number of critically acclaimed and List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil'', ''Monster ...
or SNK featuring characters that appear in games created by either company. Most of these are
fighting game The fighting game video game genre, genre involves combat between multiple characters, often (but not limited to) one-on-one battles. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappling, counter- ...
s, and take on a similar format to Capcom's own ''
Marvel vs. Capcom is a series of Crossover (fiction), crossover fighting games developed and published by Capcom, featuring characters from their video game franchises and comic book series published by Marvel Comics. The series originated as coin-operated arca ...
'' series, in which the players create teams of fighters and have them fight each other. Games in this series either contain ''SNK vs. Capcom'' or ''Capcom vs. SNK'' in their titles, with the first company named denoting the company behind the game's development. Reception to the series has been varied; while the Capcom-developed titles were the most positively-received (and are still widely well regarded by critics), the SNK-developed installments received more mixed reviews by the time of its releases, although these have been the subject of reappraisal as time went on, now being considered
cult classics A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase, which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage in repeated v ...
by players and critics alike. A
collectible card game A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) among other names, is a type of card game that mixes strategy game, strategic deck building elements with features of trading cards. The genre was introduced with ''Magic: The G ...
spin-off series, '' SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters'', was also produced between 1999 and 2006


History

The supposed origin behind this series was an issue of ''Arcadia''
magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
in which there were articles covering both '' The King of Fighters '98'' and ''
Street Fighter Alpha 3 ''Street Fighter Alpha 3'', released as in Japan, Asia, South America, and Oceania, is a 1998 fighting game developed and published by Capcom for arcades. It is the third and final installment in the '' Street Fighter Alpha'' sub-series, which ...
'', both of which were released at around the same time. Readers had misread the cover, which said ''KOF vs. SF'', to mean that there was a fighting game that would pit characters from ''
Street Fighter is a Media mix, Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fighting games developed and published by Capcom. Street Fighter 1, The first game in the series was released in 1987, followed by List of Street Fighter video games, six other ma ...
'' and ''
The King of Fighters ''The King of Fighters'' (''KOF'') is a series of fighting games by SNK that began with the release of ''The King of Fighters '94'' in 1994. The series was initially developed for SNK's Neo Geo (system), Neo Geo MVS arcade hardware and received ...
''. Because of this uproar, in
1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
,
Capcom is a Japanese video game company. It has created a number of critically acclaimed and List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil'', ''Monster ...
and SNK supposedly signed a deal that would allow them to produce only two fighting games concerning both franchises.


Series hiatus

In a 2021 interview with ''
Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure made up of line segments connected to form a closed polygonal chain. The segments of a closed polygonal chain are called its '' edges'' or ''sides''. The points where two edges meet are the polygon ...
'', director Hideaki Itsuno confirmed that at one point, there had been plans for a new, 3D installment in the series, but that it had been cancelled due to SNK's bankruptcy. The 3D assets created for ''Capcom vs. SNK 3'' were later repurposed for the cancelled '' Capcom Fighting All-Stars''; said project was set to include ''The King of Fighters'' protagonist
Kyo Kusanagi is a character in SNK's ''The King of Fighters'' series of fighting games. The character was first introduced in the 1994 video game ''The King of Fighters '94'' as the leader of the Japan team from the series' title tournament. Kyo, head to th ...
as a guest character during its planned release after a deal was struck with the then-reformed SNK Playmore. There were interviews with SNK that it would be possible to renew their contract with Capcom to make new ''SNK vs. Capcom'' games, but in another interview, both companies stated that they would not do any further collaboration with each other, claiming ''SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters DS'' would probably be the last crossover game between both companies. However, in an interview from January 2009, Yoshinori Ono, the producer of ''
Street Fighter IV is a 2008 fighting game developed by Capcom and Dimps and published by Capcom. It was the first original main entry in the series since '' Street Fighter III'' in 1997, a hiatus of eleven years. Designed for the Taito Type X2 arcade hardware, ...
'', expressed interest in a possible third game if fans demanded it. While no new ''SNK vs. Capcom'' titles have been released since ''Card Fighters DS'', characters from both companies have appeared together in a handful of titles by other developers, including
Bandai Namco (commonly known as and formerly Namco Bandai until 2015, also known as Bandai Namco Group,) is a Japanese mass media and entertainment Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 2005 by the merger of Namco and Bandai. The company specia ...
's ''
Tekken 7 is a 2015 fighting game developed and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. It is the seventh main and ninth overall installment in the ''Tekken'' series, and is the first in that series to be released for PC. ''Tekken 7'' was released to Am ...
'',
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
's '' Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'', and
Cygames is a Japanese video game development studio established in 2011 by CyberAgent. Mobile and e-commerce company DeNA acquired a 24% stake in the studio in 2012, and Nintendo acquired another 5% stake in 2018, leaving CyberAgent with 69% of the sha ...
' '' Granblue Fantasy''.


Crossover appearances and re-releases

'' SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium'' and '' SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters' Clash'' were re-released for the first time in 2021 and 2022 respectively on
Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
and
Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
. In March 2022, ''Street Fighter'' characters were added to Netmarble and SNK's ''
The King of Fighters All Star ''The King of Fighters All Star (KOFAS)'' was a beat 'em up action role-playing game developed by Netmarble Neo and published by Netmarble. It was first released in Japan on July 26, 2018, for the iOS and Android. The game is a retelling of SNK' ...
''. In August 2022, SNK and Capcom artists Eisuke Ogura and
Shinkiro , best known under the pen name of , is a Japanese illustrator and conceptual artist who used to work for SNK and is currently employed by Capcom. Prior to joining Capcom, Shinkiro was employed by SNK, where he provided the character designs and c ...
– the latter of whom is currently at Capcom after famously working at SNK – created special promotional posters featuring both companies' characters to celebrate the 2022
Evolution Championship Series The Evolution Championship Series, commonly known as Evo, is an American annual esports event that focuses exclusively on fighting games. The tournaments are completely Open (sport), open and use the Double-elimination tournament, double elimina ...
tournament, the first live EVO since the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. In a subsequent interview, SNK producer Yasuyuki Oda stated that "both parties" were interested in a potential revival of the series. Oda stated in a later interview that the EVO artwork opened the doors for further collaboration between the two companies. Multiple crossovers between SNK and Capcom were announced throughout 2024. At
Summer Game Fest Summer Game Fest is a live video game event organized and hosted by game journalist Geoff Keighley. The event takes place annually over multiple live streams during the North American summer period, the most notable of which is the "main show ...
in June, both
Terry Bogard is a Player character, fictional character created by SNK as the protagonist of their ''Fatal Fury'' series. Introduced in ''Fatal Fury: King of Fighters'' in 1991, he is an American fighter who enters the worldwide "The King of Fighters" tourna ...
and
Mai Shiranui is a character in the ''Fatal Fury'' and ''The King of Fighters'' series of fighting games by SNK. Introduced in 1992's ''Fatal Fury 2'', the character was originally conceived as a male character named "Ninja Master", but when a request was pu ...
were revealed as part of '' Street Fighter 6''s second season of downloadable content, making them the first third-party guest characters in a mainline ''Street Fighter'' game. The next month, during EVO 2024, a re-release of '' SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos'' for Windows, Nintendo Switch and
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
was announced and released that day. The following August, it was announced that the Capcom-developed titles in the series would be included in '' Capcom Fighting Collection 2'', set for release in 2025. During
Tokyo Game Show , commonly known as TGS, is a video game trade fair and convention held annually in September in the Makuhari Messe, in Chiba, Japan. It is presented by the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association (CESA) and Nikkei Business Publication ...
in September, it was announced that
Ken Masters is a character in Capcom's ''Street Fighter'' fighting game series. The character was first introduced in the 1987 title ''Street Fighter'' as an alternate fighter to Ryu. While Ken and Ryu are devoted to testing their power, Ken instead focuses ...
and
Chun-Li Chun-Li (; Japanese: , Hepburn: ) is a character in Capcom's ''Street Fighter'' video game series. She first appeared in '' Street Fighter II: The World Warrior'' in 1991 and is the first female playable character to appear in a fighting game t ...
would be part of the first season of DLC for '' Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves'', similarly making them the first third-party guest characters in a ''Fatal Fury'' game. These announcements sparked speculation about a potential revival of the series, an interest acknowledged by Capcom producer Shuhei Matsumoto in an interview. In another interview, Oda stated that while there were certain hurdles in the way, they were aware of the fan demand and the odds of a revival were not impossible.


SNK-produced games

* '' SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium'' – Released for the
Neo Geo Pocket Color The Neo Geo Pocket series is a line of handheld game consoles developed and manufactured by SNK between 1998 and 2001. It began with the monochrome released in Japan on October 28, 1998 as SNK's first handheld system and a direct competitor to N ...
. The game features three different playing rules to choose from (Single Battle, Tag Match, and Team Battle). The game also features an "Olympic Mode" with themed minigames based on both SNK and Capcom classic games. It was later re-released on
Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...
and for
Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...
. * '' SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos'' – Released for the
Neo Geo The , stylized as NEO•GEO, is a video game platform released in 1990 by Japanese game company SNK Corporation. It was initially released in two ROM cartridge-based formats: an arcade system board (Multi Video System; MVS) and a home video gam ...
and ported to the
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...
and
Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as application software, applications (games), the streaming media, streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox networ ...
. A one-on-one fighting game featuring 36 characters. The game was later re-released for PC on the Steam and GOG digital stores, as well for
PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...
and Nintendo Switch.


Capcom-produced games

* '' Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000'' – Released for
Sega is a Japanese video game company and subsidiary of Sega Sammy Holdings headquartered in Tokyo. It produces several List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises for arcade game, arcades and video game cons ...
s NAOMI arcade hardware in
2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
and ported to the
Dreamcast The is the final home video game console manufactured by Sega. It was released in Japan on November 27, 1998, in North America on September 9, 1999 and in Europe on October 14, 1999. It was the first sixth-generation video game console, prec ...
during the same year, the original ''Capcom vs. SNK'' features 28 characters (evenly divided between Capcom and SNK properties), two selectable fighting styles or "grooves" (based on the gameplay systems featured in ''The King of Fighters'' and ''Street Fighter Alpha'' series) and a ratio-based character selection system that determines the number of characters in a player's team based on their strength. ** An updated version titled ''Capcom vs. SNK Pro'' was released for the arcades and Dreamcast in Japan in 2001 and ported to the
PlayStation is a video gaming brand owned and produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE), a division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. Its flagship products consists of a series of home video game consoles produced under the brand; it also consists ...
in 2002, which adds Dan Hibiki and Joe Higashi to the character roster. The Dreamcast version of the game also discards the shop option to earn extra characters and colors, having all of them available by default. This version is included in '' Capcom Fighting Collection 2''. * '' Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001'' – Titled ''Capcom vs. SNK 2: Millionaire Fighting 2001'' in Japan. Released for the NAOMI hardware in
2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
and ported to the Dreamcast (in Japan only) and
PlayStation 2 The PlayStation 2 (PS2) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on 4 March 2000, in North America on 26 October, in Europe on 24 Novembe ...
during the same year. The game expands on the "Groove" system from the previous game by featuring six different fighting styles or "Grooves" and adds twelve new characters in addition to the ones featured in ''Capcom vs. SNK Pro''. The PlayStation 2 version was later re-released as a PlayStation 2 Classics port for
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...
. The arcade version is also included on ''Capcom Fighting Collection 2'', set for release on Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2025. **A version for
GameCube The is a PowerPC-based home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, in Europe on May 3, 2002, and in Australia on May 17, 2002. It is the suc ...
and
Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand that consists of four main home video game console lines, as well as application software, applications (games), the streaming media, streaming service Xbox Cloud Gaming, and online services such as the Xbox networ ...
was released under the title of ''Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO''. According to the Japanese official website for the GameCube version, ''EO'' stands for ''Easy Operation'', because of a new feature that allows the player to assign special techniques to the right analog stick (C Stick for the GameCube version). This version is also included in ''Capcom Fighting Collection 2''.


Characters


Reception

''Card Fighters DS'' and ''SVC Chaos'' had a polarized, mixed reception, with a
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
score of 48% and 57% respectively; although ''Chaos'' has been the subject of reappraisal as time went on, being often considered a
cult classic A cult following is a group of Fan (person), fans who are highly dedicated to a person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some List of art media, medium. The latter is often cal ...
by some outlets. The two Capcom-developed games and ''Match of the Millennium'' have fared better, with ''Capcom vs. SNK 2'' achieving a Metacritic score of 81%. In 2012, ''
Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
'' ranked ''Capcom vs. SNK'' at number 38 on the list of the best video game franchises.


References

{{Capcom's VS. series Capcom franchises Capcom games Neo Geo games Fighting games 2D fighting games Nintendo Switch games SNK franchises SNK games SNK Playmore games Fighting games by series