Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes

attacks Marvel Comics' Captain America. The remaining number of times each player can summon their guest character is displayed below each team's life gauge. Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes is the third entry in the Marvel vs. Capcom series of 2D fighting games. The game utilizes similar tag team-based game mechanics to its predecessor, Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter. Before starting each match, the player selects a team of two fighters to compete in one-on-one combat. While one character fights, their teammate resting off-screen slowly regenerates their life gauge. Clash of Super Heroes features two significant gameplay changes from Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter. They are also limited to a few uses per round. Clash of Super Heroes introduces a new technique called the "Variable Cross", also known as a "Duo Team Attack". In Arcade Mode, the player must defeat several artificial intelligence-controlled teams to reach the final boss character, Onslaught, the central character of the "Onslaught" crossover story which ran through all of Marvel Comics's ongoing series a year before Marvel vs. Capcom was released. Upon completion, the player views a cinematic ending unique to each playable fighter. Cross Over is the only mode in the PlayStation port that permits tag team gameplay, which was removed due to the console's limited RAM capacity. Playable characters Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes features a roster of 15 regular fighters. Unlike Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter, which limited itself to characters from the Street Fighter series, Clash of Super Heroes uses characters from other Capcom video game franchises, such as Darkstalkers, Mega Man, and Strider. Most of the secret characters are palette swaps of existing fighters with different moveset properties, such as Shadow Lady, a modified version of Chun-Li. The sole exception to this trend is Roll from the Mega Man series, who has unique sprites, but mostly shares the same moves as Mega Man. Partner characters from Marvel Comics include Colossus, Cyclops, and Jubilee, while the Capcom side includes Arthur from ''Ghosts 'n Goblins, Devilotte from Cyberbots: Full Metal Madness, and the Unknown Soldier from Forgotten Worlds''. Marvel playable characters Marvel assist characters Capcom playable characters Capcom assist characters ==Development and release==

Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes was originally developed for the CP System II arcade system board. before being released in Japanese arcades that month, followed by North America in March 1998. The Dreamcast version added the game mode Cross Fever, which permits four-player gameplay. The game also received a PlayStation port. The PlayStation's RAM limitations required the developer to remove certain features, most notably the game's tag team element; thus, most game modes were restricted to two-character battles, instead of four. This reduced the player's secondary character to an assist role, similar to guest characters. The game also added an art gallery, where players can view game art and ending animations. Many frames of animation were also omitted as a result of insufficient RAM, particularly in larger character sprites. and in January 2000 in North America and Europe. A high-definition version of the game was released, alongside Marvel Super Heroes, as part of the Marvel vs. Capcom Origins collection. Built using the arcade ROM, the compilation sought to maintain the original's gameplay experience, while adding new features such as online multiplayer, challenges, and replay saving. It was released through the PlayStation Network on September 25 in North America and October 10, 2012 in Europe. The Xbox Live Arcade version was released worldwide on September 26. In June 2020, Clash of Super Heroes was re-released as a home arcade cabinet by Arcade1Up, which also included Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, and Marvel Super Heroes in War of the Gems. In June 2024, Capcom announced that Clash of Super Heroes would be among the games included in the Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics compilation, which was released the following September. Marketing Toy Biz produced a line of action figures to help promote the game, which consisted of four two-packs, each of which featured one Marvel character and one Capcom character. The two-packs consisted of Captain America and Morrigan, War Machine and Mega Man, Spider-Man and Strider Hiryu and Venom and Captain Commando. ==Reception==

In Japan, Game Machine listed Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes as the second most successful arcade game of March 1998. In the United States, the game sold an estimated 3,000 arcade units, reportedly outperforming Street Fighter III (1997) to become Capcom's most successful arcade game in the US during that period. Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes received "favorable" reviews on both Dreamcast and PlayStation, according to the review aggregation website GameRankings. The Dreamcast port of Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes received positive reviews for its animation quality and fast gameplay. Game Informer lauded the game for its "seamless animation, in-your-face effects, and lightning-quick gameplay". In addition, the magazine praised the Dreamcast version for being a "flawless" translation of the original arcade version. Jeff Gerstmann of GameSpot also praised the visuals and combat, stating that it was "everything you'd expect from an over-the-top, ultra-flashy fighter". GameRevolution, on the other hand, felt that Clash of Super Heroes lacked depth. The site criticized the Dreamcast port for not adding any significantly new features from the arcade version. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 33 out of 40. The PlayStation port received a bit more mixed reviews than its Dreamcast counterpart. Gerstmann heavily faulted the game for its removal of tag team battles. He claimed that while it had "the same moves as the original game...the shell surrounding those moves [was] completely different". Douglass C. Perry of IGN labeled the PlayStation version as "an average game", praising its gameplay and lasting appeal, while criticizing its selection of fighting styles and soundtrack. GamePro praised the developer for making the decision to remove features in order to keep the speed and graphical integrity of the game without overloading the system; however, they still recommended the Dreamcast version over it. ==Sequel==

A sequel to Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes was announced by Capcom on December 1, 1999. The game, titled Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, was initially developed for the Sega NAOMI arcade board, marking Capcom's first attempt at a fighting game outside of the CP System II and III hardware systems. It features several significant gameplay changes from Clash of Super Heroes, such as three-on-three tag team battles, a new character assist system, and a more simplified control scheme. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 also includes a roster of 56 playable fighters, drawing numerous character sprites from Capcom's previous Marvel-licensed fighting games. Following its release in Japanese arcades in 2000, the game received ports to the Dreamcast, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, and iOS devices over the course of twelve years. ==Notes==