View Full Version : Why are SF2HDR and MvC2 so damn hard?
Seriously.
I'm not new to these games, I've been playing games for 21 years and have over the years played many of them multiple times both in the arcade and on other home consoles.
Sure I'm not a 'pro' and fighting games aren't really my thing but I really should be able to get through the 7 match arcade mode on easy...
Why have you made these ports so damn hard? I'd like to introduce younger players to these classic titles and yet even I can't play the game through.
I can't be the only one. Street Fighter 4 was no problem to beat but these two titles are something else.
They're at the arcade level. ;)
Nothing you can do about it but learn how they move, and act accordingly.
In some cases, the single player might actually be more of a challenge then an online match, because a CPU won't be caught in some smart cross-up play.
James Mitchell
03-08-09, 13:45
It was a huge wake up call when I started playing Marvel vs Capcom 2 online. I was swamped with all these losses because I was used to only playing the game on a casual level with friends.
Needless to say, practice does make perfect. Get used to things on the offline modes before tackling online.
And don't be afraid to abuse Assists. ;)
Iceclimber
06-08-09, 17:19
That and MVC2 is broken beyond repair.
I don't think Street Fighter II HD Remix is ridiculously hard in comparison to the old SNES titles, but I agree that the difficulty has been raised. I think the reason is that the Street Fighter market isn't filled with kids anymore. Midway has continued to target their Mortal Kombat games at the same age demographic over the years and so they feel much easier. At the other end of the scale you have Capcom releasing games which satisfy their loyal fan base that has grown up, got better at Street Fighter in the process and still want to feel challenged like when we were kids.
I'm not ashamed to admit that Street Fighter II has reduced me to tears of anger and frustration. It is the only game to ever do this to me. I was eight years old and several hours of attempting to defeat Bison with Dhalsim was too much...but I persevered relentlessly and finally completed my goal. This SNES game isn't the same challenge for me anymore though. It broke me down and rebuilt me as a stronger player.
The bottom line is this: If you're good enough to feel comfortable playing Street Fighter it means you are a better gamer. Practice makes perfect and you will improve by working on both your stronger and weaker areas. I like Tekken, Soul Calibur and Mortal Kombat games (amongst other fighting titles) but completing them doesn't give me the same feeling of accomplishment as completing a Street Fighter or King of Fighters game.
I'm not sure i agree with that actually! I dont find SF II even remotley hard. infact, my step son once covered the screen while i played championship editon on the megadrive and when he moved away i had beaten Zangief (on 5 star difficulty level). I do, however, struggle to complete the marvel Vs capcom games (and especially M V C 2) on even the lowest difficulty. it is only certain characters that i struggle with. Hulk, Wolverine, Anakaris and espessialy that damn final boss. i havent played SF II HD yet, despite having had my Xbox for over a year now, so i cant comment but i did find the difficulty level on SF II collectors addition on the ps2 quite punnishing (can only manage that on 3 stars). i dont know whether, after 15 years of playing SF II, i am just so used to the controlls and timings that it is second nature to me now or something, but i have deffinatley found some of the later, spin off releases harder.
Well, back when I was eight I found Dhlasim's lack of speed to be a major problem. I'd completed the game on very respectable difficulty levels with other characters but Dhalsim had me in tears. Like I said though, this SNES title isn't the same challenge for me now because (like countless other people) I've had a much more practice at Street Fighter games since 1992. That's why Capcom make these games more difficult these days. They would risk losing a lot of loyal fans if they didn't keep their new titles challenging.
I can see that point but i still dont think there is any need for them to be that hard. if i was being forced to turn the difficulty level down to 3 stars then fair enough, but i'm not. i'm on the lowest difficulty and still getting beaten. I like a challenge, and i love the feeling when you realise you have become good enough to beat SF Alpha 3 on 6 stars for the first time (for example) but when i'm constantly being beaten down by a game on its lowest difficulty level its frustrating. I completed SF IV on medium without contiuing on my first playthrough and only had to turn down to easy for some of the characters i suck with (Thank you Zangief and Blanka). if i can do that, how come i never get off the lowest difficulty level on MVC2?
I can understand where you're coming from on the Marvel vs Capcom thing. Although I don't know for sure why it's so much more difficult, my guess would be that it is a port of a Dreamcast game and they left the difficulty levels the same so that people who owned the original aren't left dissapointed. Let me explain...
Back when developers were making games for Dreamcast, Sega were so eager to release them that few changes or often no changes were made for different markets (USA, Japan and Europe being the big three). You would find that, aside from the language translation, you were often playing the same game as the Japanese folks were over there as this is where most of the DC games came from. The problem with the Dreamcast was that it was competing with Sony's PS1 which had an enourmous amount of owners and was nowhere near the end of its lifecycle yet. They had to get games out there quick to look competetive against Sony and also keep the developers sweet by not insisting on the same playtesting and stuff as Sony did. There was far less money to be made from releasing a DC game because far fewer people owned the console and making amendments after playtesting costs money that developers didn't want to spend.
Sony has always been very different with SCEE and the likes insisting on far more playtesting and stuff over the years before they grant the licences to release games. The result is that most Japanese games released now get their difficulty levels turned down to cater for the European market. The European audience just isn't as hardcore as the Japanese players when it comes to gaming ability. Marvel vs Capcom never had this first time round and my guess is that the game we're playing is pretty much the same as on the Dreamcast in 2000.
yes i can see your point with that. you only have to look at the japanese "pro" street fighter players on you tube to realise that they are in a different league from even people like you and me who have grown up playing street fighter. I also hadn't considered the quick turn around of these games at initial launch. If you look back on games such as Street Fighter 3rd strike and the origional capcom vs snk which came much later in the dreamcasts life, they are much more ballanced.
James Mitchell
14-08-09, 14:58
Some very interesting discussion here guys! I'm enjoying reading other's perspectives on this kinda thing.