SNK VS CAPCOM CARD FIGHTERS

In my opinion the Neo Geo Pocket Color was one of the greatest handheld gaming systems ever created. At the time the Neo Geo Pocket Color (NGPC) was a great piece of hardware with some amazing games. My favorite games were the two Card Fighter games, one SNK version and one Capcom version. At the time my interest in SNK and Capcom fighters were at an all-time high along with my interest in Trading Card Games thanks to Magic: The Gathering. The Card Fighter games were a dream come true at the time because it combined Magic with SNK/Capcom characters. Sadly the NGPC fell to the Nintendo juggernaut that was the Game Boy to disappear to the few remaining NGPC owners. But all hope is not lost because the Card Fighter series is back, this time for the Nintendo DS in SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS.

As the title implies, Card Fighters DS is a trading card game (TCG) in the same style as Magic: The Gathering or the recent World of Warcraft TCG. Sorry to disappoint anyone out there but this isn’t another 2D fighting game. The basic premise of a TCG is you compete against another player with a deck of cards, with each card having its own special ability. The abilities of the cards range from character cards to action/enhancement cards that can offer temporary or permanent changes to a specific card or player. Since the majority of you reading this review have probably never played the original NGPC version I will leave out the comparisons between the NGPC and DS games.

The basic gameplay in Card Fighters DS revolves around five different Force colors: White, Red, Yellow, Blue and Green. All of the cards in the game are assigned a force color and have a certain casting cost based upon a certain number of white force points and the color trait of the card. Since all of the cards in the game have a force color any card in your hand, or in play, can be used to generate force points. For example, if I have a character card in my hand that has a force color trait of red, I can discard that character card to generate a red force point. If I have a character card on the game board that has a force value of one white force point, I can activate the card to generate a white force point. At the beginning of your turn you earn one white force point and a force point for the color trait of the cards you have in play. For example, if I have a red card, blue card and green card on the game board I would earn 1 white point, 1 red point, 1 blue point and 1 green force point at the beginning of my turn.

The force system, in my opinion, really focuses you on getting as many characters out on the game board as fast as possible. Since you can discard cards to generate force points and active cards already in play for additional force points it makes almost any card in your deck almost immediately playable. But this creates an interesting scenario that always comes up in a TCG: Do you want a fast deck with small characters or a heavy deck with powerful characters? I personally went with a fast deck because with a good draw of the cards I could have up to six characters in play after two turns. Regardless if the cards are in your hand or in play you can always generate force points.

The rest of the gameplay is in the classic TCG style. You attack by selecting a character on the game board or you select a character to defend against an attack. You have action cards that can be played during your turn that offer special benefits for either you (the player) or your characters. There are counter cards that can be played while you’re defending against an attack that offer the same type of enhancements as an action card. Characters with the same color trait can team up to combine forces for a more powerful attack, however with a force cost. Some characters in the game include action effects that can be used either when they are initially brought out on the game board or during your normal turn, but with a force cost. During a regular battle against the computer you start off with 2,000 hit points but during boss battles (or wireless battles against other DS owners) you have 3,000 hit points. The first player to reach zero is the loser.

The premise of the game centers upon your character competing against other players in the Card Tower. However something is amok at the Card Tower because the super computer “MAX” has taken over the tower. All of the other players in the tower have been brainwashed by MAX and it’s up to you to snap them out of MAX’s control. Just how do you snap them out of the brainwashing? By beating them in a game of card battle, of course. You have to make your way up to the top of the tower by visiting the various floors and beating all of the other card battlers. Once you’ve won the battle you then have the option to play against the computer again or trade cards with certain characters in the game.

For each battle that you win you earn points that you can then spend on new card packs. The card packs are essential to building a successful deck because the packs usually contain cards not currently in your deck. The game almost immediately starts you off next to a card shop. As you progress in the game you will find other card shops that offer a different assortment of cards not available in the other shops. Additional decks are unlocked as you beat certain characters in the game. The game does offer you the ability to edit your deck before each battle, which is extremely helpful after purchasing new cards.

SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS is a solid, if unspectacular, game for the Nintendo DS. The game offers plenty of geek moments for gamers that are hardcore SNK or Capcom fans. There are 150 SNK cards and 150 Capcom cards in the game to collect. But Card Fighters DS just feels shallow when compared to other TCG-type games out, especially on the DS. All of the characters you battle against are repeated throughout the game and each floor in the tower looks exactly the same. Sure, the cards are the main part of the game but there still needs to be more to the whole package instead of just fighting the same characters over and over again in the same dull background. If you look past these flaws, especially since this is a TCG, then you shouldn’t be disappointed with Card Fighters DS.

Gameplay: 7.0
The force system almost comes close to a broken gameplay setup. The longest game I played only lasted seven turns before it was over. I’m not saying every game has to last an hour but the game should have tighter restrictions in how you can use the force points. Hardcore TCG gamers will probably find ways to exploit the almost limitless force points you can earn.

Graphics: 6.0
The best parts of the visuals in the game are the cards, when you can actually see the entire card in play. The graphics of the characters look like early 16-Bit style RPG characters with just a few pieces of animation. All of the character avatar models are repeated throughout the game with only small changes in hair or skin color. The DS is capable of so much more and I wanted to see more from the visuals in this game.

Sound: 6.2
For those looking for a game that sounds like a 16-bit game from long ago won’t be disappointed with this game.

Difficulty: Easy
While the tutorials in the game are very limited no one should have a terrible time figuring out how to play the game.

Concept: 5.9
The whole game just feels limited to a game from years ago crammed into a DS cartridge. Why is the whole game based up going up and down an elevator with all of the characters and floors looking the same? Why couldn’t we get additional multiplayer options besides just Multi-Card play?

Multiplayer: 6.5
The game does offer Multi-Card wireless play for 2 players. It would have been excellent to allow gamers the opportunity to play true Wi-Fi multiplayer games on the DS but maybe that will be in the next version? Or maybe even the option to buy packs from an online store instead of just the stores in the game?

Overall: 6.3
While SNK vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS isn’t the most polished game available on the DS it still offers an enjoyable TCG experience. SNK and Capcom fans will enjoy buying new packs to find the next card to add to their collection. Trading Card Game veterans will definitely try to find an exploit to the potentially limitless force point system.