In a recent State of Play presentation, it was revealed that Arc System Works would be developingMarvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, a 4v4 tag fighting game featuring many beloved Marvel characters, including those who have yet to appear in a fighting game. From what has been shown in the official announcement trailer,Marvel Tokon: Fighting Soulsseems to be taking a different approach to the Marvel fighting games that were released before it, complete with the refreshing style of ArcSys’ previous titles.
While little is known about the game currently, its future seems very promising. Arc System Works are dependable fighting game developers who players can trust with Marvel’s characters, remaining true to the source material without being afraid to try new ideas. After years of waiting,Marvel Tokonhas finally revived Marvel fighting games, but this release could come with unexpected implications.
What Marvel Tokon Could Mean for Other Marvel Fighting Series
A Surprising New Take on a Marvel Fighting Game
The announcement ofMarvel Tokoncame as a surprise to many, especially since the last Marvel fighting game was released almost ten years ago. However, what was more surprising was the developer: Arc System Works. Most Marvel fighting games that precedeMarvel Tokonwere developed by Capcom, so to see these characters handled by a different team is a major change. TheGuilty Geardeveloper seems to be taking its Marvel fighting game in a different direction than in the past, innovating the tag-team gameplay and redesigning itscharacters to emphasizeMarvel Tokon’s Japanese influence.
Fans of Marvel fighting games were given some hope in 2024 of a possible new Capcom title. After a long hiatus followingMarvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, the series’ legacy was celebrated with the release ofMarvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics, finally allowing fans to play classics likeX-Men: Children of the AtomandMarvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroesonce again with online multiplayer. Unfortunately, no new collaboration projects have been announced since its release, and with the news thatMarvel Tokonis an ArcSys game, anew Capcom-developed Marvel fighting game is unlikelyto appear any time soon.
Marvel vs. Capcom May Be on Hiatus
While it is great to see a new Marvel fighting game after such a long wait, it seems as though Marvel Games passing the baton to Arc System Works could have consequences forMarvel vs. Capcomfans. As to not overshadow the release ofMarvel Tokonwith another team-based Marvel fighting game, it’s unlikely that a newMarvel vs. Capcomgame will be seen for some time. The rerelease of many classicMarvel vs. Capcomgames appeared to be a glimmer of hopefor the series’ future at the time, but nowMarvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collectionmay mark the end of an era.
This isn’t an inherently bad thing, though. The general reception forMarvel vs. Capcom: Infinitewas quite poor, marking it as alow point in theMarvel vs. Capcomseries. The changes made to the game’s team structure and the introduction of the controversial Infinity Stones mechanic made the title very divisive. If given another chance, a newMarvel vs. Capcomtitle could tap into the greatness of the series’ earlier entries, but letting another team like ArcSys provide a fresh take may give theMarvel vs. Capcomseries a necessary break to come back stronger.
Marvel Token Could Make A Marvel vs. ArcSys Game Possible
It’s safe to assume that the roster forMarvel Tokonwill exclusively contain Marvel characters, leaving little room for crossover potential. However, if the game succeeds, this could open up the opportunity for a Marvel vs. ArcSys game, a crossover between Marvel’s greatest heroes and villains and the cast of otherArc System Works fighting gameslikeGuilty GearandBlazBlue. It would be interesting to see interactions between characters from each of these series and pit their abilities against each other in 4v4 tag combat.
A Marvel vs. ArcSys title wouldn’t be Arc System Works’ first foray into a crossover tag fighting game. After the release of all of its DLC,BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battleincludes characters spanning seven different properties, includingPersona,Under Night In-Birth, andRWBY.BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battlereuses some assets from the games it crosses over with, but meshes them together in a way to make them work cohesively. Arc System Works managed these existing characters and balanced them against each other well, and could be an indicator of what players could expect with a Marvel and Arc System Works crossover title.
It’s also possible that a hypothetical Marvel vs. ArcSys game could include crossover characters from IPs that Arc System Works has externally licensed and published. A mod has shown that addingDragon Ball FighterZ’s Goku toGuilty Gear Strivefits the existing roster very well, and could work just as well alongsideMarvel Tokon’s cast. As such, it’s possible that other 2.5D fighting game characters that ArcSys has worked with could translate just as well to a Marvel vs. ArcSys game, such as those fromDNF DuelandGranblue Fantasy Versus. Some other characters from the company’s 2D fighters could be adapted to the 2.5D style, like Yu Narukami fromPersona 4 Arenaor Ragna the Bloodedge fromBlazBlue, making for a packed crossover title.
The recent reveal ofPersona 4 Revival, a remake ofPersona 4, would make another appearance from Yu Narukami in a future ArcSys game especially appropriate.
The future ofMarvel fighting gamesis now much more exciting thanks to the reveal ofMarvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, but it feels as though this new release also comes with the sacrifice of theMarvel vs. Capcomseries. The wait for a new Marvel fighting game has been long enough, though, and the radically different takeMarvel Tokonprovides both visually and mechanically seems more like an addition than a replacement. With the potential for a Marvel vs. ArcSys game to followMarvel Tokon, now could actually be the best time to be a Marvel fighting game fan.
