Including Red Earth in the Capcom Fighting Collection is proof of why I’ll always appreciate smart remasters and retro collections. ![]() It sounds a hell of a lot like Capcom’s own take on the Libra of Soul mode, and if Red Earth is anything to go by, the World Tour mode could be an all time great fighting game mode. ![]() The developers have already promised a World Tour mode which will see players create their own avatar, explore different environments and engage in fights with various characters. Now, it feels like Capcom are going back to ideas like Red Earth in the creation of Street Fighter 6. The closest we’ve come to a mode that truly exemplifies the concepts put forward by a game like Red Earth is Soulcalibur VI’s Libra of Soul mode, which manages to become a proper RPG with leveling mechanics, dialogue options, player creation, weapon upgrades and more, while still revolving around the game’s core fighting mechanics and gameplay. Even Tekken 5 had its own, fully fledged 3D beat ‘em up in Devil Within. Meanwhile, most Namco games would feature big RPG-esque modes, with Soulcalibur 2’s Weapon Master and SC3’s Chronicles of the Soul modes. Most of their fighting games would focus more on tight mechanics while offering the standard fare of modes (arcade, training, time trial and survival if you were lucky). It’s interesting to see how Capcom progressed from the release of Red Earth. If anything, it was a more in-depth Red Earth. You’d move around a map, complete fights with certain handicaps and obtain new weapons. Soul Blade featured traditional fighting, along with a mode called Edge Master that felt more like an RPG. Capcom fighting games have never been one for including huge amounts of single player content, so a game like Red Earth seems massively out of their wheelhouse.Įlsewhere in Japan during 1996, Namco were also developing the PS1 port of their successful 3D fighter, Soul Blade, which would go on to become the Soulcalibur series. Red EarthĬonsidering how I’ve waxed lyrical in the past about how much I love fighting games with excellent single player modes, Red Earth intrigues me more than any other fighting game in the Capcom Fighting Collection. All of this ties into a password system which means that players can make a note of their password after every fight and carry on their progress the next time they play. These level ups in turn lead to additional buffs to your resistance to certain elemental attacks, or can even grant the character new moves. For a fighting game in 1996, that’s pretty ahead of its time.Īs for the RPG mechanics, players gain experience and levels as they deal damage to their foes, complete fights and perform well in mini-games. While the bosses and fights are the same, the order and context behind them all, along with the cutscenes and conversations before each fight, are drastically different for each of the four playable characters. Firstly, each character has their own story, with unique endings and even choices during their campaign. On its own, Red Earth doesn’t exactly sound revolutionary, but it goes the extra mile in a lot of ways. Players pick from one of four different characters and embark on a quest around the world to defeat evil monsters and ultimately save the kingdom from the grasp of a tyrannical wizard. Red EarthĪ departure from the usual multiplayer focused fighting games (there were versus modes available, but still), Red Earth feels more like a fighting game RPG. ![]() Despite launching in arcades in 1996, Red Earth had never made its way to PC or consoles outside of emulation until this collection. An admittedly obscure fighting game, Red Earth deserves particular mention just because of the fact this is the first time that the game has ever been ported to consoles. Still, as much as the collection seems to be about renewing interest in the Darkstalkers franchise, there’s one game that sticks out as a particular highlight in an already stellar collection: Red Earth. There’s no better proof of this than the Capcom Fighting Collection, with ten excellent fighting games (okay, nine and a versus puzzle game, but still) that feel like they haven’t aged a day. ![]() There’s something about excellent sprite work and solid mechanics that’s more timeless than first person shooter, platformers and other classic gaming genres. Sometimes it’s nice to revel in the nostalgia, while in other cases noticeable issues or dating graphics and gameplay rear their ugly head, forcing you to remove those rose coloured glasses.įortunately, one genre that seems to avoid dating more than the others is the 2D fighter. As the games industry is constantly remaking, remastering and reissuing classic games in bundles, collections and compilations, it’s worth remembering that not every trip down memory lane is a worthwhile one.
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