Microsoft’s 2013 reboot of Killer Instinct wasn’t the most popular fighting game, but is constantly hailed as one of the genre’s most well-made entries in modern times.
From gameplay to netcode, the fact that KI so consistently receives passionate praise leads one to wonder if any developers might be willing to take another shot at it, and there are some rumors going around right now that that might be the case.
Content creator and FGC influencer Maximilian, a massive Killer Instinct fan who launched a “bring back KI” campaign back in 2019, takes a speculative look at these rumors in his latest video.
Such rumblings started back in October of last year when Xbox caster Shpeshal Nick stated that he’d been told a new KI is in active development on the XboxEra podcast. That’s, of course, been neither confirmed nor debunked, but more alleged details are starting to creep up.
In his video Max references a Windows Central article written by Jez Corden. Windows Central is a Microsoft-focused outlet and Corden is its Senior Editor, and after talking about the XboxEra comments from October, Corden offers the following to us:
“I have also heard the vaguest of unsubstantiated rumors that one of Bandai Namco’s fighting game development teams may be involved, although I haven’t been able to independently verify that yet myself. Previously speaking at an event, someone at Xbox told me that finding a studio or building a team with the specific expertise to make a fighting game was difficult
“Naturally, Bandai Namco is responsible for franchises like Soulcalibur and Tekken, and has even contributed to Smash Bros. Ultimate as well. It would make sense to get them involved if indeed Microsoft is exploring reviving the classic fighter.”
Max combs through the article while speculating on the potential of the leaks as well as how they’d actually manifest in the case that they were true. Check out what all he has to say in the full video below and then share your thoughts on the possibility of a new KI in the comments afterwards.
Marvel vs. Capcom 2 served as a pillar of the fighting game community for a decade, yet we haven’t been able to purchase it for almost eight years now — and fans haven’t exactly been quiet about its absence since.
Popular fighting game streamer and content creator Maximilian Dood recently began the #FREEMVC2 campaign to garner support among those who wish to see the hyper crossover to return, and one developer has already tossed their hat into the ring to try and make it a reality.
Mike Mika, the studio head of Digital Eclipse, took to Twitter earlier this week to acknowledge the Marvel fans and say they’re down to take on the potential project.
“We made what I think was the last MVC2 release on console when we were known as Backbone,” wrote Mika. “(16×9, etc) I love the outpouring- We’d swap in GGPO and do documentary and museum work, etc. Will need to talk to Disney and Capcom to make it real. We’re game if they are. #FREEMVC2”
While this statement implies that no actual work has officially started on porting Marvel vs. Capcom 2 to modern hardware, this sentiment seems promising for a few reasons.
We made what I think was the last MVC2 release on console when we were known as Backbone. (16×9, etc) I love the outpouring- We’d swap in GGPO and do documentary and museum work, etc. Will need to talk to Disney and Capcom to make it real. We’re game if they are. #FREEMVC2
— Mike Mika (@MikeJMika) August 3, 2021
Digital Eclipse already has years of experience working alongside both Capcom and Disney to revive their classic titles between the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection, the Mega Man Legacy Collection, The Disney Afternoon Collection and Disney Classic Games: Aladdin and The Lion King.
As Mika also mentioned, he and other members of the team already developed Marvel vs. Capcom 2’s PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 port back in 2009 just before Backbone Entertainment closed its doors.
This version of MvC2 was pulled from online stores in late 2013 alongside Capcom’s other Marvel titles due to their license expiring for the comic book characters.
The series would return in 2017 with Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite before the plug was pulled on that project quickly after its release.
While Capcom and Disney’s renewed partnership also led to a modern re-release of Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, the apparent failure of Marvel Infinite dashed the hopes of fans wishing to see the other games make a comeback as well.
Thanks. If it becomes real, I think key members of the FGC need to be part of the process.
— Mike Mika (@MikeJMika) August 3, 2021
That soon changed, however, when Arcade1UP managed to release multiple arcade cabinets featuring Capcom’s older Marvel fighting games, but MvC2 always remained glaringly absent from their lineups.
The reason for the exclusion of arguably the most popular title of the bunch has never been publicly stated by any parties.
Digital Eclipse has become well-known for the added touches they include with their collections, including galleries, timelines and documentaries, which also makes the prospect enticing for fans.
Though their launches of the Street Fighter 30th Anniversary and Samurai Shodown NeoGeo Collections have had their fair share of issues, the studio is still probably the best to take on the task aside from maybe Code Mystics, who’ve been busy putting rollback netcode into SNK’s classic fighters for a few years now.
Max and other fans have posited the idea of adding new modes to MvC2 as well like ratio versus mode, which attempts to make the action a bit more balanced by limiting the amount of strong characters that can be placed on the same team.
If they can help it, Digital Eclipse may not stop at just Marvel 2 either, as some of Mika’s responses implies the developer’s best case scenario is releasing it as part of a wider collection including more classic Marvel games currently locked in the vault.
Stephen Frost, executive producer for Digital Eclipse, also chimed in to say that he “would love to work on an updated release of MvC2,” so Mika definitely is not alone in those sentiments at the studio.
Would love to work on an updated release of MVC2, adding some quality-of-life improvements, as well as our signature @DigitalEclipse behind-the-scenes goodies. Feel free to reach out to us, @CapcomUSA_… We’re standing by. https://t.co/JNc8wpv6iH
— Stephen Frost (@frostman007) August 3, 2021
For now though, all we can really do is sit back and wait until these business talks hopefully advance, but it may also be a good idea to send out some tweets with the #FREEMVC2 hashtag to show support for bringing this classic back into our hands — so we don’t have to shell out over $100 if we want a legitimate copy.
This of course is still far from a guarantee that it’ll end up happening, but maybe with enough support and noise we can help it become so though it’d be premature to start celebrating now given the series’ complicated history.
You can check out Max’s video on the matter below.
