To say I’ve been waiting to get my hands on MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls would be an understatement, so naturally, the road to get to this point has been quite the long one. Since the game was announced, I needed to play it as soon as humanly possible. I love fighting games, and I have played so many good ones over the years. Still, there is something very special and very different about MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls that has absolutely commanded my attention, and I haven’t been able to put it down since its official release.
Single Player
Before I jump into multiplayer for a game I’m playing, I always do my due diligence by checking out the single-player mode. There are a few modes to choose from for this game’s single-player options, those being Story Mode, Arcadia Rumble, and All-Star Arena. I really enjoyed how Arc System Works and Marvel Games collaborated on the story mode and made it very entertaining.
The story begins by showcasing the main antagonist, “The Champion,” and their hunger for competition. The Champion is an elder being of the universe and has travelled from world to world, between universes, to find the strongest fighters to challenge him and quell his hunger for victory. For those who weren’t able to defeat him, their world would perish, never to be seen again. What I really loved about this mode is that it was designed and presented as a series of in-game lore-based “Giant-Sized One Shot” comic book stories, which are played out by the various characters available in the game.
There are a total of 5 episodes, which can be completed fairly quickly depending on your skill level. These episodes feature teams of The Fighting Avengers, Unbreakable X-Men, The Amazing Guardians, Samurai Outriders, and of course, The Knights of Doom. A small detail I really enjoyed about this story mode in MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls was that it displayed both the writers and the artists of each story. I don’t see this often in any games outside of the final credits, but this was really nice to see.
Like most fighting games, the further you get into the story, the harder the enemies become. Luckily for me, I’ve been playing fighting games my whole life, so I didn’t struggle with completing these episodes. As the story progresses, you learn more about what’s happening in the world through the comic book of the team you’re playing as. Each cutscene is set up as a motion comic and uses voice acting. This made playing through the story mode very enjoyable and entertaining, especially seeing how each character interacted with each other, knowing that the fate of the world is in their hands.
“Still, there is something very special and very different about MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls that has absolutely commanded my attention, and I haven’t been able to put it down since its official release.”
The other single-player modes are a lot of fun, and I would highly recommend giving them a shot in between your multiplayer sessions. All-Star Arena is a roguelike mode where players select their custom team and navigate through tournament routes while fighting opponents made up of rival factions to ultimately reach the final boss of this mode. Along the way, you can earn badges and unlock in-game bonuses like illustrations.
The other mode that I didn’t know I was going to fall in love with in MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls was Arcadia Rumble. This mode is the Marvel Mario Party-esque game I’ve always wanted. Arcadia Rumble is an 8-player party and minigame mode. This mode transforms the roster into chibi characters that battle for various items, like collecting stars, fighting souls, and a bunch of other party items. This was one of those features I didn’t know about but was pleasantly surprised with once I started to play it.
4×4 is the new 3×3
When I first had the opportunity to play the alpha for MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, it really and truly blew my mind. Firstly, because I had to keep reminding myself that I was not playing Marvel vs Capcom 3, and secondly, because there was a whole extra character at my disposal. Over the years, I’ve played a comfortable amount of 2v2 fighting games like the aforementioned Marvel vs Capcom 3, Skullgirls, Invincible VS, and another Arc System Works classic, DRAGON BALL FighterZ. I’ve been battle-tested to understand how these particular fighting games work, but the element of having that fourth extra character did take a little while to get used to.
Each character has a role to play in the composition of your team. You have to select your main fighter, aka the leader, followed by a shooter, vertical, and assault character to fill out your team. This has been pretty standard in the Marvel vs Capcom series, but with MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, you absolutely need to be very strategic in how you build your team composition and match not only the synergy of your selected characters but also your playing style.
The matches are a best-of-3 series that begins with your leader. Round by round, you unlock the other members of your party. As mentioned, this requires a lot of strategy and a decent wealth of knowledge of your team composition to ensure that you do not rely only on your leader, but that your supporting cast works in your favour as you progress deeper into the match.
Online Multiplayer
When I first played MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls, it was on my PlayStation Portal; the second time was at a media event, but I was forced to use a DualSense controller. This time, I was finally able to play this game as I originally intended—with my leverless fightstick—and it made a world of difference. Being able to map out my buttons to fit my playstyle on my fightstick was a breath of fresh air, and I was able to play more comfortably compared to playing on the DualSense.
As a long-time fighting game fan, I really and truly appreciate when a game has rollback netcode. This is when an online multiplayer system processes the player’s local inputs instantly, rather than pausing or sometimes freezing the game to try and make the connection. During my time with this game, I didn’t experience a single disconnect or frame drop while playing other players on console, and it was a very pleasant experience. Competition while playing MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls online was what I expected it to be: very competitive. This has also been one of those online experiences where you absolutely lose complete track of time while you’re playing.
The online lobby can host up to 64 players and features crossplay with PC. At the time of writing this article, I’ve had several connection issues with PC players but almost none when playing against players on PlayStation. Local multiplayer is also really great. MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls is already tournament-ready, as it is making its debut at CEO (Community Effort Orlando). This is a prominent event within the FGC (fighting game community), and I myself am looking forward to watching some high-level play on the big stage.
MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls might go down as one of those generational fighting games that stands the test of time. The way the community has embraced it and spoken about it in such a positive light really shows how much promise this game has. I’ve been playing it every single day since I received my review code, and I do not plan on stopping anytime soon.
I often struggle to keep up with games due to being an adult and doing adult things, but MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls has unlocked something in me that has me very eager to get back into the competitive circuit and continue to improve. Whether you are a fan of fighting games or a Marvel comics enthusiast, MARVEL Tōkon: Fighting Souls has something for you, and I can almost guarantee you will enjoy it.
- Assemble your team of legendary Marvel characters in the ultimate 4v4 tag team fighter from PlayStation Studios, Arc System Works and Marvel Games.
- Experiment with team compositions to discover new combos, synergies, and strategies. Blast your way through dynamic stages based on iconic Marvel Universe locales, some featuring interactive stage transitions.
