Capcom Arcade 2nd Stadium review – classic fight collection

metro.co.uk:

The second collection of retro Capcom coin-ops includes a host of fighting games and obscure classics such as Knights Of The Round.

Retro compilations have been around for decades now and yet still they’re almost always a disappointment: never offering a definitive collection of whatever they’re themed around and rarely ever featuring any kind of museum content to properly celebrate the titles. Minimum efforts have been de rigueur for the concept almost since its inception, which is why last year’s Capcom Arcade Stadium stood out, since it was packed with both classic games and extra features.

The first Capcom Arcade Stadium was also unusual in that it was technically free-to-play, with the option to download the frontend, and one free game, for nothing and then add packs of additional games according to whether you’re interested in them or not (already owning the same game several times over is another common problem with retro compilations). This sequel follows similar logic, although now you can just buy each game individually.

That’s particularly welcome because while the first Stadium was extremely varied in its selection this one has an awful lot of fighting games in it, and if you’ve just bought the Capcom Fighting Collection you’re not going to be interested in any of the Darkstalkers games or the Street Fighter puzzle games. There are still a lot of other titles, both obscure and widely celebrated, to pique your interest, but at the same time there is a pervasive feeling that this compilation is trying to make the best of the leftovers.

There are 32 games available in Capcom Arcade 2nd Stadium but the obvious question, of why they weren’t just launched as additional DLC to the first, is never answered. It’s probably