Great game, great memories. Played this w/ a deaf kid when I was on holiday at an arcade. Must've spent £20 each back in the 90s to complete it. Every day when we got back from w/e we were doin' we'd have 2 games an' see how far we could get. Completed it on our 2nd to last day, which happened to be his 10th BDay. It's up there with Knights of the Round and Golden Axe IMO.
Lovely anecdote. As a Marvel fan who was completely unfamiliar with The Punisher, I might have skipped it when the MvC Collection drops if not for videos like this and even comments like this underneath it. I’m not about to miss out
That's a heartwarming story :-) This game is really fun 2 player! As I understand the 2P character, Nick Fury, is slightly better than the Punisher himself because he has slightly larger hitboxes :-)
I really want to get into beat em ups but I don’t really understand the fundamentals of the genre and how to play them well. I feel like I always end up just mashing and don’t understand when or why to use certain attacks. I also don’t get how to approach bosses and it ends up feeling like some bosses have unavoidable attacks. A beat em up basics guide would be an amazingly helpful resource!
Not a replacement for a proper video guide by Mark (which he SHOULD do some time soon tbh) but check this out : cohost.org/boghog/post/4903417-beat-em-up-cheat-sh Also here's a more dev oriented one that's probably not gonna be very helpful from a player POV but still : cohost.org/boghog/post/4974594-beat-em-up-cheat-sh
@@liamconverse8950 idk if I would see it as a basic skill, in most games with an infinite jab combo, it's a pretty easy combo to do. Having in mind that it's pretty specific to some games, I wouldn't say it's a fundamental skill to practice (in general), but it's must learn for others.
Yeah the game is low-key a beast in terms of player mechanics. You can see it as a clear stepping stone towards AVP and I really like the balance it finds between the fundamental final fight punch and throw game and the crazy combo mechanics of AVP.
Oh lucky man! I'd love to get this PCB at some point too. Right now I'm saving all my pennies for my full time youtubing plans, but maybe someday if I get financially secure enough I'd love to start picking up PCBs like The Punisher.
I love that the punisher game is included in this collection. This game is what kicked off the rest of the Capcom vs games cause Marvel was so impressed with how well Capcom made the game. I'm looking forward to playing it cause I unfortunately never got to play it. Marvel owes a lot of its appeal and traction to Capcom.
Having great mobility just makes most action/skill based genres feel good to play in my opinion. I understand simplicity is usually for the best, but if a game can offer me "advanced" or great feeling movement (fast rolls, dashes, air dashes) it just ends up making the game feel better and more fun when I play it.
I hope to someday :-) right now i m all hands on deck in terms of growing my UA-cam channel but as my full time channel efforts become more stable (hopefully) I plan on branching into small scale indie game dev more
@@TheElectricUnderground i'm binging your channel the past days and taking tons of notes about gameplay depth, and its mindblowing because you can put into words what i just inherently understand and like in game feel but can't explain. Amazing analysis about stellar blade and modern trends and WHY they're boring AF either. Someday i'll hire you as a consultant when i can pay enough, mark my words 😁
When this was out at the time, I remember seeing it and always thinking, "I'll play it next time, but this time, I'm going to play Night Striker" and then it wasn't there...and neither was Night Striker.
That's always the worst. I remember I did that with Ikaruga on the Gamecube years ago. Where it was being sold for like $5 at a store called "CD World" and thought, okay I'll come back for that in a few days. I went back and boom, it was gone.
The alien Vs predator beat em up by capcom was THE best arcade game I played as a kid, nothing came close to it after. Imagine my disappointment when alien vs predator games came out afterwards and werent like the beat em up at all. Lt. Kurosawa has always been my favorite original character from that game. Shame she never made it in a MvC game as a fighter. yeah everyone is all about MvC2 re-release but forget all these other games coming out with it. The Punisher beat em up is something I never got to play and now I get to. Plus my FAVORITE fighter game Marvel Super Heros is in it too. MvC2 is just a bonus for me. I played Marvel Super Heros SO MUCH in the arcade as a kid because the Infinity Stones were awesome to me.
I've never been a beat'em up guy. But I'll give this one a shot once the collection is out. I really dig the roll and the shooting mechanics in this one.
The area I grew up in doesn't have much to offer. The bowling alley we had kept a few arcade cabinets for years. The X-Men arcade game, the punisher, and The Simpsons, I love the punisher arcade game and sunk so many quarters into it not even knowing really how to play but I haven't been able to play it and ages and I'm pretty excited for it. The punisher is also my favorite comic character, Deadpool takes a lot from The punisher but doesn't take things as seriously. I know the other games in the collection will have online capabilities, I'm curious about this having it.
another thing you can do in this game that's rarely seen is aiming the M16 to fire higher or lower by pressing up/down while shooting. you can't do that with the Ingram or other held weapons to my knowledge.
Hey mark enjoyed the content as usual I love how innovative and well designed these old games are. I was wonderin what are your favorite action rpg games or roguelike games new or old that manage to add this kind of variety without killing the gameplay?
There's an upcoming Hindu mythology-themed beat-em-up by name of Immortal: And the Death that Follows which, to my understanding, has a Roguelike/Roguelite element to it. It's looking interesting!
Great review. Played this on MAME but never figured out how the mechanics worked. Have to give it another go now that I know how it works. And just FYI (because I'm a copyeditor), "penultimate" means "next to last," not "final".
Capcom releases a beat em up bundle and leaves this off. Then they release a fighting collection and put a beat em up on there 🙄. I assume licensing problems were the reason but it's still a bit annoying.
planning to try out The Punisher after MvC series. i heard this game is a good start to get into beat em up. which is im trying to attempt to play the correct way like i did in shmup.
I bet many people don't even know you can hold down to throw the enemy backwards at the end of a combo, much less other more advanced details. It's in Fight'N Rage but not in SOR4, go figure 😑.
@The Electric Underground I have a question have you tried more indie games and double AA games? Because indie games and double AA games are doing better than triple AAA games. You should try out more indie games.
Sadly that will probably not change in a new MvC, he's badly mistreated by current Marvel and that's saying something considering the garbage they publish now.
I simply love Capcom's pixel art style from that era! They are so colorful, stylish, and full of personality. We can only hope they bring back Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, Alien Vs Predator, and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure next.
Yeah Capcom's sprite work during this time is top tier. I love this era much more so than Snes and Genesis stuff. It's just so richly detailed. The CPS1 and 2 have so many great games they are nearly consoles themselves ha.
You will only get either of those if Capcom release a console. It's why they licensed the Capcom Home Arcade that no one bought. The way around the copyright is to preinstall it on proprietary hardware. That could change, maybe they'll pay for the licensing if this Marvel collection sells.
Me too corkman! I sort of have some vague hope we will get AVP soon as I believe Disney now owns the license right? So maybe Capcom can get another deal with them now that they have established this relationship for the Marvel stuff (which is also Disney owned now).
You 100% made a valid point. Most beat em ups these days; take their inspiration form console version of games. Even Shredders; Revenge has a more console TMNT feel than with the arcade vesrions. Even though the console ports were inspired or even ports of arcade games; they are missing the right input quickness, crispness, momementum movement and mechanics of arcade games. Ironically; eventhough SOR4 is a sequel to a console beat em up series; it feels more Arcade like than previous entries or other current beat em ups. These things may seem subtle to many; but ther differences are distinct enough to notice. Great video for pointing some of this stuff out!
Yes exactly. Especially because you see that system-wise modern beat em' ups tend to lend very heavily into console design by introducing RPG mechanics and progression systems and so forth, rather than having that rich mechanical design right away that is needed for arcade game design. It's really frustrating at times honestly.
Ha yeah I was laughing a lot when editing the footage together. It's also kinda funny because he was not remotely interested in the Punisher in the initial reaction XD.
I have anxiety as a kid so Im really scared to play on the arcades, I would only watch others play but I really wanted to play this game so bad it made me fight against my anxiety and finally sit down in front of the arcade cab and insert that coin. Its such a huge breakthrough making this game so important in my life.
Oh wow that's awesome to hear. Yeah playing IRL in the arcades growing up was a lot more intimidating because of the social aspects of having other people around and watching you play, but I'm happy to hear the game helped encourage you to push past your anxiety and play at the arcade :-)
I thought the exact same thing. I'm hoping that will happen as well. Maybe Capcom is planning another beat em up collection and having AVP in it? I get the feeling something is going to happen with the game soon, but that's just a feeling.
My buddy 1CC'd this on stream a few weeks back, such a cool game and fun to watch him work through it. I was lucky enough to stumble on an official cabinet of this in 2001 at a laundry mat at a Disney World resort, lol. Only a quarter to play too, it was awesome.
Me and my friend can do it too, it's funny watching the alternate ending and seeing that punk carry the dog house, which isn't an item you can throw in the game.
It's really fun when you find awesome arcade cabs in the wild like that. Like growing up I'd play a bunch of Soul Calibur at my local bowling alley. I wish I had a local Punisher cab as well, but alas none to be found.
Cool little fact about The Punisher: It was one of only four Capcom games to use the CP System Dash arcade board, which was a beefed up CPS1 board used as an intermediate before the godly CPS2 board was ready for mass production. The CP System Dash board was only used for Warriors of Fate, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, The Punisher and Saturday Night Slam Masters. The next year in 1994, Capcom would mass produce the CPS2 board and release Alien vs Predator and Dungeons and Dragons: Tower of Doom, both of which were designed largely by the same team as The Punisher using pretty much the same game engine.
Yeah the game is a real gem. It's also hard to find other beat em' ups like it. I think the closest is Batman Returns on the Snes. If you haven't played it and are a Punisher fan, def do so! It has a similar (and awesome) grab game.
I loved Shredder's revenge, but the number of buttons it used really gives away that it's a modern game, compared to many other aspects of the gameplay that successfully evoke this era of beat-em-ups.
@@TheElectricUnderground I've played it more than enough times to confirm it doesn't 😅 but I wish SOR4 had the roll mechanics that The Punisher has. All the more reason why it's an important game for more folks to experience. Hopefully future beat-em-ups will adopt it!
My top 5 beat-em-ups of all time: Alien vs Predator Cadillacs & Dinosaurs The Punisher Streets of Rage 2 Violent Storm 3 out of 5 made by Capcom. I'd say that's a pretty darn good track record.
The gun mechanic only working when enemies with guns appear makes no sense from a narrative or logical perspective but from a gameplay pont of view it's interesting. That's why story or real life logic is overrated in video games.
Ah I remember in one of your streams you saying that you didn't rate SOR2 that high like most people, I think its tough one, because mechanic wise SOR3 is the best, but SOR2 just hits a sweet spot for many players. I will say if we are talking best of the best then 90's Arcade Capcoms and Konamis top beat em ups are the kings of the genre, AVP, Violent Storm etc, we really need a collection with those games.
I 100% agree with everything said in this video. Punisher is the best. I've been waiting years for them to put the Punisher on a video game system. This whole game collection will be absolutely amazing 😎👍🔥
That's fantastic my dude! Yeah i've been waiting for a long time too. Not because I don't emulate the game (which I do, it runs very well on arch), but because I notice that games get a lot more attention and discussion when they get quality ports. I think Capcom will deliver in terms of porting quality in the collection (I hope).
I don’t know, I kind of doubt Mark’s sincerity when he says he loves this game. I didn’t hear him scream like a hysterical woman once in this entire video.
I know I can't ever get to that top level of youtubing because I severely lack the hype gene. Also my excitement for games builds over time as I play them so I can't really do hype reactions or anything. It would be kinda funny if I did a reaction stream to a Nintendo direct one day, but it would very likely just consist of me smack talking 90% of the time.
@@TheElectricUndergroundno one has a hype gene ,you are just genuine which is highly appreciative, though a reaction of you trashing a Nintendo direct would be highly enjoyable Ha, maybe bring Boghog out from the dungeon for once.
I wonder what the first game with an i-frame roll is. I think the earliest example I found was Cabal from 1988, it's a pretty good game and I'm tempted to buy a trackball at some point to play it as intended.
You make me feel such a warmth and passion for video game design, and I've been playing for 24 of my 27 years c: A well earned sub for you. Have watched a handful of your videos now so it was about time, sorry for the delay!!
Oh yeah as I understand Max doesn't like beat em' ups very much ha. So I thought it would be funny to re-edit his reaction. I'd be a terrible reaction youtuber though I think, I rarely get excited for anything and lack the hype gene ha.
I don't really agree that only Capcom innovated in the heyday of the belt scroller, but they were definitely on fire from Final Fight to Battle Circuit, and I agree that indies are generally console-centric and have little experience with arcade games which is very unfortunate
Good shit. This one blew me away in the arcades back in the days. Still my favorite arcade beat em up along with the OG Double Dragon. DD is more about the impact it had on me and nostalgia, but Punisher was awesome and nostalgic for me as well. DD was pretty much the first beat em up I remember, so that left a mark on me. Ive enjoyed other capcom arcade beat em ups, but for whatever reason I didnt enjoy any of them as much as this one. Final Fight was one of the better capcom beat em ups and Captain Commando but this one felt special for some reason. Many of Capcom's others feel a little copy and paste for me. I dont often aim for 1 CC arcade completions, but this is one that really entices me.
Yes, Capcom are finally going back and doing quality ports of their gold era games, which I really appreciate. It's kinda crazy that they decided to nestle the Punisher into the MVC collection rather than a beat em up collection, but it is what it is ha. I get why it worked out that way licensing wise and everything.
The pistol mechanic is such an interesting way to characterize the Punisher through the gameplay; he's not a wanton psycho mass shooter, he's just not the kind of character who's gonna pull his gun out if he's not being shot at. I dont think people (modern gamers/designers) understand how beneficial the removal of unfettered player choice can be in some cases, i assume we're going to see a lot of criticism of that mechanic with the new release but i think it's super cool.
I appreciate the sentiment but he absolutely is that kind of character, he’s done it many times in the comics with the point of making people feel as vulnerable as those they’ve victimized. Ennis’ vol 5 run on MAX even opens with him gunning down a defenseless, senile and wheelchair-confined former mob boss and later an unarmed Micro. He’s not about what you’re doing, but what you’ve done.
I’ve only ever played the Sega Genesis version of The Punisher which I’ve always heard that while it’s a great Genesis game, it doesn’t really hold a candle to the original arcade version. Definitely looking forward to playing this.
Well, it’s the best review of this amazing game ever. Touches on all the deep mechanics and the sheer fun of it all. Almost makes me afraid to feature this game until I get good at it!
The Punisher and God Hand are examples of what good action game design is and what it should be. The next Dynasty Warriors, nay, new action games should take more inspiration from these games instead of the same old Dark Souls clone.
@@jngo172 The art style and art direction, for one. It's part of the Zeno Clash series and that means inspirations from obscure prehistoric animals and Hieronymus Bosch paintings for the inhabitants of the world. But Clash dials that up with even more color and a kind of crosshatching filter. Story, script and voice acting are very good. The music is truly fantastic. Ranges from music that sounds like if caveman ritual chanting had electric guitars, to grand choral stuff that people have compared to the likes of NieR, to more dreamlike atmospheric stuff. The main character looks like Clint Eastwood as an earthworm using an orange mandrake for a body, which is a look that may make people not expect genuine beauty, awesomeness, emotion and dreamlike quality.
Can anyone answer this question... In the Punisher, when you end a combo with Up & Attack it throws the enemy backwards. When you end a combo with Down & Attack, it throws the opponent forward. In Cadillacs and Dinosaurs and Fight'N Rage it's the opposite. Up & Attack throws forward, while Down & Attack throws backwards. It sort of makes it annoying to go between certain Capcom games. Warriors of Fate has some characters doing throws one way and others doing the opposite way. In Final Fight, Up or Down & Attack will thrown backwards. Why did Capcom not make the end combo throws consistent across all games? What's the better control? I prefer the way Cadillacs and Dino way. Although it does not really matter. I just wish it was universal.
Whats your opinion on SNKs beat em ups? I feel they do alot of things right over Capcoms lineup, like optimizing the stages for 2 players only with the limitations of the Neo Geo. If you play any Capcom Beat em Up you end having large stages being under utilized without 3 other players. They have not aged well in that department.
If you saw a capcom game back then you played it because you knew it was going to be rad. I still get the feeling that i need to play the game when i see any new or newer capcom games. I feel like back then square enix had the same deal going on. Obviously not as far back as capcom but around the time final fantasy 7 came out i just remember wanting to check out every square enix game. My friends and i were obsessed with final fantasy 8 and especially parasite eve.
The punisher was released also on the arcade 1 up marvel super heroes it’s not a big deal it’s just a beat ‘em up game like final fight that everyone’s Beaton already where is the punisher 2 capcom is running out of ideas they are releasing old games again they can’t come up with another marvel Vs capcom game after infinite which is the 5th their resident evil are starting to suck can’t see the characters street fighter 6 no vibration can’t use the original costume capcom wants us to pay for them street fighter 5 resident evil 5 those are the only games that didn’t suck
Masterpiece of spritework & so underrated. OG Capcom was seriously unmatched. The gunshots in this feel so CRUNCHY unlike say The Takeover where it appeared later (that isnt auto locked though) The genesis version, although limited graphically plays well too!
Thanks Max. 1993 was fantastic. Both of my most favourite games, Mortal Kombat II and Battletoads & Double Dragon, were released that year. Many cool Beat’Em Ups were released in 1993 either: Metamorphic Force, The Punisher, Violent Storm, Final Fight II, Mighty Final Fight etc.
This might be the game I'm most looking forward to in this collection. It's amazing that the game used just two buttons plus joystick, and managed to have such depth of gameplay.
Not a huge beat'em'up fan, but I've tried the punisher on my arcade yesterday evening, and yes, those mecanics you've detailed in your vid are definitely intetesting. I'll be giving it more time to see if it will grow on me further, cause I kind of enjoyed that first run :) thx for the vid!
I got a portable Arcade machine and most of those games i have on it including Alien vs Predator but i still can’t wait for this collection to come out
Having The Punisher not open fire against unarmed enemies sounds like the type of thing someone at a board meeting would make as a joke, but the fact that it's an actual mechanic is wild.
Ha I wonder how much that type of a thing is a factor, it would be interesting to know! I get the feeling back in the 90's non-Disney Marvel probably never even bothered playing the game and just let Capcom do their thing (for the better).
Great game, great memories. Played this w/ a deaf kid when I was on holiday at an arcade. Must've spent £20 each back in the 90s to complete it. Every day when we got back from w/e we were doin' we'd have 2 games an' see how far we could get. Completed it on our 2nd to last day, which happened to be his 10th BDay. It's up there with Knights of the Round and Golden Axe IMO.
🤔 I wonder if he appreciated the games comic book style written sound effects (ie "Ka-Blam!").
Punisher, AVP, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs and Armoured Core. Top 4 right there. Tell me if im wrong?..
Lovely anecdote. As a Marvel fan who was completely unfamiliar with The Punisher, I might have skipped it when the MvC Collection drops if not for videos like this and even comments like this underneath it. I’m not about to miss out
That's a heartwarming story :-) This game is really fun 2 player! As I understand the 2P character, Nick Fury, is slightly better than the Punisher himself because he has slightly larger hitboxes :-)
Lol. Why was him being deaf relevant?
I really want to get into beat em ups but I don’t really understand the fundamentals of the genre and how to play them well. I feel like I always end up just mashing and don’t understand when or why to use certain attacks. I also don’t get how to approach bosses and it ends up feeling like some bosses have unavoidable attacks.
A beat em up basics guide would be an amazingly helpful resource!
Not a replacement for a proper video guide by Mark (which he SHOULD do some time soon tbh) but check this out :
cohost.org/boghog/post/4903417-beat-em-up-cheat-sh
Also here's a more dev oriented one that's probably not gonna be very helpful from a player POV but still :
cohost.org/boghog/post/4974594-beat-em-up-cheat-sh
I saw this video some time ago and I thought it was pretty good
ua-cam.com/video/9h__BxgiHV0/v-deo.htmlsi=LlmmblG-ILfX1O5w
I think probably depends on which game but learning infinite punch combos is pretty helpful
@@liamconverse8950 idk if I would see it as a basic skill, in most games with an infinite jab combo, it's a pretty easy combo to do. Having in mind that it's pretty specific to some games, I wouldn't say it's a fundamental skill to practice (in general), but it's must learn for others.
@@mikelpelaez It's definitely harder in final fight than it is in streets of rage
I had no idea this game was this mechanically rich, thank you for the education
Yeah the game is low-key a beast in terms of player mechanics. You can see it as a clear stepping stone towards AVP and I really like the balance it finds between the fundamental final fight punch and throw game and the crazy combo mechanics of AVP.
I own this PCB, it's a fantastic game that looks so good with its big sprites. Everything is S tier in this game.
Oh lucky man! I'd love to get this PCB at some point too. Right now I'm saving all my pennies for my full time youtubing plans, but maybe someday if I get financially secure enough I'd love to start picking up PCBs like The Punisher.
I love that the punisher game is included in this collection. This game is what kicked off the rest of the Capcom vs games cause Marvel was so impressed with how well Capcom made the game. I'm looking forward to playing it cause I unfortunately never got to play it. Marvel owes a lot of its appeal and traction to Capcom.
Having great mobility just makes most action/skill based genres feel good to play in my opinion.
I understand simplicity is usually for the best, but if a game can offer me "advanced" or great feeling movement (fast rolls, dashes, air dashes) it just ends up making the game feel better and more fun when I play it.
dude, please DO MAKE A BEAT 1EM UP. your insights are genious, and the mechanics and gameplay understandig you have would be gamechanger (literally)
I hope to someday :-) right now i m all hands on deck in terms of growing my UA-cam channel but as my full time channel efforts become more stable (hopefully) I plan on branching into small scale indie game dev more
@@TheElectricUnderground i'm binging your channel the past days and taking tons of notes about gameplay depth, and its mindblowing because you can put into words what i just inherently understand and like in game feel but can't explain. Amazing analysis about stellar blade and modern trends and WHY they're boring AF either. Someday i'll hire you as a consultant when i can pay enough, mark my words 😁
Love the fact it's coming out. My brother and I still play streets of Rage classics
When this was out at the time, I remember seeing it and always thinking, "I'll play it next time, but this time, I'm going to play Night Striker" and then it wasn't there...and neither was Night Striker.
That's always the worst. I remember I did that with Ikaruga on the Gamecube years ago. Where it was being sold for like $5 at a store called "CD World" and thought, okay I'll come back for that in a few days. I went back and boom, it was gone.
Thank you. One of my happiest arcade moments was playing this game with my father. This was a kick of insane nostalgia.
The alien Vs predator beat em up by capcom was THE best arcade game I played as a kid, nothing came close to it after. Imagine my disappointment when alien vs predator games came out afterwards and werent like the beat em up at all. Lt. Kurosawa has always been my favorite original character from that game. Shame she never made it in a MvC game as a fighter.
yeah everyone is all about MvC2 re-release but forget all these other games coming out with it. The Punisher beat em up is something I never got to play and now I get to. Plus my FAVORITE fighter game Marvel Super Heros is in it too. MvC2 is just a bonus for me. I played Marvel Super Heros SO MUCH in the arcade as a kid because the Infinity Stones were awesome to me.
The closest I can think of of using guns and melee attacks together in such a way is Capcom's own Devil May cry games.
I've never been a beat'em up guy. But I'll give this one a shot once the collection is out. I really dig the roll and the shooting mechanics in this one.
Now all we need is Alien vs Predator 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
The area I grew up in doesn't have much to offer. The bowling alley we had kept a few arcade cabinets for years. The X-Men arcade game, the punisher, and The Simpsons, I love the punisher arcade game and sunk so many quarters into it not even knowing really how to play but I haven't been able to play it and ages and I'm pretty excited for it. The punisher is also my favorite comic character, Deadpool takes a lot from The punisher but doesn't take things as seriously. I know the other games in the collection will have online capabilities, I'm curious about this having it.
another thing you can do in this game that's rarely seen is aiming the M16 to fire higher or lower by pressing up/down while shooting. you can't do that with the Ingram or other held weapons to my knowledge.
I'm excited for a new generation of players to experience this game, great video mate!
Hey mark enjoyed the content as usual I love how innovative and well designed these old games are. I was wonderin what are your favorite action rpg games or roguelike games new or old that manage to add this kind of variety without killing the gameplay?
There's an upcoming Hindu mythology-themed beat-em-up by name of Immortal: And the Death that Follows which, to my understanding, has a Roguelike/Roguelite element to it. It's looking interesting!
Fat roll into a inverted pile driver? Take my quarters.
Great review. Played this on MAME but never figured out how the mechanics worked. Have to give it another go now that I know how it works.
And just FYI (because I'm a copyeditor), "penultimate" means "next to last," not "final".
this along with sailor moon are hands down my favorite beat em ups. the pacing is just great for someone like me who’s not that big into the genre
Capcom releases a beat em up bundle and leaves this off. Then they release a fighting collection and put a beat em up on there 🙄. I assume licensing problems were the reason but it's still a bit annoying.
planning to try out The Punisher after MvC series. i heard this game is a good start to get into beat em up. which is im trying to attempt to play the correct way like i did in shmup.
It is a crime against humanity to not have Cadillacs and Dinosaurs port on modern console at this point.
I bet many people don't even know you can hold down to throw the enemy backwards at the end of a combo, much less other more advanced details. It's in Fight'N Rage but not in SOR4, go figure 😑.
@The Electric Underground I have a question have you tried more indie games and double AA games? Because indie games and double AA games are doing better than triple AAA games. You should try out more indie games.
This shooting system kinda reminds me of wild guns which is pretty cool, can’t wait to try this out
Amazing review, perfectly explains why I love The Punisher arcade (and why I can't vibe with modern retro beat em up games).
That tee looks sick, Mark. Can't wait to get me one.
I keep hoping for xenozoic tales (Cadillacs and dinosaurs) , and avp can also get re releases eventually.
The Punisher game did have a console version on genesis
Okay I just want to know what was Max Dood actually freaking out about.
Probably top 5 game in the genre. Fantastic game.
It’s funny how Punisher was Capcom’s first Marvel game yet Punisher never appeared on any MvC roster
Sadly that will probably not change in a new MvC, he's badly mistreated by current Marvel and that's saying something considering the garbage they publish now.
The only beatemup I played more than Punisher in the arcade was X-Men
Probably my favorite beat em up.
Wish they would remaster the playstation 2 punisher game.
Haven’t played a good Punisher game since 2005
I want aliens vs Predator
That Maximilian Dood guy is so fucking cringe...
Still amazed this is coming out. Now all that's left from the classic Capcom beat-em up grail is Alien vs. Predator and Cadillacs and Dinosaurs.
LOL, I thought the same and posted about AVP and C and D.
Yeh, good luck on getting the rights for those. Its amazing they got Punisher to rerelease, prob cost them a pretty penny
@@bbgothviolator8953 I mean it was Marvel so it wasn't that hard.
@@JerBuster77 What do you mean? Disney owns Marvel, so they had to go thru Disney to license that and use of the Marvel name.
I was a fan of the D&D beat ‘Em Ups also
I simply love Capcom's pixel art style from that era!
They are so colorful, stylish, and full of personality.
We can only hope they bring back Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, Alien Vs Predator, and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure next.
That’s golden era Capcom. It was very unique.
JoJo's Heritage for the Future especially makes sense to comeback as JoJo's has never been more popular this past decade
Yeah Capcom's sprite work during this time is top tier. I love this era much more so than Snes and Genesis stuff. It's just so richly detailed. The CPS1 and 2 have so many great games they are nearly consoles themselves ha.
Amen Mark. The Punisher is amazing. I hope we get Cadillacs and Dinosaurs and Alien vs. Predator someday.
I would I could upvote 5 million times.
CAPCOM should call it the no way in hell collection.
You will only get either of those if Capcom release a console. It's why they licensed the Capcom Home Arcade that no one bought. The way around the copyright is to preinstall it on proprietary hardware. That could change, maybe they'll pay for the licensing if this Marvel collection sells.
@@futureskeletons66669nobody bought it cause it waaaay too stupid expensive lmao.thats on capcom
Me too corkman! I sort of have some vague hope we will get AVP soon as I believe Disney now owns the license right? So maybe Capcom can get another deal with them now that they have established this relationship for the Marvel stuff (which is also Disney owned now).
You 100% made a valid point. Most beat em ups these days; take their inspiration form console version of games. Even Shredders; Revenge has a more console TMNT feel than with the arcade vesrions. Even though the console ports were inspired or even ports of arcade games; they are missing the right input quickness, crispness, momementum movement and mechanics of arcade games. Ironically; eventhough SOR4 is a sequel to a console beat em up series; it feels more Arcade like than previous entries or other current beat em ups. These things may seem subtle to many; but ther differences are distinct enough to notice. Great video for pointing some of this stuff out!
Yes exactly. Especially because you see that system-wise modern beat em' ups tend to lend very heavily into console design by introducing RPG mechanics and progression systems and so forth, rather than having that rich mechanical design right away that is needed for arcade game design. It's really frustrating at times honestly.
Max reaching his final form ( a seagull) was hilarious.
Ha yeah I was laughing a lot when editing the footage together. It's also kinda funny because he was not remotely interested in the Punisher in the initial reaction XD.
Ahhh good all max i guess nothing changed in the years! 🤣
I have anxiety as a kid so Im really scared to play on the arcades, I would only watch others play but I really wanted to play this game so bad it made me fight against my anxiety and finally sit down in front of the arcade cab and insert that coin. Its such a huge breakthrough making this game so important in my life.
Oh wow that's awesome to hear. Yeah playing IRL in the arcades growing up was a lot more intimidating because of the social aspects of having other people around and watching you play, but I'm happy to hear the game helped encourage you to push past your anxiety and play at the arcade :-)
Now that Disney also owns Fox, can they please throw in AvsP to Capcom with their licensing?
I thought the exact same thing. I'm hoping that will happen as well. Maybe Capcom is planning another beat em up collection and having AVP in it? I get the feeling something is going to happen with the game soon, but that's just a feeling.
My buddy 1CC'd this on stream a few weeks back, such a cool game and fun to watch him work through it. I was lucky enough to stumble on an official cabinet of this in 2001 at a laundry mat at a Disney World resort, lol. Only a quarter to play too, it was awesome.
Me and my friend can do it too, it's funny watching the alternate ending and seeing that punk carry the dog house, which isn't an item you can throw in the game.
It's really fun when you find awesome arcade cabs in the wild like that. Like growing up I'd play a bunch of Soul Calibur at my local bowling alley. I wish I had a local Punisher cab as well, but alas none to be found.
Cool little fact about The Punisher: It was one of only four Capcom games to use the CP System Dash arcade board, which was a beefed up CPS1 board used as an intermediate before the godly CPS2 board was ready for mass production. The CP System Dash board was only used for Warriors of Fate, Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, The Punisher and Saturday Night Slam Masters.
The next year in 1994, Capcom would mass produce the CPS2 board and release Alien vs Predator and Dungeons and Dragons: Tower of Doom, both of which were designed largely by the same team as The Punisher using pretty much the same game engine.
The Punisher is my favorite beat em up of all time. I appreciate this deep dive!
Yeah the game is a real gem. It's also hard to find other beat em' ups like it. I think the closest is Batman Returns on the Snes. If you haven't played it and are a Punisher fan, def do so! It has a similar (and awesome) grab game.
Reminder this game only uses two buttons but feels like you can do anything.
I know it's crazy how well it utilizes all these different mechanics with just two buttons. And it doesn't feel awkward at all either.
I loved Shredder's revenge, but the number of buttons it used really gives away that it's a modern game, compared to many other aspects of the gameplay that successfully evoke this era of beat-em-ups.
The only game I think of that has a similar roll mechanic is probably from Streets of Rage 3.
I was about to mention that in the comments. It's one of the main reasons why I like that game more than SOR2, crazy mobility
The Takeover also has a roll mechanic and a gun mechanic as well. Pretty solid beatemup.
Yes it does! I don't think the rage 3 roll goes as crazy with it, but I do enjoy it.
@@TheElectricUnderground I've played it more than enough times to confirm it doesn't 😅 but I wish SOR4 had the roll mechanics that The Punisher has. All the more reason why it's an important game for more folks to experience. Hopefully future beat-em-ups will adopt it!
@@InitialDL84 4 weirdly went backwards movement-wise. It tried to be SOR2 too hard and ended up worse for it I think
My top 5 beat-em-ups of all time:
Alien vs Predator
Cadillacs & Dinosaurs
The Punisher
Streets of Rage 2
Violent Storm
3 out of 5 made by Capcom. I'd say that's a pretty darn good track record.
AvP was my favorite from classic Capcom, I love the art style of that game so much
The gun mechanic only working when enemies with guns appear makes no sense from a narrative or logical perspective but from a gameplay pont of view it's interesting. That's why story or real life logic is overrated in video games.
All of Disney’s moral ambiguity today is unintentional.
That's true! XD
2:29 Didn't Punisher get ported to the Genesis? Not entirely exclusive to the arcade.
I remember Nick Fury's Flip Kick distance being greater than Punisher's Kick， back in the day everyone wanted to be 2P to play as Nick Fury
Fury had the best lines
Ah I remember in one of your streams you saying that you didn't rate SOR2 that high like most people, I think its tough one, because mechanic wise SOR3 is the best, but SOR2 just hits a sweet spot for many players. I will say if we are talking best of the best then 90's Arcade Capcoms and Konamis top beat em ups are the kings of the genre, AVP, Violent Storm etc, we really need a collection with those games.
SOR 3 is really underrated.
I 100% agree with everything said in this video. Punisher is the best. I've been waiting years for them to put the Punisher on a video game system. This whole game collection will be absolutely amazing 😎👍🔥
That's fantastic my dude! Yeah i've been waiting for a long time too. Not because I don't emulate the game (which I do, it runs very well on arch), but because I notice that games get a lot more attention and discussion when they get quality ports. I think Capcom will deliver in terms of porting quality in the collection (I hope).
Man that Max reaction is very real, that series seemed DEAD dead and getting caught off-guard in a Nintendo Direct is something else.
I don’t know, I kind of doubt Mark’s sincerity when he says he loves this game. I didn’t hear him scream like a hysterical woman once in this entire video.
Exactly, where are the fake Manchild screams??
Lol my thoughts exactly 😂
I know I can't ever get to that top level of youtubing because I severely lack the hype gene. Also my excitement for games builds over time as I play them so I can't really do hype reactions or anything. It would be kinda funny if I did a reaction stream to a Nintendo direct one day, but it would very likely just consist of me smack talking 90% of the time.
@@TheElectricUndergroundno one has a hype gene ,you are just genuine which is highly appreciative, though a reaction of you trashing a Nintendo direct would be highly enjoyable Ha, maybe bring Boghog out from the dungeon for once.
@@chkbkko7431why do I feel like Boghog will scream in pain if he saw a lame mechanics
I wonder what the first game with an i-frame roll is. I think the earliest example I found was Cabal from 1988, it's a pretty good game and I'm tempted to buy a trackball at some point to play it as intended.
You make me feel such a warmth and passion for video game design, and I've been playing for 24 of my 27 years c: A well earned sub for you. Have watched a handful of your videos now so it was about time, sorry for the delay!!
I really hated when he said “GO BACK”, during the punisher segment in the direct. Punisher is so amazing. And saying GO BACK is so disrespectful :(
Max has made it no secret he doesn't care much for beat em ups,and mahvel was his number on focuse
Oh yeah as I understand Max doesn't like beat em' ups very much ha. So I thought it would be funny to re-edit his reaction. I'd be a terrible reaction youtuber though I think, I rarely get excited for anything and lack the hype gene ha.
I don't really agree that only Capcom innovated in the heyday of the belt scroller, but they were definitely on fire from Final Fight to Battle Circuit, and I agree that indies are generally console-centric and have little experience with arcade games which is very unfortunate
Honestly I was least hyped for The Punisher when the collection got announced, but now you’ve piqued my interest
Good shit. This one blew me away in the arcades back in the days. Still my favorite arcade beat em up along with the OG Double Dragon. DD is more about the impact it had on me and nostalgia, but Punisher was awesome and nostalgic for me as well. DD was pretty much the first beat em up I remember, so that left a mark on me. Ive enjoyed other capcom arcade beat em ups, but for whatever reason I didnt enjoy any of them as much as this one. Final Fight was one of the better capcom beat em ups and Captain Commando but this one felt special for some reason. Many of Capcom's others feel a little copy and paste for me. I dont often aim for 1 CC arcade completions, but this is one that really entices me.
So happy that Capcom finally stumped up the cash for the rights to release this. Even more excited to pick it up after this stellar analysis.
Yes, Capcom are finally going back and doing quality ports of their gold era games, which I really appreciate. It's kinda crazy that they decided to nestle the Punisher into the MVC collection rather than a beat em up collection, but it is what it is ha. I get why it worked out that way licensing wise and everything.
The pistol mechanic is such an interesting way to characterize the Punisher through the gameplay; he's not a wanton psycho mass shooter, he's just not the kind of character who's gonna pull his gun out if he's not being shot at. I dont think people (modern gamers/designers) understand how beneficial the removal of unfettered player choice can be in some cases, i assume we're going to see a lot of criticism of that mechanic with the new release but i think it's super cool.
Nah The Punisher will have no problem shooting an unarmed mobster lol.
Frank would absolutely gun someone down even if they're not shooting at him 😂
I appreciate the sentiment but he absolutely is that kind of character, he’s done it many times in the comics with the point of making people feel as vulnerable as those they’ve victimized.
Ennis’ vol 5 run on MAX even opens with him gunning down a defenseless, senile and wheelchair-confined former mob boss and later an unarmed Micro. He’s not about what you’re doing, but what you’ve done.
You can use pick up rifles on unarmed mooks all throughout the game.
You really need to read punisher comics lol
ok you've sold me on it, I'm officially hyped to play this one
Looks like it's right up there with Alien vs Predator, thanks for highlighting!
I’ve only ever played the Sega Genesis version of The Punisher which I’ve always heard that while it’s a great Genesis game, it doesn’t really hold a candle to the original arcade version. Definitely looking forward to playing this.
I thought it's a pretty good port all things considered.
Well, it’s the best review of this amazing game ever. Touches on all the deep mechanics and the sheer fun of it all. Almost makes me afraid to feature this game until I get good at it!
The CPS system of games were just full of bangers.
I would love that you could make a beat em up tier list so I can see what I should play ( I love fight'n rage)
The Punisher and God Hand are examples of what good action game design is and what it should be. The next Dynasty Warriors, nay, new action games should take more inspiration from these games instead of the same old Dark Souls clone.
Clash: Artifacts of Chaos seems to have some God Hand DNA. Can warmly recommend it, and not just for the gameplay.
@@jurtheorc8117What else is good about Clash: Artifacts of Chaos? You did say that you’d warmly recommend it, not just for the gameplay.
@@jngo172 The art style and art direction, for one. It's part of the Zeno Clash series and that means inspirations from obscure prehistoric animals and Hieronymus Bosch paintings for the inhabitants of the world. But Clash dials that up with even more color and a kind of crosshatching filter.
Story, script and voice acting are very good. The music is truly fantastic. Ranges from music that sounds like if caveman ritual chanting had electric guitars, to grand choral stuff that people have compared to the likes of NieR, to more dreamlike atmospheric stuff.
The main character looks like Clint Eastwood as an earthworm using an orange mandrake for a body, which is a look that may make people not expect genuine beauty, awesomeness, emotion and dreamlike quality.
Can anyone answer this question...
In the Punisher, when you end a combo with Up & Attack it throws the enemy backwards. When you end a combo with Down & Attack, it throws the opponent forward.
In Cadillacs and Dinosaurs and Fight'N Rage it's the opposite. Up & Attack throws forward, while Down & Attack throws backwards.
It sort of makes it annoying to go between certain Capcom games.
Warriors of Fate has some characters doing throws one way and others doing the opposite way. In Final Fight, Up or Down & Attack will thrown backwards.
Why did Capcom not make the end combo throws consistent across all games? What's the better control? I prefer the way Cadillacs and Dino way. Although it does not really matter. I just wish it was universal.
Whats your opinion on SNKs beat em ups? I feel they do alot of things right over Capcoms lineup, like optimizing the stages for 2 players only with the limitations of the Neo Geo. If you play any Capcom Beat em Up you end having large stages being under utilized without 3 other players. They have not aged well in that department.
Hope we get avp in the future
The prototypical beat em up has to be Double Dragon but Final Fight definitely upgraded that
I know this is off topic, but I’d like to see what you think of the modern DOOM games. Considering a new one is coming out next year.
Capcom is The GOAT for this.
Don't forget about X-Men vs Street Fighter
If you saw a capcom game back then you played it because you knew it was going to be rad. I still get the feeling that i need to play the game when i see any new or newer capcom games. I feel like back then square enix had the same deal going on. Obviously not as far back as capcom but around the time final fantasy 7 came out i just remember wanting to check out every square enix game. My friends and i were obsessed with final fantasy 8 and especially parasite eve.
Dude, how can you play beat'em ups with autofire? Every punch has to count! 😁 Great video for a great game, by the way.
The punisher was released also on the arcade 1 up marvel super heroes it’s not a big deal it’s just a beat ‘em up game like final fight that everyone’s Beaton already where is the punisher 2 capcom is running out of ideas they are releasing old games again they can’t come up with another marvel Vs capcom game after infinite which is the 5th their resident evil are starting to suck can’t see the characters street fighter 6 no vibration can’t use the original costume capcom wants us to pay for them street fighter 5 resident evil 5 those are the only games that didn’t suck
Masterpiece of spritework & so underrated. OG Capcom was seriously unmatched. The gunshots in this feel so CRUNCHY unlike say The Takeover where it appeared later (that isnt auto locked though) The genesis version, although limited graphically plays well too!
aliens vs predator needs to be released from licensing prison next wtf
Till this day those Capcom beat’m ups games looks great ! I always knew that Punisher is something more than only a game.
Thanks Max. 1993 was fantastic. Both of my most favourite games, Mortal Kombat II and Battletoads & Double Dragon, were released that year. Many cool Beat’Em Ups were released in 1993 either: Metamorphic Force, The Punisher, Violent Storm, Final Fight II, Mighty Final Fight etc.
This might be the game I'm most looking forward to in this collection. It's amazing that the game used just two buttons plus joystick, and managed to have such depth of gameplay.
Just came across this channel, and gotta say I love it. You seem to be a real nerd's nerd, and I mean that in a good way. No fluff, just meat. Cheers!
Punisher with no guns is like Wolverine with no claws. Weird.
Not a huge beat'em'up fan, but I've tried the punisher on my arcade yesterday evening, and yes, those mecanics you've detailed in your vid are definitely intetesting. I'll be giving it more time to see if it will grow on me further, cause I kind of enjoyed that first run :) thx for the vid!
I got a portable Arcade machine and most of those games i have on it including Alien vs Predator but i still can’t wait for this collection to come out
Capcom beat em ups in the 90s really consistently knocked it out of the park - Please do Battle Circuit or Armoured Warriors next!
More beat em up videos! You have to make one for alien vs predator
9 minutes in and bro is stillll talkin about the roll like bro we get it 😂
Since you mentioned it, it's criminal we don't have a game like the Sin & Punishment series.
Having The Punisher not open fire against unarmed enemies sounds like the type of thing someone at a board meeting would make as a joke, but the fact that it's an actual mechanic is wild.
Ha I wonder how much that type of a thing is a factor, it would be interesting to know! I get the feeling back in the 90's non-Disney Marvel probably never even bothered playing the game and just let Capcom do their thing (for the better).