Avengers in Galactic Storm (Arcade) Playthrough - NintendoComplete

A playthrough of Data East's 1996 license-based coin-op fighting game, Avengers in Galactic Storm.

Played through as Captain America on the story mode's default difficulty level.

Avengers in Galatic Storm was Data East's final game based on the Avengers license - the first two, for the arcade and the NES, were both called Captain America and the Avengers.

It wasn't a terribly popular game, but it certainly appears that Data East invested a fair budget in this one-on-one fighting game. All of the graphics are pre-rendered CG sprites in a timely attempt to siphon off a bit of the popularity Killer Instinct was enjoying. However, going directly into competition with the Street Fighter Alpha games, Killer Instinct, and the slew of 3D fighters like Soul Edge and Tekken that were finding their way to arcades, it never stood much of a chance.

So did the gaming public miss something special? I think I'd have to say yes, though certainly not for its gameplay. Avengers in Galactic Storm plays a lot like Street Fighter II - or better yet - Fighter's History, but it feels clunkier than either of those earlier titles. The game runs at a pretty fast pace, and pulling off special move commands can be fairly hit or miss because of it. The mechanics generally feel a bit ropey - move priorities are skewed hard in favor of the computer and the lack of fluid animation makes timing frustrating.

Avengers in Galactic Storm did introduce tag partners before Capcom's Marvel games ever attempted it, so there certainly was some innovation going on. I will say that much for it.

The music is fun but entirely forgettable as is often the case with arcade games. Everything is loud and over-the-top, and characters constantly shout out the names of their moves.

The graphics, however, are what make the game "special." And by special, I mean 'strangely appealling despite being utterly terrible." The backgrounds feature a lot of detail and the characters are all huge, but they look like plasticine dolls and their colors clash with everything possible. The actual render quality is pretty good by mid-90s standards, but between the undoubtedly high cost of producing such graphics and the awkward lack of transition frames between many moves, the whole thing ends up being a bit spastic. It does look pretty impressive when it flashes up one of the super powered moves though, as it does when eight full-sized characters run on-screen without the slightest hint of slowdown anywhere.

The story mode was a neat way to change the game up from the standard two-round one-on-one fights, even if there isn't much story ever given. Fans of the comics will probably recognize the game as being rooted in Operation Galactic Storm, which is pretty neat if you've read the original story.

Overall, Avengers in Galactic Storm was not the success that Data East probably had hoped it to be. It's got a massive amount of campy appeal and goofy, awkward charm that will have you both laughing and shaking your head, and that's the part of the game I enjoyed. It's worth playing at least once just for that.

The actual fighting, though? Meh. It's perfectly average and servicable, but why settle for that when there were so many legitimately good arcade fighters coming out in the mid 90s?
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.

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