Capcom producer Shuhei Matsumoto has hinted at the possible return of cherished original characters from Marvel vs Capcom 2. Read on for more of his comments before the launch of Capcom's latest “Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection.”

Capcom Producer Hints at Potential Returns of Original Marvel vs Capcom 2 CharactersSuggests It's Always Feasible, Capcom Still Assessing the Situation

The return of original Marvel vs. Capcom 2 characters in a "new game" can "always remain a possibility." This is according to Capcom producer Shuhei Matsumoto, who was present and spoke at EVO 2024, the world's premier fighting game tournament.

There hasn’t been a new entry in Capcom's crossover fighting game series since Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite. However, a new remastered collection of the earlier games, "Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics," which Matsumoto is producing, is due for release soon this year.

The Marvel vs. Capcom series, of Versus series, features characters from both Capcom and Marvel franchises. During the June 2024 Nintendo Direct, Capcom unveiled a trailer for its latest release, which includes six classic games of the series, including Marvel vs. Capcom 2.

This game in particular introduced three original characters: Amingo, an anthropomorphic cactus-like creature; Ruby Heart, one of the protagonists and a notorious sky pirate; and SonSon, the monkey girl granddaughter of the protagonist from Capcom's 80's arcade game, SonSon. These popular characters have been largely absent in modern iterations of the series, except for minor appearances, such as their cameo appearances on wanted posters in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, and as playable cards in Capcom's card fighter games.

Addressing fans at Evo 2024, Matsumoto hinted that these characters might return, and the upcoming arcade classics collection offers a chance for this. "Yeah, there's always a possibility. This is a great opportunity for us because this collection will familiarize more people with characters from the versus series," Matsumoto reportedly said through a translator.

He also suggested these original characters could appear beyond the Versus series if interest grows. "If enough people are interested, who knows? Maybe they could appear in Street Fighter 6 or another fighting game. Re-releasing these old games helps people learn about the IP and series." He added that this boosts Capcom's creativity and "expands our content pool."

Capcom's Future Marvel Crossovers Depend on Fan Interest

Capcom had planned "for about three, four years" to make the new compilation a reality. "We've been negotiating with Marvel for quite some time. And back then, we just didn't have the chance to release this game. But now, after those discussions with them, we were finally able to do so," Matsumoto said.

He added, "In terms of past Capcom-developed Marvel titles, this has been something that myself and the team have been hoping to re-release for years and years now. It was just a matter of timing and ensuring that everyone was on board."

Matsumoto also mentioned that Capcom wants to create a brand new Versus series title and "not just that, but other past fighting games that might not be supported with rollback or are available on a current platform," he said. "There’s a lot we’re looking forward to and ambitious plans, and now it’s a matter of timing and seeing what we can do one step at a time."

The producer added that Capcom is eager to reissue other classic fighting games on modern platforms. "We have a lot of other classic fighting games that we know fans out there really want reissued on modern platforms. And the feeling is mutual on the development side," he told IGN.

"The best thing we can do now is to reissue these classic titles that some of our fans may not be fully aware of. And of course, there's constraints, there's different schedules, it's going to require collaboration with other non-Capcom entities to make this happen. And that could take some time, but we feel that the best we can do now is to reissue these games to energize the community," Matsumoto concluded.