Ever since SNK revealed Samurai Shodown!2 from the NeoGeo Pocket Color selection as a pre-order bonus for the Nintendo Switch version of Samurai Shodown, I was interested in trying it out because I had never gotten a chance to play games on the NeoGeo Pocket Color system back in 1999. Since that pre-order bonus was released, SNK and Code Mystics have slowly been bringing more titles to Nintendo Switch with SNK Gals’ Fighters, The King of Fighters R-2, and more. The newest release arrived last week in the form of SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium and I’ve been enjoying playing it a lot everyday.
SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium debuted in 1999 on the NeoGeo Pocket Color and has since never been released on another platform until this Nintendo Switch version. Before launching the game for the first time, I only knew that this game had more things to unlock and more modes than the usual fighter on the system. SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium includes Tourney, Vs Mode, Olympic mini-games, a practice mode, and more. The play options even include a tag option.
The Olympic mode includes mini-games like blasting aliens, helping Arthur get treasure in a basic two button platformer mode, some modified fights like one-touch death, and more. These are nice additions to what is already a fighter with a big roster and many unlockable characters. The roster includes everyone you’d expect on both SNK and Capcom sides like Terry Bogard, Mai Shiranui, Chun-Li, Morrigan, Haohmaru, and more.
Visually, Code Mystics has done a great job bringing SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium to Nintendo Switch with the filter options, skins, and more. The sprite work and backgrounds are gorgeous and the game looks excellent even zoomed in on TV. It also feels great to play (assuming you’re ok with the Joy-Con sticks or directional buttons). You can even play locally on the same console with the game displaying two gameplay screens on the same Nintendo Switch. This even works on the Nintendo Switch Lite.
With the massive roster, SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium also includes a lot of great music featuring various classic themes from both SNK and Capcom sides redone to fit the platform. I even enjoyed the sound effects in general here.
In terms of display options, you can change multiple NeoGeo Pocket Color skins, turn off skins, and toggle filters. You can also adjust the zoom level. I ended up playing with no skin, fully zoomed in gameplay, and no filter for the most part. The skins look great and in handheld mode, you can even use the virtual buttons on the skins to control the game which is a nice touch.
Barring the display options, SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium on Nintendo Switch lets you customise the action buttons and also rewind quite a few frames behind. In terms of extras, you can view the manual and pan it around with touch controls or button controls. The addition of touch controls to SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium on Nintendo Switch is welcome because I enjoy being able to navigate interfaces on the Nintendo Switch Lite with touch controls when possible. You can also tap the gameplay portion of the screen to bring up the options menu for rewinding, display options, and more.
The only problem some people might have with SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium is in the fact that it’s an old handheld game brought to a modern platform. That’s the only problem I can imagine anyone has with this release. Newcomers who aren’t too fond of older fighters should temper expectations but any fan of Capcom and SNK will adore SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium.
Overall, SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium is an excellent release for its low asking price. Code Mystics has done a fantastic job in making it feel great to play when docked on a TV or played in portable mode with its various display options. I can’t wait for the NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection compilation of games to release so I can get all the games in a single package. I knew Code Mystics does good work but the care put into SNK Vs Capcom: The Match of the Millennium has me interested to try out more games. If you’re a fan of either Capcom or SNK fighters, this is an essential on Nintendo Switch with its great music, minigames, fun combat, great roster, and more.
