Invincible
VS
PREVIEW:
With such a vibrant history in the
fighting genre, and considering the fact that superhero movies now flood the movie
industry to the point of oversaturation, one might think MVC: Infinite would
be an instant hit with the fighting game community. That's what the
developers were hoping for, anyway. The old school Marvel Vs. games are legendary for their heart, fan
service, and timeless gameplay systems that lasted well beyond their "expiration
date" competitively. Sadly, MVC: Infinite feels a bit "empty"
when compared to the prequels and most 2017-2018 fighting games. 
And we must compare. This is the reason reviews exist, after all. Brace yourselves,
because I'm not pulling any punches on this one. 
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MVCI
Character Select Screen... and yes, it's lopsided (and hurts my OCD).
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MVC: Infinite
got a pretty bad rap
by the fighting game community from the start.... and it wasn't just
one thing. There was Chun-Li's horrifying face in the E3 '17 trailer, Dante's "this
is your face on drugs" meme, Rocket Racoon's nightmarish eyes & mangy fur,
Chris Redfield and Frank West's painfully generic white dude syndrome, and the list goes
on. Right along with the roster itself, the overall graphics and character
renders are bland and uninspiring. It doesn't take a genius to see that Infinite could pass as a smartphone game.
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Infinite
adds a revamped Thanos, but a painfully rehashed Spencer.
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The
Vs.
Series has experimented with a wide variety of mechanics and formats over
the years, including: 1-VS-1, 2-VS-2 and 3-VS-3 battles. The prior 3
installments of the series were known for their frantic 3-VS-3 gameplay.
However, Infinite returns to the classic 2-vs-2 format - a formula that
defined X-Men VS Street Fighter
through Marvel VS Capcom (1).
MVC: Infinite's only saving
grace is that the game is actually playable. The overhauled "Active
Switch" tag system allows for a "quick tag" to your partner at
any time for a continued combo, but no partner assist attacks. The game's combo
trials mode has 10 combos to practice with each character, which definitely
helps you learn the starting point of each character's combo potential. While the
flow and speed of the game feels right, not having partner assist attacks makes Infinite
feel like a different game... and not exactly the "Marvel" I've
known and loved over the years. Dashing speeds for certain characters also feel a bit
too heavily nerfed for my tastes.
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this
screenshot lives in infamy... Chun-Li deserved better.
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Offline modes for MVC: Infinite include: Story, Arcade,
Mission, Training, Versus, Versus CPU, and Collection. Online modes and features
include: Ranked Match, Casual Match, Beginners League, Lobby, Rankings, and
Replay Settings. Story serves as a basics Tutorial, which is always smart design for a fighting game
story mode. If you remember correctly, back in 2011, Capcom promised an "epic story mode"
for MVC3... but it never happened. Six years
late and all, but we finally have a story mode in an MvC game. But
judging by the forced interactions in MVC: Infinite's story
mode, it all seems too little too late. Hollywood superhero movies have been
yawn-fests this past couple of years, so it's not like I had high hopes for Infinite's story
mode or anything. But damn, I was expecting better than this. The characters lack energy, personality, and
the plot is so boring. Shoot the robots and say
each other's names. 
Add in some cheap one-liners designed to make 6
year-olds laugh. It's bad. These characters should've settled their differences in
MVC3, because most of the match-ups aren't "new" anymore. The story mode trying to
"force" excitement just makes it that much less appealing.
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| Page Updated: |
June
12th, 2025 |
| Developer(s): |
Skybound
Games (Quarter Up) |
| Publisher(s): |
Skybound
Games |
| Designer(s): |
Reepal
"Rip" Parbhoo Combat
Designer |
| Platform(s): |
Steam,
PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox PC, Xbox Cloud
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| Release Date(s): |
2026 |
| Characters: |
Ryu,
Mega Man X, Iron
Man, Captain America, Morrigan,
Captain Marvel, Thor, Chun-Li,
Strider Hiryu, Hulk,
Rocket Raccoon, Hawkeye,
Chris Redfield, Nathan
Spencer, Nova, Dante,
Dr. Strange, Arthur,
Zero, Thanos,
Jedah, Spider-Man, Frank
West, Haggar, Nemesis,
Firebrand, Ghost
Rider, Dormammu, Gamora,
Ultron, Black
Panther,
Sigma, Venom,
Monster Hunter, Winter
Soldier, Black Widow,
Ultron Sigma, Ultron Omega |
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Featured Video:
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| Related Games: |
Ultimate
Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Marvel
Vs. Capcom 2, Marvel Vs. Capcom, Marvel
Vs. Capcom: Origins, Marvel
Super Heroes, X-Men Vs. Street Fighter, Marvel
Super Heroes Vs. Street Fighter, Tatsunoko
Vs. Capcom,
Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom: UAS, Capcom Vs. SNK, Capcom
Vs. SNK 2, Dragon
Ball FighterZ, BlazBlue Cross Tag
Battle, Fighting EX Layer, Guilty
Gear -STRIVE- |
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Gameplay Engine
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Story / Theme
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Overall Graphics
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Animation
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Music / Sound Effects
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Innovation
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Art Direction
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Customization
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Options / Extras
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Intro / Presentation
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Replayability / Fun
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"Ouch" Factor
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Characters
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BOTTOM LINE
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| Final
Words: |
As
a Marvel fan since the late 80's... I'm sad to say that I was completely uninterested in MVC Infinite, from the start. I decided to rent and not buy this game (because I was
rightfully skeptical), and I have no regrets. The game that could've been called "MVC3: Mobile Edition" just couldn't shake its poorly commercialized and Americanized look. This firection didn't
have to be a bad thing, but the poor decisions with the roster, visuals, and
overall experience ruined any chance
for MVCI to shine in 2017-2018.
Just compare this game with the excitement-level and vibrancy of X-Men Vs. Street Fighter in 1996,
or the dynamic roster and limitless gameplay possibilities of MVC or MVC2. There
is no comparison. MVC: Infinite is beyond stale. Even when compared with MVC3
- another game that mostly disappointed me. Infinite is a clear downgrade. Infinite
actually makes MVC3 look pretty damn good... and that's saying a lot.
Random Analogy: If you follow UFC at all, you might remember when Ronda Roussey was on a win streak and started getting
super cocky. Well, she quickly started loosing after that... bad. In retrospect, one could say it was
her karma catching up with her. Sometimes "group karma" can be a thing, too.
 Remember "When's Mahvel?" What started as an acceptable joke / meme quickly
spiraled into a catalyst for bad etiquette online, on livestreams, and even at
tournaments. Of course I'm referring MVC3 bandwagoners who held
up "When's Mahvel" signs during tournament
finals for other fighting
games - and the trolling stream monsters. (Welp. To answer their question now, we can confirm that
Mahvel is not at EVO
2018.)  Good job guys.
If you laughed at such jokes or
spread around memes during the MVC3 days what that behavior was rampant, you're just as guilty as the players who
were holding up the signs. Nobody and nothing stays on top forever, which is why one should
be humble when times are good. (For the record, I'm not basing this opinion on
heresy. I personally attended many major fighting game tournaments in the 2010's and witnessed disrespect from
the MVC3 community towards other fighting games, including the one I was
playing. I'm just saying... what goes around comes around.)
Of course, MVC: Infinite's flop is not actually the fault of the players or fans... but karma works in mysterious ways, and sometimes we all suffer because of it. I know mass marketing when I see it. I also know
"assumed customer interest" and lack of effort when I see it. MVC: Infinite is a
perfect example of pushing out a product and hoping that it sells well - based on name recognition and the "basic ingredients" that made
it successful in the past. Well, I'm not someone who only enjoys basic ingredients.
After 30-something years, I have a refined palette for fighting games... and I prefer things with dynamic flavors. Thankfully for me, there are many more fighting
games to choose from in 2018. I feel lucky. However, if there weren't as many
fighting games to choose from in 2018... no, I still wouldn't play MVC: Infinite.
For the ninth time, Infinite's roster is weak.
Maybe the 09'ers / newer fighting game players don't get it, but old school MVC rosters
had impact. They were exciting. They offered characters that hadn't been overused or even seen before. MVC Infinite's roster clearly isn't made for fighting game
players, first and foremost.
MVCI's roster is made for the suckers who waste 100's of dollars annually to see superhero movies in theaters. MVCI's roster is made for kids who sucker their parents
into buying overpriced, cheap superhero movie toys at Wal-Mart, or buy crappy-looking collector's editions that come with Easter Eggs. (Really, you couldn't see that one coming?) Ironically, Infinite
doesn't even seem like the "type of game" that casual gamers
would buy or even play for more than 5 minutes. And judging by its poor sales, I was right from the beginning. A fighting game should be made
for fighting game players... and so many elements of MVC: Infinite seem entirely directed towards a different audience.
Seriously. Why bring back characters like
Chris Redfield (still in his 2009 RE5 attire) and Nathan Spencer (also in his
2009 Bionic Commando reboot attire)? 
I mean, really? Their inclusions in MVC3
made sense, given their respective games were new-ish back then, but this is
2017-2018. 
Nobody wanted these characters to return, not looking like that anyway. All MVC players I know wanted throwbacks to
older MVC games, the return of classic characters, or something completely new. In any case, they definitely didn't want characters lazily recycled from 2009. Ohh, and everybody wanted X-Men.
Everybody. This game should've been delayed until Capcom could obtain the
rights to X-Men characters again. Sadly, it was too little too late for Capcom to even attempt to hit the emergency X-Men DLC button.  That's how bad MVCI flopped.
MVC: Infinite is visually uninspiring, but the graphics could easily be overlooked if the roster
or gameplay was something great. From its best angle, the gameplay is "halfway decent"...
but the gameplay and gem system still doesn't draw me in. The mechanics seem oversaturated compared to the rest of the Vs. Series. The fact that over 75% of the roster is
recycled, and the more appealing characters are locked behind paid DLC is unforgivable.
I've
forgiven Capcom's slip-ups in the recent past... but this one's a bridge
too far. Capcom should just "take the L" on this one and start
working on MVC4... and do it right next time. So when's Dragon
Bahl?
~TFG
Webmaster | @Fighters_Gen
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