X-Men: Children of the Atom
  

  
STORY:  The game's plot is loosely based on the "Fatal Attractions" storyline. The main antagonist is Magneto, who plans to unleash an electromagnetic pulse on the Earth that will disrupt the magnetic fields and create havoc on the world's electrical systems ushering in a Dark Age for Earth's non-mutant population. With the promise of a mutant-run planet, the X-Men's most formidable foes join forces with Magneto.
 

 

Right off the bat, you notice X-Men: Children of the Atom is eye-catching and visually leagues above many other fighting games at the time. In motion, Children of the Atom shines even more. Marvel's iconic characters were given superb animation by some of Capcom's best 2D sprite artists and illustratos. The way characters throw their attacks and dramatically take damage was a certainly a milestone, and no doubt a new benchmark to how 2D fighting game animation could be handled in a fighting game. Not only was X-Men: Children of the Atom one of the best-looking and hardest hitting 2D video games upon its arrival; the gameplay was also incredibly innovative, offering several brand new ideas to fighting games.

 

 

Naturally, the gameplay foundation of X-Men: Children of the Atom takes many inspirations from Capcom's Street Fighter 2 series. The "X-Power" gauge functions similarly to the Super combo gauge from Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo as well as the "Special" Gauge from Darkstalkers. Players can then perform an "X-Ability", which consumes a small portion of the X-Power gauge, or a "Hyper X", which consumes a greater portion of the same gauge. Breaking one's fall from a throw or performing a counter-throw will also consume a portion of the X-Power gauge when performed.


Soon to become a staple in Capcom's Marvel Vs. series... X-Men: Children of the Atom introduced Super Jumps for the first time in a fighting game, allowing characters to jump way higher than in traditional fighting games and continue fighting air. (Normal jumping is also allowed, as being able to mix up the height of your jumps is a great new gameplay strategy.) Super Jumps promote aerial combat complete with air projectiles (which makes perfect sense in a superhero fighting game) and highlights the game's incredibly fast-paced, frantic gameplay which includes huge multi-hit air-combos. Big special moves, flashy super moves, and insane combos were other noticeable features that X-Men: COTA introduced.

Other features introduced in Children of the Atom include the ability to roll away or towards an opponent after falling, and the ability to charge an opponent after throwing them for follow-up attacks. To make it easier for new fighting game players, the options of "Manual" or "Automatic" (blocking) are available after selecting a character. By selecting to automatically block attacks, certain features are not available during gameplay.
 

 

Capcom's original contract with Marvel stipulated that Capcom can include a character from the Street Fighter franchise in X-Men: Children of the Atom. As one of the first-ever "crossover / guest" characters to appear in a fighting game, Street Fighter's Akuma himself makes a appearance as a secret unlockable character (playable after inputting a secret code). This was indeed a monumental crossover at the time, reminding arcade-goers that Street Fighter was certainly here to stay and still making huge innovations in the genre. Several cameo characters also appear in some of the character endings, including: Professor X, Forge, Phoenix, and Mojo.
 

Page Updated: September 22nd, 2024 Developer(s): Capcom Publisher(s): Capcom Acclaim     Console Artwork by: Akiman Kinu Nishimura CRMK Platform(s): Arcade, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, PC Release Date(s): December 1994                Arcade January 1995                      Arcade Nov. 22nd, 1995               Saturn 1996                                        Saturn Apr. 6th, 1996                    Saturn May 31st, 1997                 PC February 1998                   Saturn Mar. 3rd, 1998                  PS1 Characters:  Cyclops, Wolverine, Storm, Iceman, Colossus, Psylocke, Sentinel, Spiral, Omega Red, Silver Samurai, Juggernaut, Magneto, Akuma Featured Video: Related Games: X-Men Vs. Street Fighter, Marvel Super Heroes, Marvel Super Heroes Vs. Street Fighter, Marvel Vs. Capcom, Marvel Vs. Capcom 2, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, MVC: Infinite, Marvel Vs. Capcom Fighting Collection, Justice League: Task Force, King of Fighters '94, Samurai Shodown 2, Golden Axe: The Duel, Darkstalkers, Tekken, Virtua Fighter 2, Super SF2 Turbo, Galaxy Fight    Gameplay Engine  8.5 / 10 Story / Theme  10 / 10 Overall Graphics  9.5 / 10 Animation  10 / 10 Music / Sound Effects  8.5 / 10 Innovation  9.0 / 10 Art Direction  9.5 / 10 Customization  5.0 / 10 Options / Extras  6.0 / 10 Intro / Presentation  7.5 / 10 Replayability / Fun  7.5 / 10 "Ouch" Factor  8.5 / 10 Characters  8.0 / 10 BOTTOM LINE  8.8 / 10  Review based on Arcade version        Final Words: X-Men: COTA was unquestionably an innovative and influential 2D fighting game both visually and technically, spawning the VS Series gameplay system which would be used in many future Capcom fighting games. Visually, it put many other 2D fighting games to shame, especially certain console-only fighting games (Justice League: Task Force would be one of them). The only thing holding the game back from perfection were some gameplay imperfections and exploits. For one, players could not select the same character - a frustrating quirk for competitive players. One of the only other notable flaws is the somewhat small character roster. No doubt, die-hard Marvel fans could only ask for more X-Men and Marvel characters to be represented. A few years later, Capcom answered with Marvel Super Heroes and X-Men Vs. Street Fighter, which added even more beloved Marvel icons. The sequels further refined and fleshed out the aerial combo system as well, making for even more enjoyable and playable Marvel fighting games. ~TFG Webmaster | @Fighters_Gen    Click Here for all Posters / Box Art / etc. Click Here for all Screenshots! FOLLOW    ON:                             TFG NEWS CHARACTERS GAMES