The Marvel Vs Capcom games have featured some of the biggest stars in the Marvel universe. Everyone from Spider-Man to Wolverine to Captain America has had the chance to throw down with Mega Man and Ryu.

But as a comic fan, I can’t help but think about some of the amazing Marvel characters that haven’t been given the chance to whoop Tron Bonne’s ass. I have tried not to restrain myself to characters that I feel would make a great addition to the cast.

So hit the jump to see them in all their second tier not quite A-List glory.

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Much like Dragon Quest, the Monster Hunter series is one of the biggest names in gaming in Japan and almost unheard of in North America. Most people over here just don’t “get it”, and many of them don’t want to put forth the effort required in order to really understand what the game is all about. After all, even with more accessible entries in the series such as Monster Hunter Tri, there is still a very steep learning curve to overcome.

Originally I wanted to write a review of Monster Hunter Tri in order to spread the word. However, after over 100 hours of playing the game, I still haven’t experienced all it has to offer. I’ve come to realize, it’s not a traditional review that’s going to spark interest. My hopes are that by sharing the reasons that the series is so engaging (many of which are not immediately obvious to the new player), it will help more people realize the joys that can be found from becoming a Monster Hunter.
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E3 is finally over. Lots of exciting announcements were made as well as some not so exciting ones, WingDamage actually had somebody providing coverage this year, and people made fools of themselves dancing in front of cameras from the future. But what of our predictions? Did any of them come true?

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With E3 having come and gone now, I do miss it a little. By all means, it was no walk in the park. Driving around busy downtown LA looking for parking, wading through crowds of gamers, and sitting in lines for upwards of an hour just to try a game for ten minutes; it’s a lot of work. And yet somehow I feel like I came back too soon. Sure, it was fun to try out a lot of cool games before they release, but there was also an energy in the air that I miss being a part of.

At any rate, I must give sincere thanks to Capcom, especially Joveth “jgonzo” Gonzales. Due to my large involvement with The Mega Man Network, and promoting Mega Man in general, they offered me a pass as a way of saying thanks for the support. I am very humbled to know how much they appreciate the work I do, which has never struck me as anything incredible. Still, it’s unfortunate that none of Capcom’s announcements pertained to Mega Man… but I’m thankful all the same! Above is me on Capcom*Unity’s E3 stream with jgonzo and Noah, another Capcom fan. Sadly, I don’t recall what was said to make jgonzo produce such an awful expression.

Also deserving of thanks is my good pal Cheston, who accompanied me and helped out with some of the expenses, and more of the driving around. He also acted as our eyes as assistant media coordinator and took many of the photos we’ve used here in our reports. Cheston is getting married next month, so this may have been our last big adventure. But who knows! Couldn’t have done it without you, man. Congrats on tying the knot.

Finally, I guess I should thank the WingDamage crew for giving me a podium to express my experiences, since they wouldn’t really fit on TMMN. But having gotten to know Jesse and Jonah… yeah, I dunno. They’re sketchy to me. Anyway, enough sentimental crap. To close things up, I’m taking a look at Hard Corps: Uprising, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Metroid: Other M, Dead Rising 2, and Marvel vs Capcom 3.

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As I mentioned yesterday, finding out when and where to eat at E3 is important business. While there is food on site, like at the Convention Center’s Galaxy Cafe, it’s just so-so and fairly overpriced. “Either eat on a budget or pay for a decent meal,” is my motto. But what’s the best way to go?

On day one, after exploring the grounds a bit, my friend and I left the Convention Center and found our way to Lucky Strike Lanes & Lounge. They offered an $8 lunch special that included a round of bowling (yes, there are lanes on the site). That atmosphere was very laid back and comfortable, and the cheeseburger and fries were very satisfying. Sadly, we had no time for bowling. A fine meal, but a little pricey and time consuming.

For day two we decided to go totally budget. Unfortunately, there isn’t any fast food around the Convention Center, but we were still in luck. To promote the game Homefront, an upcoming FPS about North Korea taking over the US in the future, THQ subsidized a traveling food vendor to sell themed food items, like Korean BBQ tacos and kimchi quesadillas (clever, if not controversial). The food was pretty good for its simplicity, and two tacos and a quesadilla cost a mere $4.

But the best way to go is eating for free, though this may take investigation and connections. When we finally found Activision’s area (which was separate from the two main halls) and saw a presentation for Call of Duty: Black Ops, we realized they were serving free pizza. It was awful, but shoot, it was free. A little later we got free beef and cheddar sandwiches from Capcom, as we were invited to their swanky special event on site. I should also mention that there are plenty of people in and near the Convention Center who will give away free energy drinks, so keep your eyes peeled for them.

Boy, all this talk is making me hungry. Let’s get on with some games. Today I’m here to give impressions on NBA Jam, Bionic Commando ReArmed 2, Okamiden, Ghost Trick and Sengoku Basara: Samurai Heroes. And yeah, that’s me and Charles Martinet up top! Woohoo!

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"Looking for treasure... just like the Goonies."

In any given RPG, the wooden sword and cardboard shield you start with aren’t going to be the ones you keep forever. Usually you get rid of them by the time you hit your first town. But when you buy that new set of gear and equip it, only to find your character has only changed in numbers and not in appearance, it is a bit of a letdown.

If you are talking about old school sprite based games, I will concede that it was more trouble than it was probably worth to put visible loot into a game. Re-drawing that many sprites would be time consuming and prohibitively costly. Where 3D character models are involved, there aren’t a lot of excuses left when you are dealing with stat driven games and RPG mechanics.

There is nothing quite as addictive to me as a progressive, well thought out loot system that is reflected on your character.

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This years Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is just around the corner! Just like last year, we here at WingDamage are going to throw down some predictions. Will we make total fools of ourselves? Will we make people suspicious that we have psychic powers? Only time will tell!

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"ICED TO MEET YOU!"

Watching trailers of the original Lost Planet was what made me want an Xbox 360. When the game finally came out, it had its flaws, but I still loved it. When the sequel was revealed, I was very excited.

Lost Planet 2 takes place a decade after the original. This time around, the planets snowy regions have begun to melt, revealing jungles, deserts, and other areas. That’s both a good and a bad thing. On one hand, I really enjoyed the lonely ice planet of the first, but it is nice to have a little more variety in terrain this time around. You’ll even have some missions near the end that take place on a space station, complete with low gravity.

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Sometimes a game will catch your eye for no other reason than an interesting piece of cover art. In the case of Toki Tori, it was the high adorability factor that drew me in.

Toki Tori was originally developed for the Game Boy Color by Two Tribes B.V. and released by Capcom. They have since done versions for the iPhone, Windows Mobile, WiiWare, and PC. The GBC version was itself an update of Eggbert for the MSX 2.

I saw it on one of the many Steam sales last year and picked it up on the cheap. I had heard it was a cross between Lemmings and a platformer. They had me at Lemmings.

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"We had a website, but a Lagiacrus ated it."

You might have noticed a smaller number of updates on WingDamage this week. It’s very easy to point a finger at the cause of this. You see, a certain game named Monster Hunter Tri released recently. Perhaps you’ve heard of it in our last podcast or our hands-on impressions.

Turns out, the game is quite addictive. Several of the WingDamage crew have been gathering regularly for the hunt and frankly, we’ve just lost track of time. We don’t have a review up of the game currently, but considering the effect it has had on the staff, I think it’s safe to consider it a recommendation.

Regular updates should resume next week. In the meantime, did you check out our in-depth Final Fantasy XIII review? How about the detailed battle explanation video (in HD!)? Or the article on Fighting Game Boss Fights? What are you waiting for? Get crackin’!