While the Capcom Fighting Collection has brought hidden gems like Red Earth and Cyberbots to the forefront, the jewels in its crown are the Darkstalkers games. It has the original 1994 game, its sequel Night Warriors: Darkstalkers’ Revenge (aka Vampire Hunter), and Vampire Savior, alongside its formerly Japan-exclusive updates Vampire Hunter 2 and Vampire Savior 2.
Keeping track of the names is tricky enough, but what’s it like playing the game? What should beginners look out for when giving Morrigan and her freaky friends a go? Here are a few tips to help them out.
7 Learn the Controls
First off, there are options in the game to simplify the controls. Special moves and supers can be assigned to a single button if the regular commands look a little difficult. Though, if any player has fiddled about with the Street Fighter series, they’ll know what to expect there. There are 3 punch buttons, and 3 attack buttons, which can be used to attack the opponent while standing, crouching, or jumping. Then, to defend against attacks, the player can hold back to block.
They also have Special Attacks, which can usually be done by combining directional motions with an attack (e.g. down-to-forward+punch for Demitri’s Chaos Flare), or charging a direction before pressing another direction and attack (e.g. down, then up+kick for Talbain’s Climb Laser).
6 Pick The One That Fits
Fighting games are noted for their colorful cast of characters, and Darkstalkers has one of the most unusual rosters around. There’s a Frankenstein-style monster that grabs his foes with his butt, a zombie that slam-dunks opponents through a makeshift hoop, and a vampire that turns male opponents into women before feeding on them because he’s a little insecure on the inside.
They also all have their own, unique fighting styles, and some are harder to get to grips with than others. Players might find themselves getting used to some characters more than others. However, Talbain, Demitri, and the series' flagship character Morrigan are good characters to start off with, as they’re the most straightforward. The former offers plenty of offense with minimal fuss. While the latter two are essentially the Ryu and Ken of the series, with the basic fireball, uppercut, and lunging attack.
5 Watch Out!
To win a round, the player has to beat their opponent until their health bar is empty. This is simple enough in the first two Darkstalkers games. In Vampire Savior and its updates, each hit produces a little chunk of white health that gradually heals. If the player is on the hurting end, they have to keep moving out of their opponent’s way to let it heal fully. Or, if their enemy is the one recovering, they have to keep the pressure on them to keep it from coming back.
There’s no pausing time in between rounds either. As soon as one person or the other wins the round, they get up and start fighting again in a snap. Darkstalkers favors the aggressive, so the players have to go hog wild on each other to get ahead. So, while figuring out the attacks are all well and good, it’s a good idea to learn how the characters move first to get out of danger.
4 Get Used to the Moves
Unlike its street-based forebear, Darkstalkers was fast from the beginning, and it only got faster from there. So, it’s a good idea to know how the game moves. Every character can dash with two taps of the forward or backward button, though some characters are quicker than others. Some, like Morrigan, can even fly with their dash. Knowing whose dash does what can come in handy for bringing the pain or making a quick getaway.
Jumping can also help the player escape or attack from above, with each character moving differently in the air. For example, Anakaris' jump is floaty and slow, but he can double-jump. However, even though players can block in midair, jumping too much can leave them open to attack. If players do get knocked down, they can press a direction and any attack button to roll on landing. It’ll reduce damage and bring them closer or further away from their opponent.
3 Know Your Chains
The first Darkstalkers game came out in 1994, right at the same time as X-Men: Children of the Atom, Capcom's first Marvel game. The two have some similarities, like their chain attacks. Players can connect any range of standing and crouching attacks into a little combo. Light Punch can go into Medium Punch, then Heavy Punch, or Medium Kick and Heavy Kick, etc. This makes it easier to pepper the opponent with a stinging series of strikes.
Just be aware that not every chain makes a complete combo. Sasquatch’s Heavy Punch is a little too slow to follow after Medium Punch, but his Low Heavy Kick is quicker on the draw and should connect. With a little experimentation, players should make their own effective chain combos in no time. For extra style points after knocking the opponent down, press up+attack with any character to stomp on them with a Pursuit attack. It'll track the opponent no matter how near or far they are.
2 Get Super!
To really rack up the damage, players can throw in an ES move or Super Move into their combos to melt their opponent’s health bar down. ES (‘Especial’) moves are basically Street Fighter 3’s EX moves: do a special move with two attack buttons to make it more powerful. Then Super Moves are an extra powerful version of ES moves, which can be done the same way as ES moves or with a quick series of button presses. However, the players needs energy from their super meters to do them.
In Night Warriors, it fills up, then slowly drains out. The player has to use it before it's all gone. While in Vampire Savior, it can fill up to multiple levels without running out. ES moves usually cost 1 level, and Super Moves cost 1 or 2 levels. There’s even a Dark Force move that, if the player presses Punch+Kick with 2 super levels, gives the character their own special ability. Q-Bee can fly, Felicia gets backup from a friend, and B.B Hood breaks out a rocket launcher.
1 Practice and Play
Going straight into the Online Mode from the off is going to be painful for newcomers, as they're likely to come across more experienced players. Or worse, experts who have known the ins and outs of the series since the late 1990s. It’s one way to learn the game, but it’ll be a baptism of fire if they take it. It’s a good idea to fiddle about with the other modes first to get a feel for the characters.
Play Arcade Mode and indulge in the game’s weird stories. Mess about in Practice Mode to see what links into what. Better yet, get some friends over and indulge in the Local Vs Mode for that real old-school feeling. Once they have some combos and consistent moves down, then it'll be time to test themselves against the rest of the world.
Capcom Fighting Collection is available for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.