TGS 2025 | "Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls"
It came as a shock to many that Arc System Works announced their own Marvel fighting game. After all, when people think of Marvel and fighting games, Capcom is the very first thing that comes to mind. But maybe change is a good thing, as the demo for Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls showed what sort of fighting madness Arc System Works can bring to the worlds of Spider-Man and Wolverine.
The Tokyo Game Show demo had me go through a two-player battle with another Tokyo Game Show attendee. At the start, you are to choose three characters and an assist for the fight. I decided on the odd combination of Ghost Rider, Star Lord, Ms. Marvel, and Spider-Man. Right after the characters are chosen, the fight begins! To win, your team of heroes must win best out of five matches.
Fighting gives you the option to use low, mid, and heavy attacks on your opponent. Do a little button-mashing, and you might find some sick combos that come out of using all three. As I played, I watched Ghost Rider run over Captain America with his car, whilst Ms. Marvel grabbed hold of Spider-Man and tossed him from the streets of New York City to the front of Avengers headquarters. When you’re able to let all your characters wallop your opponent at once, you’re greeted with a beautiful amount of chaos whilst you gleefully watch their health bar deplete.
However, this is one fighting game where simply button-mashing won’t bring about victory. Planning your moves ahead of time makes for a better use of your skills, something I learned the hard way when I was handed a loss for the first play-through. If you know the kinds of attacks you can pull, and initiate them at the right time, you might find victory will be met quickly, something I put into motion that led to me gaining the other two victories. The taste of victory was sweet that day, and my opponent was a very good sport about his loss.
Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls is very different from any of the Marvel Vs. Capcom games, both in presentation and gameplay style. Considering it’s Arc System Works, it’s no surprise that playing this felt like experiencing one of the stronger Guilty Gear titles. Considering that I’m a fan of that series, the gameplay was a very smooth transition to that. And if you dig how Arc System Works makes their fighters, then odds are you’ll have as much of a blast as I did experiencing it for yourself.
It’ll be interesting to see what other Marvel characters will enter the battle ring in Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls. Could we see Sue Storm go up against Black Cat, or maybe Deadpool against the Hulk? With there being so many heroes to choose from and a multitude of combos one can form, one could find the perfect team of four that suits one’s fighting style. When Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls arrives on PS5 and PC in 2026, one can bet that many will shout “Excelsior!”over the kick-ass fights that they’ll bear witness to!
