This remains just as true for video games if not more so. Unlike film or television, many video games, both classics and hidden gems, have an added technological barrier of possibly only being available on one piece of antiquated or defunct hardware. In other words, before Capcom’s latest fighting collection series, there were some fan favorites from the Dreamcast glory days unavailable to anyone not hanging onto a failed 25-year-old console. Furthermore, like movies and television, fewer games are getting wide physical releases as developers lean increasingly toward digital downloads and cloud gaming.
More than just lacking a contemporary means to legally play, unavailable games are also at risk with how their respective developers and publishers have them stored. There was no thought toward game preservation for the majority of the medium’s existence, with games sometimes casually stored on a hard drive or even more antiquated storage methods without any serious consideration for its safe maintenance. That means if stored data files become damaged or corrupted, your favorite game that hasn’t seen a rerelease in years is lost to the digital ether forever.
To its credit, Capcom has been releasing compilations of its games since at least 1997’s Street Fighter Collection for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. Since then Capcom has steadily released compilations of its various Mega Man series, other franchise-based fighting collections, like Street Fighter and Darkstalkers, even its quirky Ace Attorney point-and-click games. This isn’t to say Capcom is perfect—no developer is. I’m still waiting for re-releases of the Street Fighter EX trilogy, Resident Evil Outbreak, and Viewtiful Joe 2! But Capcom has a far better track record in making its older games available for later generations.
In recent years, Capcom has expanded the availability of its games, sometimes through standalone re-releases on various gaming platforms, but increasingly as add-ons or in concurrent collections. Street Fighter 6 gives the option for players waiting out in the battle hub to play rotating arcade games, even giving them the option to acquire them permanently through seasonal game passes. Between that, Capcom Arcade Stadium and Capcom Beat’em Up Bundle, I own the original Final Fight four times. I somehow own Vulgus three times despite never paying for it specifically. Vulgus aside, Capcom’s re-release generosity is something to be lauded.
A big part of that comes from Capcom’s willingness to work with former partners to re-release games that would normally be tied up in legal licensing headaches. Working with Disney, Capcom’s Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics and The Disney Afternoon Collection made games shelved as far back as the ‘80s available again. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 features two games made in association with SNK, both of which were previously unavailable since the PlayStation 2/GameCube era. In highlighting the mutual benefit of reviving these partnerships, if only for a remastered release, Capcom is reviving entire segments of its history.
Other Notable Efforts to Preserve Classic Games
Other publishers like Nintendo and Konami have each approached preserving their respective gaming libraries in their own way. After previously making their games available for digital purchase through its Virtual Console service on the Wii and Wii U, Nintendo has started to allow Nintendo Switch Online subscribers to be able to play games from its classic library online, adding new titles regularly. Like Capcom, Konami has released its own classic compilations, including collections for Castlevania, Contra, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Metal Gear Solid. SNK has also released both collections and standalone releases of its classic arcade games.
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