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The X-Men and Street Fighter franchises are both making spectacular comebacks.Street Fighter 6launched in 2023, receiving critical acclaim and the series' best sales in years.X-Men ‘97launched its first season on Disney+ with similar success, and the second and third seasons are on the way. Could these parallel successes facilitate aStreet Fightercrossover event in a future episode ofX-Men ‘97?
There are several factors at play that could affect anX-Men ‘97 x Street Fighterevent. TheMarvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collectionrevitalized the crossover series after the fallout ofMvCI’s middling performance. Furthermore, several ofX-Men ‘97’sartists are bigMvCfans. However, the biggest players in this deal are Disney and Legendary Media, who ownX-MenandStreet Fighter’stelevision rights.
X-Men: The Animated Series Paved the Way for Marvel vs. Capcom
Anyone familiar with theMarvel vs. Capcomvideo game series knows that the two companies’ IPs share a long history. What’s more,X-Men: The Animated Serieswas the catalyst of over thirty years of epic crossovers between the comic book behemoth and the video game giant. Two years after Capcom’sX-Menfighter, the company launched its first official crossover game:X-Men vs. Street Fighter.
X-Men: COTA Was Capcom’s First Licensed Fighting Game
MvChistory begins withX-Men: Children of the Atom, Capcom’s first fighting game based on a licensed IP. It was the company’s second collaboration with Marvel. The first collab was a beat-em-up gamebased onThe Punisher, launched in arcades in 1993. TheFinal Fight-esque game was successful enough to merit continued relations between Marvel and Capcom.
Katsuya Akitomo, an avid comic book fan who speaks both Japanese and English, began working at Capcom at an opportune time. He contributed toThe Punisherand, more importantly, served as a consultant to Capcom and a mediator between the two companies. His subject matter expertise gave Marvel the confidence to trust Capcom with theX-Men.
The relationship between Marvel and Capcom was mutually beneficial. WhileX-Men: The Animated Seriesdominated pop culture,Marvel Entertainment struggled financially. Licensing its characters to Capcom gave Marvel a source of income and a chance for exposure among Eastern audiences. Capcom, meanwhile, was searching for an IP to help the company become more popular with Western audiences. Naturally, anX-Menfighting game was the perfect solution for both parties.
Marvel and Capcom deliberated back and forthabout what characters to use, their designs, and what story continuities they came from. Eventually, they landed on a product both companies were happy with…almost. One hiccup before launch led toX-Men: The Animated Series’sdirect involvement withChildren of the Atom.
Two weeks beforeCotAlaunched in arcades, Marvel rejected the voice cast Capcom employed because they were English-speaking actors with Japanese accents. Fortunately, Capcom USA employee Alex Jimenez contacted Marvel’s president of licensing, Joe Calamari. Calamari directed Jimenez to Dome Productions, the production company that theX-Menanimated series employed. Upon calling Dome Productions, the Canadian production company offered the official voice talent from theX-Mencartoon, plus studio time, for an affordable fee. Capcom agreed to the deal, resolvingCotA’svoice actor crisis. The inclusion of theX-Mencartoon’s voice cast also became a significant selling point of the game.
X-Men vs. Street Fighter Launched Two Years Later
X-Men: Children of the Atomlaunched in arcades in 1994.Marvel Super Heroes, a spiritual successor featuring the Hulk, Captain America, Spider-Man, and some niche characters, followed. Both games featured secret characters from Capcom fighting games: Akuma fromStreet Fighterand Anita fromDarkstalkers. Both of Capcom’s Marvel fighting games were a success, leading to further discussions between the two companies.In Polygon’s oral historyofX-Men: Children of the Atom, Dave Moreshead, head of creative services at Marvel Entertainment, states the following:
“[When we got toX-Men vs. Street Fighter], I don’t think that we had ever done a character crossover before in licensing. […] It was a big deal. They’re like, We want to do this. And we’re like, Let’s try it. Let’s try it.”
X-Men vs. Street Fighter, Capcom’s first official crossover fighter, launched in arcades in 1996, two years afterCotA’srelease. This monumental game paved the way for five future crossover games, including a fan-favorite:Marvel vs. Capcom 2.
Marvel and Capcom’s relationship suffered after the poor performance ofMarvel vs. Capcom: Infinitein 2017. However, 2024’sMarvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classicsindicates a much warmer relationship between Marvel Games and Capcom. Furthermore,MvC Collectiongarnered favorable reviews and topped multiple sales charts, suggesting a future sequel is possible.
X-Men ‘97 Includes Several MvC References
One factor that works in favor of anX-Men ‘97xStreet Fightercrossover is that several of Marvel Animation’s artists areMarvel vs. Capcomfans. Storyboard director David Maximo and storyboard artists Matthew B and Marvin Madrid are all confirmed fans. Furthermore, their love for the series is apparent inX-Men 97’sanimations. Here are some examples:
X-Men and Street Fighter’s TV Rights Belong to Separate Companies
One critical obstacle to a crossover as epic asX-Men vs. Street Fighteris licensing. Capcom made its Marvel fighting games through direct collaboration with Marvel Entertainment,which Disney currently owns. However, introducingStreet Fightercharacters on a Marvel television show would require the cooperation of an additional party: Legendary Entertainment.
Legendary Entertainment acquired Street Fighter’s film and television rights in April 2023. Furthermore, Legendary and Capcom are co-developing and producing anew feature film adaptation of the game. This film is Ryu and the World Warriors’ third live-action attempt at box office success, after launching two flops in 1994 (Street Fighter: The Movie) and 2009 (Street Fighter: The Legend Of Chun-Li).
Legendary Entertainment has produced several blockbusters based on popular IPs.Its 2019 effort,Pokemon: Detective Pikachu, grossed 450 million dollars worldwide, making it the highest-grossing video game film adaptation untilThe Super Mario Bros. Moviepremiered in 2023. The media company is also known for the recentDunefilms, as well asGodzilla vs. Kong.
When Legendary acquired the rights toStreet Fighterin 2023, the company had a distribution deal with Sony. This deal came off the heels of a pact with Warner Bros. However, Legendary Entertainment and Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group mutually agreed toend their distribution dealat the conclusion of 2024. Around the time Legendary Entertainment split from Sony, the company bought a stake formerly owned byChinese conglomerate WandaGroup. This buyout made Legendary Entertainment and its biggest investor, Apollo Global Management, equal partners. Furthermore, the media company is looking to expand through mergers and acquisitions.
Will Legendary Entertainment’s increased autonomy give the company an opportunity to negotiate a deal with Disney to include theStreet FighterIP inX-Men ‘97? That’s a question evena telepath like Jean Greycan’t answer.
