Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter

Okay, first off, let me say if you're expecting remixes of the Street Fighter themes, like from X-Men vs. Street Fighter, you might not like this CD. Not to say they're not present (Dhalsim has an awesome remix!), but some have been tweaked to the point where they're totally unrecognizable. That's not a bad thing, though, as some of the newer themes are as good, if not better, than their older ones. Also, let me say if you're familiar with the arcade game, most of the time the music in the game is turned down to accommodate the sound effects, so unless you listen very hard at the arcade, you won't get the full effect this CD brings.

The main body of the CD, as with most fighting game soundtracks, rests with the themes of the characters, so let's cut to the chase. Dan's theme, quite simply, is reason enough to buy the CD. It's rock, with oriental flavoring and and a wacky beat that suits him. Ken has an upbeat, toe-tapping tune that vaguely resembles his old Street Fighter theme. Once Ryu's theme gets past the first 20 seconds, it's easily one of the best. Sakura's theme is the catchiest on the CD (you'll be humming it for days). Dhalsim's and Zangief's two themes (one original, one a midi remix) get the only noticable remixes, but they are the best ones yet for either one. Chun Li's theme is a far cry from a remix, but its passable. Akuma and Bison have the worst themes on this CD, as they are boring and disappointing. Fortunately, they're near the end.

I haven't played Marvel Super Heroes, so I don't know if any of the Marvel tracks are remixes or not. From the Marvel side, Spiderman has the best theme, as it resembles Sakura's and is nearly as catchy. Shuma-Gorath's theme sounds like a remix of the Macarena (if you liked that, you'll *love* this). Cyclop's theme is like Ryu's in that if you let it get started it's good. Captain America's theme is the exact opposite, as the first few seconds are good, but the song seriously begins to deteriorate. Hulk and Blackheart's themes sound very much alike, although Blackie's is considerably eerie, while the Hulk's is more upbeat. Both are good, though. As for track 13 - skip it. This is Wolverine's worst theme, ever. Slow and uninteresting.

As for the endings, it's annoying that they're placed after each of the themes, but Ryu's, Hulk's and Dan's are quite good. Don't worry, though, as most range from 30-45 seconds.

This CD is quite good, although I would put it below the X-Men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom soundtracks. Dan's theme is the best piece of game music I've heard and is worth the price alone. If variety is your favorite quality in a game CD, this is for you.