Father of modern fighting games teams up with the god of manga.
Video game developer Capcom basically invented the modern fighting game with Street Fighter II, and since then the company’s combative character cast has been picking fights just about whenever they can. Sometimes they even get into rumbles with other companies, like with the Marvel vs. Capcom and SNK vs. Capcom crossovers.
And now Capcom has found its most unexpected “vs.” counterpart of all: the god of manga himself, Astro Boy/Tetsuwan Atom creator Osamu Tezuka.
▼ Hadouken?
However, the two teams won’t be meeting in the ring or octagon, but at the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum in Tezuka’s childhood home town of Takarazuka, Hyogo Prefecture. Instead of a crossover fighting game, the Capcom vs. Osamu Tezuka Characters is a crossover art exhibit, in which Capcom’s artists will be turning their talents towards drawing Tezuka’s stars. With Tezuka himself having passed away in 1989, the legedary manga artist himself obviously won’t be directly participating, but taking up pens and pencils in his stead will be artists from Tezuka Productions, which manages Tezuka’s creative legacy, who will present their renditions of iconic Capcom characters.
The Capcom vs. Osamu Tezuka Characters exhibit promises to be a true treat for fans of either, and as the promotional poster, drawn by ace Capcom character designer Bengus, shows, there are actually some interesting parallels between the Capcom and Tezuka rosters, such as robot boys (Mega Man and Astro Boy), men from respected professions with surprisingly dramatic lives (attorney Phoenix Wright/Ryuichi Naruhodo and medical doctor Black Jack), groudnbreaking warrior women (Chun-Li and Sapphire), brilliant scientists (Dr. Light and Dr. Ochanomizu), and lion protagonists (Leo and Kimba).
As a bonus for long-time gamers, Bengus’ new illustration is strongly evocative of the cover artwork for Marvel vs. Capcom.
Capcom vs. Osamu Tezuka Characters, which will also delve into Capcom’s company history, opens October 23 and is scheduled to run until February 23. And for everyone who’s hoping it leads to an actual crossover fighting game between the two companies, remember that there was a Tatsunoko vs. Capcom game back in 2008, where Capcom battled one of Japan’s most celebrated classic anime studios, so anything’s possible.
Related: Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum
Source: Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum via Hachima Kiko
Top image: Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum
Insert image: Wikipedia/Ogiyoshisan (edited by SoraNews24)
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