My MvC3 Wishlist

With the 10-year wait for Marvel vs Capcom 3 whittled down to a mere 2 and a half weeks, anticipation is understandably building to near critical mass.  While MvC2 is arguably one of the greatest fighting games of all time, it's still a decade old; new innovations have been introduced to gaming in general and the fighting genre in particular that Capcom's newest offering could surely benefit from.  Here are some of the things I'd love to see in the new game.  *Note: what follows is a wishlist.  I have no proof of any kind to substantiate that any of this will actually be included.

Unlockable Characters
Ok, so I do know that this will be included.  With the confirmation of Akuma and Taskmaster as part of the roster, Capcom is reviving the glory of the unlockable character.  Sure it may be great to have a full roster of 35+ characters available to use the first time we pop the disc in, but in reality gamers like to have something to work towards.  Including "secret" characters that have to be unlocked not only encourages gamers to try out many different characters (and get GOOD with them), but it feels damn rewarding to have hours of hard work pay off by being given powerful new characters to use like Akuma. 

Alternate Costumes
Different "colors" are fine, but being able to unlock whole new outfits for fighters is a whole other kind of sweet.  There's a ton of potential here for this game particularly, since half the roster are Marvel characters - the game is a great way to show off a bunch of cool artists' work.  This begs inclusion of things like Iron Man's Extremis armor, Cap's WWII uniform, Spidey's black costume - hell, even throw Beta Ray Bill in there for Thor.  Not only would new costumes add a degree of customizability to the game, but it's a great way to show hardcore Marvel fans especially that their characters are truly being incorporated as part of the game world.  And new costumes just look sweet.  Unfortunately, this is one of those things that I could see being sold as DLC.

A Robust Training Mode
What self-respecting MvC player hasn't spent hours upon hours in training mode?  Since it's such an important part of the game (and arguably where many people will spend most of their time), let's really beef it up this time around.  2-player training would be a great way to practice moves in specific situations without having to resort to presets like "jump" or "stand".  Also, why not take a page from Street Fighter IV's book - the Trial Challenges in that game not only showed how to do each character's moves, but also how to pull off some of their most devastating combos in a level-to-level progression.  This simple addition is incredibly helpful, both in mastering your favorite character as well as making it easy to pick up and learn the basics with a new one.  And few things can match the satisfaction felt by finally landing that huge combo and seeing a big "SUCCESS!" flash up on the screen.

Video/Theater Mode
To be honest, I think that this is something that literally every game could benefit from.  But when you consider this game specifically, with all the air combos and perfectly-executed strategy, the potential for those "oh snap!" moments that just have to be shared is through the roof.  Feeling on top of the world because you just owned your opponent with your #1 team?  Just pull off a crazy 25 hit combo?  The ability to save the match, and even to share it with friends online would enable you to transform mere bragging rights into immortality.

In-game Onlinle Profile
Playing games online these days is about more than just playing the game - it's about the community of gamers that play them.  Supporting an in-game "profile" system would be like your own signature or business card that other people can view when they play you online.  We've seen versions of this in other Capcom games - Tatsunoko vs Capcom let you choose your "style" (fire, ice, or lightning) to display to others how you liked to play, while Street Fighter IV displayed things like your w/l ratio and your most frequently used fighter.  MvC3 could expand on this dramatically - allowing you to set not only a motto or in-game icon, but also letting people know if you like to juggle or play turtle, if you love flashy hypers or big combos.  Incorporating a system like this is not only a great way to meet people, it would also help you to get the skinny on who you're about to fight, and possibly use it to put together a strategy on-the-fly for the upcoming match. 

Those are just some of the things I think would be awesome in Marvel vs Capcom 3.  Some of them will almost definitely be included, some of them most certainly won't be.  All of them, I think, would make the game just that much better.  Either way, we'll find out for sure on February 15.