PixlBit

 

The Darkstalkers series, also called Vampire Series in Japan, is a very strange thing in the world of fighting games. If you exclude all of the re-releases, there have only been a total of 3 games in the series (5 if you include the arcade updates) yet the shadow of Darkstalkers' legacy is far and vast. Its hard not to run into anyone who plays video games who doesn't know something about Darkstalkers. Beyond just the Darkstalkers games series, the various cast of characters have appeared in numerous fighting game crossovers, comics, and even a few animated series. The Darkstalkers series has a rich legacy beyond the games and there is hints at an even brighter future on the horizon. Not bad for a video game series on the eve of its 20^th anniversary. But where did Darkstalkers come from? Capcom has never official given why but its not to hard to figure out where it possibly could have come from.

One possible reason for Darkstalkers' birth was through popular culture's obsession with monsters. The cast of the series is made of mostly popular film monster archetypes so its not surprising that's where some inspiration could have come from. Films like House of Dracula or Frankenstein Meets The Werewolf gave rise to the classic monster vs. monster fights we come to know today. Its not hard to see Darkstalkers as a twist on those classic pop culture monster fights.

Another possibility of the origin of Darkstalkers was Capcom's answer to another popular fighting game at time, Mortal Kombat. The series shares a similarity to Mortal Kombat with its emphasis on being much more over the top and violent compared to Street Fighter. However, I argue that Darkstalkers wasn't really trying to come close being a competitor to MK. True you could do a lot of violent things in Darkstalkers, such as slice characters in half, but unlike Mortal Kombat you would do that in a middle of a match and then your character would return back to normal. Really, Darkstalkers depicted violence on a much more cartoon-y level than Mortal Kombat. Mortal Kombat shared more similarities with Street Fighter II, something that Darkstalkers would progressively move a way from as the series advanced. Ironically though, Capcom would release a version of Street Fighter II, Street Fighter: The Movie-The Video Game, that actually shared more in common with MK and was their best attempt at trying to be MK. Note, I did say attempt.

      

Regardless of where the real back story of Darkstalkers comes from, its hard not see its long lasting imprint on fighting games. From its very expressive sprites, to the new and interesting fighting game mechanics it would bring along with the series, Darkstalkers has more than earned its right to be noticed. In honor of Darkstalkers return back into spotlight with Darkstalkers Resurrection, I'm taking this week to celebration the wonderfully weird world of the series. This week long retrospective will took at the first 3 (or 5) games of the series and a few of the re-releases. Furthermore, we look at their influence on the series, on other Capcom fighters, and more importantly fighting games in-general. Finally we will conclude on the various possibilities on the future of the series.

Darkstalkers is one of my favorite fighting game franchises. Its literally a franchise that I grew up with, as I can remember playing the original arcade release of Darkstalkers when it came out in 1994. Its a very fascinating series not just for its technical achievements. Capcom has crafted a fighting game series that mixes style and substance together in harmony. It is more than just pretty face in the world of fighting games: its tactical, fast, and weird. Very, very weird and that's how I like it.

Bee here tomarrow for Darkstalkers 1 and 2 For Zombies!