People looking forward to Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls got a little worried this morning when it was heavily hinted that its story mode will not feature any gameplay. It turns out that was a misunderstanding, and the ten-hour comic will actually require you to engage in combat the entire time.
Marvel Tokon's story mode will be both comic book and battles
In an interview with 4Gamer, Marvel Tokon producer Takeshi Yamanaka gave details on the upcoming fighter's story mode. The interview initially described a ten-hour long campaign where the player does not have to do anything at all. It's just an animated comic that they can rewind, fast forward or pause if they want; otherwise it just plays out.
Wolverine, Other X-Men Characters Announced for Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls' Roster
Plus a release date!
It seems there was a misunderstanding somewhere along the way, as the interview has quickly changed to address that revelation, noting that Marvel Tokon's story mode will thankfully require input from the player. A lot of it, actually, as it sounds like you'll be thrown into different battles as the story progresses via a fully-voiced comic strip that's been animated with the help of five different teams.
“In the episode mode, there are playable battles built throughout. Battles connected to the story take place, and it is designed so that everyone can enjoy it casually, like reading a comic book, allowing for a more interactive experience of the story,” confirms Yamanaka. A note confirms that the original copy incorrectly stated that there would be no combat or gameplay in Tokon's story mode.
An unplayable series wouldn't have been out of the ordinary because the Arc System works
For the few hours that it seemed like the story mode could only be a barely interactive series, Marvel Tokon's potential player base was actually quite divided. There will be many people for whom Marvel Tokon is their first Arc System experience. It was the newcomers who assumed it must be some kind of mistake and were proven right.
But those who have played Arc System games in the past stressed that this sort of thing wouldn't have been beyond the realm of possibility. Guilty Gear Strive has a story mode that is around five hours long and is effectively just a feature film. The player does nothing; they just sit back, watch and enjoy the ride.
With a potentially much larger audience drawn in for Marvel Tokon, doing that, and doubling the length, for the next game would have been an incredibly risky move. Wisely, that's not something the Arc System will do. It sounds like Marvel Tokon will have a solid story mode, and you'll actually have to fight your way through it to progress the story.
