The retro trend doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. It seems gamers just can’t get enough of older titles from years ago. From Xbox Live Arcade, the Wii, and countless compilation titles it seems everyone wants to play games from the “good old days.” Capcom has a huge library of classic titles that gamers are salivating for the chance to play them again. Now with the release of Capcom Classics Collection: Volume 2 for the Xbox, Capcom has once again opened the vaults to gamers.

The list of titles included on Volume 2 includes some classics from years ago and some surprises. This collection might include a few titles some gamers either never played or knew nothing about. These rare, forgotten titles, really serve notice to gamers everywhere that even with Street Fighter there were still plenty of other games Capcom produced. Here is a full list of games included in Volume 2:

• 1941 Counter Attack – shooter

• Avengers – beat em up with a top down view

• Black Tiger – side scrolling action game

• Block Block – puzzle game

• Captain Commando – side scrolling beat em up

• ECO Fighter – shooter

• The King of Dragons – side scrolling hack n slash

• Knights of the Round – side scrolling hack n slash

• Last Duel – combat racing game

• Magic Sword – side scrolling action game

• Mega Twins – side scrolling action game

• Quiz & Dragons – puzzle game

• Side Arms: Hyper Duel – Shooter

• Street Fighter – The Original!

• Strider – side scrolling action game

• Super Street Fighter II Turbo – You know this one!

• The Speed Rumbler – combat racing game

• Three Wonders – Three different games in one game (Action, Shooter and Puzzle)

• Tiger Road – Side scrolling action game

• Varth – shooter

Whew! Did you get all of that? It’s a rather impressive collection of games on one disc. The entire presentation/layout of Volume 2 is just as impressive as the last Classics Collection. You get the games along with a bonus section for each game. The bonus section offers a history of the game, artwork, tips & strategies and the music from the games. Now the game does lock most of the bonus content until you finished certain parts of the game. But unlocking the bonus content is usually not a problem since you get unlimited continues in all of the games. 

Now if we scored compilation titles on just the number of games included then Volume 2 would be an easy winner. However with the increase in the number of compilation titles coming out over the past few years Volume 2 doesn’t hit the bullseye. The biggest problem is because most of these games were already released on another collection for the PSP. Sure, I know not everyone has a PSP, especially loyal Xbox owners, but I had already played most of these games on the PSP just a few months ago. All of the games on Volume 2 were included on the PSP version except for Super Street Fighter II Turbo, ECO Fighter, Tiger Road, The King of Dragons and Knights of the Round.

Honestly just these five games don’t make Volume 2 a worthy compilation title IF you’ve played the PSP collection. If you’re a die-hard Capcom fan, like I know some of you are, then you will pick up this collection probably just for one game: Super Street Fighter II Turbo. I don’t recall this game ever being released in another compilation title until Volume 2. It’s a shame because Super Street Fighter II Turbo was the last game in the Street Fighter II legacy before Street Fighter III was released. It presents one of the largest collections of characters to choose from and some of the most intense gameplay you can find in any SFII game. I don’t recall ever seeing SSFII Turbo come out on any legacy platform except for the 3DO.

One of the games, not found on the PSP collection that I enjoyed tremendously, was ECO Fighter. The game is a side scrolling shooter that has you piloting a ship on a mission to protect the environment. Yes, you read that correct. Let Al Gore know that back in the day Capcom made an environment-friendly shooter where you try to save the earth from pollution. The gameplay was incredibly intense with a unique control system. The gun turret on your ship actually swings around the entire ship and can fire in any direction. You use the second analog stick to aim at the enemies, which is a novel idea for a classic shooter. Visually the game reminded me of a Neo Geo game with the flame effects during the explosion. The screen would get filled with enemies and weapon spray flying everywhere. There was some slowdown in the game but that was probably in the original version as well. But honestly there is no way in the world I could have beaten this game without the unlimited continues. If you’re a hardcore shooter fan then you should check out ECO Fighter and see if you can get through it without any continues.

Well, for me, Volume 2 was a disappointment since I already had most of these games on the PSP collection. If you don’t have a PSP then you should find plenty to enjoy with Volume 2. Some of the games didn’t age very well, such as Avengers, while others were a big surprise (ECO Fighter). If you enjoyed the first collection then you will probably find Volume 2 in your Xbox very soon. All of these games are based off of their arcade versions and include everything intact. The bonus features that you unlock are a nice option to dig deeper into each game.

Gameplay: 8.0
All of the games play exactly the same as their original arcade titles but minus the arcade cabinet and with unlimited continues. This collection is very heavy on side scrolling action titles which might become monotonous after a while.

Graphics: 7.0
All of these games are presented in their original 2D arcade glory. Older titles such as the Avengers just don’t compare to ECO Fighter or Super Street Fighter II Turbo.

Sound: 7.4
Some of these games will probably have you running for the volume button to turn the volume down. Others will have you playing until you get to unlock the bonus music features because of their classic themes.

Difficulty: Easy
All of these games have unlimited continues so it’s up to you (and your patience) to decide if you want to give up.

Multiplayer: 7.5
Several of the games do include the option to have up to three players and one includes up to four players (Captain Commando). However no Xbox Live features can be found anywhere in Volume 2.

Concept: 6.0
I know everyone wants all of these old school games to be re-released but when is it enough? What’s stopping us from buying all of these games over again in another compilation or online via Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Store, or through the Wii? How about we pay a one-time fee that grants us unlimited access to any title released by Capcom or other publishers?

Overall: 7.1
In the end it’s up to you, the gamer, to decide, after reading this review, if you want to purchase this game. If you already have the first collection and did not purchase the PSP version then you can make the purchase without any hesitation. For Xbox and PSP owners that already have the Reloaded Collection you might want to wait or skip Volume 2. I’m sure there will be another Collection that will contain all of these games from the first two collections together. For Xbox 360 owners that do not own an original Xbox you are out of luck. Volume 2 does not work on the 360 as of this writing. Hopefully an update to the backwards-compatibility program will make Volume 2 playable on the 360.