By Jon Scarr
Marvel making a new fighting game with Arc System Works behind it felt like one of those rare “this could be huge” moments. I’ve played Marvel vs. Capcom for years, so seeing a stylish 4-fighter tag system with comic-book swagger instantly had me curious. Getting into the second Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls beta felt like jumping into the unknown. Would it actually play well, or would the flashy gameplay hide shallow combat?
My first few matches were messy. I fumbled through buttons, got clipped by auto combos, and wondered if the talk about depth was overselling things. Then, a few rounds in, it clicked. I tagged Storm into a mid-string and watched the combo continue as Ghost Rider flamed out of frame. It wasn’t graceful, but it worked, and I leaned back thinking, “Okay… there’s something here.”
Marvel Tokon doesn’t reveal itself instantly, but the more I fought, the more its identity took shape, and that’s where the beta surprised me.
Tag Team Combat and First Feelings of Play
Once I settled in, the first thing that I noticed was how immediate Marvel Tokon feels. Characters snap into action quickly, hits have weight, and tagging brings a sense of momentum you only notice once you try it. At first, I mashed buttons just to survive and watched my team fly in and out with flashy effects. It looked cool, but I wasn’t sure I was actually doing anything.
Then I started paying attention. The more I experimented, the more the game rewarded me for timing swaps instead of just letting the system handle everything. That mid-combo tag I landed earlier became a turning point. Suddenly, I understood how switching characters could break pressure or extend a string. It felt good knowing I triggered it instead of the game doing it for me.
I still lost matches to big mashy sequences, but Marvel Tokon began to reveal a little more of itself. It went from noisy to readable, and that made me want to dig deeper.
Finding Flow Through Switching and Team Play
Marvel Tokon asks you to manage four characters, which sounds overwhelming on paper. The funny thing is, it starts to make sense faster than you expect. Once I settled on a group I liked, I began to understand how swapping could change the feel of a round. Storm was my go-to, though I found myself rotating between Ghost Rider, Captain America, and Doctor Doom depending on how matches were going.
Switching mid-string gave me a new appreciation for the system. One moment I was swinging with Storm’s aerials, then Ghost Rider snapped in to finish the exchange and keep pressure going. Other attempts looked awkward and dropped entirely, but even those failures helped me understand what the game wanted from me.
Tokon lets you commit to one character if you want, yet it nudges you to explore your roster. When a swap landed cleanly, it felt earned rather than automated. It became clear that learning how to rotate your team is where the deeper satisfaction sits.
Presentation, Personality, and Sound Hit Hard
If there is one thing Tokon nails right away, it is style. The comic book-inspired visuals look sharp, and every motion pops without feeling cluttered. Watching Spider-Man zip in or Captain America send his shield ricocheting across the screen brought that “this looks right” feeling you hope for in a Marvel fighter. It is bold, readable, and easy to enjoy even during busy exchanges.
The audio sealed it for me. The soundtrack builds energy without getting in the way, and hits land with satisfying impact. What surprised me most was the dialogue. Characters sound like themselves, not generic versions of them. My first fight with Spider-Man had him tossing lines that made me laugh with how accurately they matched his tone from the comics.
It gives Tokon personality beyond flashy attacks. Between the visual confidence and strong sound design, the beta already feels like it understands Marvel’s identity. Even in rough moments, I found myself smiling at how alive the fights look and sound.
Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls Second Beta’s Rough Spots Are Hard to Ignore
As much fun as I had, Marvel Tokon’s beta made some stumbling blocks impossible to overlook. The biggest hurdle was the lack of a proper training mode. The tutorial explains the basics, but once you leave it, there is no space to test routes, learn timings, or explore what your team can really do. I spent matches experimenting on the fly, which was exciting at first but eventually felt limiting.
Matchmaking also left mixed feelings. Sometimes I found opponents quickly, while other times it felt like I wandered between cabinets waiting for someone to show up. When a match started, skill ranges were all over the place. I would go from trading blows to being flattened in seconds with little room to understand why.
Tagging also has moments where it feels stiff, especially when it fails mid-action. Add auto combos that hit harder than they probably should, and you get a structure that occasionally works against learning. It did not ruin the fun, but it made me wish the beta gave players more tools to grow.
Under the Surface, There’s Real Potential Waiting
The more time I spent in the beta, the more Marvel Tokon started revealing what it could become. Once I managed to string a few solid sequences together and tag with intent instead of luck, I got a small glimpse of why some players insist the depth is there. Characters have larger move sets than you notice at first glance, and switching them on purpose opens up decisions that feel satisfying to uncover.
I also noticed how defensive tools and universal mechanics can push matches past simple back-and-forth swings. There is room to bait, counter, and change rhythm. It just takes time. That is probably why the lack of training mode feels so noticeable. You can feel the ceiling, but you are forced to reach for it without ladders.
Even so, that pull kept me queuing up match after match. Beneath the rough patches, Tokon feels like a fighter that could grow into something exciting once people have space to learn and explore what it really offers.
Final Thoughts on the Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls Second Beta
After a weekend with the beta, I walked away feeling more interested than when I started. It did not grab me right away, but once things clicked, it was easy to see why people are excited. Marvel Tokon looks great, sounds confident, and carries more technical weight than its flashy surface suggests.
That said, the beta highlighted areas that need work. A proper training mode would help everyone understand how to play, smoother lobby navigation would ease frustration, and auto combo adjustments could go a long way for competitive-minded fans. Even with those issues, I found myself lining up rematches just to try one more swap or test something new.
Marvel Tokon has the pieces to become a strong fighting game. It just needs refinement and better tools to show newcomers what lies underneath. I am looking forward to seeing how the game evolves upon release when players finally get time to dig in.