PLAYSTATION Fighting 1996

Marvel Super Heroes

Reviewed by Marcus Webb & Elena Castillo · Updated June 2025

Capcom's 1996 PS1 Marvel fighting game sequel to X-Men: Children of the Atom — Marvel Super Heroes expands the roster beyond the X-Men to include Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, and the Hulk, introduces the Infinity Gem power-up system based on Jim Starlin's Infinity Gauntlet storyline, and advances the aerial combo mechanics of its predecessor.

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💡 Marvel Super Heroes — Key Facts

→ Marvel Super Heroes was developed by Capcom and published by Capcom
→ Released in 1996 on PLAYSTATION
→ Genre: Fighting
→ We rate it 8.8/10 — highly recommended
→ Capcom's 1996 PS1 Marvel fighting game sequel to X-Men: Children of the Atom — Marvel Super Heroes expands the roster beyond the X-Men to include Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, and the Hulk, introduces the Infinity Gem power-up system based on Jim Starlin's Infinity Gauntlet storyline, and advances the aerial combo mechanics of its predecessor.

Overview

Spider-Man. Iron Man. Captain America. Hulk. The X-Men had been Capcom’s Marvel universe for a year. Marvel Super Heroes opened the door wider.

The Avengers and the core Marvel heroes arrived in the same fighting game framework that Wolverine and Cyclops had established in Children of the Atom — aerial combos, super jumps, Hyper Combos — with an added system drawn directly from Jim Starlin’s comics.

The Gems

The Infinity Gauntlet storyline: Thanos collects the gems, assembles the Gauntlet, snaps half of life out of existence. The gems had specific powers — Power, Mind, Soul, Time, Space, Reality.

Capcom put the gems on the stage floor. Defeat actions drop gems. Collect them. Activate their effects. Power gem hits harder. Time gem moves faster. Soul gem drains health with contact. Multiple gems stack.

The system added a mid-fight economy to the aerial combo framework. Players who collected gems during the round had combat advantages that affected the balance of the fight. Players who ignored gems focused purely on the aerial combo system that already existed.

The Spider-Man

Spider-Man in a fighting game was a specific design challenge — the character’s web-slinging and wall-crawling define him as much as any combat technique. Capcom gave him web attacks, wall jump capability, and movement options that reflected the comics’ mobile, acrobatic Spider-Man.

His fighting style created a high-mobility rushdown approach that contrasted with Iron Man’s zoning repulsor blasts and Hulk’s heavy ground presence. The character diversity was Marvel’s — four very different superheroes with four very different power sets created four very different fighting styles.

The Next Step

Marvel Super Heroes was the bridge between X-Men: Children of the Atom and X-Men vs. Street Fighter. The mechanics refined, the roster expanded, the concept of a comprehensive Marvel fighting game established. By the time the Capcom and Marvel characters shared a roster in 1996, the Marvel side had two games establishing how these characters should play.

Our Review

8.8

Excellent / 10

🎮

Gameplay

★★★★★

🎨

Graphics

★★★★★

🎵

Audio

★★★★★

🔄

Replay

★★★★★

Gameplay

Marvel Super Heroes is a six-button fighting game expanding Capcom's Marvel roster beyond X-Men. 10 playable characters: Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, Psylocke, Wolverine, Hulk, Magneto, Shuma-Gorath, Dr. Doom (secret). The Infinity Gem system — the game's defining mechanic — allows characters to collect power gems during combat that provide specific enhancements: the Power gem increases attack damage, the Mind gem assists AI, the Soul gem drains opponent health, the Time gem speeds movement, the Space gem enables teleportation. Multiple gems can be collected and activated. The aerial combo system from X-Men COTA returns and expands.

Graphics

Marvel Super Heroes presents the Marvel characters in Capcom's detailed sprite style — Spider-Man's web-swinging animations, Iron Man's repulsor blasts, Hulk's size advantage are all visually realized. The character scale variety (Hulk vs. Spider-Man) creates visual contrast.

Audio

Character-appropriate voice acting and Marvel power effects create the superhero action presentation. Spider-Man's quips and Iron Man's metallic sound design reflect their respective characterizations.

Replayability

10 characters with Infinity Gem strategy layer, aerial combo mastery, and competitive two-player provide fighting game depth. The gem system's strategic combinations create decision-making per round.

Historical Significance

Marvel Super Heroes (1995 arcade; 1996 PS1) expanded Capcom's Marvel license from X-Men to the wider Marvel universe — Spider-Man, Iron Man, Captain America, and Hulk joining the roster. The game adapted the 1991 Infinity Gauntlet storyline as its fighting game framing. The Infinity Gems appeared later in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Avengers: Infinity War, 2018) — the game predated the MCU's use of the concept by over two decades. MSH's mechanics continued the aerial combo evolution from Children of the Atom, and the full roster crossover concept became X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1996).

✅ Pros

+ Spider-Man, Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America bring Avengers to Marvel fighting
+ Infinity Gem system adds strategic power-up layer to combat
+ Expands Capcom Marvel universe beyond X-Men cast
+ Aerial combo system advances beyond Children of the Atom
+ Based on the Infinity Gauntlet storyline

❌ Cons

- 10-character roster still smaller than later Capcom Marvel games
- Gem collection somewhat random — dependent on opponent drops
- PS1 version loading between fights
- Some gem combinations unbalanced in competitive play

Also Known As

MSH PS1Marvel Super Heroes Capcomマーベルスーパーヒーローズ

Marvel Super Heroes FAQ

What are the Infinity Gems and how do they work in the game?

The Infinity Gems — based on Jim Starlin's 1991 Marvel comic Infinity Gauntlet — appear as collectible items during combat. Defeating an opponent or performing specific actions causes gems to drop onto the stage. Collecting a gem provides a specific combat enhancement: the Power gem increases attack damage; the Mind gem causes an AI partner to occasionally assist in attacking; the Soul gem drains a small portion of the opponent's life with each hit; the Time gem dramatically increases movement and attack speed; the Space gem allows a teleportation movement option. Characters can hold multiple gems simultaneously, stacking their effects. The gem system adds a resource acquisition layer to the fight — players choose between aggressively collecting gems versus maintaining offensive pressure on the opponent.

How does the roster differ from X-Men: Children of the Atom?

Marvel Super Heroes expands the Capcom Marvel roster beyond X-Men characters. While X-Men COTA featured only mutant characters (Wolverine, Cyclops, Storm, Psylocke, Iceman, Colossus and villains Spiral, Omega Red, Silver Samurai, Magneto), MSH broadens to include core Avengers and Marvel heroes: Spider-Man (web-slinger with high mobility), Iron Man (repulsor blast and armor-based fighting), Captain America (shield throw and all-American brawler), and Hulk (massive grappler with size advantage). Psylocke and Wolverine return from X-Men COTA. Magneto and Thanos appear as antagonists. The expanded roster began the pattern of combining Marvel universe characters that X-Men vs. Street Fighter and MvC would continue.

Is this game related to the Infinity Gauntlet storyline?

Marvel Super Heroes is directly adapted from Jim Starlin's 1991 Infinity Gauntlet Marvel Comics storyline — where the villain Thanos collects the Infinity Gems (stones in later MCU usage) to gain complete power over reality. The game's framing uses the Infinity Gauntlet plot: Thanos is the final boss seeking to collect the gems, and the fighting game's gem drop system reflects the Gauntlet story's power objects. Shuma-Gorath appears as a mid-boss. The Marvel Cinematic Universe used the same Infinity Stones concept for the Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Endgame (2019) films — Capcom's fighting game used the concept over two decades earlier when the comics storyline was still relatively recent.

Is Marvel Super Heroes available on modern platforms?

Marvel Super Heroes has not received a modern digital re-release. The Capcom-Marvel license that produced X-Men COTA, MSH, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, and MvC 1-2 has expired. Physical PS1 and Saturn discs are available through retro game stores. The arcade original runs in MAME emulation. There has been no modern compilation of the Capcom Marvel fighting game series despite significant fan interest. Modern Marvel fighting games include Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite (2017) which was commercially unsuccessful and the license subsequently lapsed. A new Capcom-Marvel fighting game collaboration has not been announced.