I'm not all about graphics, but they sure as hell matter, ESPECIALLY in fighting games, when you're looking at a limited amount of stages/characters over and over again. Animations need to be fluid, art direction must be tight. I remember the first time I saw "Xmen: Children of the Atom" in an arcade. I thought, "HOLY #%$@! THAT'S how I've always imagined Superheroes should look and move in a video game!" I was on that machine like white on rice. The way Wolverine's claws would pop in and out in his battle stance...the game was just brimming with attention to detail and personality.
Fast forward to MvC: Infinite. What the hell happened? I downloaded the story mode demo for PS4 and man...it all just felt so flat, like a cardboard standup in a 7-11. Sure, the mechanics were sound enough. Perhaps the Infinity system will prove to be fun and innovate. Still, at first glance, it completely lacked the "wow" factor of previous Capcom efforts. It almost felt like Capcom handed this one off to some third-party developer and just stamped their label on it when it was done.
I just feel I'm being evenhanded here. Despite that they have nowhere near the resources that Capcom has, and their company has endured significant financial difficulty, I was quick to call SNK out for their latest, King of Fighters 14. I said it looked lifeless and generic and the character models looked like plastic dolls. Admittedly, the gameplay was excellent, which I think went a very long way with fans.
What's Capcom's excuse? They're nowhere near as hard up as SNK. Why does their game look so boring and generic? MvC is the most over-the-top Capcom IP. It should be busting at the seams with zany antics, with quirky characters, with backstory and spectacle. Instead, the demo just looked "okay."
As I said, I'm no huge MvC fan, I don't know this game or the history all that well, so maybe another diehard fan will tell me I'm full of it, but when I see something like DB Fighter Z coming out at the same time, I just can't help thinking it's going to curb-stomp MvC, and I'm not even a DBZ fan, the game just looks amazing. I think Capcom has gotten too comfortable and forgotten that you need to push the envelope a bit.