Marvel vs. Capcom: Galactus cometh with … the cosmic clap?

A great deal has changed since gamers last pitted villains and heroes from the Marvel and Capcom universes against one another in Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes. That fighting game debuted in arcades — yes, arcades — in early 2000. Now, more than a decade later, Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds is about to arrive for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. Here at Hero Complex, to prepare for that Feb. 15 release, we’re doing a series of posts looking at the game’s Marvel villains, their history and their combat moves. Today: Galactus

Galactus (Capcom/Marvel)

When it comes to the fate of our fragile planet, there’s no truth more inconvenient than Galactus. Known at various times as Devourer of Worlds, Pillager of the Planets and Ravager of Worlds (sensing a theme here?), the god-like giant first appeared in the pages of “Fantastic Four” No. 48 (1966), in which he threatened to drain Earth of its energy like an interstellar Daniel Plainview drinking our collective milkshake.

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby must have known they hit upon something big with their omnipotent creation, because the next issue, titled “If This Be Doomsday!,” continued Galactus’ story with this ominous introduction: “Galactus has landed on Earth! Any additional words of ours would simply pall beside the awesome portent of that one staggering phase.” With an introduction like that, it’s surprising the giant’s celestial herald, the Silver Surfer, was able to make any waves at all.

One element that sets Galactus apart from his villainous contemporaries is his lack of, well, villainy. The big guy’s cosmic consumption is born of hunger, not malice. In “Fantastic Four” No. 50, when the Silver Surfer begs his master to spare the human race, Galactus brushes his herald’s pleas aside by asking him, “Would you hesitate to tread on an ant hill? These creatures are of no concern to Galactus!”

“Galactus is very much on his own side,” said Capcom’s Seth Killian, a special advisor to Marvel vs. Capcom 3, when asked to define Galactus’ allegiance. “His concerns are on such an epic scale that our puny ideas of justice and fairness are beneath him.”

In the game, Galactus appears as the final unplayable boss. To reach him, not only will players have to defeat all the other fighters on the roster, but they’ll also have to defeat two randomly selected enemies (one from the Marvel side, one from the Capcom side) that the galactic colossus promotes to become his new heralds. When confronting Galactus, be on the lookout for “The Clap,” in which he claps his hands together to squish you like a bug. Another move that adds insult to injury is his “Snapback,” in which he flicks you off screen with his index finger, like a child flicking a paper football.

“It’s not the flashiest show,” said Killian of the move. “But it does a great job of making you feel insignificant next to this cosmic force.”

So great was that force — and fan demand for Galactus’ inclusion in the franchise — that according to Chris Baker, manager of licensed games at Marvel Entertainment, the giant with a penchant for purple was the biggest no-brainer character to include in the game. “It’s interesting just how little actual discussion there was over who would be the best fit as an end boss,” said Baker, who says both Marvel and Capcom knew it was Galactus’ time to rise. “And when the game was first announced, the question I was asked regularly wasn’t, ‘Who will be the final boss?’ It was, ‘Will Galactus be the final boss?’”