They are one of the most respected game publishers in the free world (and maybe a banana republic or two) and their catalog is pregnant with iconic titles.  And I’m pretty sure super-Capcom-fanboy Jon Mercer possesses the world record for  Chun Li erotica.

So this one is for him: all-time favorite Capcom game.  Let’s hear it.

Dave:  It’s a toss-up between fourth installments.  Street Fighter 4 and Resident Evil 4 are neck-and-neck, competing for my affections.  The former is the greatest fighting game I have ever played and to this day I’ll jump online and burn through hours at a time piledriving fireball spammers.  The latter is the finest survival horror epic ever crafted.

Hefty competition so I’ll just punk out and award them a tie.  It’s impossible to choose; both of those games are perfection realized in their respective genres.

Can I hear an amen?

Steve: I’m all about Street Fighter. No other series has had me ensnared for so long, well maybe Final Fantasy. Also have to give a shout out to the Ghosts N Goblins/Ghouls N Ghosts games. Hard as hell, but always fun.

Jon: Hey, awesome…a Symposium tailor-made for me on a week when I’m not on the podcast.  Jerk.  Now, this truly is a hard topic.  I mean I’m a huge Street Fighter fan…but I’m also a huge fan of the Capcom/Disney efforts for the NES.  I’m a Megaman fanatic at heart, but really that would seem a little too obvious.  Steve already gave a shout-out to the Ghosts N Goblins franchise, which stands testament as to why the 16-bit generation gamers are a tougher breed than today’s mincing sissies.  So with all that goodness out of the way, I’ll bring up one that is even more dear to my heart than the obvious choice of Mega Man X.  I blind bought this following game for 80 dollars using my paper route money simply because it looked awesome, Capcom were on a do-no-wrong roll at the time, and i was looking for something that provided the same level of presentation and gameplay as my beloved mega Man franchise, but catered more to my developing Heavy Metal sensibilities.

Pictured: A game that does all of those things

Enter Demon’s Crest, a 16-Bit iteration of Capcom’s underappreciated Gargoyle’s Quest franchise; itself a spin-off of the popular Ghosts N Goblins games.  Demon’s Crest was as if Capcom had taken a shot at making a Castlevania title.  It featured all the graphical punch that Capcom were known for at the time, and a gloomy soundtrack , and game play that was addictive and fun, even if the game was as hard as the devil’s knob (Newfie slang, I ‘pologize b’y).  The main character; Firebrand (the infamous Red Arramer from GnG) could fly, scale walls with his claws, breath several types of upgradable breath weapons; and would gain four additional forms over the course of the game that each had their own unique skills and weapons.  The stages could be tackled in a somewhat nonlinear fashion (though entering a level without the proper items and forms was tantamount to suicide), and there were several endings.  The levels were filled with at-the-time stunning visual effects, EPIC boss battles, and tons of hidden bonuses (including pathways to hidden stages, which included more hidden bonuses).  As well, once the game was finished completely, a password was given that would unlock a sixth form for Firebrand; a Satanic looking amalgamation of every other form’s powers, as well as the unique ability to charge it’s breath weapon a la Mega Man X.  Playing the game with this form unlocked the game’s true final boss, and supposedly the game’s true ending (which may or may not exist, seeing as I’ve yet to encounter a human soul who has managed to beat Demon Crest’s INSANE final boss battle).  A truly amazing title, and one that I regret having sold when I got rid of my Super Nintendo and games back in 1997.  If there were any sense of justice in gaming, we’d all be looking forward to a new Demon adventure on the DS or PSP.