Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite (マーベル VS. カプコン：インフィニット is the sixth installment in the Marvel vs. Capcom crossover fighting game series released in September 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. Strider Hiryu returns as one of the characters in the game's base roster, retaining his classic appearance and movelist.

Adopting a very different direction from previous entries, Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite features a number of notable gameplay changes: it reduces its team system to 2-on-2 tag teams (similar to entries previous to Marvel vs. Capcom 2), brings back a 4-button attack scheme closer to the punch/kick variation used in 2 and removes assists entirely. In its place there's a tag system which allows the player to switch in the 2nd character at any point during battle, including during special or hyper combos as well as when under attack (a tactic called "Counter Switch"). The other notable gameplay addition is that of the Infinity Stones: the player chooses one from the six stones after picking a team and they provide two unique special abilities, a special skill known as a "Infinity Surge" and a super mode called "Infinity Storm".

The Infinity Surge is an unique ability which provides specific advantages, for example the Power Stone provides a combo-extender knockback strike and the Time Stone grants an instant teleport dash when used. The Infinity Storm is a super mode in which the user is given an increased number of abilities for a limited time, such as increased damage and wallbounces for the Power Stone and a big speed increase for the Time Stone. The Storm requires filling up the "Infinity meter" by either using the Infinity Surge or receiving damage.^[1]

Story & Characters[]

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite features a 2-hour Cinematic Story Mode, a first for the series, detailing the events that lead to the fusion of both universes. The plot centers on an alliance between Sigma, primary antagonist of the Mega Man X series, and the Marvel villain Ultron, under their shared belief that all biological life must be purged. Using the Infinity Stones (specifically Space and Reality) they merge together into a new being called "Ultron Sigma" and proceed to merge both universes and unleash an enhanced techno-organic Sigma Virus in order to seize control of the newly-created dimension.^[2]

88 days after the "Convergence", Marvel and Capcom characters fight a losing battle against Ultron Sigma's forces. Facing a critical situation, the superhero team is forced to seek the help of Thanos in order to find the remaining four Infinity Stones, which are spread across the newly merged worlds.

The game features a cast of 30 playable characters, plus a number of non-playable characters that form part of the story mode either in special fight conditions or as unique enemies. A single set of 6 DLC characters was released in 2017.

Character List
Marvel characters		Capcom characters
Playable characters
Captain America	Iron Man	Arthur	Morrigan
Captain Marvel	Nova	Chris Redfield	Nemesis
Doctor Strange	Rocket Raccoon	Chun-Li	Ryu
Dormammu	Spider-Man	Dante	Spencer
Gamora	Thanos	Frank West	Strider Hiryu
Ghost Rider	Thor	Firebrand	X
Hawkeye	Ultron	Haggar	Zero
Hulk		Jedah
Story characters
Death	Ultron Drone	Symbiote B.O.W. Soldier	Grandmaster Meio
M.O.D.O.K.	Xgardian	Dah'ren Mohran
Giant Symbiote		Dr. Light
	Ultron Sigma [Main antagonist]
	Ultron Omega [Final Boss]
DLC characters
Black Panther	Venom	Monster Hunter (female)	Sigma
Black Widow	Winter Soldier

Strider Hiryu[]

Strider Hiryu was one of the seven confirmed character featured in the 2nd story and gameplay trailers, released in April 2017. Unlike previous games where Hiryu was paired up with Spider-Man, Hiryu is paired up with Gamora in the story, the developers stating they were a natural fit for each other due to both being assassins that are used to working alone^[3]. The two also appear together in the special variant cover for All New Guardians of the Galaxy #7, one of 20 tie-in covers created to promote Infinite.

In the story, Hiryu is part of the resistance group fighting Ultron Sigma. He's first seen assisting during the initial battle on Xgard, later joining the team sent to the underground prison to retrieve Thanos. After that he joins Gamora, Rocket Raccoon, Nova, Captain Marvel and X as the team that travels to Knowmoon to retrieve the Power Stone, and he infiltrates the station with Gamora to create a distraction while the others go retrieve the Infinity Stone off the station's core. The two eventually face and take down Grandmaster Meio as well. Hiryu's participation is minimal after this event, although he gets to fight Ultron Sigma alongside Captain America during the final chapters.

In this continuity, Hiryu explains to Gamora that his fate and Meio's are somehow bound together, and they have been fighting and dying for a thousand years in an eternal conflict.

Official profile (Japanese)^[4]
Real Name: Unknown.
"Striders" is an intelligence organization with a long history. Among the Striders, Strider Hiryu is an elite intelligence operative and the youngest to attain the title of Special A-Class. Specialized in covert ops and assassination, he's a man who freely utilizes ninjutsu and high-tech weaponry. There seems to be rumors that his target, Grandmaster Meio, is working together with Ultron Sigma, and apparently Hiryu joined the resistance in order to investigate this."

Hiryu's Movelist[]

Main article: Marvel vs. Capcom/Movelist

Hiryu retains his classic look from previous entries, and his movelist receives a number of tweaks and changes, as well as a few new techniques, chief among them a new aerial Hyper Combo called "Brionac", based on his Savage Slash move from Strider 2.

Costumes and Colors[]

All characters in the game has four different colors to choose from. Color 2 is unlocked from the start, while Color 3 and 4 must be unlocked by playing a number of matches in Arcade mode or Online. Also, and unlike Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, DLC costumes now feature 4 color variations as well.

As there hasn't been any official costume breakdown blogs detailing the inspiration behind the color choices as in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, the references listed here are purely guesses with no official basis.

Default
Color 1	Default scheme.	Color 2	Color Type 2 from the PlayStation port of Strider.
Color 3	Artwork colorations featured in the Strider Hiryu manga.	Color 4	Color 3 from Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, with hair changed from blonde to silver. Originally based on Kenji from Red Earth.

Strider Hien Costume "Strider Hien was once an ally to Hiryu, but after Hien's betrayal and resurrection of Grandmaster Meio, the two Striders became bitter enemies. This costume imagines Hiryu donning Hien's iconic outfit."
Color 1	Based on Hien's artwork design from Strider 2.	Color 2	Closely resembles Kenji's color scheme, specially from art in Capcom Fighting Evolution, with the white scarf and darker blue uniform.
Color 3	Hiryu's Color 6 from Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, originally based on Guy from Street Fighter and Final Fight.	Color 4	Hiryu's Color 2 from Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, based on the black uniform wore by ninja in popular culture.

Grandmaster Meio[]

MvCI Grandmaster — Grandmaster Meio as seen in Story Mode

Grandmaster Meio was first shown in a brief scene during the 3rd story trailer, seen during the 2017 E3 convention. Unlike Hiryu, Meio's design is from his appearance in the 2014 Strider.

He appears in the Story Mode as a non-playable character, having become the "Imperator" of Knowmoon in the merged universe. He allied himself with Ultron Sigma seeking to fulfill his desires of controlling and manipulating life^[3], as well as over their shared desire to see all life on Earth eradicated. As part of their plans, Grandmaster Meio turned the Gravitrons into biological bombs able to carry the Sigma Virus and deploy it on a worldwide scale, allowing for it to spread and convert all lifeform on the surface into mechanoids loyal to Ultron Sigma. Meio is also the holder of the Power Stone, which he keeps embedded within the Gravitron to serve as the station's power supply. At some point he also captured and rewrote Zero's core programming, turning him into "Oblivion", a servile subordinate and guardian.

Battle[]

Grandmaster Meio is faced during the third and final battle in the Knowmoon chapter. As Captain Marvel and Nova arrive at Knowmoon's core, Grandmaster Meio greets them and sics a number of Ultron Drones against them. Meio only serves as a stage hazard in the battle itself, attacking the player as they fight six Ultron Drones.

Mvci Meio giant orb — Meio using the Giant Tracker Orb

During the battle Grandmaster Meio floats in the background, periodically using attacks to assist the Ultron Drones:

Giant Tracker Orb: Meio waves his hands around and generates a large, violet/pink energy orb which he then sends forward. The orb moves slowly but tracks the player character, hitting several times on impact. Based on a similar move he uses in the 2014 Strider.
Lightning Blast: Meio rises his open hands and shoots two beams of purple electricity forward, aimed at the ground. Once they strike a pillar of rising energy generates on the spot. Loosely based on his lightning attack from the 2014 Strider.
Teleport: If pushed off-screen, Meio performs a teleport to get back into view. Uses a similar animation and swirl of energy as in the 2014 Strider.

After the battle, Meio is confronted by Hiryu and Gamora, and after a short exchange he attacks them, only for the two to avoid the lightning strike and cross-slash strike him, seemingly killing him on the spot.

Knowmoon[]

Mvci Third Moon hologram — Knowmoon's hologram

Knowmoon (ノームーン) is one of the locations in the game which combines a Marvel setting with a Capcom one, in this case the Knowhere from Guardians of the Galaxy with The Third Moon from Strider. The station's outward appearance is based on its Strider 2 design, while internally the stage features mixed elements from its 2014 incarnation and Meio's Tower.

There are two stages set in this location:

Area

Description

Knowmoon - Walkway

One of many walkways found inside Knowmoon. This area is a long, gray-metallic bridge going into the distance, with several pillars lined up at both edges. These pillars have white flags with Meio's personal emblem hung over, an element borrowed from the staircase in front of the entrance to Meio's Tower. There are several terminals on the background, and an open door leading into the core as well.

Ultron Drones can be seen flying and shooting beams all over the sky, apparently fighting against an unseen enemy force.

Knowmoon - Gravitron Core

The core of Knowmoon and Grandmaster Meio's dwelling. The area is set on a walkway leading straight into a staircase to a large, circular throne-like object with white walls behind it. Both the throne and the walkway have several flags sporting Meio's personal emblem lined up at the sides. In the background stands the large Sigma Virus-infected Gravitron serving as the station's core and a walkway leading into it. The ceiling is busted open with part of the Celestial's decapitated head where Knowhere is built into visible, showing it being stuck inside the Third Moon's structure.

As in the Walkway stage, Ultron Drones can be spotted flying and shooting beams all around the sky in the background.

Other references[]

Hiryu's character theme is, as has been in all previous games, a remix of "Raid!", the first stage theme from the original Strider.
- The theme playing during Grandmaster Meio's battle in Story Mode is a remix of "The Moon Tower", the music used in the Meio's Tower area from the 2014 Strider. This is the third song from the series to be featured in Marvel vs. Capcom, following "Raid!" and the credits theme ("Sarani...") used in his ending from the first game.
References in Hiryu's lines:
- One of Hiryu's voiced pre-match intros is "I am the hunter, you are my prey", an often-quoted line of his from Strider 2.
- Hiryu's win quote, "Hiryu to Headquarters. Mission complete.", is his final line in both Strider 2 and the 2014 Strider.
- Hiryu's victory quote to Ultron has him mention he has "parted the veil of mortality" for many of his ilk, a reference to the many robot enemies he has faced in the series, such as the Light Troopers.
Hiryu and Meio's backstory of having been fighting over a thousand years is a nod to the ending of Strider 2, where Grandmaster Meio wonders aloud if Hiryu is the same man who defeated him 2000 years ago, in the events of the original Strider. The notion of the two being caught into a cycle of constant fighting and reincarnation, however, is a new concept introduced by Infinite, with the Strider 2 scenario never being officially explained.
Some of Meio's lines are callbacks to quotes from the series:
- Meio greets Nova and Captain Marvel with a laugh. Although a lot more subdued, this is a nod to the intro of the Arcade Strider, where Meio greets the player with a loud cackle.
- His line to Marvel and Nova ("Bear witness to the death of your world") is similar to a line he speaks to Hiryu in the Japanese version of the 2014 Strider, where he invites him to "witness the end of the world".
- One of his battle lines is "Die, children of the old gods!", adapted from one of his more memorable phrases from the Arcade original: "All Sons of Old Gods, Die!".
Hiryu describes him as being the "Lord of Darkness", his boss title in the 2014 Strider and one possible translation of the kanji forming "Meio".
Hiryu's talk about how Meio can "corrupt life itself" and reshape it into his twisted design is a reference to Meio's power over the creation of life.
The Knowmoon hologram during Story Mode has a red line showing the path from the entrance to the station's core. This is very similar to the wireframe maps from Strider 2, which showed the path throughout the stages with a moving yellow line.
The cover variant for Rocket #4, one of the 20 tie-in cover variants created to promote the game, shows X and Rocket Raccoon fighting on Neo St. Petersburg, Hiryu's home stage in the first Marvel vs. Capcom, itself based on St. Petersburg. This is the only variant cover with a recognizable background location.

Collection[]

Collection is a section of the game which features unlockable elements such as a cutscene viewer and artwork gallery. One part of this mode is called the Stark-Light Library, and features biographies for all characters, a model viewer and extra backstory information to related elements, such as weapons, stages and other props. The mode contains the following Strider entries:

Stark-Light Library
Characters
Strider Hiryu	Grandmaster Meio
Strider Hiryu is a member of the Striders, a secret organization specializing in covert operations throughout history. He was the youngest ever to attain the organization’s elite Special-A Class status, and is now considered its top operative. Strider Hiryu is highly skilled in infiltration and assassination, using ninjutsu paired with high-tech weaponry. One of his targets, Grandmaster Meio, is suspected of working with Ultron Sigma. This is what prompted Hiryu to join the resistance.	A cruel and evil being of nearly godlike powers, Grandmaster Meio only cares for one thing: to extinguish all life on Earth. With the two universes merged, Grandmaster Meio has teamed up with Ultron Sigma as they share the same goal of eradicating life on Earth.
Scenes
Gravitron Core	Knowmoon - Walkway
Located in Knowmoon, the Gravitron Core uses the Power Stone to power Grandmaster Meio's base. Once the gem is removed, the Gravitron Core reveals itself as a truly dangerous bomb containing lethal amounts of the Sigma Virus	Knowhere, a base located inside the severed head of an ancient Celestial Being, and the Third Moon, a huge space station, collided to form this megastructure. The sinister Grandmaster Meio is its leader and he's suspected to be using it to fabricate Ultron's drones. Given its sheer size and the scale of its operations, one can only imagine what is Knowmoon's power source.
Extras
Cypher
Strider Hiryu's constant companion, this energy sword wreathes its solid blade in deadly plasma that improves its cutting edge and reach. For a Special-A Class Strider sent into the harshest of mission environments, there can be no better armament.