It's no secret that Capcom is going through a second Golden Age. Rising from the ashes of its failed attempt at Westernizing itself (see the DMC reboot as the definitive example), the iconic Japanese company has embraced its identity revitalizing some of its long-standing franchises in the process.
Becoming a powerhouse in the industry once more thanks to the massive success of recent Monster Hunter and Resident Evil titles, Capcom has slowly but surely tried to clean up the names of other IPs that suffered from diminishing returns during the "dark ages."
Long gone are the dire times for fighting game fans with Street Fighter V launching with barebones content, for instance. Street Fighter 6 is already on pace to outsell it and you have multiple retro collections with the Marvel vs Capcom series or Darkstalkers widely available on modern platforms.
The company is even getting a bit experimental like they once did decades ago. Just this past year, Capcom released the vastly underrated strategy game Kunitsu-Gami and the PvPvE extraction shooter Exoprimal the year prior.
Dragon's Dogma returned with a sequel in 2024. Both Onimusha and Okami are due for a comeback as well, with developments on the next installments underway.
Still, Capcom's vast library has fans wondering: what's the next IP that the company could be lining up for a return? Well, these are my top picks.
Viewtiful Joe
It's completely understandable why we haven't seen anything from Capcom regarding Viewtiful Joe. Creator Hideki Kamiya left the company in 2006 soon after the release of Viewtiful Joe: Red Hot Rumble and Double Trouble! for the GameCube and DS, respectively.
Kamiya, who is known for developing Devil May Cry while at Capcom, went on to create gaming icons like Bayonetta and cult classics such as Wonderful 101 working under Platinum Games. Now that the influential developer is back joining forces with Capcom on an Okami sequel, the return of Joe, Silvia, and the rest of the squad is possible.
If you've never played Viewtiful Joe, it's a stylish side-scrolling beat 'em up that puts you on the shoes of the titular character who needs to rescue his girlfriend after being abducted by a literal movie villain, transporting both Joe and Silvia to an alternate dimension called Movieland. Here, Joe will be able to live his dream of becoming a Tokusatsu superhero.
If there's a game that captures the unique essence of the Capcom x Hideki Kamiya partnership is this one. Sadly, the Okami sequel is still a few years away as it stands, and with Clovers (Kamiya's new studio) remaining independent, the renewed alliance might be a one-time deal.
Mega Man
Don't listen to the three people in the back shouting "but we just got Mega Man X Dive offline and the Battle Network Legacy Collection!" That is quite simply not enough for the Blue Bomber and his fans.
Sure, collections are fine and all, but Capcom's technically unofficial-but-everyone-calls-him mascot deserves more love.
It's been almost seven years since Mega Man 11 was released, the second longest-drought for the mainline series. If you're a fan of the X spinoffs, the last released title was X8 back in 2005. Battle Network? 2006. Legends? Let's not even bring that up.
The reason for Mega Man's absence has an explanation, of course. Back in its heyday, the company pumped a new game featuring a version of the Blue Bomber almost on a weekly basis.
To put into perspective just how many Mega Man games Capcom has launched, the franchise has sold over 42 million copies featuring the Blue Bomber. However, the single best-selling title only ranks 65 in the list of most-sold Capcom games (Mega Man 11).
The appetite is there now for a Mega Man comeback in any capacity. At this point, I'd take a Mega Man Soccer 2, although if you ask me, X Command Mission deserves a second chance.
Dino Crisis
Whenever people talk about Capcom franchises that need to make a return, you're bound by the rules of the internet to mention Dino Crisis.
I personally have no sentimental attachment to the franchise, I haven't even played any game in the series, but it's undeniable that there's a fervent fanbase that wants to see it return.
One reason the series is highly regarded is that it was created by legendary developer Shinji Mikami of Resident Evil fame while at Capcom. As Kamiya, Mikami would leave the company to start a journey elsewhere, first with Clover Studio, Platinum Games, and eventually Tango Gameworks, where he helped develop The Evil Within in 2014, his last project working as a game director.
Seeing the resurgence of Resident Evil after the franchise had stagnated with 6 opens the gate for a Dino Crisis return. Mikami has been very vocal in supporting Capcom moving forward without him at the helm of his creations, so a Dino Crisis remake is long overdue.
Marvel vs Capcom
Okay Capcom, it's time to take us for a ride once more. Everyone loves Marvel vs Capcom, whether you're in it to play it for yourself or watch sick combo compilations on YouTube, the tag fighter always delivers.
Even if you're not into fighting games, the sheer concept of a bizarre but very exciting crossover that originally pitted Street Fighter and X-Men characters against one another was too crazy not to buy into.
Eventually, it became the whole Marvel roster vs the streets. Finally, the likes of Mega Man, Strider, and Captain Commando faced off against Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Wolverine when the first MvC was released in 1998.
For many, the series peaked with MvC2. For others, the Ultimate Marvel 3 era is still unmatched. What everyone can agree on is that Marvel vs Capcom: Infinite dealt a near-fatal blow to the franchise. Failing to capitalize on the Marvel Cinematic Universe's hype, Infinite's launch in 2017 floundered and squalled any chance for the series to be successful competing against the likes of Dragon Ball FighterZ, which released just a few months later in early 2018.
While the series hasn't been as dormant as a few others on this list, the fact that some of the most iconic games were delisted and impossible to get on any online storefront for years basically signaled fans to expect nothing related to Marvel vs Capcom. The Age of Dreams was gone.
That is until last year. In a Nintendo Direct of all places, with no prior leaks or rumors to ruin the surprise, Marvel vs Capcom came back.
The dream is very much alive, albeit very likely not something we'll see come to fruition in the near future. Marvel has shifted its gaming strategy over the past few years, focusing on partnering with unique developers to bring more high-quality experiences. It's what's given us Insomniac's Spider-Man, NetEase's Marvel Rivals, or the highly underrated Square Enix's Guardians of the Galaxy.
Who's to say two long-time old pals can't come together to make magic one last time?
Strider
Let's not beat around the bush: Strider is a very niche character. In fact, I'd be willing to bet the majority of his fanbase stems from his MvC appearances rather than his own titles.
The latest in the series was a 2014 remake of the original 1989 game. Co-developed by the now sadly defunct Double Helix Games, the remake has sold over 1 million copies, which makes the absence of a sequel completely puzzling.
Capcom could easily rework the franchise to become a highly replayable roguelike. You got IPs like Prince of Persia, Castlevania (via Dead Cells), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, even Dynasty Warriors with Warriors: Abyss tap into this well with relative success.
It's the latest craze, and if one developer can add a new spin to it that's Capcom.
Final Fight
Speaking about beat 'em ups that need a comeback, what's happening with Final Fight, Capcom? Metro City and its characters have been incredibly relevant in other franchises. Plays can explore Metro City in Street Fighter 6, and Final Fight characters have consistently been a part of that game's roster.
There was a time in the early 2000s when 2D games were looked down upon. The jump to 3D was everything everyone could talk and care about. If fans weren't able to explore tridimensional polygonal spaces then your game wasn't worth trying.
Sadly Final Fight's foray into 3D received a mixed reception to put it lightly. Streetwise launched in 2006 and was not exactly the leap fans were hoping for. The atmosphere was incredibly grim too, lacking the charm of the original series, as it was conceived during that time in which, as I mentioned earlier, Capcom was looking to appeal to Western audiences the most. So much so, that Streetwise didn't even release in Japan.
Nowadays, however, games like Streets of Rage 4, TMNT: Shredder's Revenge, and the River City Girls franchise are testament that fans will gravitate towards a solid, fun, easy-to-pick-and-play couch co-op beat 'em up. The ball is on your court, Capcom.
Rivals Schools
My final pick of the bunch is another fighting game. Sure, Capcom has plenty of titles in the genre in dire need of a comeback, but I'm going for the cult classic Rival Schools.
Why? Well, amid the fighting game renaissance, there's a noticeable lack of games in the 3D space. No, not arena fighters, please don't bring those up.
No question Tekken is king, and Bandai Namco is seemingly all but done with Soulcalibur according to legendary producer Katsuhiro Harada. Dead or Alive is MIA and Virtua Fighter will only be making its comeback possibly as soon as 2026.
It's a long shot, but Capcom entering the 3D fighting game space with a new version of Rival Schools would be extremely interesting. The franchise is already very unique as it's perhaps one of the most grounded when it comes to any fighting game: just a bunch of high-school kids beating each other up. At least that's the initial premise.
And those are my picks. As a long-life Capcom fan, I do hope that the company takes the time to start developing both new IPs without forgetting the characters and franchises that made them thrive originally.