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In
January of 2001, I had a brilliant idea to make SNK vs Capcom Card
Fighter Clash playable with physical cards instead of being restricted
to the Neo-Geo Pocket Color. Don't get me wrong; I thoroughly enjoyed
playing Card Fighters on my NGPC, but I realized that not many people
in my town owned the handheld console. My friends, who loved the game
as well, were constantly borrowing my device just to play it.
At that time, I was pursuing a degree in Commercial Art, which allowed
me to purchase a copy of Quark Express at a reasonable price. However,
I encountered a setback when I realized that using this program meant
only I could print the cards, which defeated the purpose of creating a
broader gaming experience. So, I decided to explore a different
approach. Considering various options, I settled on using a paint
program. Although I had initially wished to use Adobe Illustrator or
Photoshop, their high costs made them unaffordable. Instead, I opted
for a more budget-friendly software, Paint Shop Pro, even if it was
somewhat underpowered compared to the professional tools. After
dedicating time and effort to the project, by February 6, 2001, I
proudly completed the first card, marking the beginning of this
exciting venture.
The
card displayed here represents the actual resolution I chose. I must
admit that the printing quality of these cards was disappointingly low,
not to mention the rather poor design. However, at the time, my main
focus was simply on completing the project and getting it done, so I
didn't pay much attention to the cards' appearance.
As I proceeded with this method, I encountered a significant problem –
it was taking far too long. While I managed to complete all the Action
cards and most of the SNK characters, only a handful of Capcom cards
were done. Moreover, at that time, Reaction Cards were not part of the
equation since I was primarily familiar with the first Card Fighter
Clash game.As you may have noticed from this design, I constructed
nearly everything using direct sprite rips. This including sprites,
ranks, and card descriptions.
As
a bit of a perfectionist, I strived to do my best when creating the
backs for the cards, resulting in two different designs, both of which
I found quite unattractive. The first design, displayed on the left,
initially seemed like a good idea, but when I began cutting the cards,
I noticed that the blue border was not consistently centered, making
the imperfection glaringly obvious
This led me to develop the second design, showcased on the right, which
I came up with some time later. The second design was inspired by
Card Fighter Clash 2, which is why it appears much more refined than
the original one. During my early schooling days, my design skills were
not at their best, as evident from these card backs. However, over the
years, I have diligently honed my design abilities, and you can observe
considerable progress and improvement in my more recent works.
After
reaching a point where I began releasing the cards to the public, I
couldn't shake off the feeling of dissatisfaction with how things were
progressing. Despite this, I persevered and took the step of opening a
site on a free web host. The website's design was inspired by an old
Neo-Geo AES slot, as you can seedepicted in the thumbnail provided. I had created this image using
Paint Shop Pro when boredom struck one day, and eventually, I
transformed it into a graphical user interface for the Card
Fighter Clash website. However, the site didn't receive much
attention, and there were no substantial updates except for a single
news entry. Consequently, the project seemed to lose momentum as
quickly as it had been established. I soon found myself losing interest
and practically abandoning the project. Several years passed, but then
an unexpected urge rekindled my passion for the project. But, as
a creature of habit, I went back to working on this using Quark
Express, trying various approaches, but unfortunately, it just wasn't
working out. I kept running into the same old problem - I could make
the cards, but there was no practical way to get them out to the public
if I was the only one who could print them.
Finally,
a friend of mine introduced me to GIMP, an image manipulation program
that is free and open-source. I was thrilled to discover that GIMP was
just as powerful as Photoshop, and it provided the solution I needed to
complete the project successfully. With the help of GIMP, the project
was finalized and received with enthusiasm by fans everywhere.. I
embarked on creating a second series of cards inspired by the DS game,
but unfortunately, I had to cut that series short. Consequently, the
project went dormant and almost disappeared from the internet until
Flavor reached out to inquire about its status. In a gesture of love
for Card Fighters, he kindly offered to host my website. I was
incredibly grateful for his support, especially as I had become a
full-time student without a job at that time. As 2012 began, I
felt that the project needed a facelift. During the summer, I took the
initiative to redesign the cards, hoping that the community would
contribute by providing artwork or allowing me to use their creations.
Regrettably, there was no response from the community, but undeterred,
I pressed on with the redesign. Both the website and the cards
received a fresh update in 2012. The new design gave the cards a
revitalized appearance, but it still needed further improvements, which
I discovered over the following years.
In
October of 2017, a significant milestone was reached when I officially
added a staff member to the project. After spending some time getting
to know each other through Facebook, Raito joined the team and offered
his valuable assistance by volunteering to put together the Spanish
translation for the game.
Additionally, he played a crucial role in helping me identify and
correct inconsistencies.With Raito's support, the project took a step
forward, and we decided to release the 2.0 version under the rebranded
name "Card Fighters Special." This change was made to move away from
the project status and align it with SNK's updated games, where
"Special" indicates an upgrade or enhanced edition. Looking
ahead, we have exciting plans to expand the game by introducing new
characters from some of the newer games post-2001, providing us with a
wide array of options. Our goal is to create a small expansion that
includes around 60-90 new characters on each side, accompanied by fresh
Action and Reaction cards.
Furthermore, we are actively exploring the possibility of updating the
game with new play mechanics in the future, enhancing the overall
gaming experience for our dedicated community of fans. The journey of
Card Fighters Special continues, fueled by passion and the love for
this fantastic trading card game.
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This site is not affiliated with SNK or Capcom. All characters and
artwork are copyright by their proper owners. I do not claim any
copyrights on any of their intellectual properties within these pages. No money is being
made from this project it has been all for educational purposes only. |
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