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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.

old ryuThe 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.

old back.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 seeold webdepicted 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..
new cards
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.
capcom examplesnk example

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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