Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls being the “one more thing” in PlayStation’s most recent State of Play left me the most excited I’ve ever been in a long time for a fighting game. While fighters are far from my main genre, I do have a strong liking for them and the community, and I’ve always loved most of what Arc System Works has put out. So when I saw that the game would be playable at Evo, I absolutely jumped at the opportunity.
Much like 2XKO did last year, Marvel: Tokon Fighting Souls took Evo 2025 by storm. It was easily the most active booth on the expo floor with lines forming as soon as attendees were let in. As far as I knew, even with a press badge, there was no appointment system, but I gotta give a shoutout to ArcSys’ community manager Daniel for letting me in as a Creator. I was at Evo for work (with Gamers Outreach), so I didn’t really have time to stand in this line–although I did stand in line for almost an hour, because Creators only had access to one machine, and each play session was 15 minutes long.
The heroes and villains of Marvel comics are timeless, so what the art team at Arc System Works did to give the characters their own distinct look that separate themselves both from the comics and other media is simply astounding. The game has the look and feel of Marvel as if it were manga, and it really can only be appreciated when you see the action in person. The demo at Evo featured six characters — Ms. Marvel, Star Lord, Iron Man, Captain America, Storm, and Dr. Doom, and in the 15 minutes that I had with the game, it was interesting trying to get my feet under me.
Despite how long these characters have existed, the visual style in Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is quite unique. Seeing the draw lines eventually get painted to start each level is simply a treat.
Tokon is a 4v4 tag fighter. That really shouldn’t work, but ArcSys found a way. Mind you, tag fighters have fallen out of favor over the last couple years simply because of their intimidating nature. Not only are they fast-paced, but the intricacies of plenty of them (namely the Marvel vs. Capcom games) make them pretty overwhelming to newcomers. I can recall so many moments where once I got hit, I was automatically a fallen victim to an unstoppable combo where I just sat there and got killed. Unlike more traditional tag fighters, in Marvel Tokon, you don’t automatically start off with all four characters. You actually start with two and get the rest as you play. Each stage is split into three sections, and you can pound your opponents through these other sections to gain the ability to use your third (and eventually forth) character. In addition to going through level sections, you can unlock a character by losing a round, making the next round all the more intense.
For those into it, think of a pro wrestling match between a top face and heel. Rarely will you ever see a “squash” or complete domination happen from start to finish. At first, the heel is livening up the crowd, while the face wakes them up after seeing some adversity. Tokon really builds itself with this flow without the need to make things intense too early. All this said, if you are able to body your opponent, it’s also badass because you essentially did it with less characters.
I played against a creator in the Artist Alley who claimed to not be good at fighters, but she absolutely destroyed me in our first bout. It got to a point where I was just blocking most of the time as I tried to get a feel for my characters. At first, I didn’t actually understand how tagging in and out was done, because I expected it to be Marvel vs. Capcom, but once you expect that, it’s already over. Fortunately, me being a terrible fighting game player, the game also has its modern accessibility settings. Every character, at least from what I played, has link combos that only require you to mash a button to deliver considerable damage. I mashed the heck out of square to open up a new section, and when I tagged out to bring Star Lord into the fray with his fun gun-fu esque moves, I definitely started having my fun.
Only six characters were available to try out at the Evo demo, and we can’t wait to see and get our hands on every else.
I used every character in the demo, but aside from Star Lord and Storm, I didn’t really resonate with too many characters because… well, I was getting absolutely destroyed and didn’t have a chance to really learn much. I will say, though, Marvel: Tokon: Fighting Souls looks absolutely beautiful, so far plays like a dream, and the characters I did use felt fun and unique. I really think this game is going to come sooner than later. We’ll definitely have to ride the hype train as more characters are confirmed for the game, but it just felt too polished to be too far off.
While Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls doesn’t currently have a release date, I’d be shocked if it didn’t come out by next spring at the latest. This is definitely a game that Evo 2026, now confirmed for late June, will want on the grand stage. Whether or not it comes around before then, this is a game that I’ll be playing for a long time when it comes out next year. For now, keep an eye on out for Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls’ closed beta running from September 5th to the 7th to get your Marvel hits in.
Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls being the “one more thing” in PlayStation’s most recent State of Play left me the most excited I’ve ever been in a long time for a fighting game. While fighters are far from my main genre,…
Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls being the “one more thing” in PlayStation’s most recent State of Play left me the most excited I’ve ever been in a long time for a fighting game. While fighters are far from my main genre, I do have a strong liking for them and the community, and I’ve always loved most of what Arc System Works has put out. So when I saw that the game would be playable at Evo, I absolutely jumped at the opportunity.
Much like 2XKO did last year, Marvel: Tokon Fighting Souls took Evo 2025 by storm. It was easily the most active booth on the expo floor with lines forming as soon as attendees were let in. As far as I knew, even with a press badge, there was no appointment system, but I gotta give a shoutout to ArcSys’ community manager Daniel for letting me in as a Creator. I was at Evo for work (with Gamers Outreach), so I didn’t really have time to stand in this line–although I did stand in line for almost an hour, because Creators only had access to one machine, and each play session was 15 minutes long.
The heroes and villains of Marvel comics are timeless, so what the art team at Arc System Works did to give the characters their own distinct look that separate themselves both from the comics and other media is simply astounding. The game has the look and feel of Marvel as if it were manga, and it really can only be appreciated when you see the action in person. The demo at Evo featured six characters — Ms. Marvel, Star Lord, Iron Man, Captain America, Storm, and Dr. Doom, and in the 15 minutes that I had with the game, it was interesting trying to get my feet under me.
Despite how long these characters have existed, the visual style in Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls is quite unique. Seeing the draw lines eventually get painted to start each level is simply a treat.
Tokon is a 4v4 tag fighter. That really shouldn’t work, but ArcSys found a way. Mind you, tag fighters have fallen out of favor over the last couple years simply because of their intimidating nature. Not only are they fast-paced, but the intricacies of plenty of them (namely the Marvel vs. Capcom games) make them pretty overwhelming to newcomers. I can recall so many moments where once I got hit, I was automatically a fallen victim to an unstoppable combo where I just sat there and got killed. Unlike more traditional tag fighters, in Marvel Tokon, you don’t automatically start off with all four characters. You actually start with two and get the rest as you play. Each stage is split into three sections, and you can pound your opponents through these other sections to gain the ability to use your third (and eventually forth) character. In addition to going through level sections, you can unlock a character by losing a round, making the next round all the more intense.
For those into it, think of a pro wrestling match between a top face and heel. Rarely will you ever see a “squash” or complete domination happen from start to finish. At first, the heel is livening up the crowd, while the face wakes them up after seeing some adversity. Tokon really builds itself with this flow without the need to make things intense too early. All this said, if you are able to body your opponent, it’s also badass because you essentially did it with less characters.
I played against a creator in the Artist Alley who claimed to not be good at fighters, but she absolutely destroyed me in our first bout. It got to a point where I was just blocking most of the time as I tried to get a feel for my characters. At first, I didn’t actually understand how tagging in and out was done, because I expected it to be Marvel vs. Capcom, but once you expect that, it’s already over. Fortunately, me being a terrible fighting game player, the game also has its modern accessibility settings. Every character, at least from what I played, has link combos that only require you to mash a button to deliver considerable damage. I mashed the heck out of square to open up a new section, and when I tagged out to bring Star Lord into the fray with his fun gun-fu esque moves, I definitely started having my fun.
Only six characters were available to try out at the Evo demo, and we can’t wait to see and get our hands on every else.
I used every character in the demo, but aside from Star Lord and Storm, I didn’t really resonate with too many characters because… well, I was getting absolutely destroyed and didn’t have a chance to really learn much. I will say, though, Marvel: Tokon: Fighting Souls looks absolutely beautiful, so far plays like a dream, and the characters I did use felt fun and unique. I really think this game is going to come sooner than later. We’ll definitely have to ride the hype train as more characters are confirmed for the game, but it just felt too polished to be too far off.
While Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls doesn’t currently have a release date, I’d be shocked if it didn’t come out by next spring at the latest. This is definitely a game that Evo 2026, now confirmed for late June, will want on the grand stage. Whether or not it comes around before then, this is a game that I’ll be playing for a long time when it comes out next year. For now, keep an eye on out for Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls’ closed beta running from September 5th to the 7th to get your Marvel hits in.
by Danreb Victorio
