SinceMarvel vs Capcom 2is a team game, selecting assists that synergize well with your point characters is crucial to becoming a good player. If you play a team focused on rushing down opponents, you may want an assist that helps with combo extensions. If you prefer a more defensive style, an anti-air assist can help keep opponents at bay. Additionally, if your team has strong anti-air but lacks damage output, an assist that punishes other assists might be the best option.
Marvel vs Capcom 2 features a roster of 56 characters, each offering three different assists. With tens of thousands of potential team combinations, finding the right assist can be overwhelming. However, since Marvel vs Capcom 2 has been around for 25 years, many of the best assists have already been identified by the community.
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The best character of theiconic shoto arch typein Marvel vs Capcom 2, both as a point and an assist, is Ken Masters. Ken’s iconic Shoryuken is a strong assist that grants him significant invincibility and knocks the opponent across the screen. However, Ken’s Hurricane Kick assist is considered his best option due to the large amount of space it covers.
When Ken’s Hurricane Kick connects, it juggles the opponent in the air for 5-6 hits, giving you plenty of time to set up a damaging combo. For players who struggle with execution, an easy follow-up is using supers from characters like Cable or Colossus, which can lead to solid damage.
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A lot of tactics in Marvel vs Capcom 2 revolve around exploiting the game’s engine. Juggernaut has a glitch where if you use his Cyttorak Power-Up, which temporarily buffs his damage, and then tag him out, the buff becomes permanent. This makes Juggernaut hit like a truck and turns him into one of the best counter assists, as he can take down an assist in just five or six hits.
Juggernaut Punch is his best assist, covering a large portion of the screen while being fairly fast. The main downside to Juggernaut’s assist is that you need to start with him, perform his buff, and then make a risky tag. Juggernaut-based teams must accept that they will likely be punished early in the game for tagging him out.
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Marvel vs Capcom 2 has one of the largest rosters of any fighting game, but most characters aren’t viable at a competitive level unless you have Tron Bonne as an assist. Tron Bonne’s medium punch assist hits three times, dealing 15 damage per hit. Since low tiers often struggle with dealing damage, Tron Bonne serves as an equalizer, addressing one of the low tiers' most prominent and consistent weaknesses.
Although Tron Bonne’s medium punch does significant damage, it can be difficult to land all three hits. However, dealing 30 damage is still substantial in Marvel vs Capcom 2, as many supers do around that amount. While Tron Bonne’s assist lacks range, if you can corner your opponent, you’ll take off a considerable chunk of their health.
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Both Iron Man and War Machine have nearly identical move sets and boast one of the most damaging assists in Marvel vs Capcom 2: Repulsor Blast. This assist juggles the opponent in the air for several hits, making it easy to follow up with a combo. This allows War Machine and Iron Man to complement each other, as they both have strategies centered around landing infinite combos.
Repulsor Blast covers a large portion of the screen, making it excellent for coverage and assist punishing. However, the main drawback is that Repulsor Blast is a slow assist, so your opponent will likely see it coming if you don’t set it up effectively.
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In addition to havingone of the best supers in Marvel vs Capcom 2, Cable provides your team with a top-tier assist that defends your team against pressure. Psimitar functions similarly to a Shoryuken and has invincibility on its startup, meaning a well-timed Psimitar will launch the opponent far away without being contested.
Psimitar is a high-damage assist and can effectively target other assists that have whiffed their attacks. However, it’s important to be mindful that Psimitar attacks at a high angle and doesn’t travel far horizontally. If you whiff with Psimitar, your opponent will have ample time to figure out a punish.
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Despite being labeled as an anti-air assist, Molecular Shield functions more like an expansion type. Dr. Doom shoots a large number of rocks across the screen, creating aggressive traps. Molecular Shield deals significant chip damage, often more than if it hits an opponent who is blocking.
Because Molecular Shield puts an opponent in block stun for an extended period and inflicts high chip damage, pairing Dr. Doom with Strider offers the best value. Strider’s Ouroboros super also deals substantial chip damage and keeps opponents stuck in block stun. Together, Dr. Doom and Strider possess the best trapping ability in Marvel vs Capcom 2.
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The best character on point is also equipped with one of the best assists. Sentinel’s Sentinel Force move unleashes a wave of aerial drones that attack horizontally one after the other. This makes Sentinel’s assist effective for controlling neutral, trapping opponents, and providing coverage for rush-down characters to close in without interruption.
While Sentinel’s Sentinel Force is incredibly powerful, he also has another assist that is nearly as good: Rocket Punch. Rocket Punch deals massive damage and can be used as a combo extender since it hits opponents on the ground.
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Along with Psylocke, Cyclops has one of the best anti-air assists. Cyclops’ Gene Splice is a Shoryuken-type attack that comes out quickly and has some invincibility. While Gene Splice doesn’t deal a lot of damage, it puts opponents in a state that makes it easy to follow up with a combo.
Compared to Psylocke’s anti-air assist, Cyclops is more execution-friendly due to the amount of time available to follow up. However, Cyclops doesn’t always hit his opponent consistently, and it can sometimes be challenging to manage the distance of his Gene Splice. Another advantage of Gene Splice is that it shoots an optic blast projectile vertically in the air, allowing Cyclops to box out opponents who are super jumping into range.
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Rush down is the strongest tactic in Marvel vs Capcom 2, making assists like Psylocke’s Psy-Blade highly valuable. Psy-Blade is an uppercut-like move that hits quickly and has significant priority. It knocks the opponent into a juggled state, allowing for follow-ups.
Psylocke is a key component of one of the strongest teams in Marvel vs Capcom 2, known as Magneto/Storm/Psylocke, or “MSP.” Just one hit from Psylocke can lead to an infinite combo, making her a lethal assist for players with strong combo execution skills.
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The best assist in the game comes from Capcom’s former mascot, Captain Commando. Captain Commando’s Captain Corridor provides your team with control of the neutral in Marvel vs Capcom 2. The hitbox of Captain Corridor takes up a large portion of the screen horizontally and attacks full-screen vertically, making it difficult for flyers like Sentinel and Storm to get in close range.
Captain Corridor also deals significant damage. A beginning player will likely notice that half their team’s health is gone after only a few exchanges. Additionally, Captain Commando’s assist sends opponents far away, making him a good pairing for keep-away characters like Cable.
