Back when Capcom's side-scrolling brawlers were all the rage, the Japanese veteran produced the sublime Aliens vs. Predator for its CP System II arcade board.
Considered something of a genre classic, the game was sadly never ported to any home system, and, at the time of writing, the only legal means of playing it comes via the Capcom Home Arcade system.
Artist David Liu, of Space Maria fame, has just revealed that he pitched the idea of reviving the original game as a modern-day sequel. The artist shows off unused artwork relating to the concept, which was created several years ago, and explains that "the biggest and most important aspect of this little project" would have been the involvement of Bannon Rudis as director and designer.
Rudis directed both of the River City Girls games at WayForward, and also worked on 2017's River City Ransom: Underground and Double Dragon Neon.
"He and I worked on this pitch together, and I owe all of the praise to him for guiding me through the artwork I made for the concept," explains Liu, whose credits include River City Girls Zero, Panzer Paladin, Shantae and the Seven Sirens, Castaway and Elsie.
"He’s a big Capcom nut and huge Predator fan, which gave so much credibility to the design he was creating for this idea. I trust him with my entire being with game design and love working with him on projects."
Liu reveals that "fan reaction" has been tremendous, leading him to hope that one day the pair can return to the concept. "The idea of the vision he had for this game and it not becoming a reality is what I’m most sad about... I don’t see why this couldn’t become something that could come to life, and we are able to talk to the right people. Thousands of people can’t be wrong for wanting this, but I have been jaded so much over the years, I’m not holding my breath."