Jump vs. Capcom: Apex Cross of Heroes

Jump vs. Capcom: Apex Cross of Heroes is a 2.5D crossover fighting game developed by 8ing and published by Capcom. The game is a brand new installment in Capcom's Vs. series of crossover fighting games, which also encompasses the Marvel vs. Capcom and SNK vs. Capcom franchises. Released for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. It features characters from various Capcom and Shonen Jump franchises.

Gameplay
Touted as a "return to form" for the Vs. series, Jump vs. Capcom's gameplay continues to use the 2-on-2 tag team system last used in Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, but with major changes to gameplay. Jump vs. Capcom utilizes a similar button system to that of its predecessor, Marvel vs. Capcom 3, with three buttons for light, middle and heavy attacks, a fourth button for launcher attacks, a Partner Assist button for tagging in and performing assists, and a button made for the new "Special Assist" mechanic.

Before a match, players get to choose two characters for their team, as well as a third "Special Assist", which they can them summon in the middle of battle with a quick press of the Special Assist button. Special Assists are distinguished from Partner Assists with their unique abilities and inability to be tagged into the match. Upon each usage, the player cannot perform another special assist until the assist is fully “recharged”. Several special assists recharge quickly, while some take a prolonged period of time before a full recharge.

Each player has a Hyper meter, a special 5-stock meter which, when filled to a certain level, allows players to perform Hyper Combos. With enough Hyper stocks, players are able to cancel into their partners' Hyper Combos for up to three times via the Delayed Hyper Combo (DHC) system. Alternatively, the player can press both the Partner Assist and Special Assist buttons in order to perform a Crossover Combo, where both characters perform their Hyper Combos at the same time.

The new main mechanic introduced in Jump vs. Capcom is the "Awakening", which transforms their current character into a powered-up version of themselves, powering them up significantly. Much like X-Factor in Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Awakening can only be performed once per match, and can be activated by pressing all four attack buttons together. However, unlike X-Factor, Awakening locks the player into their current character until the Awakening period is over.

Relationship values play a vital role in team-building within the game via the new "Bonds" system, with certain pairings granting various buffs and advantages to one another. Each character in the game has at least three other characters that they share a Bond with, with each pairing granting certain advantages during the fight, such as enhanced power, speed or a shorter assist charge period.

Playable

 * Ryu (Street Fighter) Hiroki Takahashi - Kyle Hebert
 * Chun-Li (Street Fighter) Fumiko Orikasa - Jennie Kwan
 * M. Bison (Street Fighter) Norio Wakamoto - Gerald C. Rivers
 * Akuma (Street Fighter) Taketora - Richard Epcar
 * Morrigan Aensland (Darkstalkers) Rie Tanaka - Siobhan Flynn
 * Felicia (Darkstalkers) Kana Asumi - Gina Bowes
 * Jedah Dohma (Darkstalkers) Tomokazu Sugita - David Kaye
 * MegaMan.EXE (Mega Man Battle Network) Akiko Kimura - Nicolas Roye
 * Zero (Mega Man X) Ryotaro Okiayu - Johnny Yong Bosch
 * Dante (Devil May Cry) Toshiyuki Morikawa - Reuben Langdon
 * Vergil (Devil May Cry) Hiroaki Hirata - Dan Southworth
 * Mike Haggar (Final Fight) Kiyoyuki Yanada - Matt Riedy
 * Leon S. Kennedy (Resident Evil) Toshiyuki Morikawa - Nick Apostolides
 * Masamune Date (Sengoku Basara) Kazuya Nakai - Reuben Langdon
 * Viewtiful Joe (Viewtiful Joe) Tomokazu Seki - Darrell Guilbeau
 * Monster Hunter (Monster Hunter) Yui Ishikawa - Melissa Hutchinson
 * Rouge (Power Stone) Chiaki Takahashi - Karen Dyer
 * Strider Hiryu (Strider) Yuji Ueda - T.J. Storm
 * Arthur (Ghosts n' Goblins) Tetsu Inada - Dan Woren
 * Batsu Ichimonji (Rival Schools) Nobuyuki Hiyama - Todd Haberkorn
 * Apollo Justice (Ace Attorney) Kenn - Sean Chiplock
 * Asura the Destructor (Asura's Wrath) Hiroki Yasumoto - Liam O'Brien

Assists

 * Charlie Nash (Street Fighter) Kosuke Toriumi - Mike McFarland
 * Roll (Mega Man) Yuka Iguchi - Erica Lindbeck
 * Donovan Baine (Darkstalkers) Daiki Hamano - Armen Taylor
 * Lady (Devil May Cry) Fumiko Orikasa - Kate Higgins
 * Guy (Final Fight) Tsuguo Mogami - Jason Miller
 * Ada Wong (Resident Evil) Yuko Kaida - Jolene Andersen
 * Nina (Breath of Fire) Kyoko Hikami - Julie Ann Taylor
 * Nathan "Radd" Spencer (Bionic Commando) Takaya Kuroda - Dameon Clarke
 * Saki Omokane (Quiz Nanairo Dreams) Yoko Honna - Jenny Yokobori
 * Zack (Zack & Wiki) Hiro Shimono - Sam Riegel

Playable

 * Son Goku (Dragon Ball) Masako Nozawa
 * Vegeta (Dragon Ball) Ryo Horikawa
 * Piccolo (Dragon Ball) Toshio Furukawa
 * Frieza (Dragon Ball) Ryusei Nakao
 * Naruto Uzumaki (Naruto) Junko Takeuchi
 * Sasuke Uchiha (Naruto) Noriaki Sugiyama
 * Kakashi Hatake (Naruto) Kazuhiko Inoue
 * Izuku Midoriya (My Hero Academia) Daiki Yamashita
 * All Might (My Hero Academia) Kenta Miyake
 * Jotaro Kujo (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure) Daisuke Ono
 * DIO (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure) Takehito Koyasu
 * Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece) Mayumi Tanaka
 * Ichigo Kurosaki (Bleach) Masakazu Morita
 * Tanjiro Kamado & Nezuko Kamado (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba) Natsuki Hanae & Akari Kito
 * Gon Freecss (Hunter × Hunter) Megumi Han
 * Kenshiro (Fist of the North Star) Katsuyuki Konishi
 * Yusuke Urameshi (YuYu Hakusho) Nozomu Sasaki
 * Pegasus Seiya (Saint Seiya) Masakazu Morita
 * Gintoki Sakata (Gintama) Tomokazu Sugita
 * Arale Norimaki (Dr. Slump) Mami Koyama
 * Kinnikuman (Kinnikuman) Toshio Furukawa
 * Lala Satalin Deviluke (To-Love-Ru) Haruka Tomatsu

Assists

 * Krillin (Dragon Ball) Mayumi Tanaka
 * Sakura Haruno (Naruto) Chie Nakamura
 * Ochako Uraraka (My Hero Academia) Ayane Sakura
 * Giorno Giovanna (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure) Kensho Ono
 * Rukia Kuchiki (Bleach) Fumiko Orikasa
 * Zenitsu Agatsuma (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba) Hiro Shimono
 * Saitama (One-Punch Man) Makoto Furukawa
 * Light Yagami (Death Note) Mamoru Miyano
 * Yugi Mutou (Yu-Gi-Oh!) Shunsuke Kazama
 * Asta (Black Clover) Gakuto Kajiwara

Final Boss

 * Kaguya Otsutsuki (Naruto) Mami Koyama

Stages

 * Hotel Masters (Street Fighter)
 * Feast of the Damned (Darkstalkers)
 * Neo Arcadia (Mega Man Zero)
 * Metro City (Final Fight)
 * Ankoku Temple (Okami)
 * Tenkaichi Budokai (Dragon Ball)
 * Hidden Leaf Village (Naruto)
 * U.A. High School (My Hero Academia)
 * Straw Hat Pirates' Ship (One Piece)
 * Hell (Chainsaw Man)
 * The World's Fusion (Original)
 * Training Stage (Original)

Game Modes

 * Offline
 * Arcade
 * Versus
 * Missions
 * Training
 * Kaguya's Awakening^
 * Online
 * Lobby
 * Ranked Battle
 * Player Battle
 * Replay
 * Nakama Battle^
 * Online
 * Offline
 * Create Deck
 * Card Gallery
 * Collection
 * Options

Nakama Battle
In a manner similar to the Heroes & Heralds mode in Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Nakama Battle allows the use of power-up cards in order to enhance the gameplay of each team.

Offline mode allows the player to play against the CPU for territory control, and expand their deck of cards. The CPUs difficulty tends to vary and defeating them grants new cards to expand the player's deck. Each card grants a unique effect to the player, and are represented by a character from the Shonen Jump or Capcom universe. For example, the Master Roshi card increases the player's chances of getting rarer cards. With enough skill, players may use all three slots for cards like Master Roshi to help obtain the rarer cards faster.

Online mode plays different from Offline mode. Instead of fighting for territory, players are given the option of choosing a side, with the caveat of not allowing to change sides unless they erase their player data. Upon choosing a side, the player is then matched up against the opposite side in a series of quick matches. Whether the player wins or loses these quick matches will alter the percentage bar, which determines who wins at the end of the week. Players may also be able to obtain new cards and custom colors in this manner.

Kaguya's Awakening
Unlocked after beating Arcade once, Kaguya's Awakening puts the player in control of the game's final boss, Kaguya Otsutsuki. Kaguya's moveset is largely limited and slow, but powerful enough to mow down enemy teams with relative ease. In this mode, ending the match in a timeout grants automatic victory for the player, regardless of the amount of HP left.

Trivia

 * The game retains the combo ranking system from the previous Vs. titles. However, in place of the standard "Marvelous!/Tatsunical!" combo rating is "Di Molto!" a direct reference to the fifth part of the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure manga series, Golden Wind, where it serves as Melone's catchphrase.
 * Most of the cast's Awakenings are taken right out of their respective source material, such as Goku turning Super Saiyan, Naruto entering Nine-Tailed Sage Mode, Ryu tapping into the Satsui no Hado, Dante and Vergil activating their Devil Triggers etc. Some characters' Awakenings also affect their enemy in various ways, like Jotaro and Dio triggering their Stands' time stop ability.
 * In a similar fashion as with Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Capcom characters have dual-voice options that can be toggled per character, while all of the Shonen Jump characters are voiced exclusively in Japanese. According to the developers, this was done due to budget concerns.
 * Most of the voice cast for the Capcom side, both English and Japanese, have been recast with newer voice actors or are portrayed by their voice actors from newer titles in their respective series, though a few characters retain their old voice actors.
 * The game features a dedication to the memory of mangaka Kazuki Takahashi, of Yu-Gi-Oh! fame, who passed away around the time of the game's development cycle.