Marvel vs. Capcom 3 joined by Akuma and Taskmaster

Video reveals of Street Fighter's Akuma and Marvel Comics' Taskmaster as playable characters in Marvel vs. Capcom 3 have popped up exclusively on IGN. Fans of the series will no doubt have spotted Akuma in a British retailer listing for February's big fighting game, and Taskmaster made an appearance in panels from what was rumored to be a Marvel vs. Capcom 3 tie-in comic book.

Rather than being unlocked out of the gate, players must earn 2000 PP for Akuma and 8000 PP for Taskmaster -- Eurogamer describes earning 2000 PP as "roughly equivalent to a single playthrough of Arcade Mode," adding that Capcom believes "most players" will unlock all secret characters "within a couple of hours." It is believed that two more characters will be revealed before MvC3 arrives on February 15 -- for now, you can see videos of Taskmaster and Akuma just after the break.