SNK vs. Capcom: Card Fighters DS is an Action-Adventure, Fighting, and Single-player video game developed by SNK. All through the game, the player serves as a fighter who has to fight against other opponents using cards. The game takes the player to a card tower where he comes to face multiple enemies on the twenty floors.

The player has to beat everyone from smaller to giant ones on the floor to get to advance through the tower. The player doesn’t have D-pad control for moving around the floor; instead, the player can select opponents on the floor, and the player’s sprite will automatically move to that opponent.

Specific floors have shops that allow the player to purchase new packs of cards or a single card. The player has to use the CP which serve as in-game currency, and the player can get after defeating opponents. Some floors are trading floors where the player has to trade cards with the AIs for progression.