Virtua Fighter was the first memorable 3D fighting game ever released, beating Tekken by a few months. The game was a technological marvel at the time of its 1993 release, which was essentially par for the course when it comes to the legendary SEGA-AM2 studio. It possessed impressively fluid movements, ran at 60FPS, and its characters could even move their fingers while performing martial arts maneuvers.
Virtua Fighter moved away from fireballs and most fantastical elements that most fighting games had back then. Fights were made quick and brutal. Models had as many details as the technology allowed and presented. Braids, bandanas, and belts had fluid, independent movement. The game eventually became one of the most important competitive games of the genre, and each version was made better than the previous.
10 It Is The Same Old Virtua Fighter
For those who are familiar with the franchise, Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown does not have anything new to offer. However, for players who wanted to see their favorite fighting game revived, this is precisely what happened.
This version of Virtua Fighter plays exactly the way the previous Virtua Fighter 5 played. Even for those coming from Virtua Fighter 4, which is an amazing game, this version will feel not feel too different The graphics are updated, and the game uses the Dragon Engine, which was exclusive to Yakuza games. The game has update models and minor design tweaks in the stages, but it does look familiar and feels the same.
9 It Is A Three-Button Game
Virtua Fighter is relatively simple to get started with. There is a guard button, a punch button, and a kick button. In order to punch or kick the adversaries shins, hold down and press either punch or kick. To block a low attack, hold guard and down at the same time. And although a good arcade stick helps, it can be enjoyed without one.
Virtua Fighter 3 introduced a dodge button, but it ended up being removed from the sequels. Moving up or down is performed by tapping those directions since Virtua Fighter 4.
8 Characters Have Many Moves
Although the game only uses three buttons, there are countless combinations of button directions. “Down punch” is different from “forward punch,” but double-tapping forward might trigger a different attach than tapping it once.
Virtua Fighter might feel relatively simple and intuitive at first, but it is a fighting game with an extremely high ceiling. Playing at a higher level is very demanding. Players would need to know all the movements of their characters and the best way to use them effectively.
7 Many Characters Utilize Real Martial Arts
The vivid animations and authentic martial arts techniques in Virtua Fighter are impressive. AM2 Studio has always done what it could to make the game feel at least somewhat grounded. Akira’s Ba Ji Quan feels effective, Jacky shows off a convincing Jeet Kune Do, and Brad looks threatening with his aggressive Muay Thai.
Some characters do not follow the same grounded approach, though. Kage’s ninjutsu does not look like something that would work in real life, but it looks cool nonetheless.
6 Virtua Fighter Is Not Realistic
It is not like Virtua Fighter is trying to simulate an actual fight. Many animations look as natural as possible, but the game also has juggles combos, high jumps, and impossible throws. Some movements might look possible to perform but would never work as they do in the game.
Virtua Fighter does not try to be like real life at all. It even has a kunoichi cyborg who mastered most martial arts as a final boss. The game is meant to be a Martial Arts power fantasy, not a simulator.
5 Customization Is A Paid DLC Pack
Although Virtua Fighter was once known for its many assets for character customization, this last release came out without that option. It is not a big deal since it came out as a PlayStation Plus free game. However, even the paid expansion that allows players to customize their fighters is not very extensive.
Virtua Fighter will have more than enough in its gameplay to keep fans entertained even without customization. Acquiring the DLC might be a way to convince SEGA to make more games of the franchise. However, it is a purely cosmetic addition to a game launched for free to most PlayStation players.
4 There Are Easy Characters And Difficult Ones
Some characters are straightforward in Virtua Fighter. Jacky has a lot of good striking moves. His jumping kicks and flips are easy to perform and deal significant damage. On the other hand, we have characters like Akira. Many of his moves demand perfect timing, making him much harder to use at his full potential than any other character.
When familiarizing with the game, it might be good to choose a more superficial character such as Jacky or Sarah. From there, learn the basics and learn how the other characters work.
3 Attacks Have Different Heights And Properties
Some attacks might launch characters in the air, and others might be better to juggle the launched opponents. Some attacks will defeat a standing guard, while others will go through a crouching one.
Attacks have three different heights. Characters can duck under high attacks, but they cannot block mid attacks when crouching. Low attacks must be blocked while crouching, but they are usually slower. It is a very complex game of rock-paper-scissor where players must know their characters and react appropriately to the opponent’s mistakes.
2 Stage Elements Are Useful
In 2D fighting games, the stages are generally there as a good-looking background for the fight. That is not the case for many 3D games of the genre, though. Stages in Virtua Fighter can cause a great advantage to certain characters.
Virtua Fighter has quite a variety of stages. Characters can be pushed against the wall to be pressured. The walls help the attacking character to have a combo extension, but some stages do not have walls. There are arenas where fighters can be pushed out of it, losing the round. Some might combine the themes, having a side with a low wall and others without any.
1 Crouching Punches Are Effective
Crouching punches are the standard way to dodge a sequence of attacks and quickly interrupt it at the same time. On a hit, players get a slight advantage on their next immediate move. It is an effective technique that might be hard to counter. So learning both how to use those low attacks and how to deal with them is crucial.
Crouching jabs are considered ex-low attacks, which means they can be blocked by standing enemies. Holding guard might be the simplest way to deal with it. After blocking, players might want to go for their quickest mid-attack, which will beat another low punch. Dodging an attack after the crouching grab also works well.
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