Virtua Fighter 5 (PS3) Preview

[RainOfTerror]

With a number of new fighters, a redesigned single-player campaign, and a bundle of customization options, Virtua Fighter 5 may well be the fighter that you've been looking for. WorthPlaying (http://www.WorthPlaying.com) recently had a chance to get some hands on time with a recent build, here is a snip :

While Virtua Fighter 5 features a few new characters, the real draw undoubtedly lies in Quest Mode. You take an established character, give him or her a custom name, and then go off to battle at one of a handful of arcade centers. These arcade centers feature a number of similarly customized CPU fighters of varying skill level. As you take on these combatants and hopefully rack up wins, you'll rise up through the ranks. If you're good, you'll get invited to tournaments, giving you more chances to go up a rank and score some nice loot.Check the complete Virtua Fighter 5 (PS3) preview (http://www.worthplaying.com/article.php?sid=40438) over at WorthPlaying.

[Gorvi]

I just posted similiar impressions from Eurogamer (http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=72690 ) over in the console games section before I saw this. The game looks really nice.

[Kweli]

Sounds good... the one problem ive had with fighter games is their re-playability.. Arcade only lasts so long...

[gzsfrk]

So wait... the Quest mode lets you SIMULATE playing against other real players? I guess that's their consolation prize for not having an online play mode.

[Vandenh]

Used to play VF2 a lot... right now these kind of fighting games seem so "old" to me. Can't be bothered anymore (especially when there are things like NG that almost have similiar "moves" but infinitly better gameplay options). Maybe with some friends...

[president_fred]

How is this different from the Quest mode on VF4:Evo, it was a good experience but this doesn't sound like a new feature. Ill buy it regardless cause I love VF but still.

[ReaverX]

How is this different from the Quest mode on VF4:Evo, it was a good experience but this doesn't sound like a new feature. Ill buy it regardless cause I love VF but still.
I was thinking the same thing. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved VF4 and it's an awesome feature, but it isn't something that we haven't already seen before.

[Xerxes]

Downloading AI built off the way people actually play would kick ass. I could see in DOA playing a Ryu Hayabusa, 3 triple kick, karate choping bastard with no defensive skill. Only he keeps the offense coming to where I can't get a lick in. And since I don't know how to counter neither does he. Meaning first to the punch, first to the win. O_o

Bring on the Xbox 360 version for what it's worth. Can't wait for DOA 5 forever.

[Kweli]

The next fighter game i buy will be the recently announced UFC game from THQ.... I just hope they dont mess up like previous UFC games.... Theres a sport/fighting game that can have some real depth

[Mdot23]

i'm considering getting a ps3 for this, but do you think the 360 version will end up having online play?? if so, i'll save my money and wait.

[Xerxes]

i'm considering getting a ps3 for this, but do you think the 360 version will end up having online play?? if so, i'll save my money and wait.

Nope. Something about it being precise it would never work. :rolleyes:

[Vandenh]

i'm considering getting a ps3 for this, but do you think the 360 version will end up having online play??

I doubt it... but it will be Revision C of the arcade version while PS3 gets revision B (but you have to be hardcore to feel the difference).

[51|RandoM]

I think the quote from the story is silly. If the real draw isn't delivering a beatdown to the person sitting next to me, it isn't a fighting game worth owning.

[Xerxes]

Wait, you'd go a tournaments based on what your custom character does just cause he allegedly plays like you. Boy that sounds like it could lead to disappointment. You're AI version might kick all sorts of ass and here you are actually representing a computer that represents you.

[Kamalot]

It won't be long before our gaming AI profile goes around beating all these games so we won't have to. I can see it racking up accomplishments on Live, tallying up a bigger gamer score for me while I'm at work. Soon, gamers will be relegated to the sidelines, spectators to the real AI competition.

Puh-leez!

Either put in online play or don't. This AI version of players crap is a half-ass excuse.

[Gorvi]

It won't be long before our gaming AI profile goes around beating all these games so we won't have to. I can see it racking up accomplishments on Live, tallying up a bigger gamer score for me while I'm at work. Soon, gamers will be relegated to the sidelines, spectators to the real AI competition.

Puh-leez!

Either put in online play or don't. This AI version of players crap is a half-ass excuse.

Have you even played a VF game? VF would be ruined by even the smallest amount of lag. Split second timing is everything in a VF game.

[Xerxes]

It won't be long before our gaming AI profile goes around beating all these games so we won't have to. I can see it racking up accomplishments on Live, tallying up a bigger gamer score for me while I'm at work. Soon, gamers will be relegated to the sidelines, spectators to the real AI competition.

Puh-leez!

Either put in online play or don't. This AI version of players crap is a half-ass excuse.

Actually I wouldn't mind my AI doing some of the work. But then again AI would be trying to lead when it should be following. <shrug>

[Jack Random]

Have you even played a VF game? VF would be ruined by even the smallest amount of lag. Split second timing is everything in a VF game.
You hit it right on the head, the game has moves timed down to the individual frame, that's 1/30th of a second (I'm assuming the game runs at 30FPS). You can not, repeat NOT, do that online.

If this was not announced for 360, i would have have had to give the ps3 a long, hard look thanks to this game.

[Flatpicker]

Have you even played a VF game? VF would be ruined by even the smallest amount of lag. Split second timing is everything in a VF game.

QFT.
The timing in a VF game relies on the frame count being at 60/sec.
Akira's moveset is brutal if you can watch someone who has the game dialed in.

I'm not that good, so I use Sarah for her long leg reach and speed.

Personally, I'd like to see VFKIDS released with online play. You don't need preciseness there.

[Xerxes]

Have you even played a VF game? VF would be ruined by even the smallest amount of lag. Split second timing is everything in a VF game.

Yeah yeah yeah. Shun me, for I'm a non-believer. I've probably wasted no more than $10 bucks on VF games through out the years. Maybe that's not enough cause I just didn't feel this holy grail everyone else does. Again if anything Tobal was fighting perfection to me. Characters where wonky but still. In DOA do I see flashes of that, but very very slight. It's kinda like it sparkles in your eye and you get blinded and thought you saw a glint of magic but nopes. It's just DOA. It's like mirages. I had like a kick ass 3 seconds in that game before I remembered I was back in there. I like DOA alot but it's no Tobal in the end. :(

[Gorvi]

Yeah yeah yeah. Shun me, for I'm a non-believer. I've probably wasted no more than $10 bucks on VF games through out the years. Maybe that's not enough cause I just didn't feel this holy grail everyone else does. Again if anything Tobal was fighting perfection to me. Characters where wonky but still. In DOA do I see flashes of that, but very very slight. It's kinda like it sparkles in your eye and you get blinded and thought you saw a glint of magic but nopes. It's just DOA. It's like mirages. I had like a kick ass 3 seconds in that game before I remembered I was back in there. I like DOA alot but it's no Tobal in the end. :(

VF really is a different kind of fighting game. You really need to pick a fighter and learn how to play as them. You can't just go take what you knew from Kage and try to apply it to Pai, for example, it just won't work. Some characters are just very hard to play, while some are a bit easier. But, if you've only spent a small amount of time with VF, I can see why you wouldn't see the appeal. It's really one of those games that get better and better the more time you spend with it and learn each fighter's nuances.

[Rafer]

So wait... the Quest mode lets you SIMULATE playing against other real players? I guess that's their consolation prize for not having an online play mode.

Some people from 1up.com are players in the quest mode (Mielke, Shane and Luke I think). They aren't new models or anything elaborate, they were just picking the name, clothes and accessories of some existing fighters.

You know I kinda admire people who are good at Virtua Fighter, I couldn't muster the patience for the game myself. Funny how people complained about the difficulty of Devil May Cry 3, which didn't bother me much, but I got completely frustrated by VF3.

[Xerxes]

But I always only play as one person. I can't take Ryu move over to Ein and be as effective. And I worked hard at Eddy Gordo to play him as far from being the button smasher he is... :cool: I long for another well(said; better) done capoeirista in a fighting game.

If I did a fighting game, I wouldn't have shit like Ryu and Ken. People with moves that's ever similar, just slightly tweaked. Or more than one person knowing Jeet Kune Do or wrestling. Four fucking ninjas :confused: . I mean have definitive types unique characters. Give me a game with a more robust Marshall law/Jin/Jacky, a deeper Eddy Goro, and Brad Wong's drunken boxing, and like all the tae kwon doe you can cram into some dude. Maybe a Krav Maga dude. Fill each character not spread moves across the board. Muy Thai guy. Through in some of the roll around on the ground type submission wrestling they do in UFC in some go, Juijitsu or something. I'm like with all the popular styles, you could get a full diverse fighting list. But it's would probably be annoying to the public because i'm thinking gameplay of what people say VF is. :confused:

[Kamalot]

Have you even played a VF game? VF would be ruined by even the smallest amount of lag. Split second timing is everything in a VF game.
?

Then don't put in online play. That's simple.
It is the half-ass AI online thing that is dumb. No computer is ever going to play like me, and beating some AI shadow of you isn't going to give me any satisfaction either.

When I say, "Either put in online play or don't." does not mean, 'Put in online play even if it ruins the game.'

Reading comprehension please?

[Gorvi]

?

Then don't put in online play. That's simple.
It is the half-ass AI online thing that is dumb. No computer is ever going to play like me, and beating some AI shadow of you isn't going to give me any satisfaction either.

When I say, "Either put in online play or don't." does not mean, 'Put in online play even if it ruins the game.'

Reading comprehension please?
So you're saying they should cut a feature that won't effect you at all if you just don't use it? Honestly, it's better than nothing, I'd be willing to give it a shot regardless.

[Xerxes]

?

Then don't put in online play. That's simple.
It is the half-ass AI online thing that is dumb. No computer is ever going to play like me, and beating some AI shadow of you isn't going to give me any satisfaction either.

When I say, "Either put in online play or don't." does not mean, 'Put in online play even if it ruins the game.'

Reading comprehension please?

It'd be pretty cool to start "I whipped your shadow..." Thread.

[president_fred]

?

Then don't put in online play. That's simple.
It is the half-ass AI online thing that is dumb. No computer is ever going to play like me, and beating some AI shadow of you isn't going to give me any satisfaction either.

When I say, "Either put in online play or don't." does not mean, 'Put in online play even if it ruins the game.'

Reading comprehension please?
If its anything like VF4 then you train them and tell them what to do in certain situations its actually a pretty neat little feature that teaches the player a great deal of strategic play in a pedagogical and relatively fun way. It doesn't sound like it works but I think it does and as some people said since VF gameplay is not really suited to online play yet (I'm not to sure about that but still) its a good consolation.

[Kamalot]

So you're saying they should cut a feature that won't effect you at all if you just don't use it? Honestly, it's better than nothing, I'd be willing to give it a shot regardless.
I'd rather the development hours be spent on something else in the game, creating new characters, environments, just about anything else. This tacked-on tackyness is time and energy wasted that could have been spent on other aspects of the core game.

[Binkley]

Yeah this thread basically highlights the greatest strength and weakness with Virtua Fighter: its complexity.

Doesn't the VF5 in the arcade have profiles of people who played on the machine and/or downloads them off VF.NET? (Like Tekken 5?)

If that's true, it sounds like the developer wanted to make as close as possible to a true arcade port, which is definitely respectable in my eyes. Though I'm guessing there will be some gameplay tweaks...

And for those of you who complain you have no one to play with, well, this is the Internet. Find people or convince your friends (you have friends right?) to play with you. If you can't do those things then you know you should probably not buy this since fighting games aren't know for being awesome solo experiences.

[Jack Random]

This tacked-on tackyness is time and energy wasted that could have been spent on other aspects of the core game.
I am going to go ahead and disagree. The "player" AI in VF4: EVO (quest mode) was quite noticeably more life-like then any AI I had played in the past. In fact, the individual "players" had fairly realistic tenancies and tactics, you could play two different guys using the same character and they would be going at it in a completely different way.

Good AI is not Tacky.

[Khash]

Tekken: DR for the PS3 & PSP have a similer mode called Ghost Mode where it downloads "virtual players" and uploads your "virtual player" for other people to fight.

Also, there's no way in hell the 360 VF will have direct online play. It just isn't gonna happen, people.

[Kamalot]

Well, it sounds like I am in the minority. I feel like this "I'll watch the way you play and build an AI profile from it' sounds incredibly hokey. But hey, if it floats your boat...

[Ilikecapcom]

This AI thing is lame. And putting in online play does not detract from the overall game. You can still play versus mode if you want.

[Deadend]

I want the game to match me up against local players at an arcade where we both enter our IDs, fight and the winner gets posted online, so that eventually I will be seen to be the best fighter in town.

[Jack Random]

putting in online play does not detract from the overall game
Actually it does. When you put the game into a space where i can not function properly (Frame-accurate moves), you no longer have "that" game. You have some other game that uses the characters from this game.

[Ilikecapcom]

Actually it does. When you put the game into a space where i can not function properly (Frame-accurate moves), you no longer have "that" game. You have some other game that uses the characters from this game.

That would be only the online component though. Does all this lag then translate to the versus mode? No it doesn't. If players wanna play for real, real, they go to versus mode. If they want to see some different players and play styles and just get general experience playing, they would go online. It wouldn’t hurt anything.

I play 3rd Strike online. It's laggy as hell sometimes. When I play for real with friends, we play in versus mode. I can separate the 2.

I see no reason why VF can't do this, besides Sega just doesn't want to put the resources to it. I don't think it's to smart. VF is a competitive fighting game, and to extend these games and their reach, you have to foster a competitive scene. Online play can help this. This isn't like Japan where there are arcades everywhere to find comp, or Sega sponsors tournaments in America.

[Xerxes]

Actually it does. When you put the game into a space where i can not function properly (Frame-accurate moves), you no longer have "that" game. You have some other game that uses the characters from this game.

I swear you guys are really exaggerating but again. It's been a while and I didn't go all die hard.

[Achilles]

Actually it does. When you put the game into a space where i can not function properly (Frame-accurate moves), you no longer have "that" game. You have some other game that uses the characters from this game.Than play the off-line version. They could make the online version more lenient or slow it down along with the lag as they do in DOA4. It wouldn’t be as hardcore but still playable. But from what I'm gathering in these VF threads, without the hardcore aspect of 1/30 frame moves, VF isn’t fun enough to be worthwhile, since most of those who care are saying that they’d rather not have online at all, than have an online version that allowed for any lag.

It reminds me of why I don't like VF. DOA4 runs at 60 fps, I believe the counter window is 10-15 frames, or 1/6th of a second, and they managed to get that to work online. If a game needs to make me execute a move in 1/30th of a second for it to be fun, it's not a game I want to play.

[Zecon]

Than play the off-line version. They could make the online version more lenient or slow it down along with the lag as they do in DOA4. It wouldn’t be as hardcore but still playable. But from what I'm gathering in these VF threads, without the hardcore aspect of 1/30 frame moves, VF isn’t fun enough to be worthwhile, since most of those who care are saying that they’d rather not have online at all, than have an online version that allowed for any lag.

It reminds me of why I don't like VF. DOA4 runs at 60 fps, I believe the counter window is 10-15 frames, or 1/6th of a second, and they managed to get that to work online. If a game needs to make me execute a move in 1/30th of a second for it to be fun, it's not a game I want to play.

Thank you..
If I decide to get back into the fighting game genre, I will want some kind of online play, even if it has to be downloadable AI's. I'm sure LIVE will find a way though....

[RMan]

It reminds me of why I don't like VF. DOA4 runs at 60 fps, I believe the counter window is 10-15 frames, or 1/6th of a second, and they managed to get that to work online.
You also get a nice technical advantage with a 2 player game in that you can run a client/client architecture and be working with half pings in terms of response time. I think no matter what, they could do it, perhaps the hardcore players will shun it, but that's hardly a reason not to do it.

[Salamande]

I swear you guys are really exaggerating but again. It's been a while and I didn't go all die hard.
Honestly...they're not.

Look up an Akira strategy guide. He's got moves where you literally have to press (or release) a button in 1/60 of a second. Yeah, I think it's ridiculous too, but there you are.

Online, you'd really be playing a different game.

[Xerxes]

Honestly...they're not.

Look up an Akira strategy guide. He's got moves where you literally have to press (or release) a button in 1/60 of a second. Yeah, I think it's ridiculous too, but there you are.

Online, you'd really be playing a different game.

That sounds crazy and only a reason why I want to play it. I just don't think it sounds so great. I can't remember if the game moved slow or what. I know DOA moves like fucking lightening.

[Salamande]

That sounds crazy and only a reason why I want to play it. I just don't think it sounds so great. I can't remember if the game moved slow or what. I know DOA moves like fucking lightening.
VF actually moves rather quickly; it's just not nearly as flashy as DOA (and for the record, I do like DOA4, though i can see why people might not take it seriously).

If you watch two decent players play, you'll see a lot of footwork, jabbing, high/low mixups, and off-the-ground juggling. Some characters have counters (with a much shorter window than DOA's), throw escape windows are just as tight, and even which foot you have forward can make a difference in whether or not certain juggles can work.

Contrary to popular belief, you can play VF casually (as long as everybody's around the same level) and have a lot of fun with it - characters like Sarah, Jacky and Lei-Fei are fun to use and have some damn cool moves. But, take a character like Goh. If you're a beginner and you choose him, you'll think he's the most boring character ever. He has few rapid punch/kick strings. His command moves look uninteresting. He's kind of slow.

But wait till you check out his grapples...

He's the character I played, back when I played VF4:Evo. You really have to dig in to learn those secrets, and it's damn rewarding when you finally figure out what your character is capable of. I can understand why the devs don't want to bother with online play. They're perfectionists, they realize that their game caters more to the hardcore crowd, and they know they'd get crucified for compromising their game for the more casual players. I hate how elitist that sounds, but really...these days, with the decline of the arcade in the West, "casual VF player" is damn near an oxymoron. I can't blame them for wanting to please their base.

[Xerxes]

We shall see...