Virtua Fighter 5

This is just a quick post to enthuse about my most recent gaming accquisition. Getting Virtua Fighter 5, (I got it for £4 by trading in a lot of Dreamcast duplicates from my collection) means I now have every incarnation of the franchise, which in itself is something I'm rather excited about. VF1, VF2, VF Remix, VF Kids, VF3Tb, VF4, VF4 Evolution and now VF5 - eight games spanning four consoles and every one with it's roots planted firmly in rich, Saturn soil.

I suppose that would be my first point. From the ridiculously blocky and angular characters of VF1, to the photo realistic graphically gorgeous polished characters of VF5, the game is essentially the same... Moves, fighting styles, outfits etc. are quintessentially untouched from console to console.

Obviously the range of characters, the environments and other features have changed over the years, but on turning the game on, and selecting the game mode one is afforded the familiar 'ping' from VF1. It's a reverberation of the Saturn in the 21st century and a comforting one at that...

But then when the game kicks in, and you see the stunning next gen graphics, you know that the 360/PS3 incarnation is a different beast. It's literally breath taking! For me, even the PS2's VF4 was so next gen, that I was blown away... But seeing VF5 made me jump.

Playing VF4 in arcade mode I was able to beat the opposition on first play, up to Dural. Playing VF5 I was stomped unceremoniously. It would seem that the stakes in gameplay have been raised. This was confirmed by my first experience of playing VF online...

I've had two matches, and got fucked up royally (3-0) twice! I play all out attack (as Kage, always as Kage!) and apparently the way forward in VF5 is defense. Defense and then a stunning array of attack... Well that was how I got my arse kicked anyway! I'm going to enjoy playing and getting to know this title. It's as stunning a Saturn rebirth as Sega Rally Revo... (don't even whisper Nebacha! LOL!)

I'll update you more on this one as I become more familiar with it. Initial impressions? 10/10!

Happy days! :)

Virtua Fighter 4

The Saturn would have always been my choice over the Playstation, and there was one in my home for two years before I eventually buckled under pressure from my boys and bought one for them. One of the reasons for my Saturn love was the most excellent Virtua Fighter series, which played out four releases on the Saturn. Virtua Fighter, VF2, Virtua Fighter Remix and VF Kids. (Plus the VF characters also played a major role in the wonderful Fighter's Megamix...)

The game was quality all the way with great characters like Shun and Kage, who had great background stories and a fabulously oriental feel. I love Kung Fu movies (even the really old badly dubed/speeded up fight scene ones!) and having the chance to control a fighter was a dream come true!

Everything about Virtua Fighter works: Moves, music, speech samples, backgorund settings, victory cries and so on. However great the gameplay is though, even the most die-hard Saturn fan would have to admit that the graphics haven't stood the test of time. The characters look square and blocky, angular and pixellated.

When I eventually graduated to the Dreamcast, I was really anticipating VF3tb (originally slated for the Saturn- look here), but having played Soul Calibur and Dead or Alive, VF3tb didn't really do it for me. I can't really explain why, but the graphics and gameplay just didn't cut it after playing SC and DOA, and VF3tb became the least played fighter of my Dreamcast collection. However, the ever wonderful Shenmue series employed the fighting engine from Virtua Fighter and the central character Ryo Hazuki was based on VF's Akira. (You could also collect capsule toys -very pleasurable in itself... of VF and VF Kids as you embarked on Ryo's quest.)

Fast forward to 2007 and I happened upon a rather battered copy of VF4 for the PS2. At first I was gutted because the disc wouldn't load and there was no mannual in the box. But thanks to the wonder of the Internet, I'd soon downloaded the mannual and thanks to a blob of toothpaste, I'd soon managed to get the disc working.

Don't know about the toothpaste trick? If you've got a disc that won't load, simply smear your disc in toothpaste and rub outwards from the centre of the disc in straightlines with your finger. Wash it off in lukewarm water and dry with a paper towel. I'm not guaranteeing it'll work but it did for me...

Onto the game. The beauty of VF4 is that it is basically the same great game as the Saturn original, but with sumptuous graphics and a couple of new characters to compliment the originals. First off there is the mysterious Shaolin Monk, Lei Fei and then the amply chested Vanessa Lewis. (Why do women in fighting games have big breasts? Not that I'm complaining... *Ahem!*)

The backgrounds and arenas are simply stunning, the characters look great and the fighting is fantastic. I always play as Kage, as I love his ninja look and trademark upside down pile driving headbutt! But the game is fiendishly dificult to progress in however... As the saying goes, "Easy to play, dificult to master!"

Dedication and repeated gameplay is needed to make headway into the game but for the £7 your likely to pay for it you couldn't get a better fighter. But now I'm a little stuck, as VF5 is out for the XBox 360 & PS3, and I don't own one of those suckers. And to make matters worse, the prospect of online battles on the 360 is making me drool for one. That AND Sega Rally Revo.

You see I'm a Sega fan through and through and it hurts me to know franchises I've loved will be progressing on systems I don't own. So here's the plan... I'm going to try and persuade the boys to get a 360 as their collective Christmas present! Cunning plan huh? I'll update you in December as to whether it comes off!

Wanna know more about Virtua Fighter? Then have a look at these links...

Virtua Fighter in Wikipedia

Virtua Fighter 3tb IGN

Virtua Fighter 4 Official Website

Virtua Fighter 5 Official Website

Saturn Titles for The Next Gen...

There has been a BIG resurgence of interest in the Saturn since it was announced that a new NiGHTS title was coming to the Wii, and in EVERY gaming mag I've read since that announcement, the Saturn has been referenced in one way or another.

Take the June edition of the excellent Games TM magazine for example. Now admittedly, this outstanding journal has always flagged up fine examples of yesterday's games in its Retro Section... But it has recently surpassed itself in terms of Sega-Love, posting some brilliant retrospectives on Dreamcast and Saturn titles.

In this issue there was the following article. I'm taking the time to copy it out for you, 'cos I value its opinion, and for our Trans-Atlantic cousins who can't get hold of this missive, it deserves a read... So here goes...

"Right then, you've just picked up a second hand computerand are looking for some classic games to play on it. The only problem is, you're not too surewhat to buy. Hopefully we can help. This month, inspired by the news of NiGHTS 2, we take a look at the other Sega games we'd love to see a sequel for:

Burning Rangers, Estimated Price £20, Format: Saturn, Year Of Production: 1998.

Aside from NiGHTS, Burning Rangers is the one Yuji Naka creation that was most criminally overlooked. Taking the part of a team of futuristic firefighters, the players mission was to explore randomly generated space stations, put out fires and dodge deathtraps, using a jetpack.

Uniquely for the time, the player was given audible directions, in order to make their way through the burning stations. We'd love to see this on the Wii with the remote taking the place of game's laser hose.

Shining Force III, Estimated Price £30, Format: Saturn, Year Of Production: 1998.

Sega's Shining serieshas been going for ages with several excellent and varied entries, but Shining Force III is undoubtedly the best. Taking the series into 3D for the first time added a new element to the game, as did the innovative civil war story that allowed the player to experience the conflict from three different perspectives. There have been several follow ups since, but none were made by their original creator, Camelot. We'd love to see them at the helm of Shining Force IV some time.

Virtua Fighter Kids, Estimated Price: £15, Format: Saturn, Year Of Production: 1996.

Virtua Fighter Kids is just the sort of game that typifies Sega; a concept that feels like the stuff of Internet rumour , but actually turns out to be true and even plays quite well. Virtua Fighter Kids used a modified version of the Virtua Fighter 2 engine to pit childlike renditions of the classic beat 'em up characters against each other. With the recent success of Virtua Fighter 5 and Nintendo Wii's penchant for cute characters, this series is about due for a comeback right about now.

Fighters Megamix, Estimated Price £10, Format: Saturn, Year Of Production: 1997.

Even more of a fanboy project than VF Kids was Fighters Megamix, a 3D beat 'em up that teamed the characters from Virtua Fighter with those from Fighting Vipers, along with others from Sega's arcade history. With diverse charactersfrom Sonic The Fighters and even Daytona USA, as well as a move set partly taken from Virtua Fighter 3, this was a must have Saturn title. Now how about a PS3 version with characters from Shenmue and Yakuza in it?"

Wow! Great article wasn't it? I have two of the games mentioned above, Virtua Fighter Kids and Fighters Megamix. I first became aware of VF Kids through the capsule toys collected in Shenmue. It was months before I realised it was an actual game. My copy is an imported Japanese version, and to be honest, I've only played it a couple of times... Again, with Fighters Megamix, I've played it a few times without realising its potential. I aim to become more familiar with it this weekend...

This is FK for the SJY, wishing you a GW... (great weekend!) Peace out!