Virtua Fighter

This article is about the video game series. For the first game in the series, seeVirtua Fighter(video game).For the anime, seeVirtua Fighter(TV series).

Virtua Fighter
Genre(s)	Fighting
Developer(s)	Sega AM2 Genki(VF3DC port) Aspect(Animation) Tiger Electronics(MegamixGame and R-Zone ports) Tose(Virtua Quest) Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio(Ultimate Showdown)
Publisher(s)	Sega
Creator(s)	Yu Suzuki
Platform(s)	Arcade,Sega Saturn,32X,Microsoft Windows,Mega Drive,Game Gear,Master System,Game,R-Zone,Dreamcast,PlayStation 2,GameCube,PlayStation 3,Virtual Console,Xbox 360,mobile,PlayStation 4
First release	Virtua Fighter 1993
Latest release	Virtua Fighter 3tb Online 2023
Spin-offs	Fighters Megamix Virtua Quest Anime series

Virtua Fighteris a series offighting gamescreated bySega AM2and designerYu Suzuki.The originalVirtua Fighterwas released in December 1993and has received four main sequels and several spin-offs. The highly influential firstVirtua Fightergame is widely recognized as the first3Dfighting game released. The latest mainline release wasVirtua Fighter 5in 2006; this version has since been continously updated.

Gameplay

Similar to most otherfighting games,the defaultgameplaysystem of theVirtua Fighterseries involves two combatants needing to win two of three rounds, with each round being 30 seconds long or more. Combatants utilize various attacks in an attempt to deplete the other fighter's stamina gauge and deal a knockout (K.O.), winning a round. If a character is knocked out (or falls out) of the ring, their opponent wins the round in a Ring Out. An extra round is necessary if a double knockout (both players knocking each other out at the same time) occurs in a previous round and the match is tied one round each. In this round, players fight on a small stage wherein one hit is enough to knock the other out and achieve victory.

The basic control scheme is simple, using only an 8-way control stick and three buttons (Punch, Kick, Guard). Through various timings, positions, and button combinations, players input normal and special moves for each character. This allows extensive lists of moves to exist for a given character within the limited control scheme. Traditionally, in thesingle-player mode,the player runs a gauntlet of characters in the game (which may include one'sdoppelgänger) all the way to the finalBoss.

History

The following is a list of games in theVirtua Fighterseries:

Title	Platform(s)
Virtua Fighter	Arcade(1993),Sega Saturn(1994),32X(1995)
Virtua Fighter 2	Arcade (1994), Saturn (1995),Sega Genesis(1996),Windows(1997)
Virtua Fighter Remix	Arcade (1995), Saturn (1995), Windows (1996)
Virtua Fighter 2.1	Arcade (1995), Saturn (1995), Windows (1997),PlayStation 2(2004),Xbox 360(2012),PlayStation 3(2012)
Virtua Fighter CG Portrait Series	Saturn (1996)
Virtua Fighter Animation	Game Gear(1996),Master System(1997)
Virtua Fighter Kids	Arcade (1996), Saturn (1996)
Fighters Megamix	Saturn (1996)
Virtua Fighter 3	Arcade (1996)
Virtua Fighter 3tb	Arcade (1997),Dreamcast(1998)
Virtua Fighter 4	Arcade (2001), PlayStation 2 (2002)
Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution	Arcade (2002), PlayStation 2 (2003)
Virtua Fighter 10th Anniversary	PlayStation 2 (2003)
Virtua Fighter 4: Final Tuned	Arcade (2004)
Virtua Quest	GameCube(2004), PlayStation 2 (2004)
Virtua Fighter 5	Arcade (2006), PlayStation 3 (2007)
Virtua Fighter 5 Online	Xbox 360 (2007)
Virtua Fighter 5 R	Arcade (2008)
Virtua Fighter Mobile 3D	Mobile(J2ME) (2008)
Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown	Arcade (2010), Xbox 360 (2012), PlayStation 3 (2012),PlayStation 4(2016),Xbox One(2016),Xbox Series X/S(2020)
Virtua Fighter: Cool Champ	Mobile(2011)
Virtua Fighter: Fever Combo	Mobile (2014)
Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown	Arcade (2021), PlayStation 4 (2021)
Virtua Fighter 3tb Online	Arcade (2023)

Arcade fighting games

The brainchild ofSega AM2'sYu Suzuki,Virtua Fighterwas released in 1993 as anarcade gameusing hardware jointly developed by aerospace simulation technology by the company that is now known asLockheed Martinand Sega's most prominent and well known studioAM2,originally crafted for the arcade system dubbed theModel 1.It is considered the first polygon-based fighting game. It introducedthe eight initial fightersas well as the Boss, Dural. Sony developers have confirmed that the game inspired Sony to create the first PlayStation console and to focus more on 3D games, more so than the main competitor in Japan, theSega Saturn.

Virtua Fighter 2was released in November 1994, adding two new fighters: Shun Di and Lion Rafale. It was built using theModel 2hardware,renderingcharacters and backgrounds withfilteredtexture mappingandmotion capture.A slightly-tweaked upgrade,Virtua Fighter 2.1,followed soon after.

Virtua Fighter 3came out in 1996, with the introduction of Taka-Arashi and Aoi Umenokoji. Aside from improving the graphics via use of theModel 3(such asmipmapping,multi-layer anti-aliasing,trilinear filteringandspecular highlighting), the game also introduced undulations in some stages and a fourth button, Dodge.Virtua Fighter 3tbin 1997 was the first major update in series history, implementing tournament battles featuring more than two characters (though not simultaneously as in theDead or Alivegames andTekken Tag Tournament).

Virtua Fighter 4,which introduced Vanessa Lewis and Lei-Fei and removed Taka-Arashi, was released on theNAOMI 2hardware in 2001 instead of hardware from a joint collaboration with Lockheed Martin. The game also removed the uneven battlegrounds and the Dodge button from the previous game. The title is consistently popular in its home arcade market.Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution,released in 2002, was the first update to add new characters, these being Brad Burns and Goh Hinogami.Virtua Fighter 4: Final Tuned,an upgrade toEvolution,was released in the arcades in 2004. In Japan,Virtua Fighter 4was famous for spearheading and opening the market for internet functionality in arcades. VF.NET started in Japan in 2001, and since companies have created their own arcade networks,E-AmusementbyKonami,NESiCAxLivebyTaitoandSquare Enix,andALL.Netby Sega.

Virtua Fighter 5was released in Japan on July 12, 2006 for Sega'sLindbergharcade board and introduced yet two more new characters, Eileen and El Blaze. Similar to its predecessor, two revisions were later released.Virtua Fighter 5 R,released on July 24, 2008, saw the return of Taka-Arashi while introducing a new fighter, Jean Kujo.Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdownwas released in arcades on July 29, 2010.

Console fighting games

Virtua Fighteron the32X

The firstVirtua Fightergame was ported to the Saturn in 1994 (1995 outside Japan), just months before fellow 3D-fighterTekkenwas released. The console port, which was nearly identical to the arcade game, sold at a nearly 1:1 ratio with the Saturn hardware at launch.The port ofVirtua Fighter 2on the Saturn for Christmas 1995 was considered faithful to the arcade original. While the game's 3D backgrounds were now rendered in 2D, resulting in some scenery such as the bridge in Shun Di's river stage being removed, the remainder of the game was kept intact. It became the top-selling Saturn game in Japan. Ports of the originalVirtua FighterandVirtua Fighter 2with enhanced graphics were also released for thePC.Virtua Fighter 2was remade as a 2D fighter for theMega Drive/Genesisin 1996, omitting the characters Shun and Lion, and later re-released on thePlayStation 2as a part of theSega Agesseries.Yakuza 5was released in 2012 in Japan and in 2015 worldwide and featuresVirtua Fighter 2as a mini-game. The only port ofVirtua Fighter 3was for theSega DreamcastbyGenki(instead of AM2) withVirtua Fighter 3tbin 1998 for the Japanese release of the console.

Virtua Fighter Animationon theMaster System

In a reverse of the usual development cycle for the series, an update of the originalVirtua FightercalledVirtua Fighter Remixwas released for the Saturn and later ported to the arcade.

Virtua Fighter Mini,based on the anime series, was created for the Game Gear and released in North America and Europe asVirtua Fighter Animation.The game was later ported to the Master System byTec Toyand released only in Brazil. Brazil itself was a market where the series was very popular.

Following Sega's exit from the hardware market in mid-2001,Virtua Fighter 4was ported by Sega to the PlayStation 2 in 2002. Outside of a slight downgrade in graphics, the port of the game was considered well done. This port was followed byVirtua Fighter 4: Evolution,an update that added two new characters as well as a host of game balancing tweaks, in 2003.Evolutionwas immediately released under the PlayStation 2's "Greatest Hits"label in the United States, which lowered its initial sticker price.

With the 2003 PlayStation 2 release ofVirtua Fighter 4: Evolutionarriving in time for the series' tenth anniversary, aremakeofVirtua Fighter,Virtua Fighter 10th Anniversary,was released exclusively on the PlayStation 2. While the music, stages and low-polygon visual style were retained from the first game, the character roster, animations, mechanics and movesets were taken fromEvolution.In the previous PS2 release ofVirtua Fighter 4,a button code would make the player's character look like aVF1model. In Japan, the game was included as part of a box set with a book titledVirtua Fighter 10th Anniversary: Memory of a Decadeand a DVD. The box set was released in November 2003 and was published byEnterbrain.In North America, the game was included within the home version ofEvolution,and in Europe it was only available as a promotional item; it was not sold at retail.

A port ofVirtua Fighter 5was released for thePlayStation 3in Japan and North America in February 2007, and March 2007 in Europe. The PlayStation 3 port is considered extremely faithful to the arcade original, due in part to the arcade hardware (based onSega Lindberghplatform) and PlayStation 3 hardware sharing NVidia-provided GPUs of comparable capability. A port for theXbox 360was released in October 2007 in Japan and North America, and December 2007 in Europe, and contains the additions of online fighting viaXbox Live,improved graphics, and gameplay balances from the newer revision of the arcade game. For years, the designers have held strong on their refusal to add an online mode to console versions of the games; because the gameplay relies so much on timing, any lag would ruin the experience.Eventually, with the Xbox 360 release ofVF5,Sega decided to add online capabilities via Xbox Live.Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdownwas released as a downloadable title for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in June 2012, with online play available in both versions. An updated version ofVirtua Fighter 5 Final ShowdownnamedVersion Bwas released in Japanese arcades in 2015.Yakuza 6: The Song of Lifewas released forPlayStation 4in 2016 in Japan and 2018 worldwide and the game featuresVirtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown Version Bas a mini-game, making the release ofYakuza 6also thePlayStation 4debut for theVirtua Fighterseries.

Spin-offs and adaptations

Due to the success ofVirtua Fighter 2,asuper deformedversion calledVirtua Fighter Kidswas released for the Sega Saturn and arcades in 1996. 1996 also saw the release ofFighters Megamixfor the Sega Saturn, a crossover that pitted the cast ofVirtua Fighter 2against the cast ofFighting Vipersas well as other characters in AM2-developed games.Megamixserved as a home preview toVirtua Fighter 3in a few ways, as the game featured the dodge ability found inVF3and theVirtua Fightercharacters had their moves updated to those found inVF3.Some stages and music fromVF3are also in the game. TheVirtua Fighter Kidsversions ofAkiraandSarahappear as hidden playable characters in the game; the characterSiba,who was omitted from the firstVirtua Fighteralso appears as a hidden playable character.

In 1996, AM2 began developing a SaturnRPGbased on the series, titledVirtua Fighter RPG: Akira's Story,with Akira as the hero.Development moved to the Dreamcast, theVirtua Fighterconnection was droppedand the game becameShenmue,released in 1999.Virtua Quest,a simplifiedrole-playing video game(which was also known asVirtua Fighter RPG) with new characters aimed at the children's market, was released for theGameCubein 2004 and the PlayStation 2 in 2005. The Virtua Fighters had their incarnations fromVirtua Fighter 4.

During the late 2000s, both Sega andNamcoshowed interest in a possible cross over betweenVirtua FighterandTekken.This crossover would combine all the characters and fighting styles from both games, but any other inclusions are unknown at the moment. Prior to that, both franchises were represented as Mii Brawler costumes in theNintendocrossoverSuper Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U,in whichRyufrom theStreet Fighterseries first playable too, whereas Akira himself (based on 10th Anniversary version) physically appeared in the sequelSuper Smash Bros. Ultimateas an assist trophy character whereKazuya MishimafromTekken,includingKen Mastersas Ryu's echo fighter first playable too.

Other media

A 35 episodes-long anime television seriesVirtua Fighterwas produced byTōkyō Movie Shinsha,originally airing onTV Tokyobetween 1995 and 1996. In 1995,Shogakukanbegan publishing aVirtua Fighter 2manga,with creative oversight from Sega AM2 to ensure the characters were portrayed consistently with their original vision.The games' manga adaptation was written by Kyōichi Nanatsuki and illustrated byYoshihide Fujiwarastarting in 1997. In Japan,Virtua Fighter CG Portrait Series,wherein each character in the series had their own Saturn CD showcasing various poses of the fighter, was released around the same time as well. People who collected all the discs could send in their proof of purchases to get a special Portrait CD of Dural. In 2014, Sega formed the production company Stories International for film and TV projects based on their games withVirtua Fighteras an animated project.

The firstVirtua Fightermerchandisewas a set of dolls of the firstVirtua Fightercast which Sega produced for their UFO Catchers (a model ofclaw crane). These proved so popular that supplies ran out almost immediately, so Sega made additional batches and began producing otherVirtua Fightermerchandise to put in the UFO Catchers.When these also proved successful, Sega realized thatVirtua Fightermerchandise had mainstream potential, and began licensing the property to merchandise producers such asBandai.

Sega has also released soundtrack CDs for the games, and even an album of original theme music for the characters calledDancing Shadows.

Characters

Character	1	2	3	4	5
Akira Yuki
Pai Chan
Lau Chan
Wolf Hawkfield
Jeffry McWild
Kage-Maru
Sarah Bryant
Jacky Bryant
Dural
Shun Di
Lion Rafale
Aoi Umenokoji
Taka-Arashi
Lei-Fei
Vanessa Lewis
Brad Burns
Goh Hinogami
Eileen
El Blaze
Jean Kujo

Introduced inVirtua Fighter

Name	Description
Akira Yuki	Akira Yuki(Kết thành tinh,Yūki Akira)is the mascot of theVirtua Fightervideo game series, and fights usingBajiquan.He is an assistant teacher of his family's dojo, and currently seeks worthy opponents to fight in order to find flaws in his skills and further attain mastery. He continued to search for strong opponents even after winning theVirtua Fighter 2tournament, thanks to his grandfather's advice.
Pai Chan	Pai Chan(パイ・チェン,Pai Chen)is the daughter of Lau Chan, and a martial arts action movie star in her home town, fighting usingMizongyi.She seeks to defeat her father and prove herself a worthy successor to his school of martial arts. She was initially hostile towards her father for neglecting her untilVirtua Fighter 4,where she reconciled with him after finding out he has been diagnosed with an incurable disease.
Lau Chan	Lau Chan(ラウ・チェン,Rau Chen)is a restaurant chef and martial artist skilled in Huyanquan(Hổ yến quyền,Koen-ken,lit. Tiger Swallow Fist).After winning the first tournament inVirtua Fighter,he seeks a successor for his martial arts style before an incurable illness he's diagnosed with inVirtua Fighter 4begins to take a toll of his body. Nevertheless, his disease does not negatively affect his fighting skill.
Wolf Hawkfield	Wolf Hawkfield(ウルフ・ホークフィールド,Urufu Hōkufīrudo)is a Canadianprofessional wrestlerof Native American descent. He entered the tournament seeking worthy opponents, and ultimately found one in the form of Akira Yuki, whom Wolf befriended. AfterVirtua Fighter 2,Wolf begins to investigate J6's connection to his recent recurring apocalyptic nightmare, when he witnessed a Dural competitor interfering in a tournament match duringVirtua Fighter 4.
Jeffry McWild	Jeffry McWild(ジェフリー・マクワイルド,Jefurī Makuwairudo)is anAustralian Aboriginalfisherman andPankrationpractitioner. He seeks the tournament prize money for equipment to hunt a massive "Satan Shark", which later fell into J6's hands.
Kage-Maru	Kage-Maru(Ảnh hoàn,Kagemaru)is a tenth generation ninja of Hagakure(Diệp ẩn)clan and the son of his two last predcessors. After J6 kidnapped his mother Tsukikage - the eighth generation ninja - and turned her into the first Dural, the group both murdered his father - the ninth generation ninja - and destroyed their village. Due to this, Kage-Maru seeks revenge and vows to rescue his mother. AfterVirtua Fighter 2,when Tsukikage temporarily returned to her normal self, Kage discovered the after effects of her Dural transformation, leaving him with no other option but to transform her back into a Dural at the end ofVirtua Fighter 3,and put her out of her misery when they meet again in later tournaments. He is the only fighter to win two tournaments betweenVirtua Fighter 3and4.
Sarah Bryant	Sarah Bryant(Japanese:サラ・ブライアント,Hepburn:Sara Buraianto)is a college student from Los Angeles and a younger sister of Jacky. She fights using three martial arts consisting ofJeet Kune Do(like her brother),SavateandKarate.While investigating Jacky's car crash, J6 kidnaps her, and exploit her former jealousy towards her brother's success in order to brainwashing her. InVirtua Fighter 2,the group has her try and kill Jacky at their tournament; however, she ultimately fails to do so. After Sarah was rescued, J6 reveals to have been planning to turn her into a vessel of Dural, as part of their animosity towards the Bryants. In response, the family hired Vanessa Lewis to serve as Sarah's bodyguard.
Jacky Bryant	Jacky Bryant(ジャッキー・ブライアント,Jakkī Buraianto)is an Indy race car driver that fights usingJeet Kune Do.After J6 attempted to kill him with a car crash at the 1990 Indianapolis 500, his sister Sarah investigated them only to be kidnapped and brainwashed. Jacky seeks to rescue his sister, which he ultimately does at the end ofVirtua Fighter 2.Nevertheless, the Bryant siblings' fight against J6 continues, as the organization remains at large to terrorize their family.
Dural	Dural(デュラル,Dyuraru)is aGynoid-like cyborg and serves as the finalBossin everyVirtua Fightergame, utilizing a mixture of attacks from all the other characters. There are four known Durals within the main tournaments: The first Dural was originally Kage-Maru's mother, Tsukikage(Ánh trăng),the eight generation Hagakure ninja. She was kidnapped by J6 and turned into Dural when they noticed her exemplary fighting ability. After being defeated by Akira inVirtua Fighter 2,Tsukikage was temporarily freed. But the after-effects from her Dural transformation caused her to go ill, and were only able to be cured by metal pieces of Dural. The later three Durals afterVirtua Fighter 2are android replicas: The second Dural was destroyed by Kage-Maru at the end ofVirtua Fighter 3,who took its metal pieces to cure his mother Tsukikage. However, this instead turned her back into a Dural. The third Dural inVirtua Fighter 4was initially thought by Kage-Maru to be a re-transformed Tsukikage. It interfered in the final match between Kage-Maru and Shun Di before being destroyed by the former. Wolf, who is currently haunted by his nightmare, was present during the final match. This lead him to speculate J6's connection with his recurring nightmares. The fourth Dural inVirtua Fighter 5is dubbedV-Dural.Its combat is mostly derived from Vanessa Lewis, whom J6 temporarily recaptured before she escaped thanks to a double agent within the organization.

Introduced inVirtua Fighter 2

Name	Description
Shun Di	Shun Di (Chinese:Thuấn đếPinyin:Shùn Dì,Japanese:シュン・ディShun Di) is anherbal doctorfrom China that usesDrunken bo xing.Considered a sage, he teaches in his small training hall and had many students. However, when most of his students left the dojo, with one going missing, he decided to enter the tournament after hearing his friends boasting, as well as to find his missing student. This same student is later revealed to be on the run from J6.
Lion Rafale	Lion Rafale(リオン・ラファール,Rion Rafāru)is a student fromFrancethat fights in order to gain independence from his wealthy father, and uses the style ofPraying Mantis Kung Fu.DuringVirtua Fighter 4,after graduating from high school and entering college, Lion stumbles upon his father's connection with J6, and becomes suspicious of the relationship between the two.

Introduced inVirtua Fighter 3

Name	Description
Aoi Umenokoji	Aoi Umenokoji(Mai đường nhỏ quỳ,Umenokōji Aoi)is the eldest child of adojoowner inKyoto,and fights withAiki Ju-Jutsu.She joined the tournament in order to test herself, much like her childhood friend Akira Yuki.
Taka-Arashi	Taka-Arashi(Ưng lam,Takaarashi)is asumowrestler from Japan. During development ofVirtua Fighter 3his large size caused difficulties when jumping,and further caused him to be omitted fromVirtua Fighter 4sub-series and originalVirtua Fighter 5because his large size was deemed too difficult to simulate at the time until the release ofVirtua Fighter 5 R.In the Sumo world, Taka-Arashi is famous for his unusually brutal version of the fighting style. Because of his absent inVirtua Fighter 4by the developer's apparent reason affecting his return inVirtua Fighter 5 R,Taka-Arashi briefly went exile because of his lost to experienced fighters in the third tournament, until he meet his ex-worker of his former stable, now his new sumo coach, who helped him reignite his fighting spirit.

Introduced inVirtua Fighter 4andVirtua Fighter 4: Evolution

Name	Description
Vanessa Lewis	Vanessa Lewis(ベネッサ・ルイス,Benessa Ruisu)is asecurity guard,and fights usingVale Tudo.After being rescued from J6, Vanessa acts as Sarah's bodyguard after hearing they intend to re-capture her. She enters the tournament in order to both protect Sarah, and find the killer of the person who rescued her; said rescuer's last name Lewis. Vanessa was temporarily captured by J6 for their V-Dural project at the end ofVirtua Fighter 4,but escaped from them once again thanks to a double agent within the organization.
Lei-Fei	Lei-Fei is aShaolinmonkfrom China. Part of a clan ordered by an ancient Chinese emperor to kill anyone capable of martial arts techniques more powerful than the emperor's own, he enters the tournament to test his skills against Lau Chan, in order to learn Huyanquan's secrets. He then plans to dispose of him.
Brad Burns	Brad Burns(ブラッド・バーンズ,Buraddo Bānzu)is aMuay Thaifighter from Italy who debuted inVirtua Fighter 4 Evolution.Popular with women for his looks and personality, he enters the tournament due to his enjoyment of the thrill of fighting.
Goh Hinogami	Goh Hinogami(Ngày thủ mới vừa,Hinogami Gō)is an Enigma tic assassin for J6 who fights withJudoand debuted inVirtua Fighter 4 Evolution.A sadist due to the death of his father and J6's training, he often taunts his opponents and was introduced as a rival to Akira Yuki. He was defeated by Jacky at the end ofVirtua Fighter 4and subsequently decided to get revenge against him inVirtua Fighter 5.He is the only playable J6 agent who is not brainwashed. In Virtua Fighter 10th Anniversary, he is the final Boss when playing in the Evolution order.

Introduced inVirtua Fighter 5andVirtua Fighter 5: R

Name	Description
Eileen	Eileen(アイリーン,Airīn)is a young Chinese girl who works as a Opera performer atBeijing.After losing her parents at a young age, she was raised and taught by her grandfather, aHou Quanmaster. She is captivated by a martial arts exhibition by Pai Chan and enters the tournament in order to meet her.
El Blaze	El Blaze(エル・ブレイズ,Eru Bureizu)is a light-heavyweighted heel wrestler from Mexico who fights withLucha Libre.As he watched Wolf dominate the heavyweight division, he grew envious and entered the tournament in order to confront him.
Jean Kujo	Jean Kujo(ジャン hồng điều,Jan Kujō)is a French full-contact (Kyokushin)karatefighter of Japanese descent, who debuted inVirtua Fighter 5 R.An assassin of J6 who was presumably brainwashed by them, he enters the tournament in order to prove his worth. He targets Lion Rafale specifically, likely unaware that they used to be best friends until Jean disappeared and his house was demolished at the same time of their graduation from school.

In other games

In Sega's music video gameProject DIVA 2nd,VocaloidMegurine Luka can obtain aSarah Bryantoutfit for gameplay. Jacky Bryant and Akira Yuki appear inSonic & Sega All-Stars Racingas partners competing against other Sega characters in races. Akira Yuki, Sarah Bryant and Pai Chan, appear as guest characters inTecmo Koei'sDead or Alive 5,followed by Jacky Bryant inDead or Alive 5 Ultimate,marking the first timeVirtua Fightercollaborated with a non-Sega fighting game series and for the series to be featured in a tag-team fighting game. Akira Yuki, Pai Chan and Dural appear in the crossover RPGProject X Zone,which features characters fromCapcom,Namco Bandai Games,and Sega. Akira Yuki, Pai Chan and Dural return inProject X Zone 2along with Kage-Maru. InDengeki Bunko Fighting Climax,Akira Yuki and Pai Chan appears as a playable guest Boss where Akira is playable and Pai as assist, though they became regulars in theIgnitionupdate. InSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii UandSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate,Mii Brawlercostumes based on Jacky Bryant's modern appearance and Akira Yuki's first appearance were released as downloadable content. Akira would also appear inUltimateas an assist trophy in his appearance inVirtua Fighter 10th Anniversary(a polygonal form from the first game with both voice lines and a move set fromVirtua Fighter 4 Evolution).

Virtua Fighter 2,2.1, 3,andVirtual Fighter 5: Final Showdownhave been near fully-recreated within theYakuzaseries of games, as both a playable game inside the in-game arcades and a separate 1 versus 1 multiplayer minigame.Within the game files ofYakuza: Like a DragonandYakuza 6,a near full version of Virtua Fighter 5 exists.[1]

Reception

The originalVirtua Fightersold more than 40,000arcade unitsworldwide by 1996,with each unit costing between$15,000(equivalent to $32,000 in 2023)and £14,000 /$21,000(equivalent to $44,000 in 2023).Virtua Fighter 2also sold more than 40,000 arcade units worldwide, adding up to more than 80,000 unit sales of both games by 1996.Virtua FighterandVirtua Fighter 2became Sega's best-selling arcade games of all time, surpassingOut Run(1986),which itself had sold 30,000 arcade cabinets by 1994.Virtua Fighter 3sold a further 30,000arcade cabinetsby 1997,adding up to 110,000 arcade unit sales for the three games combined by 1997.

In 1994,Virtua Fighterwas the year's highest-grossingarcade game in Japan,one of the year's top five highest-grossing arcadevideo games in the United States,and one of the year's most popularcoin-ops in the United Kingdom.In 1995,Virtua Fighter 2was the year's highest-grossing arcade game in Japan,and one of the year's top ten best-selling arcade games in the United States.

On the Sega Saturn,Virtua FighterandVirtua Fighter 2combined together had sold more than3 millioncopies worldwide by 1996.Virtua FighterandVirtua Fighter Remixsold a combined 1,067,036 copies in Japan.Virtua Fighter 2sold1.7 millioncopies in Japan,and more than 500,000 bundled copies in the United States,for a combined2.2 millioncopies sold in Japan and the United States. As of 2023, the franchise sales andfree-to-playdownloads combined totaled 18 million.

Legacy

Virtua Fighteris often considered to be the grandfather of 3D fighting games, with each iteration being noted for advancing the graphical and technical aspects of games in the genre. Many 3D fighting game series such asTekkenandDead or Alivewere heavily influenced byVirtua Fighter,and the originalDead or Aliveran on the Model 2 hardware. In 1998, the series was recognized by theSmithsonian Institutionfor contributions in the field of Art and Entertainment, and became a part of the Smithsonian Institution's Permanent Research Collection on Information Technology Innovation.Its arcade cabinets are kept at the Smithsonian'sNational Museum of American History,whereVirtua Fighteris the only video game on permanent display.In 1999,Next Generationlisted theVirtua Fighterseries as number 8 on their "Top 50 Games of All Time", commenting that, "Virtua Fighteris the most elegant fighting game ever created. With only two attack buttons, the game still offers an astonishingly wide range of martial art styles. "

Virtua Fighterplayed a crucial role in popularizing3D polygongraphics.The success of theVirtua Fighterseries resulted inGuinness World Recordsawarding the series seven world records inGuinness World Records Gamer's Edition2008,including "First Polygon Based Fighting Game", "First 3D Fighting Game", and "First Fighting Game for a 32-bit Console".1UPlistedVirtua Fighteras one of the 50 most important games of all time, crediting it for creating the 3D fighting game genre, and more generally, demonstrating the potential of 3D polygon human characters (as the first to implement them in a useful way), showing the potential of realistic gameplay (introducing a characterphysics systemand realistic character animations for the time), and introducing fighting game concepts such as the ring-out and the block button.Virtua Fighter 2on the Sega Model 2 introduced the use oftexture-mapped3D characters,and motion capture animation technology.Virtua Fighter 3on the Sega Model 3 further advanced real-time graphics technology, withComputer and Video Gamesin 1996 comparing it toCGIand referring to it as "the most astounding display ofvideo game graphicmuscle ever in the history of this industry. "In 1997,Next Generationstated thatVirtua Fighterhad supplantedStreet Fighteras the premier fighting game series.

Some of theSony Computer Entertainment(SCE) staff involved in the creation of the originalPlayStationvideo game console creditVirtua Fighteras inspiration for the PlayStation's3D graphicshardware. According to SCE'sShigeo Maruyama,the PlayStation was originally being considered as a 2D-focused hardware, and it was not until the release ofVirtua Fighterthat they decided to design the PlayStation as a 3D-focused hardware.Toby Gardalso citedVirtua Fighteras an influence on the use of polygonal characters inTomb Raiderand the creation ofLara Croft.John Romeroalso citedVirtua Fighteras a major influence on the creation of 3Dfirst-person shooterQuake.Team Ico'sFumito Uedaalso citedVirtua Fighteras an influence on his animation work.

A late 1995 article inNext Generationdeclared that "TheVirtua Fighterseries has been, and will continue to be, the yardstick by which all next generation arcade and console fighting games will be measured for a long time coming. "According toEurogamer:"One of Yu Suzuki's most enduring creations once christened every round of new arcade hardware, was a pioneer in 3D graphics and helped establish online fighting. All the while, beneath those achievements emerged a game of exceptional depth and nuance."1UPopined: "Due to its innovation,Virtua Fighternot only influenced competitors' games -- it basically created a genre. Technically, every 3D fighter that came after it owesVirtua Fighterfor establishing that a 3D fighter could work. Even today,Tekkenstill takes inspiration from Sega's series. "Game Informer's Andy McNamara wrote: "It has always been my opinion that theVirtua Fighterseries is the most intense and balanced of all the 3D fighters on the market. Its control scheme is intuitive, its pacing perfect, and its depth unmatched. "in 2006,IGNrankedVirtua Fighteras the 25th greatest game series of all time, explaining that "no other 3D fighter has equaledVFin terms of difficulty and depth. "

External links

• Official website(in Japanese)