Virtua Fighter 4
I would hope every gamer around the world is enjoying the current bombardment of Sega's newly released titles. Surely its beyond comprehension of how on company can consistently, and quickly be producing great title after title, while the enjoyment level of each successive game continues to rise. They've truly put a sensational amount of effort into their development teams - they always have - and it just keeps getting better. I hope it never ends, truly, I'm seriously having too much fun with each and every adventure, and Virtue Fighter 4 is no different.
Virtue Fighter has never been a real 'series for the masses'. There has always been a real cult following with some of its hardcore fans, but for the average gamer, its been love-hate relationship since the beginning. The fourth installment however is here to change not only that, but the direction in which Fighting games are heading. When VF started out, the reception of it to the gaming world was kind of divided (love/hate), there were very few who branded themselves undecided on the issue. Still, none could deny the fact that this series has come to be one of the most classic, and notable of any fighting game series, whether you played it or not. Around the release of VF2, the fan base began to increase, but VF3 just about alienated a lot of 'possible' fans to the series because of the fact that it took hours upon hours of play to even enjoy the highly complex - or 'deep' - fighting system. The controls suffered from an overbearing amount of work, lengthy (practically impossible move combinations), a nauseating undulation of the stages (due to varying terrain heights), and a response and recovery time of the fighters that dragged the pace of the game down to a snails pace.
Taking note of this Yu Suzuki (VF producer), and his infamous AM2 development team have for the most part - returned to their roots. They have performed a task few could have expected, AM2 has managed to salvage the highly complex/deep fighting schemes, while making the game much more user friendly. This is truthfully more of a sequel to Virtue Fighter 2, than 3. Gone are the height differences in terrain, the evade button, and the slow response times, making VF4, more quickly paced, fluid, and to put it bluntly, a heck of a lot more fun and exciting. AM2 has kept their basic control scheme from that of VF2. Some of the most enjoyable features are still pouncing opponents while on the ground, counter attacks, throws and multi-levels attacks. The amount of required jumping has also been reduced, and the balance between block and attack has been tweaked further to provide more excitement in the arena. The control scheme is quite intuitive, and fairly easy to pick up. They've done a good job with 3D movement and the D-Pad. Double tap up or down to rotate in 3D, double tap forward or backwards to dash either way. The AM2 development team has returned to finally bring us gamers a Virtua Fighter for the masses, an effort is truly amazing.
One of the most important aspects that has been addressed in VF4 is the renewed emphasis on single player modes. Generally fighting games have been structured around the multiplayer aspects of its gaming fans, and less on the single player. Well times are a changin' and now all those loners will get some love too (joke). Fighting games were born and raised in the arcades, bread in the heat of battle, where the triumphant would remain, and the loser would run away crying - head bowed in shame. Fighting games were 'meant' to be two player events - bragging rights were the whole point of the arcade - to dominate every title in the room, use any and every character, on any and every machine - it was great. Then, when the popularity of console gaming really became prevalent and started to pick up, fighting games came home. Thus began the ever difficult task of translating the arcade fighting formula to the home systems; the challenge was to keep the same magic of the title along with the same intensities of battle. Now however, the old formula is getting stale, its time for something new, and that's what recent fighting games have been incorporating; giving the single user and beginner a chance to learn, practice and enjoy fighting games without the consistent need of another player.
Virtue Fighter 4 has incorporated a few new single player modes to go along with this idea, and while none of these modes really might not come close to the depth and creativeness of Soul Calibur's Mission Mode, or even Tekken 4's Force Mode Assault, VF4 has some highly enjoyable - not to mention - helpful additions. The first of the modes is called 'trial' mode. Basically this mode is supposed to teach you to become an advance Virtue Fighter 4 player. It begins with the basic tactics and fundamentals on which VF is based, and eventually moves through some of the more advanced techniques. It does this by showing you a specific move, combination, or tactic, and prompts you to repeat it, once completed you move on to the next method. However the game will repeat the moves to you in slow motion if you keep screwing the combination up. This makes for a useful tool to see exactly how to do things, and learn from the ground up - which is generally what all VF newcomers will need to do.
The next single player mode is just as impressive; called 'Kumite,' you play against 'truly life-like' opponents, that adjust their own difficulty level to your level of fighting. Once you defeat those opponents, your level will increase, and so will that of the guys you're fighting against. Its profoundly amazing how far this perpetual learning curve will get you, eventually you'll become a 'champion' VF player, and I must say, you'll be able to do some serious damage. There are truly some highly advanced elements in VF4 that you just have to see to believe (crazy combos, coupled with counter after counter - makes for an amazing replay). Advancing your skills are not the only benefits you get for playing this Kumite, your other rewards come in the form of secrets and special items you gain in defeating each challenging opponent. Each of the items allows you to customize your characters clothing, hairstyles, etc. There are TONS of these items to collect, allowing for massive amounts of a replay value.
With each progressive mode, your skills advance, yet this is where the beauty of VF4's single-player modes reveal themselves. Each system works in unison with the other, you learn moves, combos, and tactics in one, you further advance those skills by playing life-like opponents in another, and you can then turn around and train your own character to fight atomically. If this isn't one of the coolest ideas I've heard of, I'm not quite sure what is! You can play this guy against the computer and against your friends. You spar with your character to help them learn, just as people have masters in real life, you are his/hers. The people over at Sega are truly on a next level in terms of game production, not only conceptually but in implementation as well. If this weren't enough the arcade mode adapts to your style of play, movement and tactic, making its replay ability that much more infinite.
The technical feats AM2 has accomplished with the AI systems in VF4 are on par with the best I've ever witnessed, however, it has as much graphical prowess as it does in AI. With each successive game, I'm continually amazed at how the graphics are even more breathtaking than the last. This has to be the most beautiful fighting game I've seen to date (yes better than DoA3). The level of detail, environment content, character design and special effects are all out of this world. While the graphics aren't exactly arcade perfect, they are just about as close as you'd hope to come to them. Few minor details have not made their way into this game.
Game notables are Kage's stage, with a waterfall, complete with falling leaves (eye candy for days), Wolfs wrestling ring - complete with tons of screaming fans, Jeffery's Beach oasis - complete with a beautiful view of blues skies and sparkling rocks, Pai's underground aquarium - complete with aquatic lighting effects and water tanks with live fish. Not only are the levels and characters as detailed as I've ever seen, but the elements within each are affected by the movements of the players. Sand flies up, water splashes, snow crunches, floor bricks break (into the camera no less), and the list goes on, each and every movement of the surroundings is life like. It is quite evident that AM2 has paid special attention to every aspect of this well balanced fighter and the fact that the learning curve has been eased makes the game that much more tempting to pick up.
Virtue Fighter 4 seems to impress at every turn, AI, player modes, visuals, but what about the sound? Well suffice it to say that its VF music; and just like previous games its either love or hate. For me its more closer to love than the previous installments; the Virtua Fighter series seems to have a trend, with each succeeding game the music becomes more dark, and gritty (just my style). The original started out with happy, cheery, almost j-pop esque, and has now move to harder more of a rockish sound, that gives the atmosphere a larger intensity, and seems to entice a greater feeling of excitement. Though the music is tolerable - it's by no means a comparison to that of JSRF. The voiceovers and taunts of the characters have an innate corniness about them as well, which is a given for most fighting games and sometimes turns out to be humorous, some of the efforts are just unforgivably so.
The only bad things that could be said about VF4 are the fact that it could have had more single player modes (even though the ones implemented are incredibly deep and quite good), the graphic engine could have been arcade perfect, and it could have had better sound track with better voice-overs and lines for the characters. However miniscule these complaints might seem, they are still prevalent in the game and need to be addressed - all of these would have needed to be fulfilled to have produced a truly revolutionary game.
Overall, Virtue Fighter 4 presents a new level of play, direction, and visual precedence in the fighting game genre. This is only but a glimpse of what's to come in the future. After the serious drought of quality fighting titles last year - save DoA3 - we as gamers were quite overdue for some new fighting games, and this one just marks the beginning. We are currently seeing the revitalization of the fighting industry as we know it. A love-hate relationship has really defined the history of this series until now. Both Sega and AM2 deserve mad props for this title, I think this will be the first time a Virtua Fighter game's going be to accepted by a broad audience of players - because of its ease of pick up - redefined fighting system (there's certainly no reason to hate now!). I can't wait to see what the Sega machine with output next, I'll be playing their last 4 games in anticipation of the next great one, so until then, keep up the good work Sega! And adieu. ;)~