Virtua Fighter is a series of 3D competitive fighting games created by Sega studio AM2 and designer Yu Suzuki. The first title in the series, also called Virtua Fighter, was released in 1993 as an arcade game. It was the first fighting game to use polygonal 3D characters and backgrounds instead of 2D sprites. Currently, there are five main series titles.
Links to the Dead or Alive Series[]
In the Arcades[]
The original Dead or Alive arcade cabinet ran on Sega's Model 2 hardware, just as Virtua Fighter 2 did. Tecmo was the only developer besides Sega to produce a game for the Model 2, and they used the Virtua Fighter engine as a base.[1] Both games used a simple three-button layout; Virtua Fighter's Guard, Punch, and Kick became Dead or Alive's Hold, Punch, and Kick. (Both games also received ports to the Sega Saturn, where Virtua Fighter 2 became the console's best-selling title.)
Dead or Alive 5 producer Yosuke Hayashi has said, “Virtua Fighter kind of gave birth to Dead or Alive. If there would have been no Virtua Fighter there would have [also] been no DOA. There's always been great respect for VF. It's an honor for us to have them in our game.”[2]
Dead or Alive 5[]
Tecmo Koei have announced a new partnership with the Sega Corporation for Dead or Alive 5, in which the latter will handle the publication and distribution of the game in Europe. This is due to the costs required for marketing and localization in Europe.[3]
As part of the agreement, Dead or Alive 5 includes Akira Yuki, Sarah Bryant, and Pai Chan, characters of Virtua Fighter, as exclusive additions to its roster.[4][5] Jacky Bryant joined the roster in Dead or Alive 5 Ultimate. An arcade version of the game running on Sega's RingEdge2 hardware was released in Japan. The Virtua Fighter cast rarely appears in DLC (barring the annual Halloween costumes and, to some extent, promotional DLC and the 2016 Valentine's Day DLC), and the female fighters from the franchise do not have their own Private Paradise videos, most likely due to their being third-party guest characters. The characters also lack alternative voice actors, speaking purely in Japanese (Akira and Pai) or English (Sarah and Jacky) regardless of the language options selected, instead utilizing recycled sound clips from Virtua Fighter 5.
Games[]
- Virtua Fighter - Arcade (1993), Saturn (1994), Sega 32X (1995), Windows 95 (1996)
- Virtua Fighter Remix - Arcade (1995), Saturn (1995)
- Virtua Fighter 2 - Arcade (1994), Saturn (1996), Mega Drive/Genesis (1996), Windows 95 (1997), PlayStation 2 (2004), PlayStation 3 (2012), Xbox 360 (2012)
- Virtua Fighter CG Portrait Series - Saturn (1996)
- Virtua Fighter Animation - Game Gear, Master System (1996)
- Virtua Fighter Kids - Arcade (1996), Saturn (1996)
- Fighters Megamix - Saturn (1997), game.com (1998)
- Virtua Fighter 3 - Arcade (1997)
- Virtua Fighter 3tb - Arcade (1998), Dreamcast (1999)
- Virtua Fighter 4 - Arcade (2001), PlayStation 2 (2002)
- Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution - Arcade (2003), PlayStation 2 (2003)
- Virtua Fighter 10th Anniversary - PlayStation 2 (2003)
- Virtua Fighter 4 Final Tuned - Arcade (2004)
- Virtua Quest - GameCube (2005), PlayStation 2 (2005)
- Virtua Fighter 5 - Arcade (2006), PlayStation 3 (2007), Xbox 360 (2007)
- Virtua Fighter 5 R - Arcade (2008)
- Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown - Arcade (2010), PlayStation 3 (2012), Xbox 360 (2012)
- Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown - PlayStation 4 (2021)
References[]
- ↑ VG247: Dead or Alive 5 interview: Hayashi on fight “entertainment”
- ↑ IGN: E3 2012: Dead or Alive 5 has Mad Respect for Virtua Fighter
- ↑ FreeStepDodge - "DOA5: Sega to be publishing DOA5 in Europe"
- ↑ Electronic Theatre - "SEGA to Publish Dead or Alive 5, Virtua Fighter’s Akira to be Playable"
- ↑ Dead or Alive World - "Dead or Alive 5 E3 Day 1"
External links[]