Letfs get this out of the way first.
Do you like technical fighting games? Ones where you have to start every session in some kind of training mode? Where the manual is required reading? A game which, when you go online, you absolutely have to be decent or else youfll get destroyed?
If the answer is no, stop reading, move along, nothinf to see here. You are not going to like this game. This is not the review youfre looking for.
That common objection aside, this is a well built, silky smooth, deep fighting game that fans of the genre should love. Think of it as a serious sim game, like Forza 2, but with fighting. You wonft see fireballs and lasers in Virtua Fighter: only some of the jumps the characters execute (which are really only stylistic flourishes) seem out of bounds with reality. While Forza 2 is a game that people who love cars will appreciate, VF5 is a game for people who have interest in the martial arts. Just never mind that way more people race cars than participate in world wide fighting tournaments held by evil corporate cabals bent on world domination!
That last bit was the entire backstory of VF5 summed up. There really isnft any story in the game- perhaps some endings in arcade mode but thatfs it. Itfs too bad, because the backstory that is told in the manual is actually kind of entertaining- save for some of the characters, who have comically little to them, such as the wrestler El Blaze. His story? He was mad that gWolfh was the heavyweight champion and he was a lightweight champion, so he enters the gJ6 tournament to challenge him (cue Joe Espositofs gYoufre The Besth from Karate Kid).
El Blaze is a cool character, though. Props to Sega for thinking of including a Mexican wrestler in the mix, as his moves are unique and unlike the usual ju-jitsu/karate mashup (and of course the obligatory jeet-kun-do figher). Like all games like this youfre going to have the gduplicate fighting style but different characterh issue. Itfs annoying but I canft really fault VF5 for doing something that all fighters do. That said, that makes the few characters who do not really have an equal in the game stand out all the more. Sarah Bryant, for example, is sort of like an American Chun-Li, with a huge variety of kick based attacks. She might have the most entertaining moveset in the game next to El Blaze.
The most interesting aspect of VF5 is the gQuest Mode.h Whatfs interesting here is that the gQuesth involved doesnft involve the characters or backstory. It involves you. It tries to simulate the age old era where gamers would go to various local arcades in order to beat the local champ. You select from a variety of arcades, with CPU players of various skill level. The rules change often, again emulating local preferences- some matches might be best of 5 instead of the usual best of 3, for example.
Itfs also in Quest mode that you get the gamefs unlockables. You earn gold to buy costume upgrades and other goodies. At first, I wasnft extremely thrilled with this mode, but I have to admit, it simulates the experience of battling against other players in arcades fairly well, right down to the little text greetings that the players have when you start a battle. Itfs also cool how random tournaments pop up to participate in.
You also of course have the requisite gDojoh or training mode. In a game like this, a good training mode is essential. Youfll be spending at least 1/3 of your time in here. While it does have all the tools you need to practice, I wish it had something that showed you what buttons you were pushing, as you pushed them- that is, a part of the screen that displayed an gXh when you pushed an X, so you can judge if you executed a combo correctly. I do give them credit for squeezing in a gtime attackh mode though: you execute all of your characterfs moves and combos (with on screen help) as fast as possible. This helps to really learn those movesets!
Graphically the game looks gorgeous, with huge character models and good looking backgrounds. But, using the Forza comparison yet again, the game does sacrifice a little extra graphical juice in order to run at 60 FPS at all times. But donft let that make you think it looks like a dog, though. It does look great. It just isnft going to make you go crazy, thatfs all.
Speaking of crazy, Ifm glad that Sega does not go the Dead or Alive route and stack (pardon the pun) the game with ladies with huge breasts that bounce to and fro. DoA games are competent fighters but the jiggle aspect is a little embarassing. Sega made the right move: there are several pretty ladies in the game, and yeah, there are provacative outfits that one can unlock for them, but there is at least a tip of the cap toward good taste that I appreciate.
VF5 has been on the PS3 for some time, but that game was lacking an online mode. A major draw for the 360 version, then, is full Xbox Live! support. Yes, I can confirm the matches are totally lag free. Yes, I can also confirm that there are enough players that, most of the time, you can find a match (sometimes, in a nitch genre, you have that problem of no players online to play against). Although I would suggest sleazing around fighting game forums like www.shoryuken.com as many aficionados prefer to use private lobbies.
All in all a game like this defies most criticism. Sure, it could use a bit more flash, maybe a bit more of an attempt to draw in a crowd that isnft going to spend hours in training mode. Yet it does what it does quite well, has an interesting cast of fighters, and has an online mode that works well without lag.
So, then, letfs give this one of those gAfs with fine print attached,h and move along.
Grade: A.