SEGA is Bringing Back Classic Fighting Game Series Virtua Fighter

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As a seasoned gamer who’s seen the rise and fall of numerous gaming franchises, I can’t help but feel a rush of nostalgia hearing about SEGA’s plans to revive Virtua Fighter. I remember spending countless hours in arcades, trying to master the art of virtual combat with those polygon warriors back in the day. The news that they’re bringing it back has me doing a virtual Hadoken in excitement!

For a significant period of time, the competitive video game genre has persisted, witnessing the rise and fall of certain franchises such as Soul Calibur and Fatal Fury. However, some established titles like Mortal Kombat, Tekken, and Street Fighter have consistently updated their content roughly every few years.

Although Tekken appears to be the sole 3D fighting game that’s managed to endure for so long, SEGA aims to rekindle the classic 3D fighting game series, a genre that hasn’t seen an update since 2006.

Virtua Fighter is Making a Comeback

In a recent interview with Video Games Chronicle, SEGA’s global head of transmedia, Justin Scarpone, confirmed that the studio plans to re-release several legacy titles, including Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, and the classic fighting game Virtua Fighter.

Scarpone points out an intriguing aspect: There’s a group of people, mostly in their 40s and 50s, who fondly recall those titles from their childhood or youth. On the other hand, there’s a new generation, for whom this intellectual property (IP) doesn’t hold much relevance.

In recent years, we’ve seen adaptations of the Virtua Fighter series for mobile devices and arcade games online, following the last major installment, Virtua Fighter 5, which was launched back in 2006.

The Legacy of Virtua Fighter

In 1993, the initial version of “Virtua Fighter” was launched, marking it as the pioneer of polygon-based fighting games. It has been officially acknowledged that Virtua Fighter’s 3D design influenced Sony to prioritize and develop 3D games for the PlayStation platform.

The game kicked off featuring eight original combatants, alongside the boss character Dural. A quick glance at the cast from the previous major release suggests that this game, too, carries many familiar elements typical of classic fighting games. Notably, the characters hail from various global locales and embody archetypes such as the honorable martial artist, the master of Chinese kung fu, the wrestler, the stealthy ninja assassin, among others.

In a year’s time, Tekken would follow suit with the same concept, yet it has persisted in being contemporary up until the 2020s. On the other hand, Virtua Fighter is often regarded as the pioneer of 3D fighting games by many.

What Can Fans Expect from the Remake?

While the revamped version is primarily designed for gamers who played the original, SEGA’s development team is also focusing on appealing to younger audiences as well.

Speaking candidly, Scarpone questioned: “How can we redesign these Intellectual Properties (IPs) and find a connection? Which digital platforms should we use to grow the appeal of lesser-known IPs? And how do we engage with newer generations?

So far, no details have emerged regarding the upcoming Virtua Fighter, but given that Sega has announced several classic IPs making a comeback, it’s highly likely that they are preparing for a significant unveiling in the near future.

It seems most likely that we might see it by the time of The Game Awards towards the end of the year, although this is all just guesswork.

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2024-11-08 14:12