The next update to Sega's Virtua Fighter series has been announced. After Virtua Fighter 5 debuted in arcades in 2006, it was ported to PS3 and eventually Xbox 360 in 2007. The next update, Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown, was released in arcades last year, but the upcoming console version is aiming to dethrone its predecessor and become the ultimate iteration of VF5. Planned as a stand-alone downloadable title for PS3 and 360 hitting online marketplaces in the summer of 2012, Final Showdown will be both an expansion and an update to all the versions that came before it.
Nineteen fighters are in the game, including 2 characters new to VF5. Virtua Fighter 3's sumo wrestler Taka-Arashi will make his return and an all-new karate master, Jean Kujo, will join the fight. There will also be a host of new modes, arenas, and downloadable items that can be used to customize fighters. Of course, we don't know much about what they're going to be, aside from one still-mysterious single-player mode which pits you against “an army of opponents.”
Final Showdown will also include enhancements that aren't so obvious. Fighters will move more naturally and enhanced visual cues will more clearly indicate hit types. Also, in an effort to attract new fans to the series, the core fighting mechanic is being redesigned to make it easier for beginners to grasp, and a responsive leaderboard system will keep us from embarrassing ourselves by getting an unfair matchup.
Aug 23, 2011
