Abhay Singh
Within the fighting game genre, the original Virtua Fighter was a pioneer. The Sega AM2 game, which was only available for arcades when it was published in 1993, became well-known for its realistic-looking graphics in addition to its simple gameplay.
Virtua Fighter was innovative back then, even though it may appear simple and outdated by today’s standards. The well-known fighting game from Sega had completely 3D polygonal visuals, making it the first of its kind.
This feature of Virtua Fighter was a big selling factor and eventually helped the game become well-known all over the world in the 1990s.
Virtua Fighter has spawned multiple sequels and spin-offs over the years
Over the years, Virtua Fighter has generated numerous sequels and spin-offs, ranging from Virtua Fighter 2 in 1994 to Virtua Fighter: Fever Combo in 2014.
Unfortunately, the VF franchise has been idle for a while now, except for a few ports and improved re-releases. But according to recent speculations, this might not last for very long.
Earlier this year, well-known insider Midori, also going as RyanFromTheBronx, said that Sega was developing a new mainline VF series game, most likely called Virtua Fighter 6.
This information, together with a recent tweet from Sega that many interpret as hinting toward VF 6, have caused rumors regarding this unreleased game to fly out of control.
If Sega is truly developing this game, the resuscitation of Virtua Fighter by the corporation might turn out to be more significant than initially thought.
There are indications that a new Virtua Fighter game is being developed, despite rumors and hints to the contrary. Sega first revealed plans to bring back some of their classic intellectual property in December 2023.
The publisher made known that Jet Set Radio, Crazy Taxi, Streets of Rage, Shinobi, and Golden Axe would all be getting this reboot treatment.
The company hinted that, in addition to the five previously listed iconic Sega IPs, there would be additional releases in the future, but it withheld any precise information regarding the titles or release dates of the new entries in these idle franchises.
Fighting games are becoming more and more popular throughout the years
Who knows what other games the business would choose to bring back to life? Well, judging on recent remarks made by Shuji Itsumi, the COO of Sega, one of them might turn out to be Virtua Fighter.
Itsumi stated in a Washington Post interview that Sega was actively considering creating a new video game, particularly after the Japanese publisher declared its intentions for long-dormant series revivals in December.
Considering everything, it appears like the likelihood of Virtua Fighter 6 materializing is greater than it has ever been. This is especially encouraging given the recent boom in popularity of the fighting game genre.
Through the years, fighting games have grown in popularity. Street Fighter and Tekken, two of the biggest brands in the genre, have been particularly successful recently.
The year-end release of Street Fighter 6 was greeted with excellent reviews and widespread financial success. In contrast, Tekken 8 made its premiere in 2024 to nearly universal praise from reviewers, selling over two million copies in just one month of release.
Should Sega produce a new, superior Virtual Fighter game, it might be able to compete with these industry titans and even surpass them in one area: accessibility.
Aside from its 3D visuals, Virtua Fighter is well-known for its manageable learning curve. Because of their intricate gameplay mechanics, a lot of fighting games might be difficult to get into, but VF doesn’t have that problem.
Since most general combat moves in Virtual Fighter games only require the use of three buttons and an eight-directional control stick, the control schemes in most of these games are rather straightforward and easy to understand.
A new Virtua Fighter game may appeal to a wider audience than normal and end up becoming one of Sega’s next great hits if it maintains the simple gameplay concept that earlier Virtua Fighter games had.
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