GameSpot
If there's one title that's defined my life in gaming, it's Virtua Fighter. I've adored the series since I was a young arcade-going teenager, and even now, 30 years later, I'm still going to fighting game events across the country to support my favorite game series of all time. My affection for the gameplay, the characters, and the overall design of Virtua Fighter has only grown over this time, but there's still one thing I've always wanted from VF: a proper focus on story. And now, it finally, finally looks like I'm getting that in Virtua Fighter Crossroads, which had a new trailer debut at Summer Game Fest . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9_pg896v6s&feature=youtu.be Yes, there is lore in the manuals. Yes, there's the Virtua Fighter anime, and it's pretty fun. Yes, there's Virtua Quest, which I did play through--more than once, even! But Virtua Fighter has always been first and foremost about the fighting, with character personalities being evoked through fisticuffs moreso than dialogue. Most of the games don't even have endings beyond a credits roll--a fact that's made the series a hard sell to my brother-in-law, who loves the wild lore of the Mortal Kombat titles. But with RGG Studios at the helm, that's changing. I'm finally going to get a chance to see the characters I've loved for decades developed, their stories expanded, their motivations and personalities explored. That's really exciting. Plus, with the game being set some time after Virtua Fighter 5, the writers have a lot to play with in terms of character development during that lengthy gap. I'm eager to see how all of my old favorites look after the timeskip--including, of course, my best girl Vanessa --and how their fighting gameplay has evolved to match their narratives. I'm still kind of weirded out about the F-bombs in the trailer, though. I'm not totally sold on the design of the new guy, Cielo, yet either. But I have a lot of hopes. And if this is what will get more people coming to tournaments and digging deeper into VF's top-class combat, I'm all in. Welcome back, Virtua Fighter. I've never been more ready.
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