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[Game on!] Everyone should play Virtua Fighter 5 Online (360)
LibrarianThorne
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Virtua Fighter 5 Online, availalbe now on the Xbox 360, is based on arcade revision C of Virtua Fighter 5. INcluding new brawlers Eileen (Monkey kung-fu) and El Blaze (Lucha Libre), the game brings back previous Virtua Fighter characters Lei-Fei, Brad Burns, Goh Hinogami, Akira, Lau, Pai, Kage, and more. As well, character customization (introduced in Virtua Fighter 4) makes a return in VF5 with even more objects to personalize your fighter. Screenshots below:
Why Learning This Game Isn't Hard:
Yes, Virtua Fighter as a series is arguably the most complex fighting game out there and Virtua Fighter 5 is no exception to this rule. However, plenty of people are picking up VF5 as their first experience with the series and loving it. There are resources online such as VFDC (http://virtuafighter.com/) that can help you learn the ins and outs of a character. As well, more experienced players like myself are usually more than happy to give out advice during matches.
Gamertag list:
Everyone who has/gets the game should post their tag in the thread, and I'll update the OP.
Name- Tag
LibrarianThorne- LibThorne40k
templewulf- TempleWulf
Ashendark- Ashendark
Frostozuna - HeyYamo
limitbreakerx- limitbreakerx
bobAkirafett- bobAkirafett
Backlash- Absoludacrous
ginguskahn- ginguskahn360
UnbreakableVow- UnbreakableVow
TxdoHawk- TuxedoHawk
Drem- pooglywoogly
Why Learning This Game Isn't Hard:
Yes, Virtua Fighter as a series is arguably the most complex fighting game out there and Virtua Fighter 5 is no exception to this rule. However, plenty of people are picking up VF5 as their first experience with the series and loving it. There are resources online such as VFDC (http://virtuafighter.com/) that can help you learn the ins and outs of a character. As well, more experienced players like myself are usually more than happy to give out advice during matches.
Gamertag list:
Everyone who has/gets the game should post their tag in the thread, and I'll update the OP.
Name- Tag
LibrarianThorne- LibThorne40k
templewulf- TempleWulf
Ashendark- Ashendark
Frostozuna - HeyYamo
limitbreakerx- limitbreakerx
bobAkirafett- bobAkirafett
Backlash- Absoludacrous
ginguskahn- ginguskahn360
UnbreakableVow- UnbreakableVow
TxdoHawk- TuxedoHawk
Drem- pooglywoogly
LibrarianThorne on
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Virtua Fighter 5's online play is flawless.
I've only experienced lag when torrenting. If you're not torrenting, playing people in, say, Britain or Japan results in no noticeable lag. This means that this is the closest game we've got to having dudes sit next to us and playing, at least for the fighting game genre.
That said, there are some problems. Items and gold cannot be unlocked through online play. The menu system for online matchmaking is awful. There are two types of matches: Ranked and Player. In Ranked matches you will, if at all possible, be matched up with someone close to your rank (if you select the relevant option when making a session or searching for one), but you can't do rematches in ranked unless either player happens upon the other. Also, you cannot invite friends into ranked matches. In Player matches, private matches can be set up between two friends, but you cannot change stages or characters for a rematch. In order to do that, both players must exit the session and either pick a new character or create a new session to get a new stage.
Now, in a lot of ways these flaws seem very big deals, especially after DOA4's excellent lobby system. I would agree, if lag was more prominent in VF5, that the menus would be deal breakers. However, given the absence of lag that has plagued online fighters on Live, I can forgive the clumsiness of the menu system as the game still allows for excellent tests of skill.
Bastard Akira juggles like nobody's business.
EDIT: IRT Lothars: $30 Canadian? Seriously, I can't tell you how much VF5 is worth it. I bought the game two days after release and, despite the full price tag, this game has not made me regret the purchase. I've put more hours into VF5 than Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, and Mass Effect by quite a ridiculous margin. THe game is so good that it got my roomie, who'd never played VF before, into the system and even into online play. In fact, the only games I've played more than VF5 are Street Fighter 3: 3rd Strike and maybe Sonic 2. Sell off a used game or two and get this game.
@Krunk: This is a bona fide 60USD DVD-type game.
@LibrarianThorne:
I don't know if the whole "not being able to invite friends into ranked matches" is a deficiency. Isn't that how all 360 games are, so as to prevent rank-pumping between friends?
In any case, Player Matches seem to be identical, except that they don't affect your rank and you can rematch / invite friends.
My tag is templewulf, and you (the general "you" as in anybody) can friend me and challenge me any time. Except for Lau. I hate the whole goddamn Chan family.
US$59.99 (Gamestop/EBGames)
US$56.99 (Amazon)
Though I do understand the prices are dropping at some Gamestops, likely due to the holiday zomg release season. However, even at full retail, this game is worth every cent.
PSN ID : Xander51 Steam ID : Xander51
Anyone else is welcome to friend me as well. GT - Ashendark
As someone who uses the 360 pad, it's much better than the OXbox Controller S pad. Much more responsive and tight, and I've not had too many issues with it. Occasionally doing QCF inputs has proven a challenge, but for the characters I play (Lei-Fei and Lau) it's not really necessary. Mapping PKG and KG to LB and RB also helped out a bung for improving my game.
I, on the other hand, find the 360's dpad a travesty that should be tried in the Hague.
Actually, I'm just being hyperbolic. The dpad is good in theory, but in practice half of them are broken. Download the demo of that Street Fighter arcade game. This will be a good gauge to the quality of your dpad.
You can also use the analog sticks in a pinch, but I don't have the accuracy for that.
Nothing discourages a new player more than being completely shut out, because they don't know how to operate a big, slow character.
I'd love to read some more on the 360 controller--especially if templewulf and LibrarianThorne have some additional info. Due to my budget, I don't see a stick in the future--I don't like buying peripherals or controllers for only one game (getting a peripheral means less money for other games in early 2008, and I'd rather just have other games).
That being said, what kind of mapping options will we have for the 360 controller? Are the options flexible enough to get a controller set up and comfortable for a player if the pad or stick isn't "in the zone"? Are we looking at possible game-breaker controls?
I've been wanting to pick up Virtua Fighter for a long time, but never owned any of the titles. VF5 is my first chance to finally get into the series, but I've been reading a lot of negative comments on the 360 controls for this version. I'd hate to have shitty controls ruin my first try at Virtua Fighter.
Ng Security Industries, Inc.
PRERELEASE VERSION-NOT FOR FIELD USE - DO NOT TEST IN A POPULATED AREA
-ULTIMA RATIO REGUM-
I get by on dpad against Librarian, but I have to make sure I have the right controller first. One dpad just doesn't do left. Ever.
Lau
Pai
Jacky
Sarah
El Blaze
All 4 rely on an agressive playstyle and have simple tricks that can lead to big damage.
Intermediate characters:
Leon
Lei-Fei
Vanessa
Brad
Eileen
Akira
These characters are more complicated, for various reasons, than the previous 4. For example, Lei-Fei relies on intricate stance-based combos to pull off big damage and can be wildly open in some circumstances. Akira has some of the fastest, highest damage moves in the game but his combos are extraordinarily difficult for new players.
Difficult characters:
Shun Di
Jeffrey
Wolf
Goh
Kage
Aoi
For a variety of reasons, these characters require much more finesse to use than the previous two groups. Wolf and Jeffrey are the two highest damage, highest defense characters in the game but both are incredibly slow which leads to a very defensive style that is really hard to get into for new players. Shun Di is a trainwreck of amazing, and is arguably the most complicated character in the game due to a reliance on drinking to unlock his moveset.
As an unapologetic double poster, I can tell you that the 360 controls are fully customizable (as in, you can determine what a given button will do, and can map P, K, G, PG, KG, and PKG). I've not had any issues with the official wireless and wired controllers, but as TW says your experience may vary.
EGM recently had a vague, alarmist "OMG! 360 controller is teh_sUxX0rz" blurb, so I wasn't sure what the exact issues with the control were. Doesn't sound too bad--I'm down.
Ng Security Industries, Inc.
PRERELEASE VERSION-NOT FOR FIELD USE - DO NOT TEST IN A POPULATED AREA
-ULTIMA RATIO REGUM-
Frostozuna - HeyYamo
gt - limitbreakerx
I love Eileen. My main in the past was always Sarah, but I switched to learning Eileen in this game, and the options she for mind games are awesome.
Also my Eileen has angel wings and a monkey tail, which you just cant argue with.
SSBB: 2921-8745-1438
Diamond: 2320-2615-4086
I have so much trouble fighting Eileen, it borders on the redonkulous.
TAKE MY FACE SCRATCHES YOU LEI FEI USING BASTARD!
actually i would argue that vanessa is one of the hardest characters to pick up because her move list is so damn long.
kage and aoi are nowhere near as hard to use effectively as wolf, jeff, goh and vanessa.
in fact i might even rank kage in the "easy" group although aoi would only be bumped down to intermediate. kage has too many easy, high priority, good damage combos to be considered "difficult".
I would disagree about the difficulty of a character being related to their moveset length. I know, maybe, 40% of Lei-Fei's moves, but I'm still 2nd dan with him online because I have a deep understanding of what moves are good in what situation. The important bit about learning a character is learning not the what and how of a move but the when and the where to do it. Maybe it's a holdover from my 2D fighting experience, but knowing all of a character's moves takes a very distant second place to knowing how to use moves. In fact, the best Vanessa I've played (4th dan), while he did have a very great understanding of her moves, pared down what moves to use based on the fight.
I rank Vanessa as intermediate because she's such a house offensively with many short, fast, and damaging combos as well as a standing P counter that throws characters like Lei-Fei, Jacky, and Lau for a loop. In terms of difficulty, while I may not have nearly the tournament experience that you do, I've spent a lot of time trying to figure characters out and Kage and Aoi represent really difficult characters to learn. This is based on friends of mine picking up the game and learning characters, and they all talked about how hard the characters I listed were to use effectively.
Aoi is probably easier to use than I give her credit for. I try to counter and parry too much with her, what with her being all JuJutsu-ed up. Playing more like Jacky, her strings may not be damaging, but she has some pretty competitive mix-ups.
I'd also say Vanessa is definitely not in the "easy" category, but she has enough speed and range to use her effectively. I wouldn't put her anywhere near Wolf or Jeffrey in terms of difficulty.
Admittedly, Aoi and Kage are on the difficult list partially due to my own inability to grasp how they play, but the whole list is subjective anyway.
Ashendark's Sarah is coming along pretty decently, he won a couple of matches against my Lau last night.
Essentially, every move has a purpose. None of them are useless as long as you know the properties it has. E.g. Akira's superslow QCB+P+K elbow looks crappy until you realize it has an auto-parry property.
Reading stuff like this really gets me jazzed for this game. I'm from the old Soul Calibur school (and a bit of DOA) and love the free-form button mashing you can do to pull off insane moves, but I've always wanted to get an insanely deep fighting game I can really sink my teeth into.
Ng Security Industries, Inc.
PRERELEASE VERSION-NOT FOR FIELD USE - DO NOT TEST IN A POPULATED AREA
-ULTIMA RATIO REGUM-
VF5 is pretty much exactly what you're looking for then. The game actively punishes button mashing not through a mechanic, per se, but by giving every single character options around someone who just spams, say, crouching punch.
Another neat thing that I didn't realize until relatively recently is that Lei-Fei has very good defenses against particular attacks while in a stance. Though the character can't block at all while in any stance, in one stance he's immune to throw, another he's immune to high attacks, and in one he auto-counters punches. Shit like that is what makes VF5 the deepest and meatiest fighting game there is.
Goh is the best.
i challenge you to a duel
*glove slap*
eileen has no penis to injure and rest assured shun di only has shrivled raisins on a twig to worry about from years of alcoholism
tag: nica2nica
A glove slap in a little old face will
Get you satisfaction.
Glove slap ba-a-beee ...
(Glove slap, baby)
Glove slap, baby, glove slap!
Glove slap, I don't take crap!
Glove slap, shut your big yap.
A deep fighting game series that's easy to get into? I'd recommend Soul Calibur.
I really do like Soul Calibur, I promise.
I loved the shit out of SC1. Like, with every fibre of my being.
SC2 sucked giant balls. Horrible balance issues (such as giving certain characters 80% unblockable combos) drove me away from the game in short order. SC3 is better, but very few people want to play against me because I can, you know, parry and use 8 way run.
So, how's about them Virtua Fightin's? If someone wants to play VF5 with me and I'm in something like Halo or Call of Duty, send the invite anyway as I'll happily stop playing any other game to play VF5 with people. No slight on the FPS genre as a whole, but fighting games are simply more fun to play for me.