Virtua Fighter 5 (Sony Playstation 3, 2007)

Essentially I'll try not to regurgitate what so many others have said here about this game. The graphics, particularly background scenery, as well as skin textures of fighters, shading, etc. is excellent. The lack of an online feature is certainly duly noted particularly for those who commonly do their gaming alone. It will also display in 1080i Hi-Def which seemingly few PS3 games will do (most only do 720P, or downconvert to 480P) - this is of particular importance to owners of older HD sets. The overall playing difficulty of the game, and therefore its enhanced replay value, is what will likely keep players coming back to the VF franchise. Mastering this game through the Arcade and various other modes is an extreme challenge to say the least. Many advanced moves require plenty of practice and great dexterity to perform combination moves. Classic 'button-mashing' will only take a player so far before the computer AI begins to predict your movements and counters defensively, forcing new methods of attack in order to be successful. In summation - A great game at current prices (under 20 bucks) and a worthy addition to anyones game collection who enjoys this genre.

Honestly I don't know why I bought this game... I knew it was a sega title and should have figgured the legacy of 16 bit carries on to the ps3 platform.

The actual fighting is what kept this game at a below average otherwise I would gave this a poor rating. The player (me) has no interest in the game after 15 mins of playing unlike the MK series you can see blood and more adult actions rather than some kiddy play. This is a great game for those energetic kids under 11 but anyone older would probably get sick with this game after 15 mins. Did I add this the menus and options are almost like the sega genesis system?... ugh so disappointed. My lost is your gain- I will be putting this game up on ebay once I'm finished this review.

Virtua Fighter 5 is good fighting game. You don't have to be an expert of the genre to enjoy it. In fact, there are many different characters to select from that will appeal to beginners who want to mash buttons to get a win, and characters who will appeal to the expert player that can carefully tap in the correct sequence of buttons and win that way.

That said, this game is a fighter, and a fighter only. The story line is minimal. It's best played with friends as the replay value is low unless you want to master techniques of certain characters - and mastering techniques, although rewarding, can be tedious because of the careful timing and odd sequences you'll need to enter to perform some advanced moves.

The game's graphics and sound are great. The controls are satisfactory - your character moves as you would expect them to. Beginning moves are executed fairly easily, but the learning curve ramps up steeply when you're trying to perform advanced movements. The load times are tolerable.

This game would be even better if they would develop the story line and plot in the game a little more. That would add both interest in the characters and replay value to see different parts of the integrated story line. If a story line would add replay value, then adding in network play would add even more replay value. Too bad this feature is sorely missing from this game.

I think without the ability to fight an opponent over the network, this game does not deserve the excellent rating, but qualifies for a solid good rating with the execution of the other features. If you like fighting games, it is a solid buy, but if you're just mildly into the genre, then there are probably other games out there that will compete well against this game.

Virtua Fighter 5 lets the graphics prowess of the PlayStation 3 shine. The question is whether great graphics alone can make a fighting game worth playing.
The graphics in Virtua Fighter 5 are spell bindingly beautiful in many situations. The landscapes are lush. The movements of the fabrics are fluid and natural. The physics engine is quite impressive. Yes, sometimes the textures can be shiny, and the water more mercury-like that truly watery. Still, this is beautiful to watch.
Quest Mode is where it's at in this game; the mode is essentially a recreation of the experience of traveling to different arcades and challenging players on a machine. To start you create a profile and choose your preferred character, and then the Quest world is open to explore. There are several different arcades with "players" of different skill levels, so there is a feeling of progression as you go from one arcade to the next, improving in your ranking and piling up wins. Winning matches and tournaments in the different arcades will earn you money and items to customize your character and beef out your profile. Not only is it addictive to collect items and personalize fighters, it's very difficult to stop trying to improve your rank and dominate different arcades.

The first next-gen installment of the Virtua Fighter franchise has a lot to live up to, and it both does and doesn’t meet all the expectations laid on this storied series. The good news is that VF 5 is as tight, polished, and balanced of a release as even the most rabid of fans could ask for. Combat is smooth and fast, and the single-player Quest mode (though admittedly very similar to that of VF 4) is the best single-player experience in the genre. If an iteration on the classic style of fighting games is all you ask, Virtua Fighter 5 will take good care of you. On the other hand, the lack of online play is a sad omission for a PlayStation 3 title, and the basic gameplay formula hasn’t changed a bit. Even so, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to any fighter fan or PS3 owner – it’s not often that you see core mechanics as well-implemented as they are here, and that itself makes for a very entertaining game.