There are a lot of reasons to be excited forVirtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown. While it’s technically not a brand new game, the HD remaster of the last entry in Sega’s 3D fighting game series not only opens the possibility of a full series revival, but it also boasts plenty of new features to entice newcomers and those who already played the originalVirtua Fighter 5.
A livestream presentation all about the game aired earlier today, which shared details about the game andSega’s esports plansfor it, something the company initially teased last year. But, there was one small announcement that’s bound to appeal to those who grew up with the series when it first appeared in the arcades. Namely, an option to play the game using the originalVirtua Fighter’s blocky, old-school graphics.
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This feature didn’t receive a lot of focus, and there isn’t much footage of the change in aesthetic in action, but it appears to affect even the HUD, reverting it to the one from the first game. An old-school stage can also be seen, which could be a new arena being added to the game. While this means fans can revertlong-timeVirtua Fightercharacterslike Akira and Pai to their original looks, this will mark the first time more modern characters, such as Vanessa and El Blaze, will be depicted in these old graphics.
It may seem a bit odd for there to be an option that makes the graphics worse, especially since one ofUltimate Showdown’s big selling points is the improved HD visuals. But, this is very clearly meant to evoke a sense of nostalgia from older fans of theVirtua Fighterseries and is simply a fun addition to the game.
One downside, however, is that it is not included with the base game. The old-school graphics will be sold as a DLC pack called the Legendary Pack, which will launch alongside the game. It can be bought as part of a bundle with the game or separately.
As a reminder,Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdownwill be launching as a PlayStation 4 exclusive and will be part ofJune’s PlayStation Plusofferings. This means anyone who has a PS Plus subscription can download and play the game for free. Between this and its esports aspirations, it seems Sega is as eager to revitalizeVirtua Fighteras its fans are. Whether or not this will usher in a new era or at least a sequel remains to be seen.
Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdownrelease for PlayStation 4 on June 1st.
