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One of the best 3D fighters just got better.

I never bought into the Virtua Fighter hype back when the first two arcade releases hit. It really didn't win me over until the visual style took a major upgrade with the release of Virtua Fighter 3. From there on out I definitely considered myself to be a fan, and devoured Virtua Fighter 4 Evo to the point of ruining at least one disc over time. That said I'm not a great Virtua Fighter player. I try, but against advanced players my skill level is definitely lacking. In part I chalk this up to not being able to find a large group of local players, but with Virtua Fighter 5 being released on the 360 I'm hoping to change that now.

That's right, Virtua Fighter 5, originally released back on the PS3 earlier in the year, has finally been ported over to the Xbox 360 with some minor and major improvements, the biggest being the addition of online play. For years Sega-AM2 has been opposed to the idea but for whatever reason they've finally relented and have introduced the feature for the first time on consoles. I could go into detail on what makes Virtua Fighter such a great game, but honestly by now you've probably read quite a few different reviews that will all tell you the same thing. Few other 3D fighters (or fighters in general) come close to the presentation and gameplay that Virtua Fighter 5 offers. This entry is also very friendly to first time players, with a fully fleshed out training mode available in the Dojo feature, and a great introduction to the fighting engine with the Quest mode, which pits you against AI modeled around Japan's top VF players.

Offline the game is still pretty robust, especially with the inclusion of the Quest mode. More or less the same from the PS3 version, but with some slight changes as far as new items/emblems and beginning with a bit more gold. Basically you create user data picking a particular fighter, and then as you play against the AI (modeled after real players), you'll unlock new items to customize your fighter with, along with special orb items and little emblems you can stick next to your name. Everything you unlock can also be used online as well, and you can save this data onto a memory card and bring it over to a buddy's 360 if you choose. However, even if the AI is based on real players, it still falls into some pretty lame patterns at times. My character of choice is Lei-Fei, and 9 times out of 10 I was able to use the same string of combos against my opponents in Quest mode to easily take them out, often leaving myself at full health. Every so often the AI would put up a good fight, just not often enough.

Visually the game is astounding, and looks to be identical to the PS3 version. If you've been holding off for the online mode than you'll be incredibly happy you did, since nothing seems to be lost in translation here. The music can be a bit hit or miss, but there are a few tunes that really stand out, in particular the Kage/Temple theme, which I love.

If you've been holding off on trying out the series I'd say this is the best time to jump in, and if you've been a long time fan then you'll find plenty of love here. And, if you're like me and have been waiting for a good online mode to expand your skills with, then you'll really love this title. I had zero lag issues in every match I was in, but keep in mind that won't always be the case. All in all Virtua Fighter 5 is a great experience, and one that every player should at least check out for themselves.