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Welcome to Versus Battlecast.
In this week’s episode, we re-visit two of the biggest 3D fighting games that dominated the arcades and home consoles in the mid-90s.
Virtua Fighter 2 was originally released on Sega’s Model 2 arcade board.
It was a graphical breakthrough as it was the first arcade title to produce full 3D texture-mapped graphics,
running in a silky 60 fps with no virtually no slowdown.
Even looking at the game today
the graphics are still jaw dropping.
Using only 3 buttons and a joystick,
Virtua Fighter 2 is one of the most accessible and in-depth 3D fighting game
that could take you a long time trying to master each character.
In order to master the game,
you have to understand the game’s Paper, Scissors & Stone system,
and the idea that the game uses a Buffering system
that allows you to input a command before it is executed.
When used properly,
the system allows players to create numerous options and strategies against their opponents
which can only be improved with speed, timing and experience.
This is why when you see two experts playing the game,
you are graced with one of the most satisfying, rewarding and impressive fights to grace a TV screen.
When directly compared to Virtua Fighter 2,
Tekken 2’s graphics aren't that impressive.
Running on Namco's System 11 arcade board,
where Tekken 2 does not stand up to Virtua Fighter 2 in terms
of graphics, it stands up for itself in terms of artistic flair.
However, graphics aren't everything,
and where Tekken 2 makes up for this shortfall
is by providing a bone-crunching display of fluent animation that is impactful, and very exciting to watch.
What really sets Tekken 2 apart from Virtua Fighter 2 is that the controls are relatable to the other popular game, Street Fighter.
Combine with the impressive “dial-a-combo” system,
and the ability to pull-off lots of powerful moves from simple executions,
Tekken 2 became an instant mainstream hit appealing to all levels of gamers
and THAT started the rivals war.
The argument between gamers talking about Virtua Fighter 2 and Tekken 2
really hit fever pitch when both titles were released on the Sega Saturn and Sony Playstaion.
The release of both titles sent millions of gamers into a frenzy
and became the talk of every town around the world.
Back then, it didn’t matter where you were;
if you heard someone mention Tekken 2 and Virtua Fighter 2 in the same sentence to someone else,
you knew that sparks were going to fly!
The rivalry between these two fighters was never settled so it’s time to end that debate.
Thanks to our expert crew members playing the game,
we’ll be able to see for ourselves how both titles should be played at a high level.
It's time to lay all the cards on the table and decide which title should take the crown.