Easily in my top 10 of all time. Everytime I play a Yakuza game, I find myself spending hours inside the Club Sega playing VF2. Every time I’ve been to Japan, I’ve made sure to spend at least an hour playing it at a retro arcade in Akiba. I truly adore everything about VF2. The soundtrack, the general look of the game and just the way it plays. Sure, VF4 and VF5 may be better games as a whole, but there is something about VF2 that always keeps me coming back. It is my Street Fighter 2. I’ve beaten the game countless times. Have most of the move sets memorised. Everyone except Akira (I could never quite master his counters). Yeah, I just adore VF2. It’s an incredible game that gets so overlooked these days. Oh and that Saturn port. That Saturn port was nothing short of amazing! They took a state of the art $20k arcade machine and somehow got a pretty damn accurate version running on hardware known for being a pain in the ass to code for. Nothing short of incredible work all around.
Amazing graphics on the Saturn port, but also a phenomenal arranged soundtrack. My favourite music in a game ever (ok, tied with Saturn Sega Rally). Sega's sound studio was something else in the Saturn era. Great tribute video.
I remember when I got the sega saturn back in 1995 VF1 came bundled with it. I loved the first game then but when VF2 came out on console I really fell in love with the series. I played them a bit in the arcades as well. VF2 is brilliant! Good video!
Fantastic tribute to one of my all time favorite games. I appreciate the quality of your work. Had to lol at those tekken 1 graphics. Could almost hear Sarah telling Kazuya "better run home to momma now" 😜
Omg....i miss, miss MISS my Saturn with vf2 and sega rally etc etc. I had that magazine also btw Richard leadbetter was my frickin hero in my school days.
What an amazing video you made. I've backed in time to rhe 90's when I was playing VF2 on arcades and on the Saturn. Astonishing visuals and gameplay. Pure SEGA power. Great video 👍
Loved this! VF2 was absolutely amazing, i can't tell you how many hours i put into this game on the Saturn and in the arcades. VF is my favorite 3-D fighting game series of all time.
In another video, I found myself responding to an online troll about how the Sega Saturn version of Virtua Fighter 2 was technically higher-res than it's arcade counterpart, even mentioning the same 704x480 statistic brought up in the video. Their response was something to the effect of it was only a theoretical number (?) for the Saturn to hit. I gave up talking to them shortly there afterwards lol
Yeah both the Saturn's VF2 and the Dreamcast's VF3 ran at higher resolutions than their arcade counterparts. VF2's 704x480 (704x512 here in PAL land actually!) is in interlaced format rather than progressive but that's just because standard TVs of the time wouldn't be able to display it otherwise. I think you saved yourself some energy by giving up! Thanks for watching.
Thank you mom for getting me that sega Saturn for my bday. Friends laughed as the PlayStation was the sheep way to go. But arcade perfect import to home. Children of the atom , street fighter alpha and virtua fighter 2. It was a hell of a sprite graphics monster
I own an original VF2 cab and the game holds up in a lot of ways. Still fun to play and thrilled to have it in my living room. Not fun was getting that 400 lb mofo in there…
Did anyone else do "Sumo Mode" on Saturn VF2 where you put both health bars to infinite and set the stage size to taste? Was pissed off I couldn't do this on the PS3 version.
ON the Saturn, you need to play it on v2.0 mode. If you do that, you won't be able to do the dash-in-and-throw trick that you was doing before. Personally, I was a little glad that trick was there for it gave a little fighting chance when you set the difficulty to Expert mode. My favourite character in this game is Akira Yuki. and I was SPoD'ming, P+GG'ing, and floating combo to madness until I brought the game on the PS3 (HD version) and started playing against players from Japan. Boy, there are some serious players here I'd tell you that.
A constant fixture in my Saturn line-up. Wasn't any good at it really - I was ten - but I played it all the time when I wasn't playing Sega Rally, Tomb Raider, or NiGHTS. It was nice replayig the arcade version in the Yakuza games too
Great retrospective! Speaking of finger movement team. When I last played Virtua Fighter 5, I had the impression that there was something wrong with the motion capture. I finally realized that it was because of the hands and fingers, which did not move and looked like attached static sculptures. The thought arose in me that these movements looked somehow better in VF 2, so I hurriedly turned on VF 2. I rubbed my eyes with disbelief, delight, watching the ultra-realistic movements of the characters' fingers. Yes you are right! Even Sega doesn't do this anymore! ;) Thanks for solving my investigation!
Did the UK or Japanese version of VF2 for Saturn not have the learning A.I. of the US version? I've had to backup and start a new save file a few times because the A.I. would just destroy me if I did anything I normally do. Or maybe you were referring to the A.I. of the Arcade version being relatively weak? I wouldn't know about that. I need to try the throw exploit with my original saves loaded and see if it figures me out again.
The PAL version certainly had the learning A.I thing although as far as I can remember, you had to switch it on first so maybe most people didn't play with it. Even with it turned off, the enemy A.I in the second half of this game is demonic. It's actually my least favourite of the original three for that reason, in single player mode anyway. Thanks for watching.
Oh, I misunderstood. You were referring to it being unfair/hard not too easy or simplistic. I definitely agree. Even on Normal Leon can get me cussing at the screen.
@@gamecomparisons Yeah. Kage and the like have the reaction time of Data from Star Trek. Conversely, they're really easy to exploit, and that's what I end up resorting to a lot of the time because they're almost impossible to beat legitimately. Admittedly I'm far from an expert.
It's an amazing looking game. However, I consider Playstation's Sould Edge to play in the same league. Yes, I know it's an unpopular opinion, but it had fully 3D somewhat rich backdrops, which no Saturn game was able to achieve.
@@iorch82 I liked Soul Edge/Soul Blade a lot but not even close in my opinion. For one thing SE couldn’t even run at 60 fps, it was 30. VF2 also looked MUCH better, especially if you’re comparing the arcade versions against each other.
No I didn't, to be honest. I already had a Saturn when it was released so I just bought that version. I've heard it was very good though, considering the hardware it was on. Thanks for watching.
@@retromuel it’s the only VF I’ve tried, and only recently while trying all the fighting games on Nintendo Switch Online. I was quite disappointed when I discovered it’s 2D because the box art thumbnail they show looks like it will be 3D, and all I really knew about the series was that it’s legendary for innovation in 3D. From what I’ve googled though there wasn’t much “3D gameplay” in terms of side stepping etc so not much seems to have been lost in the gameplay, just the graphics.
it uses each button as a single bit in a binary chord system. they make 7 different inputs out of those 3 buttons. street fighter games and such have caught up, with multi-button attack inputs, but VF was by far the first, and their input philosophy has always been the most efficient.
Here after the vf 5 revo beta, awesome content, subbed
the picture of Yu at the 1:21 is representative of sega spirit of the 90s ferocious confident innovative
Easily in my top 10 of all time. Everytime I play a Yakuza game, I find myself spending hours inside the Club Sega playing VF2. Every time I’ve been to Japan, I’ve made sure to spend at least an hour playing it at a retro arcade in Akiba. I truly adore everything about VF2. The soundtrack, the general look of the game and just the way it plays. Sure, VF4 and VF5 may be better games as a whole, but there is something about VF2 that always keeps me coming back. It is my Street Fighter 2.
I’ve beaten the game countless times. Have most of the move sets memorised. Everyone except Akira (I could never quite master his counters). Yeah, I just adore VF2. It’s an incredible game that gets so overlooked these days.
Oh and that Saturn port. That Saturn port was nothing short of amazing! They took a state of the art $20k arcade machine and somehow got a pretty damn accurate version running on hardware known for being a pain in the ass to code for. Nothing short of incredible work all around.
Amazing graphics on the Saturn port, but also a phenomenal arranged soundtrack. My favourite music in a game ever (ok, tied with Saturn Sega Rally). Sega's sound studio was something else in the Saturn era. Great tribute video.
I remember when I got the sega saturn back in 1995 VF1 came bundled with it. I loved the first game then but when VF2 came out on console I really fell in love with the series. I played them a bit in the arcades as well. VF2 is brilliant! Good video!
Playing this after VF1, was so impressed at playing double the speed. Lot more fun this way.
I love Virtua Fighter
Fantastic tribute to one of my all time favorite games. I appreciate the quality of your work. Had to lol at those tekken 1 graphics. Could almost hear Sarah telling Kazuya "better run home to momma now" 😜
I wish you still made more vids and friendmuecast
Bro great vid for us newcomers to this legendary franchise
Thanks Man! Glad you enjoyed jt!
The vibe in these videos is amazing. And Yeah even today, VF2 is very beautiful.
Kid me was obsessed with this game. It's so freaking good!
Great video! Sega saturn and all the games i had and still play always transport me back and I shed a tear. Truly the best times of my life
Omg....i miss, miss MISS my Saturn with vf2 and sega rally etc etc.
I had that magazine also btw
Richard leadbetter was my frickin hero in my school days.
The combination of the music and images from the mag just made me break down in tears.
You make great videos bro! Thanks and love thr FGC content lets Go!
What an amazing video you made. I've backed in time to rhe 90's when I was playing VF2 on arcades and on the Saturn. Astonishing visuals and gameplay. Pure SEGA power. Great video 👍
So this is the base template on what Dead or Alive has been built upon😏
And Tekken...
Especially Tekken lol
Well, yes. By the DOA creator's own admission...
@@supermaster1325Actually DOA is closer to VF than Tekken. They're both influenced by VF, but DOA is closer to VF
Loved this! VF2 was absolutely amazing, i can't tell you how many hours i put into this game on the Saturn and in the arcades. VF is my favorite 3-D fighting game series of all time.
Me too, Man. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for watching.
6:44 "The model 2, made everything else look..... sssssssssshhhhhhhiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit" is the funniest bit ever 😆 Also, TRUE!
Absolutely amazing presentation to one of the most influential games of all time. TY 🤩😍🤘🏻👍🏻
In another video, I found myself responding to an online troll about how the Sega Saturn version of Virtua Fighter 2 was technically higher-res than it's arcade counterpart, even mentioning the same 704x480 statistic brought up in the video. Their response was something to the effect of it was only a theoretical number (?) for the Saturn to hit. I gave up talking to them shortly there afterwards lol
Yeah both the Saturn's VF2 and the Dreamcast's VF3 ran at higher resolutions than their arcade counterparts. VF2's 704x480 (704x512 here in PAL land actually!) is in interlaced format rather than progressive but that's just because standard TVs of the time wouldn't be able to display it otherwise. I think you saved yourself some energy by giving up! Thanks for watching.
Thanks this made my day!
Animations were mind blowing for the time - some still hold up really well today esp Jacky
That intro song is so good! I literally workout to the song when i lift lol
One of my favorite games of all time. Nice treatment.
This is a great video, well done.
VF2 was such a large leap forward and still looks good to this day. Great strategy.
Very Nice, that you are make Work like this!
VF2 is one of the most technically impressive video games of all time.
There's no wonder the VF1 is in the Smithsonian Museum also.
I had a copy of the proper virtua fighter 2 pc port, tot the goofy thing that's on steam. and I gave it away to my nephew. Now I'm kicking my self
Thank you mom for getting me that sega Saturn for my bday. Friends laughed as the PlayStation was the sheep way to go. But arcade perfect import to home. Children of the atom , street fighter alpha and virtua fighter 2. It was a hell of a sprite graphics monster
I never realized VF5 Ultimate showdowns stages were just remade versions of VF2 stages 😲
Fantastic overview, this game what can you say, great fun and absolutely fantastic looking, such a shame it didn’t get the love in the west.
I own an original VF2 cab and the game holds up in a lot of ways. Still fun to play and thrilled to have it in my living room. Not fun was getting that 400 lb mofo in there…
Did anyone else do "Sumo Mode" on Saturn VF2 where you put both health bars to infinite and set the stage size to taste? Was pissed off I couldn't do this on the PS3 version.
ON the Saturn, you need to play it on v2.0 mode. If you do that, you won't be able to do the dash-in-and-throw trick that you was doing before. Personally, I was a little glad that trick was there for it gave a little fighting chance when you set the difficulty to Expert mode. My favourite character in this game is Akira Yuki. and I was SPoD'ming, P+GG'ing, and floating combo to madness until I brought the game on the PS3 (HD version) and started playing against players from Japan. Boy, there are some serious players here I'd tell you that.
Could you make a Killer Instinct Retrospective? and DOA ? And even more documentaries about VF :) Dmamn we need a new Virtua Fighter 6 already !!!
It's been over 30+ years and I can still mimick every sound and quote every character in English and Japanese...and I can't speak Japanese.
A constant fixture in my Saturn line-up. Wasn't any good at it really - I was ten - but I played it all the time when I wasn't playing Sega Rally, Tomb Raider, or NiGHTS. It was nice replayig the arcade version in the Yakuza games too
Great retrospective! Speaking of finger movement team. When I last played Virtua Fighter 5, I had the impression that there was something wrong with the motion capture. I finally realized that it was because of the hands and fingers, which did not move and looked like attached static sculptures. The thought arose in me that these movements looked somehow better in VF 2, so I hurriedly turned on VF 2. I rubbed my eyes with disbelief, delight, watching the ultra-realistic movements of the characters' fingers. Yes you are right! Even Sega doesn't do this anymore! ;) Thanks for solving my investigation!
Thanks for the video
Who made the music remix playing at 10:15?
It's just from the Sega Saturn version of the game. It has rearranged music (you can also use the arcade original music if you want).
Virtua Fighter 2 looks better than Tekken 3. I'll die on that hill.
Oh yeah. I mean the Sega model 2 was way more powerful than the Namco System 12, which was basically a souped up PS1. Thanks for watching.
@@retromuel
That's a given. Lot of blind folks out there. LOL!
No problem at all. Love me some Virtua Fighter-related content.
I've said that many times myself.. 100percent agree
Virtua Fighter has always looked better than Tekken. Took until Tekken 4 for it to look better than Virtua Fighter 2
Characters has more animated clothes, and beards. Soul edge most close, characters have many animated parts too
Did the UK or Japanese version of VF2 for Saturn not have the learning A.I. of the US version? I've had to backup and start a new save file a few times because the A.I. would just destroy me if I did anything I normally do. Or maybe you were referring to the A.I. of the Arcade version being relatively weak? I wouldn't know about that. I need to try the throw exploit with my original saves loaded and see if it figures me out again.
The PAL version certainly had the learning A.I thing although as far as I can remember, you had to switch it on first so maybe most people didn't play with it. Even with it turned off, the enemy A.I in the second half of this game is demonic. It's actually my least favourite of the original three for that reason, in single player mode anyway. Thanks for watching.
Oh, I misunderstood. You were referring to it being unfair/hard not too easy or simplistic. I definitely agree. Even on Normal Leon can get me cussing at the screen.
@@gamecomparisons Yeah. Kage and the like have the reaction time of Data from Star Trek. Conversely, they're really easy to exploit, and that's what I end up resorting to a lot of the time because they're almost impossible to beat legitimately. Admittedly I'm far from an expert.
How did you get the actual PCB?
I bought it from a guy on the UKVAC forum about ten years or so ago. Thanks for watching.
It's an amazing looking game. However, I consider Playstation's Sould Edge to play in the same league. Yes, I know it's an unpopular opinion, but it had fully 3D somewhat rich backdrops, which no Saturn game was able to achieve.
@@iorch82 I liked Soul Edge/Soul Blade a lot but not even close in my opinion. For one thing SE couldn’t even run at 60 fps, it was 30. VF2 also looked MUCH better, especially if you’re comparing the arcade versions against each other.
Did you play the 2D mega drive version much?
No I didn't, to be honest. I already had a Saturn when it was released so I just bought that version. I've heard it was very good though, considering the hardware it was on. Thanks for watching.
@@retromuel it’s the only VF I’ve tried, and only recently while trying all the fighting games on Nintendo Switch Online. I was quite disappointed when I discovered it’s 2D because the box art thumbnail they show looks like it will be 3D, and all I really knew about the series was that it’s legendary for innovation in 3D. From what I’ve googled though there wasn’t much “3D gameplay” in terms of side stepping etc so not much seems to have been lost in the gameplay, just the graphics.
I love that verison
This game has only 2 attack buttons!! Other games have 4 to 8!! Yet this games control system feels more adnaced then any other fighting game!
it uses each button as a single bit in a binary chord system. they make 7 different inputs out of those 3 buttons. street fighter games and such have caught up, with multi-button attack inputs, but VF was by far the first, and their input philosophy has always been the most efficient.
Model 2 made everything else look... Shiiiiiiiit
The only game that could compete graphically was Tobal No. 1 and 2
Not you dragging Tekken 😂