Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution is a fighter's fighter!

User Rating: 9.5 | Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution PS2
If you have played Virtua Fighter 4 when it first came out, then you know how awesome it is and especially how far Sega has matured the Virtua Fighter series since even 3tb on the Dreamcast. Since the Dreamcast is no longer being made, the series has become a PS2 exclusive, and that gave fighting game fans yet another reason (the other being Tekken) to own the best selling and just all around best console ever made. EAT THAT, XBOX!!! The graphics were ahead of their time. Even at the early stages of the PS2's life Virtua Fighter 4 looked better than any fighting game out at the time, and on top of that it was simply an exquisitely executed game! The presentation was unique, the stages were just cool as all get out, the characters, although only 13 were available were all so unique in their own right that it would take hours to learn each character not mention how long it would take master them...and the best part of it was that you would totally want to! The modes were plentiful, the graphics were top notch and Kumite mode was the best thing to hit fighting games EVER!

Well, one of the best fighters out now gets released as a greatest hits title, but the new affordable 20 dollar price point is not the only change! Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution (referred to as Evo from now on) not only adds newly designed stages (now with semi-walled options) and a ton of new customization options for each character, Sega went on and added 2 brand-new characters to the mix, totaling 15 characters! Brad and Goh are not only visually fitting with the rest of the Virtua Fighter cast, they play like they have been around for a few past iterations. They are not just quick add-on's that mimic fighting styles of other characters, they have their own unique fighting styles with just as many new and awesome moves as all the other fighters! Goh uses Judo and Brad uses kick boxing. Now, Sega has been commended for never having more than one character with a certain fighting style, so since Brad now is a kick boxer, Vanessa is strictly a Muay Thai fighter (she now switches from Offensive stance to Defensive stance of the same fighting style).

On top of all those additions Sega has added a little fan-service in the form of Virtua Fighter: 10th Anniversary! That is basically Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution with original Virtua Fighter graphics. Also, the gameplay mechanics play as if all those characters were in the original back in the early '90s. It is a really cool mode that just adds to the already mountainous gameplay!

One thing I am a little disappointed at is the omission of Kumite mode at the expense of a new mode called Quest! Kumite mode is still the best thing to hit fighting games EVER! But, this mode is really cool as it takes your named character through various in-game arcades, simulating tournaments at real arcades with ghost characters whose A.I. are based off of the top real fighters of VF4 in Japan! I like this mode, but I miss the ability to "teach" my own fighter through the Kumite. The mode does boast a new item store which is how the items are now bought with currency gained through matches. Also, there is now a unique Emblem collecting system. The characters you fight in Quest hold emblems which you take from them when you beat them. There are hundreds of these little collectibles and it takes a while to collect every single one. Also, you can lose your emblems by losing the match!

Now, you would figure (or at least I did) that when Sega/AM2 added all this extra content on the disk, the graphics would be just a tad bit worse, right? Not right! The graphics are even better through the clever enhancement of anti-aliasing. It is almost as thought more polygons were used for the characters and environments! Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution is a game that really makes you question the "fact" that the PS2 is less powerful than the XBOX!

if you missed out on VF4 in the first place, now is your time to experience one of the best fighting games in years! If you already played VF4 to your hearts content (is that even possible?) then pick up this game because you will love it that much more!!!