Virtual On Marz Preview

Since its 1995 debut in arcades, the Virtual On series has slowly gathered a cult following that couldn't get enough of the robot-vs.-robot action. Interestingly, much of the game's popularity in the arcades stemmed from its unique control setup, which featured two massive sticks that controlled the robot's speed bursts, jumps, and a variety of other functions. These sticks eventually became such an important part of the Virtual On experience that Sega released replicas of the sticks for the Saturn incarnation of the original Virtual On and for the Japanese Dreamcast release of Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram. Unfortunately, the latest game in the Virtual On series, Virtual On Marz, won't have the benefit of a twin-stick peripheral, but Hitmaker has done its best to configure a number of setups for the PlayStation 2 controller, some of which even attempt to mimic the twin-stick setup of the arcade games via the two analog sticks.

While the control setup is certainly important for a game of this type, it's not Virtual On Marz's most distinguishing feature. What sets the game apart is its new mode. Instead of featuring a traditional arcade-style versus mode, Virtual On Marz offers a dramatic mode, in which you will have to complete a variety of different missions. Some of these missions require you to simply destroy any other virtualoids that enter into the arena, while others challenge you to destroy a special target while avoiding enemy fire.

For example, in one such mission you have to destroy a series of small hovertrains as they make their way across the landscape, while fighting off an onslaught of enemy virtualoids that will continually attack as you're attempting to destroy the trains. Conversely, one mission will force you to defend a small outpost against enemy attack until the time limit for that particular mission runs out. Even some of the versus battles in the dramatic mode are structured differently from typical Virtual On versus battles. Instead of being confined to a single arena, you'll have to move through the environment and engage the enemy at different locations, which is much stranger than it sounds, considering that such a thing has never been done in a Virtual On game.

While there's some variety to the missions in the dramatic mode, the most interesting aspect is that the course of a mission appears to change depending on certain circumstances. In a battle against three very powerful viper virtualoids, if you manage to stay alive for a certain period of time, the powerful cowboy-hat-wearing virtualoid (whom you have to rescue during one of the game's early boss battles) will come in and help you out, and thankfully, he'll become your teammate for several more missions. However, if these vipers successfully destroy your virtualoid within the first 30 seconds or so of that particular mission, you will have to take on the next few missions alone.

There's added incentive for playing through the dramatic mode since it gives you an opportunity to unlock one of the dozens of virtualoids in the game. While most of these are basically slight variations on the massive robots seen in previous games in the Virtual On series, they all have different capabilities and weapons, making them useful for certain types of fights. For example, the rocket-launcher-equipped Apharmd-T is really powerful but is ultimately much slower than its dual-Uzi-toting counterpart, the Apharmd-J.

The challenge mode in Virtual On Marz is essentially the game's arcade mode. You'll select your virtualoid as well as a teammate and then do battle against two enemy virtualoids (or sometimes one powerful virtualoid), so if you're looking for something that more closely resembles the arcade Virtual On experience, the challenge mode is where you'll be spending most of your time. Of course, there's also a split-screen multiplayer mode, but unfortunately the drop in frame rate is quite noticeable, and it really detracts from a part of what makes Virtual On so fun to begin with.

While all of these modes are certainly playable with the default control scheme, Hitmaker has tried to configure a variety of different control setups for the Dual Shock controller. One of these control configurations attempts to mimic the twin-stick setup of the arcade by allowing you to perform jumps using the two analog sticks, making it easy to cancel a jump. However, all of the other functions, such as dashing, are mapped to the shoulder buttons, which makes this control scheme somewhat difficult to get accustomed to. One of the other control schemes uses the left portion of the D pad and the circle button as a means for jumping. The rest of the D pad and the face buttons are used for movement, the shoulder buttons are used for performing attacks, and the analog sticks are rendered worthless. Really, the best control setup is the default setup, which lets you control movement via the analog sticks and various actions with the face buttons.

Visually, Virtual On Marz doesn't look quite as vibrant or detailed as its predecessor on the Dreamcast or Virtual On: Force, the latest Virtual On game to hit arcades. The environments are all very basic in terms of detail, particularly the outdoor levels, which essentially make use of a single ground texture and a single rock texture. The indoor environments look a little more dynamic. The models for the virtualoids are solid, though it's obvious that not much attention was paid to some of the variations of the main models.

Virtual On Marz will more than likely appeal in some fashion to fans of the series, and the fact that Hitmaker has added a more dynamic mission mode may even draw some new fans in, but as with past games in the series, the control scheme may ultimately be what turns most people away from the game. Virtual On Marz is out now in Japan, and it's scheduled for a Q4 2003 release in North America.