playing on easy is pretty much mandatory for your first time ngl jesus christ the difficulty spike is real. This game is a technically impressive game for the system though, as it runs at 60 FPS in the high resolution mode of the sega saturn which is very cool. As for the game itself, it do be more virtua fighter. We got textures this time around rather than flat shaded polygons of the first game and a few new characters. The gameplay is still pretty floaty but it's not nearly as crazy as the first game. I'm not the biggest VF guy so it's just kinda eh

Take any of my ratings of non-Smash fighting games with a grain of salt, as they're usually based off a single run or two through the arcade ladder and general surface impressions.

Having said that, if there was any one traditional fighting game I'd want to master, it'd be either Darkstalkers 3 or this. There's a lot to Virtua Fighter's purity of form that I respect; flashy personalities are cool and all, but I like the commitment to characters existing solely to represent those real-world fighting styles. VF2 is the purest expression of that game design, since VF1 is still figuring it out and comparatively floaty while VF3's smaller and more dynamic battlefields distract from that purity of form. This isn't to say that the game is devoid of personality, either; the characters, while light, convey a lot by their simple broad strokes. Lau Chan is politely teasing out your ability. Pai Chan is trying to prove herself. Lion Rafale is an insufferable little brat who's so obnoxious you HAVE to get good enough to beat him. Jeffry McWild is an immovable wall. Akira Yuki is your final test. Dural is your REAL final test.

Also important to what makes the game work is how quickly play turns over. Matches - not just rounds - can easily be resolved in under 30 seconds. From a singleplayer perspective, that makes it really easy to try, try again if you want to get good at the video game (hopefully you have access to free play or a TON of credits). I haven't had the opportunity to play this multiplayer, but I imagine the quick turnover did a lot to keep the arcade scene dynamic as well. Lots of opportunity to determine whether a character is right for you, then move on over to the next one when you're ready. I dunno, there's a lot of simple design philosophy at play here that makes me endlessly respect what VF2 has to offer.

But, like, SEGA, for goodness' sakes, port the Arcade or Saturn version more. You're not doing yourself any favors constantly porting the Genesis version. I guess it's impressive that a last-gen console was able to run it, but doing so required converting it into 2D, when the entire soul and essence of what Virtua Fighter is lies in that dearly departed Z-axis.

A stunningly gorgeous, intricate fighting game experience. I’ve long been impressed with its smooth gameplay and animations, at least on every platform that’s not the Sega Genesis; it’s a game I can always count on to jump into for at least a few rounds. People clown on this game a bit, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t slightly suspect its inclusion in the Yakuza games to have warped this game’s legacy for some.

But as with all Yu Suzuki games, Virtua Fighter is somewhat unconventional, with a weird three button control scheme (with one of the buttons being block). The AI absolutely cheats past a certain point, like in every arcade game, but I think it’s way more doable than MK2 Arcade. The characters seem hella grounded when compared to basically any other fighting game franchise, and I think it adds to the classic Kung Fu movie vibe it has. I beat the game as the apparently bottom-tier drunken master Shun Di, so hey, maybe you can beat it too.

I might pump the brakes on these fighting game reviews, or I might play them until I get totally burnt out. We’ll see what the Conmental Health decides. 😎

Virtua Fighter 2 is the quintessential classic Virtua Fighter, unfortunately, it's still classic Virtua Fighter, and whilst I myself am a fan of the weird floating jumps and everything, it's for sure not everyone's thing.
The Saturn port is great this time around, finally giving the Saturn a decent 3D fighting game with hardly any visual hiccups. Although it's worth noting this is not an arcade accurate port in terms of visuals, there had to be some workarounds to make the game run as nice as it does, so character models aren't as detailed, and backgrounds are not rendered in 3D like the arcade original. That being said what is here looks and feels great.
Overall a pretty fun game and decent showing for the Saturn. No idea what's up with the Dural fight though, slowing everything down just made the fight easier.