Virtua Fighter 3/TB..........underrated or garbage?

A couple of years ago I bought myself a copy of the DC port of VF3TB, despite knowing that it was looked at and treated as a sort of “black sheep” of the VF series, wasn’t even the best DC fighting game (but one of the easiest to find) and played differently to all other VF’s. Not to mention the DC control pad was horrible for this game and it’s pretty much sat untouched since I bought it almost 5 years ago. At least the game has a kick-ass soundtrack…

So negative reviews aside, how much play and fame did VF3 get when it came out??? I remember it getting attention mostly because of it’s then-mind-blowing graphics (OMG Lau’s eyes are tracking you!!!) and not because of the gameplay. I’ve been browsing youtube for some VF3 vids (dunno if I could post up the links), and surprisingly I found a whole lot of interesting Japanese vids. Almost makes me wanna keep my copy…except that I have yet to own a stick for any system. Those guys really did dissect and eat up that game, but over here it was just overpriced eye candy.

So…any tier lists and whatnot for this game??? Also:

  • What was the whole controversy behind the accuracy of the Dreamcast port of VF3??? I recall people throwing their arms up and shit over the DC ports of VF3 and Sega Rally 2, saying how they were disappointing and inexcusable.

  • Are the rumors of a Saturn port of VF3 which was near if not already completed before it was shelved (in favor of the DC port) true??? It was sure an anticipated title for the Saturn, but the Saturn was already stretched to it’s limits with the flawed VF2 port ( a second-gen title). Model 3 games on Saturn= :rofl: Perhaps I should chalk this up with all those other promised/cancelled Sega ports such as Daytona/Panzer Dragoon/Clockwork Knight on 32X (I’ve SEEN pics of those…forgot which site) and Sega Super GT/Daytona 2 on Dreamcast.

  • The original VF…did it get any play/tourney play??? Hell why not mention the original Tekken while we’re at it…I’m a sucker for those old, first-gen 3D fighters.

Haha, some of those Sega facts took me back. I was real into Sega when Saturn was around lol. Dam them to this day for never porting Super GT, I used to spend alot of cash playing that game in the arcade…tiss a shame.

I have VF3 TB somewhere around here, I never really played it much and don’t know why. Probably cause at the time DC was flooded with fighting games VF, SC, MvC, KOF…maybe a couple others all around at or close to launch.

My only complain, and the one I’ve heard from all over the internet, was about the uneven stages, which can lead to some stupid combos.

no9176: hes referring specifically to the dc version i think.

if not then:

to put it briefly. none of the vf’s did well over here period. the us just doesnt play vf. its a phenomenon in japan and even korea. vf4 kinda broke thru on ps2, selling very well. but it still never spawned a tourney scene. vf5 could change it all tho

I used to have it for DC, i never really understood it i just played it:looney: now after playing vf4 evolution i really got into virtua fighters

the only thing i remember is that big sumo guy taka something:rofl:

i liked taka. only reason he hasnt come back is the simple fact of technology. he hasnt returned just cuz they cant get his body to behave the way they want it to. kinda sucks.

I use to love vf3 for dreamcast. One of the first games I played and bought for dreamcast.

Big VF fan however, Loved to play part 1 and 2 in the arcades so maybe that is why I loved vf3.

Still wasn’t as good as vf2 however and I have yet to play vf4 :frowning:

Lol reminds me of a tourny video I saw… Ten Foot Toss makes him go up like 1 ft in the air

It’s a good game, though a bit overrated imo by the veteran players that played it competitively. Then again I wasn’t around so my opinion is biased. The game had dedicated scenes in Chicago, NY, and Boston iirc.

As for tiers I think Jacky, Wolf and Kage were top? That may be way off. I know Wolf could do some kind of throw trap with low K, and Jacky could do something similar with his low K,K string.

VF3 and VF3 TB are excellent games, and regarded as such (at least by Japan and people who aren’t dumb).

Not just from a graphical standpoint, which btw VF3 was probably the most impressive shit evar. The shit came out in 1996 and for the time represented the largest gap between console and arcade. Miss those days.

No the reason the game has such a bad rap is because of the shit Dreamcast port. It wasn’t horrible, but for a 2-3 year old game everyone expected arcade perfect and instead got a rush job. Being put up next to DOA2 and Soul Calibur didn’t help it, even though it’s a better game either of those two.

3 is not VF’s black sheep but one of it’s highest moments.

In VF3 (not tb), if Wolf and Jeffry’s low kick hit on major counter, a throw followup was guaranteed. I’m not sure if every character could this.

well, between vf2 thru vf5. vf3 was the worst, imo. it was still an excellent game nonetheless. definitely was amazing at its time. but that was also the problem with the game at its time, way too expensive for a market that was heavily switching to console…

but i think vf series overall represents great progression, sega just keeps making em better and better and better. while most games are falling off after a couple games (tekken imo)

In Japan, VF3 was basically Street Fighter 2 in the US.

Then again, so were parts 1 and 2.

Some actually view part 4 as a step backwards for the series from 3.

3 represented a quantum leap forward as far as play control and mechanics were concerned from parts 1 and 2. 4 and five just built off that while creating all new move sets for some characters and removing the evade button and tiered stages, simplifying things in the process. Which in most peoples opinions is a good thing. 4 and 5 are really just progressions of VF3’s play mechanics and control.

VF3 was the first modern 3d fighter. Soul Calibur series, Dead or Alive series really owe everything to VF3.

On a tangent for a second, but check out VF3 tourney vids on YouTube and you can find some really sick shit. It will make you want to drop 75 bucks on a Model 3 board and the game.

So did players complain about the uneven stages? I always assumed that’s why the removed them in VF4. They were fun and at the time new and exciting (at least for me, lol) but surely you could gain an advantage by being in a certain higher or lower position. I had a discussion with a friend about this recently, like how it adds a new level of complexity having to maneuver into a better position or take into account your opponents height when attacking. And I don’t think this is a bad thing but because the stages weren’t always symmetrical one player may have a slight advantage from the start of the round. Was this the case and is that why they were removed in later versions?

Wasn’t “Tekken 4” also knocked for taking the same departure from the series that VF3 took??? Except T4 seemingly got it harder.

speaking of this…am i the only one who thinks Tekken is better than VF.I like VF but Tekken is more fast pase and the character design and moves are so much better to look at.

It wasn’t only because of this. Most of the problems came from a combination of the uneven stages, Direction Shift(the push), and wall stuff.

And Jin.

And hella hitbox problems. And the fact that nerfed backdash made people learn frames and then figure out that Tekken’s frame data was all fucked up. Well, at least it made you have to learn a lot of technical shit to be competitive.

Say that when you can edteg accurately on reaction after getting hit by a random P. The problem is you’re just looking at the games. Half of VF’s speed comes from the fast inputs you have to use on defense, which you can’t see in a video (unless they have the input display on, which I heard they added to VF5’s arcade video record thing). VF’s the only game where my arms ache after I play it.

Tekken appeals more to the American public, because we have to remember the majority of the American public are scrubs.

They can look at Tekken and enjoy the pre-canned 10-hit combos and repetitive juggles. They look at VF and see none of that, so it’s deemed “slow” even though it really isn’t.

Maybe with VF5 and its awesome graphics and Rey Mysterio will have a better chance of breaking through to the common American scrub.

do you actually want that though? haha