Virtua Fighter


 * For the series, see Virtua Fighter (series).

Virtua Fighter is a 1993 fighting game developed for the Sega Model 1 arcade platform by AM2, a development group within Sega, headed by Yu Suzuki. It was the first game in the Virtua Fighter series, and the first 3D-based fighting game. It has been ported to several home video game consoles including the Sega Saturn and Sega 32X. A port with enhanced graphics was also released for Microsoft Windows.

Overview
The Virtua label indicates that the onscreen action takes place in 3D. The Saturn technology and the NV1 architecture relied on quadratic surfaces rather than the polygons used in modern 3D graphics. The images were created using wireframes and flat-shaded quads. Beyond 3D, it retained the staple of multiple characters, each with their own distinctive moves.

Unlike other fighting games of the time (such as Street Fighter II or Mortal Kombat), the game relied on a control stick and only three buttons, Punch, Kick, and Guard although different situations and button combinations led to a vast variety of moves for each character.

The game is highly regarded for its in-depth fighting engine and real world fighting techniques, and was considered revolutionary when it first came out.

Characters

 * Akira Yuki -- Birthdate: September 23, 1968 -- Kung fu teacher from Japan, fights with Hakkyoku-Ken (Bajiquan)
 * Pai Chan -- Birthdate: May 17, 1975 -- Martial arts movie star from Hong Kong, fights with Ensei-Ken (Mizongquan)
 * Lau Chan, Pai's father -- Birthdate: October 2, 1940 -- Cook from China, fights with Koen-Ken (Tiger-Swallow Fist)
 * Wolf Hawkfield -- Birthdate: February 8, 1966 -- Professional wrestler from Canada, fights with Professional Wrestling
 * Jeffry McWild -- Birthdate: February 20, 1957 -- Fisherman from Australia, fights with Pancratium
 * Kage-Maru ("Kage") Hagakure -- Birthdate: June 6, 1971 -- Ninja from Japan, fights with Ninjutsu
 * Sarah Bryant -- Birthdate: July 4, 1973 -- College student from San Francisco, CA, fights with Jeet Kune Do (Sega changed her fighting style to "Martial Arts" in Virtua Fighter 4 Evolution)
 * Jacky Bryant, Sarah's older brother -- Birthdate: August 28, 1970 -- Race car driver also from San Francisco, fights with Jeet Kune Do
 * Dural, A gynoid-like creature. Dural is the game's boss character. She is also, somewhat inexplicably, Kage's mother. She fights with a mix of all the other characters styles. Dural's a secret character in the series. (Her name was used as a codename for the Sega Dreamcast graphics chipset once known as "Blackbelt.")

An Arab fighter named Siba was planned, and his character model even appeared on some Virtua Fighter arcade cabinets (though, in some cases, Akira's name was placed under his portrait). He was ultimately dropped, but later appeared in the Sega Saturn Fighters MegaMix game.

Virtua Fighter Remix
Virtua Fighter Remix was an update of the original Virtua Fighter with higher-polygon models (when compared to the Sega Saturn port; the original Sega Model 1 game has higher-polygon models than Remix), texture mapping and some gameplay changes. It was given free to all registered Saturn owners in the US via mail. It also had an arcade release on the ST-V (an arcade platform based on the less powerful Sega Saturn) and later ported to Microsoft Windows as Virtua Fighter PC.