Virtua Fighter Crossroads will not be a classic beat 'em up, but rather an open-ended sandbox RPG with far-reaching decisions in the style of Detroit: Become Human. This has been confirmed by producer Riichiro Yamada of RGG Studio.
RGG Studio thus abandons the old traditions of the fighting game series. The story mode throws you into an open sandbox where your decisions are meant to change the course of the plot. No linear sequence of fights, but a believable world that ranges from a dark detective thriller to a classic kung fu film.
The Yakuza DNA, but grounded
You control multiple protagonists, and every decision splits the story. A completely new gameplay experience for the series awaits us.
Of course, the game includes numerous side quests featuring familiar legends from the series and various minigames. That's typical of this studio. But anyone expecting a mere Yakuza clone dressed up as Virtua Fighter is mistaken. The developers cite the Watchmen comic book series as a major inspiration. Despite the eccentric characters, the world is intended to remain completely believable and grounded in reality. The combat retains its familiar, high-quality technical style.
The idea sounds incredibly strong and could completely open up the somewhat dusty franchise to solo players. However, the comparison to "Detroit: Become Human" sets the bar extremely high for storytelling. RGG Studio now has to prove whether they can implement this player freedom without any narrative gaps. An ambitious plan. We'll see if it works.
Do you think that Virtua Fighter's deep combat system is even suitable for such a branching RPG story, or is RGG Studio overreaching with its own ambitions here?
Sounds creative; if it's well implemented, I would even buy it as a non-single-player game.
I think it's awesome to finally have so much lore in the VF universe. The new/old fighter, Bakonawa Killer, is Lei Fei, who probably killed Lao and adopted his fighting style, which is why Pai looked so surprised. This World Tour mode is the best thing Sega could have done. You always have to consider it a bonus; of course, you can't expect Hamlet-like narratives, but it's a good way to bring the lore closer, especially for casual players. A good fighting system, roster selection and number, and crossplay are important these days, but anyone who wants to be successful in the long run has to offer extensive single-player content, preferably content that doesn't get old. SF6 has done this best so far, even with customizable characters that you can give your own moves. The system sustains itself with every new character release. Here, they've chosen a slightly different approach, letting you experience the stories of the newcomers. Of course, this depends on whether you can identify with the characters to some extent. So far, I find the characters likeable and interesting.