Sega finally announced a new Virtua Fighter at The Game Awards 2024. Shortly afterwards, the developers provided a few insights about their plans in regards to the upcoming Virtua Fighter game, but refrained from revealing any concrete details.
“Our goal is for everyone to recognize [the new Virtua Fighter as the most innovative fighting game],” said Riichiro Yamada, producer for the new Virtua Fighter game. “Our goal with this project is to make every aspect of it feel fresh and exciting.”
Recently, a new image depicting the new Virtua Fighter was seemingly leaked onto the internet. The scene depicted in the shot has Akira facing off against himself in a mirror match.
As seen in the recent teaser trailer, Akira’s appearance has changed drastically since the previous Virtua Fighter games. By default, Akira now appears to wear a fedora and coat.
The alternate costume for Akira seems to more closely resemble the character’s more iconic appearance in that he’s wearing the bottoms of a gi. His hair looks different and he’s now shirtless. Fans have pointed out that Akira looks especially buff in this shot.
We can also observe the health bars at the top left and top right of portions of the screen. It’s interesting to point that there are extra gauges sitting below the health bars for both users.
As of right now, it’s unknown what these bars could be for. We could see a situation where characters gain access to EX specials and supers, just like with the Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat series.
It’s also possible that this could be a stun gauge of some sort. After suffering enough hits in a row, a character would be left wide open for additional follow ups if they allow the gauge fill up on the way.
Some have even pointed to the possibility of the gauge being for some sort of guard crush system. Such a mechanic would certainly emphasize offense over defense.
Considering this image is depicting a mirror match, this mechanic could be functionally unique for Akira. Sarah Bryant, the only other character confirmed for the new Virtua Fighter so far, could have a health bar that looks different to that of Akira’s.
As of right now, the validity of this image cannot be confirmed, but it seems likely that it is legit. Regardless, the new Virtua Fighter game is one that’s currently in development so the mechanic surrounding this mysterious extra gauge could change or be scrapped entirely before we see more of the game.
Check it out below:
Click images for larger versions