SEGA’s iconic 3D fighting series is making a comeback, now under the stewardship of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. Speaking with Famitsu, studio head Masayoshi Yokoyama and producer Riichiro Yamada explained why the company chose the Yakuza series developer for a Virtua Fighter sequel. Despite the long gap since Virtua Fighter 5, they noted the persistent desire among fans and internal developers has brought the series back to life.
Yokoyama explained that his team has been conceptualizing a sequel while working on the VF Esports scene. But as fate has it, fighting games ended up experiencing a resurgence thanks to Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6. A Virtua Fighter revival can’t come at the right moment.
Thankfully, SEGA leadership is a vocal supporter of said project. “The whole of the company, SEGA, including the chairman, president, and even the previous president, are all VF fans,” said Yokoyama.
“Yukio Sugino, SEGA Fave [arcade subsidiary] CEO, came from the arcade and amusement division, so he has a special attachment to Virtua Fighter. Chairman Haruki Satomi, loves SEGA’s IPs and has been working hard to redefine their value and convey that idea to the world.”
He also added that CEO Utsumi Shuji calls the company a ‘treasure island’ with an abundance of iconic IPs that could ‘take the world by storm.’ Because of that, Shuji is also pushing forward ‘legacy projects’ to bring Virtua Fighter and many dormant franchises back to the spotlight.
After years of planning and internal discussions, the green light was given for a project aimed at bridging the past and future. However, simply following what its competitors are doing is out of the question. Other series mentioned before have been building up a rapport among the community and the industry non-stop, after all.
“Can we play catch up by challenging them on the same ground?” pondered Yamada. He then looked back at the series’ history and what SEGA’s legendary developer Yu Suzuki brought to the table. From there, he found two essential cores needed to make a proper sequel. “The two core elements of the game are ‘innovation’ and ‘realism,'” he noted.
According to Yamada, Virtua Fighter’s grounded combat and character designs set it apart in its early days, and these elements remain central to its revival. Those points are what bring us to the Yakuza developer, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, and their involvement in the new Virtua Fighter sequel.
Yokoyama believes their talent for crafting detailed environments will enhance the series’ realism. “As a studio that specializes in portraying culture and life, I think creating backgrounds in the broadest sense of the word will give the characters a realistic feel,” he explained. The series never portrayed characters with energy-based super moves like Ryu’s Hadouken too, making a Yakuza style of combat, at least visually, a perfect fit.
He also said that being tasked to develop a new Virtua Fighter sequel is like the transition from Yakuza 6 to Like a Dragon. “Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio tried changing the [Yakuza] genre to RPG, and tried to create something that goes beyond everyone’s imagination,” explained Yokoyama. “In a way, that may be SEGA’s DNA.”
“Because we were not satisfied with continuing to make Virtua Fighter, we thought, ‘Hey, why don’t we turn Virtua Fighter into an RPG?’ and from that idea, Shenmue was born.” Yokoyama then confidently said his studio was the right choice to continue such a concept. “And I think the only one in SEGA who can take on such a challenge right now is the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio.”
Still, it’s not all boasts as Yokoyama expressed his determination to uphold Virtua Fighter’s legacy in the new sequel. “Virtua Fighter is an IP engraved in SEGA’s history. If it’s going to be half-baked, I’ll stop the project midway. That’s how determined I am,” he declared.
