Sega bringing ‘new’ Virtua Fighter to Steam, but it’s actually another version of VF5

Sega is bringing the Virtua Fighter series to Steam for the first time this winter with Virtua Fighter 5 REVO, the fifth major version of the fighting game that debuted in 2006. That’s right; that “new” Virtua Fighter that a Sega exec teased earlier this month is yet another version of the 18-year-old Virtua Fighter 5.

While it may not be the Virtua Fighter 6 that many were hoping for, Virtua Fighter 5 REVO does appear to bring some welcome new changes to the game. The latest version will feature rollback netcode support for online battles, 4K visuals with updated high-res textures, and additional game balance changes for REVO’s roster of 19 playable characters, Sega says.

Sega and developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio — the folks behind the Like A Dragon and Judgment games — promise multiple modes, including ranked, arcade, training, and versus, plus 16-player tournaments and leagues for online competition.

Virtua Fighter 5 REVO’s balance changes will be carried over to Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown for PlayStation 4, according to a post from the official Virtua Fighter social media account. Ultimate Showdown was released in 2021 for PS4.

The original version of Virtua Fighter 5 debuted in arcades in 2006, and was ported to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 the following year. In 2008, Sega delivered Virtua Fighter 5 R, adding new character Jean Kujo and bringing sumo wrestler Taka-Arashi back to the playable roster. Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown was then released in arcades in 2010, and came to PS3 and Xbox 360 in 2012. Final Showdown is also playable in the virtual arcades of several games of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s games.

Earlier this month, Sega’s executive VP of global transmedia Justin Scarpone told Video Games Chronicle that the company was developing another Virtua Fighter game, leading to speculation that a long-awaited Virtua Fighter 6 was in the works. Sega is in the process of making new Jet Set Radio, Golden Axe, Shinobi, and Crazy Taxi games, so hopes were high that a brand-new Virtua Fighter was also in the mix. VF fans will have to wait a little longer for that, however, and satiate themselves with a better-than-ever version of Virtua Fighter 5 for now.