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Virtua Fighter 5 Revois finally here, bringing the beloved fighting game to the PC platform with rollback netcode and a balancing patch that changes things up quite a bit if you’ve been playing it since its initial release the whole way back in 2006 or played its many revisions throughout the years.
Nonetheless, if you’ve recently discovered the genre or are looking to try it for the first time, there are many things you should know beforehand. Virtua Fighter’s surface-level simplicity can trip newcomers up due to its high skill ceiling, making learning the systems and mechanics extremely rewarding but frustrating if you’re not anticipating it!
Throw = P+G
Learning The Power Of Your Jabs
Even without knowing who your main is, we already know what their best moves are. How do we know this? Simply put,everyone’s best moves are their 5P, 2P, and 6P,as those will be theirfastest strikes that can set them up for lots of successwhen used to implement your offense or stuff your opposition’s.
5Pwill be yourfastest High Attackand will alwaysleave you plus on block,making it an excellent way to implement pressure and start your offense. However, since it is a High Attack, itcan be ducked and countered,which is where2Pcomes in, which willtypically be your character’s fastest Low Attack.
So, if youropponent is spamming their 5P,a simple2P will evade it and land a Counter Hit,which will lead to considerable damage. However, while 2P is a solid attack overall,6P will beat it,as it willtypically be the fastest Mid Attackat your disposal.Mid Attacks will hit crouchedopponents, making it theperfect counter to anyone spamming 2Pto evade High Attacks.
While 6P will be most character’s fastest Mid Attack, there will be some exceptions, as some will have to input 66P and do a quick dash beforehand, so ensure you learn what your character’s fastest Mid Attack is, or your opponent will open you up with their 2P if they’re spamming it!
Understanding The Triangle System
Another crucial aspect of Virtua Fighter 5 Revo’s combat system is thetriangle system,which results from itsthree-button layoutand makes for many engaging encounters. As the Input Legend at the top of the guide explains, the game has only three buttons:Punch, Kick, and Guard.
As a result, you end up with arock-paper-scissors-stylesystemthat rewards you for reading and countering your opposition’s attacks.Guarding beats all Strikes,whileThrowsbeat Guarding,withStrikes beating Throws.
Unlike most fighting games,Throws will lose to Strikes,meaning if youropponent wakes up and tosses out an attack with a long startup,and youtry Throwing them, you will losethe interaction. So, if you become too predictable with your throws, you can be punished for it if you aren’t careful!
Again, some characters will have some exceptions to this general flow and system, but they will be odd cases and match-up specific. For the most part, this will be the go-to flow chart, allowing you to capitalize on your opponent if they are becoming too predictable!
Throws Are Mighty Strong
Every character in Virtua Fighter 5 Revo is essentially a grappler at heart.Throws(P+G) aresome of the best actions at your disposaland arecrucial to applying pressureand keeping your opposition on their back foot.Throws will almost always be your character’s fastest action overall,making them tremendously powerful.
There arethree typesof Throws:P+G, 6+P+G, and 4+P+G,which also goes hand-in-hand with how youtech throwsin the game as well. For example, if youropponent goes to use their Back Throw(4+P+G) on you, youmust input 4+P+6 to break it,and so on and so forth.
However, unlike most other fighting games,all throws look largely the samein Virtua Fighter 5 Evo, meaning youcannot look out for specific animationsto know which throw tech you must use to break it. Instead, you must havematch-up knowledge and situational awarenessto make the best, most educated guess about which throw they want to try using.
For example, if youropponent’s back is against the wall, they will likely be trying to Back Throw you to swap positionswith you, making that thelikely option you want to try techingwith.Some characters also have extremely high-damaging throwsthat will be theirgo-to,which you will naturally feel out by playing more and more!
Implement Throws into your offense, as they are your best option and will force your opponent to look out for them, allowing you to play mind games and mix up your offensive pressure even more. It doesn’t matter who you choose as your main; you should always mix in Throws, especially if your opponent is guarding too much!
Guarding And Evasion Are Crucial
Defense is just as crucial as offensein Virtua Fighter 5 Revo, and havingGuarding as a dedicated buttonforces you toactively use it during encounters,which can trip up many newcomers that may be coming from other fighting games. Unlike, say, Tekken, youcannot block incoming attacks by holding Back or Down Back.
Having tomove around the arena while also actively pressing Guardto block incoming attacks cantake some getting used toif you aren’t too familiar with this system. However, itdoes play a larger role,which we covered in thetriangle systemearlier in the guide.
How To Evade Attacks
Evasionsare also important, as they will allow you toswiftly dodge incoming attacksand get your offense started. When yousee an attack coming,simplytapping Up(8)or Down(2) will have your characterperform an Evasion,having themsidestep the attack,opening your opponent up considerably.
But be careful, astapping Up or Down preemptively will have you eat the attack,and it onlyadds to the mental stackof Virtua Fighter 5 Revo’s combat system. Youropponent must be performing the attackin order for you to Evade it, so keep that in mind, as you do not want to be caught by an attack while moving.
This also applies to every character in the gameand not just the more ‘agile’ ones, as you may have expected. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing; you cantake full advantage of the Evasion system to up your defensive prowessto the next level!
Know Your Wake Up Options
‘Wake Up’is the term used to describe thestate you’re in when getting up off the ground after being thrown or knocked downin a fighting game, and that is no exception in Virtua Fighter 5 Evo, as you will be on the ground a lot throughout the course of a match.
Therefore, youmust learn how to properly tech your fall to get back up,as you do not want to remain on the ground too long, especially against some characters. Of course, if youstay on the ground too long, pressing nothing, you will eventually stand back up,but we strongly advise against doing so unless for very specific situations.
How To Tech Roll
Instead of just laying on the ground until you stand up, themoment your character hits the ground,pressingP+K+Gwill have themperform a tech roll,having theminstantly stand back up in place.And the best part is they will have someinvincibility framesupon recovery, making them one of the best options for waking up.
Additionally, holding8+P+K+Gwill have youroll away from the screenbefore getting up, and holding2+P+K+Gwill have youroll toward the screen before recovering,which will beuseful for repositioning yourself or avoiding some actions.Be mindful that teching this way will have yourecover in a crouched position.
Lastly, youcan also recover with a swift Kickthat canforce your opponent to keep their distanceafter knocking you down, as there aretwo typesyou can perform. Justpressing Kick while on the groundwill have you perform aMid Attack Kick,while pressing2+Kwill have youexecute a Low Attack Kick.Use these if your opponent is being a bit too aggressive after knocking you down!
You can bind a macro for P+K+G in the menu to a button on your Pad, Fightstick, or Leverless Controller, making it easier to tech roll when hitting the ground instead of having to manually press all three buttons simultaneously. We recommend doing setting it to a button you can easily reach, as you will be using it frequently!
Movement Is Key
Now that we’ve extensively covered the importance of defense and offense, there is one more aspect of Virtua Fighter 5 Revo that is crucial to your success: your movement. Yourmovement empowers your defense and offense,depending on how you utilize it.
Dashing(any direction twice) in Virtua Fightercan be canceled into another Dash,allowing you toquickly and efficiently navigate around the arenato eithercreate space or close the gapon your opponent. Most characters also haveunique actions while Dashing,which can further expand your offense.
Furthermore, pressing either2 or 8 + P+K+Gwill have you perform anOffensive Move,having your character quicklydash to the side,allowing you to reposition yourself. This isexcellent for getting away from the edge of the arenato avoid Stage Outsor even repositioning your opponentto open them up to your offense!
Use Training Mode To Improve
Training Mode,like in every fighting game, is atremendously powerful toolin Virtua Fighter 5 Revo, allowing you tohone your skills and master your favorite character.While it can seem tedious at times or like a chore, we encourage you to spend some time in Training Mode to learn your character’s capabilities.
Practicing combos, knowing what to do when landing Counter Hits, or how to transition into specific stancescan go a long way if you plan on playing online. Additionally, if aparticular character is giving you trouble,labbing how tobeat their most overwhelming actionswill prepare you for your next bout against them.
Do not sleep on this mode,as it only serves to make you better at the game and your character of choice. It may not be as in-depth as some of the more recent games that have been released, but what’s there is enough to get you on the right path and to better your gameplay!
Choose The Character You Find Most Interesting
Lastly,Virtua Fighter 5 has been around for quite a while,and while it is amuch different game now than it was when it initially launched,you won’t find a shortage of tier lists or discussions on which characters are generally considered the best or the worst.
The thing is, youshouldn’t base who you play on ranking or other people’s opinions,aspicking the character that looks the most interesting to you is almost always the best decisionyou can make when selecting your main in a fighting game. If you like the character you’re playing, the sky is the limit for what you’re willing to learn to get better and better with them.
Never feel discouraged when picking a character you like.If they’re considered ‘OP’ or ‘Trash,’ that should not be your deciding factor. Give them a whirl, andif their playstyle clicks with you, then learn them and have fun.That’s all it’s about. Don’t take things too seriously!
