Virtua Fighter 3 Arcade Vs. DC

I've heard several times that the DC version of VF3 is complete crap compared to the arcade version. I have the Dreamcast version, but it's been years since I've played the arcade version. So, can someone tell me, what is the difference between the two? Graphics? Gameplay? Both?

 

The DC version was a rush job by Genki, the makers of the Shotokou Battle games. Tge graphics are somewhat like the arcade version but for a real poor stage port just check out the desert stage :nod:

Yakumo

 

the island stage is also unlike the arcade one if I remember correctly.

 

VF3 is something that should see an arcade perfect port on XBL/PSN, along with VF2.

 

However the arcade board costs about the same as the DC version...

 

Only problem is finding a monitor that supports it. I was considering getting a super gun for it and using my monitor, but I was told you have to use an older nec multisync.

 

That, and the space to store the beast.

This is apparently a lot of work. There were blocks of source code they couldn't find for the Sega Ages 2500 version, and had to be emulated.

 

Would VF3 (model 3) work with an RGB SCART TV, with the proper adapter?

GaijinPunch: So was the Sega Ages version entirely emulated, or only some parts of it?

 

No, requires a medium resolution monitor. As well as a 3.3V PSU or a JAMMA adapater which will cost severals times more then the board costs.

Doesn't require a specific make of monitor just one that will do 25Khz (most VGA monitors will do 31.5Khz and JAMMA Monitors / TVs will do 15.75Khz).

 

What do you mean by a "medium resolution monitor?" Doesn't JAMMA support several resolutions?

 

The board itself is Medium Res only

 

For their Dreamcast conversion of Virtua Fighter 3tb, Genki first reprogrammed the arcade game from its original Model 3 board to NAOMI, finally porting this over to the Dreamcast (though why it was never released as a coin-op as well remains a mystery - presumably Sega felt another revision of VF3 wasn't necessary, especially with its proper sequel already in preliminary stages of development by this point). In its Model 3 guise, VF3 not only used quadratic polygons but no texture mapping for the character models, which instead got their details purely through shader and lighting effects. To my knowledge, nobody has ever produced a side-by-side comparison of VF3tb, although I've heard many times of limb joints being comromised the most as a result of Genki's decision to lower the polygon count and utilise textures - even though Sega claimed in advance of the Dreamcast's release that it could easily match and even out-perform Model 3. Backgrounds in the console version are similarly poor, with several of the levels receiving a major overhaul. A few other criminal mistakes include the frame rate briefly dropping before opening rounds (when the camera zooms in) and shadows that would flicker and even break up when layered over uneven floor surfaces, much like the problem that plagued all 3D in the Saturn conversion of Virtua Fighter.

However, the end product still isn't too bad, with many flaws only picked up by hardcore fans of the series (well, at least those that weren't fixed for the international edition, such as the shadow glitch mentioned before). Perhaps one day this classic title will receive a perfect home treatment from its Model 3 source, maybe through emulation as part of a budget package or future VF collection. One thing's for sure, though, and that is not even Yu Suzuki or his best AM2 programmers could have done much better. Then again, I'm still interested to know how well his cancelled Saturn conversion would have looked, as the prototype of Shenmue created near simultaneously pushed Sega's already powerful 32-bit architecture to incredible heights the Sony PlayStation could only have dreamed of. I still find it hard to believe that AM2 turned down the chance to produce the Dreamcast version in favour of something yet to see the light of day in any shape of form. Would it have been any good, though? Suzuki hasn't let me down yet, so maybe all will be revealed sooner rather than later...

 

interest post Anthaemia - the info on a naomi conversion of VF3 - that's the first I ever heard of it, where did you get that info from?

 

That piece of information comes from a magazine review of VF3tb back when the Dreamcast had just launched in Japan, so I presume that it was probably an issue dating between October and December 1998. Although sadly no longer able to recall exactly what publication this was in, I do remember the final score being less than favourable (thanks mostly to Genki's habit of cutting corners in what should have been a flawless conversion). Sega Rally 2 was also previewed in its original prototype form, so perhaps the exact time frame is closer to October or at least early November '98 as development of this other key title had been handed back over to the original arcade staff not long after this. Anyway, for those who've yet to notice I spend quite a lot of time writing about this particular game and there are few things I don't know about it... not to sound big-headed or anything, of course!

 

Jamma does, yes. Your monitor most likely doesn't. Low res (most Jamma boards) are 15khz. Medium res is 22khz. High res (Naomi, G-Net, Type-X, etc. is 31 khz). Old TVs are 15khz and most computer monitors are 31khz. There are even quite a few monitors that support both. Very few will support 22khz. X68000 standard monitors do, from what I understand.

 

I think Genki porting VF3 had nothing to do with it being a less than perfect port. Unfamiliar knowledge of hardware, difference in hardware, and limited time were all the reasons for the port. Look at how Daytona USA 2001 turned out for DC, Genki is a good team made of ex Am2 programmers.

 

Whatever the reason behind Sega's decision to farm out such a high profile Dreamcast launch title to Genki, there's no hiding the fact that AM2 could have done much better with Virtua Fighter 3tb - even if many of those responsible for the conversion did formerly work under Yu Suzuki. You only have to look at the incredible "Tower Of Babel" tech demo (which later became the inspiration for the Kowloon introduction sequence of Shenmue II, fact fans!) to see just how much of a grip AM2 - with a little help from a few ex-Team Andromeda programmers, it should be noted - had on the Dreamcast hardware from a very early point. Genki did a decent enough job with VF3tb, but to this day it is believed that Suzuki himself feels upset at the way his own team's (allegedly) jaw-dropping treatment of VF3 for the Saturn was cancelled in favour of a product AM2 could easily have surpassed, being Sega's jewel-in-the-crown studio with all the exclusive access to software libraries that included. Adding further insult to injury, Saturn VF3 was then reworked at the request of Suzuki in the hope of making the powers that be change their minds. Instead, to use a suitable baseball metaphor, gamers were left with a bunt instead of a grand slam. There's no way Saturn VF3 would have been a pixel perfect recreation of the Model 3 showcase (and judging from the few details we know, on a purely technical it didn't even come close), though nobody ever criticised their earlier efforts that compromised graphics to preserve the classic playability of their coin-op sources, such as the original conversion of Daytona USA. Come to think of it, Genki later went on to put their stamp on that game as well...

 

Yeah, and that wasn't as good as the original arcade either. I would have prefeard a port of the original arcade rather than the one we got.

Yakumo

 

To be honest, there was never really any chance of Sega allowing a pixel-perfect conversion of any arcade game - regardless of its classic status - being released for the Dreamcast, as the company was far into a period where everything started to collapse under the weight of style as opposed to the substance of its Saturn-era software (see the over-polished Sonic Heroes for a perfect example of what came not too much after). Daytona USA 2001 would have been fine had Genki put in the coin-op (emulated, perhaps?) as a bonus, though I didn't really find the improved graphics to be a problem. Actually, my one major criticism is the fact it looked closer to Battle On The Edge, yet lacked any of the cars or tracks from that sequel. Surely the overall package would have been better suited to a conversion of Daytona 2 with extras from the original, possibly even some kind of option to play it with Model 2 quality visuals? Even the loose default controls and absence of network support (in the PAL edition, at least) could be forgiven. Genki really were top when it came to pumping out half-baked Dreamcast titles...

 

Sadly there latest efforts aren't that great. I still feel shutoko battle 2/tokyo xtreme 2 was there last great hurrah. As for there vf3 port, I feel it was mostly do to lack of time to work on it and the fact that the arcade version displayed in quads rather then polys.

It being rush a job is supported by the fact that the Japanese version didn't have 2p mode as well as other graphical mistakes, yet this was corrected to an extent for the U.S. version which came out a couple of months later.

I am a bit bummed they didn't finish doing model 3 emulation, cause they were getting pretty close from the screen shots I saw posted.