How Big is the Non-Japanese Scene?

I think one thing that hampered this game was the lack of availability. There is the presentation, yeah, but moreso the availibility. This franchise was on the Saturn and then the Dreamcast which weren't popular consoles. When it did hit the PS2 (and during the Saturn and DC days) consoles were looked down upon at FG tourney's. By the time VF4 hit the U.S. on console, EVO was coming out, no? The same with Final Tuned.

Not getting the latest builds hurt as well. VF5 launching on the a $600 system didn't help either. I don't see the FS picking up too much steam myself, but I think it'll be easier than in the past, now that everyone is on the same page with good equipment. I'm fortunate to have a couple people to play with so my insular ass is good to go.

I hope if there is a VF6, SEGA handles the franchise overseas A LOT better than the previous years.

 

I really love what youre doing man, Making the most of the tools available. Good job!

And I agree about using the tools, lots of people are constantly watching youtube videos and streams these days. I know I am. We need to do more of those too. Stream tourneys with a commentary that explains somewhat what is happening, to make the stream watchable to someone who doesnt know the game. Make streams out of online play with commentary on it like youre doing, good job at that! Make youtube vids that explain basic stuff, techniques, combos.

And of course somehow get people to know that these streams and vids exist. Thats the hard part. Ultradavid and JChen got VFDC some free coverage there.

Sites/blogs etc that update consistently might be a good tool, to make people follow them and then learn about the new stuff. All of the tools are already available, its not rocket science.

 

You kiddin'? You've heard my voice. I'm a contender in the HEY-LISTEN-TO-ME department. Seriously, though, I take a similar attitude to bringing new people into the game. I've been getting friends closer to my level faster, when a year ago, I couldn't even get my friends to play VF for more than a round or two, even after we'd just finished shooting a short film about a guy who gets the original Virtual Fighter machine for his birthday.

You ever do interviews, Po? A lot of this stuff would make for great sound bytes in our documentary.

 

Yes, I tend to take most of that as a given. Sega's mishandling of the marketing and availability side is something everyone here knows too well.

Keep in mind, regular VF4 ver.C sold decently on PS2 in the US (780k per VGchartz, 1.81mil globally). Fighting game communities were a lot different in terms of how players got information or the way games were marketed by word-of-mouth, but VF4E was out within about a year from that at $20 in the US, and there was enough to get people started in VF4E tutorials itself. FT came out in late 2004, so the US had a window of about a year to play a non-import copy of VF4E. Not getting FT or VF5R hurt the existing fanbase's enthusiasm more than potential players since there was minimal increase in popularity after Evo '03, '04, and '07. The increase I witnessed coincided with the ability to play the game online, but once it was clear we weren't getting VF5R that waned as well.

 

Discussion about VF Difficulty moved here.

 

Are there any jtv or Twitch channels that stream VF action?

I've seen Shidosha's stream a few times and enjoy watching it. Other than him and the iPlayWinner streams showcasing the new FS at events, I haven't found any. Sure, I've seen a few on Ustream that are Japanese, but hearing a good commentator really helps me understand what I'm seeing.

 

As far as I know when VF5 was at it's peak I think streaming was a relatively new venture. Only the biggest of tournaments could manage streams. I'm sure once FS drops they'll be plenty though.

Something I've been watching recently could work well with introducing new players to VF. There is this player currently living in Japan who plays the new Persona 4 fighter (which might I add, looks fantastic). He commentates over arcade matches on youtube talking about the system and characters, taking questions, replaying specific moments during gameplay etc. It's really informative, especially if you don't know much about the game and I find it much easier to understand compared to reading walls of text (like this one).

Edit: http://www.twitch.tv/jiyuna/b/311117978

I think a series of streams/podcasts aimed at beginners would also work, each episode focusing on a different aspect or character. But I think something like this would be just as useful.

 

Oh I kinda like that idea. Having guest speakers to weigh in on the strengths and weaknesses of their specialty character would be kinda cool. Kinda like level up your game's thing with Tekken.

 

Yeah, and Tom Brady had a show for a while in MK (where I learned most of what I know). Asking a knowledge player questions in realish time can help several players that may have the same question/issue.

Another good example is VSM (Valley Stream Monsters) in the MK community. They have weekly tournies, casuals, etc (in person) and stream matches, have commentators, etc. One member, who started playing MK last year (after EVO I believe), leveled his game up so much he won MLG last weekend.

A strong sub community such as VSM is also a good way to showcase friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful players.

Edit: How could I forget one of the most obvious ways fighting game players have tried to reach out to new players: UltraChen (James Chen and UltraDavid's streams which are specifically aimed to teach mechanics of fighting games which happens to be mostly Street Fighter and SFxTK).

 

I don't know how relative I will be to the discussion to get new gamers into Virtua Fighter. But I recently began to play again, mainly due to the iplaywinners commentary on matches, especially this video



Granted I still am a Sega fanboy and only have actual Sega systems to play Virtua Fighter on. But for now I'll keep practising with Shun on my Dreamcast. I may buy a xbox for VF5:FS to participate in this community. Still hoping for the Steam port to take off though, would definately be cheaper.

But since I'm a sega fanboy, I'm hardly the example to get people back in VF. But at least it is something.