Pre-E3: Sega Confirms Virtua Fighter 5 As PS3 Exclusive

Sega has announced that the next instalment of its arcade fighting game series, Virtua Fighter 5, will make its way exclusively onto the PlayStation 3 in Spring 2007, eschewing a release either on the Xbox 360 or Nintendo Wii, in one of the first notable PS3-exclusive announcements of titles that many considered might be multi-platform. Game footage, though apparently not any playable demonstration, will be on display at this week's E3 in Los Angeles, and the game will feature an all-star cast of 17 fighters, including characters from the previous iterations along with two new characters named El Blaze and Eileen. In the new title, which will support 720 HD resolution, players will not only achieve victory by defeating highly-skilled opponents, but will also compete for prizes and earn in-game money through the match to buy many items at an in-game shop, adding to the replayability for the arcade title. "Virtua Fighter 5 will offer fans the ultimate next-generation fighting game experience", said Scott A. Steinberg, Vice President of Marketing, Sega of America, Inc. "For years, the industry has talked about bringing the arcade experience to the living room. Virtua Fighter 5 fulfills this promise, and then some." Gamasutra will have further coverage of the Sega booth, including VF5, when E3 opens this Wednesday.