VF5FS Special Sparring Mode (Better than Quest Mode?)

The more I play special sparring mode the more I like it.

Special Sparring Mode is a mode that you can unlock in VF5FS once you have all of the DLC. It consists
of 20 different sparring groups with over 140 unique sparring partners. You can set the difficulty all the way to very hard, and I believe the number of rounds as well. Although the number of sparring partners in each group is fixed and they appear in the same order, thier styles are not so fixed. IMO they are far better than the AI in quest mode in VF5. They are more challenging, they can be cheap, they can spam, and they can serve up sophisticated 4,5,6 and 7 hit combos. Yep at least 7 hits ( I got caught against the cage once and verified that).

Maybe its just me, but depending on the difficulty they seem to have different styles, and depending on whether you are playing agressive offense,defensively, turtling, distancing, poking, etc they seem to behave a little differently. I hope someone else can check me on this. Maybe I'm reading more into this mode than what is actually there, but these sparring partners are reasonably good. I would say that noobs cannot beat them on very hard, and that on very hard they play like intermediate to good players (at least from my perspective). Although Quest mode VF5 was a little more random the AI in Quest Mode does not compare to what you find in Special Sparring Mode.

Here are the 20 sparring groups with a total of 144 unique AI's to spar against:


1. VF Academy

2. Dreamers

3. In the Stars

4. Underworld

5. Sega Maniacs

6. Beach Bums

7. Arcade Kids

8. Frightful

9. Travel Agents

10. Creatures

11. VF Marching Band

12. Go West

13. VF.TV Camera Crew

14. Rumble Jungle

15. KOT Trial

16. Chefs

17. Mixed Bag

18. Grab Bag

19. Swag Bag

20. The Bosses


Every Kage, Lei Fei, Taka, Jean, etc is different. Each one has a certain approach, and are meant to teach you how to deal with certain styles. If you haven't opened special sparring mode up yet, or haven't tried it yet, I strongly suggest you do. For those times when nobody is online, (or at leat nobody that you want to fight is online), hit the sparring sessions.

I'm not sure whether each group is of equal difficulty or not. Does anybody know? For instance are the sparring partners in "Frightful" less difficult that the sparring partners found in "The Bosses"?

Can some of the intermediate -to - good VF players out there rate the AI in these 20 groups for difficulty and adaptablity. The expert players will probably have no problem with these AI, but the average player will find them a challenge.

I'm too biased on this one, I liked the mode so much I might be seeing something that's not actually there.

How good are the 144 sparring partners?

Does anyone care to rate & rank them?

-------------------------
VF Academy
-------------------------
Jason - Lion
Plague - Akira
Kei-Sei - Lei Fei
Gohsen - Goh
Queen of Hearts - Sarah
Shhh - Kage
CKA - Shun

-------------------------
Dreamers
-------------------------
Siba - Akira
Big Jerry - Taka
Switchnationer - Jean
Krysta Marie - Pai
Blossom - Aoi
Brinnies - Sarah
Gretchen - Eileen
Sumo Sect - Taka

-------------------------
In the Stars
-------------------------
Drem - Goh
Mahoney - Wolf
Ladon - Blaze
Dos - Blaze
Kuroe M - Aoi
Laya - Sarah
Blue Flash - Jacky
Kimari Chin - Shun
Omne - Jeffry

-------------------------
Underworld
-------------------------
Wreckshop - Jeffry
Sleepy Sifu - Lei Fei
Grace - Sarah
KamiKAGE - Kage
New kid in town - Jean

-------------------------
Sega Maniacs
-------------------------
SKYLAR - Brad
Biscuit - Jeffry
Beatdown - Vanessa
Alex Vice - Vanessa
Twinkle Toes - Sarah
Air Brace - Blaze
Tokio - Lau
Sammo - Vanessa

-------------------------
Beach Bums
-------------------------
Lyn - Pai
Heidi - Sarah
Stephie Rawks - Aoi
Kat - Vanessa
Kei Mikado - Eileen
Picky - Lion
Spike - Jean
Curtain Call - Brad

-------------------------
Arcade Kids
-------------------------
Max - Jean
HAPPYKN - Eileen
R0RY - Akira
Kobi - Aoi
Bouncer - Jeffry
O-papa - Taka
Da Illest - Lau

-------------------------
Frightful
-------------------------
Specter - Lion
Zass - Wolf
JC Black - Wolf
Pie Eater - Pai
Bahn - Akira

-------------------------
Travel Agents
-------------------------
Stomp out loud - Lion
Gilty - Jacky
Stalking Mantis - Lion
Marek - Shun
Agent V - Vanessa
Kim - Vanessa
El Twelve - Blaze

-------------------------
Creatures
-------------------------
Myke - Kage
Stl Jazz - Pai
Lounger - Shun
KuHoshi - Jean
Peaky - Aoi
Bobby Hitopopo - Akira
I am back Baby! - Taka

-------------------------
VF Marching Band
-------------------------
Sharkone - Jacky
Jagi - Brad
Tobi Turpentine - Jeffry
Lau Chan - Akira
Mark - Jean
ST - Aoi

-------------------------
Go West
-------------------------
Koji Sakujin - Eileen
Cowboy - Lei Fei
Jon Goh - Goh
Deputy - Lei Fei
Caitlin - Pai
Courier - Taka

-------------------------
VF.TV Camera Crew
-------------------------
Frisco Kid - Lion
Oh my! - Blaze
Snake Bite - Jeffry
Ash Kaiser - Wolf
Missy - Aoi
Matt Cage - Kage

-------------------------
Rumble Jungle
-------------------------
Donny King - Lau
Rocket Blaze 23 - Blaze
Dangoo - Lei Fei
Green Bryant - Lion
Oshizzle1000 - Pai
Heather Swan - Sarah
Mary - Sarah
Marcus - Shun
Alan - Jeffry
Lee Chan - Lau

-------------------------
KOT Trial
-------------------------
Charlie Sam - Brad
Server - Blaze
Krowz - Jeffry
Nes enFuego - Akira
Marsanne - Pai
Tripsem - Aoi
Billie - Jean
Jing-Cheng - Lau

-------------------------
Chefs
-------------------------
Nate - Brad
Knox Patch - Kage
Syzygy - Shun
Flint Satori - Jacky
Jerry Nice - Lei-Fei
Mullen - Eileen
Govnor - Lion

-------------------------
Mixed Bag
-------------------------
JR - Kage
Peter - Lau
The Captain - Jean
FiGohroh - Goh
" Supa Tay" - Blaze
Rick - Goh
Mary Beth - Eileen

-------------------------
Grab Bag
-------------------------
Elleannore - Eileen
The Wizard - Goh
Minh - Jacky
RYO - Akira
Mr. Eagle - Brad
Ethan - Akira
Tommy - Lei Fei
Corinne - Vanessa

-------------------------
Swag Bag
-------------------------
Sarah Sea - Vanessa
Johnny Rockstar - Wolf
Big Kev - Taka
Mai - Eileen
Jeff - Jacky
Jun - Wolf
Master Ruben - Lau
Mel Bracken - Brad

-------------------------
The Bosses
-------------------------
Lee - Brad
Super Jumbo - Taka
Oolongee - Shun
Perrin - Wolf
Master L - Lau
One Pocket - Goh
Frank - Kage

 

I could swear they get harder as you progress. I think I am on VF.TV Camera Crew now. Of the ones I've played recently the one that sicks out in my mind is ST - Aoi. She was brutal. I think it took over an hour to beat her. I remember because she was at the end of the group and I had to take a break at one point and do something else before coming back to try and beat her. She was harder for me than anyone else in the group so I guess maybe it depends what you are good at/used to.

I like that you have to beat them all in one sitting to clear the stage which is pretty old school. It's tough to judge their difficulty because my skill level has also changed over time. I just find them to be consistently tough.

 

I wrote notes on these matches such as which moves they seem to favor, which direction of throws they use mostly, if they use sabaki/reversal/inashi, good at blocking lows, how difficult or easy they are to me, etc. (Most are easy). I was told that when you choose a different difficulty level that they change up their tactics so I tested this on a few and they mostly seem to be the same no matter what you choose. Alot of the matchups I didn't leave any notes since they didn't do anything that stood out as spammy or unique from the other matchups with same character.

 

I remember saying this back when people were bitching about the lack of Quest Mode ( and FS in general).

Yes I want a cookie.

 

Choose 5 rounds to win, 200 health you, 260 CPU, and very hard. Now, restart the entire group every time you lose. This should provide a decent challenge. Once you can do this consistently, Special Sparring mode is just for warm-up.

 

I would like to play special sparring mode,but I aint paying for all the dlc costumes.

 

It's not THAT important.

It's useful for getting the mechanics of the game down. Otherwise you can go into the dojo and set the AI to it's hardest setting, with all the details set to random and get the same experience.

 

Dingo this is Bad advise to lefty lizard, because Dojo on random with AI on hard is not the same as Special Sparring

1) Each of the 144 fighters have a unique game plan, set of attacks , favorite spams, combos, etc. (RANDOM CANNOT DUPLICATE THIS!)

2) Each of the 20 sparring groups present you with different fighters, so you can chose the set of fighters you want to spar with (DOJO does not let you do this)

3) Each 144 fighters have a different look (some of the costumes are Fucking Tight!) DOJO
does not take advantage of DLC of different costumes there fore it can get monotonous
visually!

4) Also the stages are constantly changing as your sparring partners change. Changing characters then selecting stages in DOJO is not the same thing.


lefty! you are missing out on a nice mode in the game. You simply cannot duplicate the experience in DOJO because contrary to Dingo's implication each of the 144 sparring partners have (their own style), and do try to teach you certain lessons. Random mode on Dojo doesn't cut it.

I've been through Special Sparring Session 6 or 7 times, each fight is fresh although the fighters have their own styles they present a different take on them every time I've played.

Based on Dingo's advise, I can only assume he's never completely played sparring sessions, and if he did, he wasn't paying close attention.

That mode is well worth the price of the DLC, well worth it!!!!!!

 

I usually play Score Attack and Arcade Mode (FS has the best credits in the series), I haven't try SSM in Very Hard yet, so I'll give it a try next time .

As for the AI, SEGA has done a magnificient job and It's a real shame that many people don't appreciate it. No other fighting game can match that.

 

The credits are amazing

 

Any of the modes on "Hard" are useless for learning anything other than simple mechanics of the game. The AI on "Hard" does not properly take advantage of the situations it is in and is thus not a proper learning tool.

Actually, the AI doesn't really have "personalities". True some of the characters in SSM do certain things, but each AI Akira typically responds in a similar fashion...

You can choose who you want to spar with in Dojo, so I'm not sure what you're hinting at here...

......Whatever floats your boat homie...

You can choose which ever stage you want to spar in in Dojo, so I'm not sure what you're getting at here...

SSM, is what it is, a nice leisure mode to break the monotony of online play. In a game that is seriously lacking modes, that's not a bad thing. But to call it anymore than that would be erroneous.

That's my opinion at least. The AI in Dojo set to Very Hard with random settings provides a much more challenging experience than anything in SSM. You also have the benefit of turning on the frame data display to give you better knowledge of each move and what you can/cannot do as a response.

 

Brodi, I disagree, but for reasons different than po's. The main benefit that playing in Special Sparring provides (with the rules I described earlier) which Dojo does not offer is the tangible result of winning or losing. You cannot win nor lose in Dojo. There is nothing on the line and you cannot accurately judge your skill vs the AI (which only means you've learned the basics, I agree.) Using Dojo only, you can only guess at how often you're doing the right things. If you can consistently run through any given group in Special Sparring, you have proven that you can: punish, maximize combo damage, capitalize on advantage (flowcharts and nitaku), avoid unnecessary risks, and defend well. You won't have to assume nor guess whether you can do these things. If you can't, you won't make to the end. If you can, then you have a fighting chance against real people.

 

I prefer the R version, personally. A shame that it isn't captured in higher quality.

 

Man, I can't get enough of it! VF needs stuff like that. Come on SEGA, show the world how cool VF chatacters can be

As for the AI, nobody expects to deliver the same level of challenge as the one you can get from a human opponent. Back in the old VF4 Evo days, the enemy AI was the only way to learn how to fight other characters. The AI can't turn you into a high level player, but it's a good way to learn the basics of the game.

 

I appreciate your advice and info. I will keep special sparring in mind.

 

I really enjoyed the Special Sparing teams in general, as they do really allow you to gauge your performance pretty well. Each have their unique approach to a fight, thus what could be easy for one character could be brutal for another. Great offline training outside of playing another player offline.

 

i think special sparring is a decent way to practice things you learn in dojo against a moving opponent.

here are a couple vids if you haven't seen special sparring on very hard in action. my play is sloppy but you can see the cpu is pretty active and will punish you. and do things like evade and fuzzy.

vs. the bosses in default costumes


vs. the bosses in their alternate costumes


to play against the cpu's alternate costume just pick your character's "B" costume by holding start while you select your character.

 

Brodi, Brodi, Brodi First your perspective is totally one of a seasoned veteran that's done it all and seen it all and obviously your not easily impressed. But I'm almost embarrassed to ask you this, but have you really (honestly) even played sparring mode? ( I have the sneaky suspicion that you did not go for all the DLC (and therefore might not have it) forgive me if I'm wrong. But the Dojo is a completely different feature than special sparring mode and each has something to offer that the other one doesn't. For new players, for fresh players, for casual, to intermedia players for beginning advanced players the Special Sparring sessions have a great deal to offer.

Perhaps for players like you, that are so advanced that you can only appreciate the most advanced aspects of VF, maybe Special Sparring mode comes up short. But for the the rest of us mere mortals, its a great mode. And in the spirit of what this thread was originally about, I think its far better than Quest Mode for VF5.

If you had to compare the two, which do you think is best?

 

Flattery? Please continue...

I've completed all of the SSM teams. Although the AIs had "personalities", they all were still an AI that falls to stupid AI tricks.

To each his own, I personally got more out of beating up the Very Hard AI Dojo Dummy because of the extra information I could display to give me instant feedback on particular moves and techniques.

Sadly (as far as I know) you can't save or watch replays of your sessions with the AI in SSM. So how can you see and analyze why and how your move/technique failed?

...Go on...

Again, to each his own, but I preferred Quest Mode.

It was still an AI that did stupid AI things, but the idea was great and the random "tournaments" vs AI opponents was fun. I'd hope that Sega could in the future add an online quest mode populated by both human and AI opponents.

Again, this is my opinion but SSM did nothing for me. The only thing it and the other offline modes did for me was help me work on movement mechanics. Yet, yomi is a big part of this game, and you can't yomi an AI.

To each his own...