Recess is over; it’s time to return to the dojo. After a short winter break, Virtua Fighter 5 puts PlayStation 3 back to work with its hard-hitting gameplay and amazing visuals. The fifth installment of Sega’s lauded fighting series literally kicks the genre into the next-generation. Too bad much of what makes Virtua Fighter 5 a next-generation title rests with its presentation, as the same modes of play and complex fighting mechanics of previous installments are simply revisited here. A disappointing lack of online multiplayer and few changes to the core experience make Virtua Fighter 5 enjoyable for aficionados, but terribly daunting for newcomers.

Fighting is the name of the game in Virtua Fighter 5 and there’s plenty of it across its five modes of play. As a relatively straight port from the arcade cabinet, you can expect Arcade mode at the top of list followed by Versus, Quest, Dojo, and VF.TV modes. Arcade mode pits you against a string of fighters ending with a confrontation opposite series villain Dural. Quest mode, an enhanced version of Kumite mode from Virtua Fighter 4, allows you to take on computer-controlled fighters to increase in rank and earn gold for unlocking items. If you want to toy around with a character’s fighting style, you can visit the Dojo. Light on gameplay, VF.TV is a refined edition of AI System mode that lets you watch the computer render fights.

Single player gameplay is here in spades, but joining up with a friend some multiplayer action in Versus mode is where Virtua Fighter 5 really shines. Two-player bouts are a great way to appreciate both the complexities of the game’s fighting engine and its competitive nature. But there’s no way around it—the lack of online multiplayer hinders Virtua Fighter 5. While technical considerations may have factored into the decision to omit online play, the game suffers as a result. Local multiplayer is certainly enjoyable, but only if you have friends that match your level of familiarity with the game. Had it been ghost data or real-time matches or downloadable costumes, some sort of online functionality should have been included in the game.

Button-mashing simply won’t cut it in Virtua Fighter 5, as you’ll quickly realize a few minutes into the game. Inheriting the core fighting system of the last game, you’ll use three buttons to guard, punch, and kick. Punches are executed using either the X or triangle buttons, while kicks can be done with circle. Guarding, which becomes incredibly important when facing advanced computer-controlled fighters or tricky human competitors, can be pulled off with a press of the square button. The shoulder buttons serve as shortcuts for combinations of punches and kicks, but you’re better off sticking to the face buttons since they afford more control over technique.

In many ways, Virtua Fighter 5 simply lays a fresh coat of paint over previously weathered installments of the series. Of the 17 fighters available in this newest iteration, only a couple is new: El Blaze, a Mexican wrestler looking to defeat his nemesis Wolf Hawkfield, and Eileen, a young woman schooled in the art of Chinese opera. Both are mildly interesting, but somewhat underwhelming additions to the series. Of the returning characters, you’ll find much of their moves held intact from previous installments. Very little has been added, although you’ll occasionally notice a new move or two thrown in for good measure.

Visually Virtua Fighter 5 is three-dimensional, but its fighting largely feels two-dimensional. Tapping the directional pad left or right will move your character across the screen accordingly, whereas pressing up or down slides you to the background or foreground, respectively. By moving this way, all you’re really doing is changing the two-dimensional plane on which you’re fighting versus actually engaging in full three-dimensional combat. This lends an old-school feel to Virtua Fighter 5, which should be welcoming to those who have faithfully followed the series; heretofore, it’s hard to escape the sense that the game doesn’t exactly leap into the next-generation. No significant alterations to the fighting system and a complete lack of online features leave the high-definition graphics the only indicator of the game’s next-generation status.

Running at a maximum resolution of 720p, you can’t help but get drawn into the incredible graphics Virtua Fighter 5 pumps through PlayStation 3. Characters are unbelievably detailed from their clothing, hair, even animations. The environments are absolutely gorgeous, although don’t expect destructible elements as found in Dead or Alive 4. Sadly, there can be a little bit of a wait between matches due to loading, which is annoying since this remains an issue event after installing some game data to your hard drive.