Virtual On: Oratorio Tangram

"A fine mech battle game."

Virtual On: Oratorio Tanagram was released for the Sega Dreamcast in June of 2000. VO: OT was developed by Sega and was distributed by Activision. It is the sequel to the much-beloved Virtual On, a game that was released in arcades across the country and saw a release on the Sega Saturn. While its prequel saw widespread arcade support, VO: OT was only released in a handful of arcades. VO: OT is a 3D robot (or mech) battle game in which you and one other mech do battle in a wide array of battlegrounds. You have a sizable arsenal of attacks at your disposal to use at any time to decimate your opponent. The fighting takes place in a traditional best two out of three falls format. Now then, without further ado, let’s get to the review.

VO: OT’s gameplay consists of you and your opponent going back and forth in a battle to determine who is the best mech. As I mentioned earlier, this is done in a best two out of three falls format much like in the Street Fighter series. You can do tons of things throughout each battle, you can choose to go all out and try and bring your opponent down in a high-risk kamikaze-esque nature, or you can take things slow and whittle your opponent’s life bar down bit by bit. You can also take a defensive route and hide behind objects and take a stick and move approach to the battle, there’s really no limit to what you can do in the game, these are the three main ways of attacking, but you can mix and match each one to incorporate different aspects of each style into a particular fight.

VO: OT’s control is pretty solid. You control your mech through the use of the analog stick and the face and shoulder buttons. There are many control configurations, and, although none of them are perfect, they are more than adequate. With a little practice, old-school Virtual On vets like myself can get the hang of . It’s a bit disappointing that you can’t use twin sticks with the game, but it’s no big deal, the game controls fine without them because the control is super-responsive.

The graphics in VO: OT are a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, the mech designs are very original, although the mech’s body sizes are a bit stereotypical there’s a hulking beast character, and a small, petite character. The characters all have a bit of a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde thing going with them. One of the characters is pink and looks like a pushover the first time you see her, but she is absolutely vicious during a fight. I really like this paradox because it adds a new dimension to the characters, it shows that the characters can go beyond a player’s pre-conceived notions about a character. The characters themselves are pretty solid, they look like you would expect mechs to look and they all have little touches, like a Dreamcast with a CD spinning inside of it on their backs. The battlegrounds look nice, there’s an underwater one, and an aircraft one for starters, and they each look great, they look a tad on the blocky side, but it’s not a big deal, because you’ll be too busy attempting to beat your opponent to worry about it. The explosions are a bit of a mixed bag in their own right, some of the bigger, more fancy explosions look great, but some of the smaller ones look sub-par and blocky, I found this to be quite odd and just a wee bit distracting since you spend a lot of time looking at the explosions. They don’t knock the graphics down all that much though.

The sound in the game is perfect. The announcer sounds like a robot, which is so perfect for this game, and the characters all have their own voices, and they all fit their characters. The aforementioned pink character has a feminine, yet tough sounding voice that fits her character to a tee. The sound effects used throughout the game are great, the explosion sound effects couldn’t be better, they all emphasize the damage done by a move perfectly and help to get you hooked into the game.

VO: OT packs in some nice replay value, there are some secret characters to unlock, and the game is a blast to play no matter what, so you’ll be playing it years from now.

Overall, VO: OT is a fine purchase for the DC, it’s not the best game out there, but it’s definitely in the top 20. It is quite a sight to behold, the graphics are amazing, the sound fits the game perfectly, the gameplay is addictive, and, although it’s not perfect, the control is more than adequate and does its job nicely.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/27/01, Updated 07/27/01