How is VF not bland?
Look at that stage. Look at the way the snow blows. Look at the intro animations. Look at the attention of detail laid in the background. Look at the way the clothes transform to the incoming wind. Look at the move animations and how crisply animated they are. If you have a modicum of interest in martial arts, too, you should also be able to appreciate the level of detail given to each individual fighter's fighting style.
Look at this Guilin stage. Holy shit, I want to visit Guilin. The way the stage transforms as you go round by round, as you pass under the bridge. It's a level of detail that other fighters are lacking in. But then, if you're interested in the actual content (location or martial arts) of course you're going to find VF's aesthetic more appealing than another animu fighter where the main cast shoot fireballs out of their ass.
Not to mention dem juggles. So fluid.
Then watch a Soul Calibur V video.
Oh wow. A dude with a big sword. That's the first thing you see. Haven't seen THAT before! Then look at the animations. Christ. This looks so boring. Oh great, another fighter with anime-esque fighting game special move animations that last longer than 2 seconds. I will definitely pick this game up (not really).
Now let's look at Tekken.
Jesus Christ. First off, the character design is atrocious. Secondly, look at that stage. It looks static and boring. What are those red things when a hit makes contact? That looks gay. They're way up in the sky, but the wind doesn't even affect their clothing.
Boredom incarnate. I'll give DoA kudos, though, it's a very aesthetically pleasing series.
VF, however, is nothing but polish and a labor of love.
