Guilty Gear Xrd: REV 2 Review

PQube and Arc System Works are back for another dose of Guilty Gear action in Guilty Gear Xrd: REV 2. Packing new characters, stages, and more, should you get ready to rock?

Guilty Gear Xrd: REV 2 Review

Building on last year’s release of Guilty Gear Xrd: -REVELATOR-, REV 2’s biggest draw is its two new characters. New to the series is the business ninja Answer, who specializes in dash attacks, follow-ups, Izuna Drops, teleportation, and object summoning. His style is fast, and though he has a business card projectile, he is designed primarily as an up-close-and-personal offensive character. He will no doubt take a while for people to master, and is clearly designed for high level play.

Also included in this title is the one-armed warrior Baiken, who makes her return to the series. She relies on a grappling chain that can pull people in, sword-based moves, and a counter that can be used to deflect attacks and deliver one of your own. Her variety and options make her a lot of fun to play, and the attention-to-detail that comes with things as insignificant as her walking animation gives her a rich, smug personality.

All of the original stages, missions, modes, and characters from the original -REVELATOR- are present in REV 2, offering players a wealth of options to explore. As per the previous title, included is the survival-like M.O.M. mode that offers RPG-like buffs and loot, a detailed platformer-like tutorial, combo missions that cover the strengths and weakness of each character, a digital figure mode that offers the chance to play with figurines, and more. The amount of options are staggering, and even things like the single player arcade-like mode contain touches like animated cutscenes for each character, real-time difficulty adjustments based on skill level, and rewards for major milestones in battle. A story mode is available, but new players will experience the same tale as the one found in -REVELATOR-. It’s full of talking heads and jargon, but it’s well animated and is entertaining throughout its five hour runtime.

Let’s say you’ve never played a Guilty Gear game before, and didn’t know about any of the material above. GG neophytes need not worry, as REV 2 is the best place to start in the series. Controls consist of a punch, kick, slash, heavy slash, and “dust” launching attack, and QCF moves are the norm. Air dashes make things speedy, and the “Roman Cancel” move lets you cancel out a move in exchange for longer combos and half your meter. No two characters play the same, and there is somebody for every sort of fan. It’s fast, it’s frantic, and it’s fun.

Guilty Gear Xrd: REV 2 isn’t as big of a jump as the one -REVELATOR- made, but it is a welcome one nonetheless. It still remains one of the best fighting games out on the market today, and the additions present here make an already good game even better.