For all intent and purposes, the Guilty Gear franchise continues to be the bastion of modern day 2D fighting games on Sony’s next gen console. Released last year on Playstation 4, Guilty Gear XRD -Sign- — powered by Epic’s Unreal 3 Engine – delivered a much-needed graphical upgrade to the series. The game itself was also enhanced by a dynamic camera system that followed the action from different angles (a first for 2D fighters). Guilty Gear XRD Revelator – the fifth game in the series, but the second GG game to appear on a next gen console – contains all the graphical upgrades and gameplay tweaks of its predecessor, while also including additional content and new characters.
For starters, XRD -Revelator- includes twenty playable characters, four of which were not available in XRD -Sign- –- Jack-O’, Jam Kuradoberi, Johnny and Redman. The character roster increases to a beefy twenty-three fighters when you unlock Dizzy, Kum Haehyun and Raven by purchasing DLC via PSN. But without the additional content, the game includes Axl Low, Bedman, Chipp Zanuff, Elphelt Valentine, Faust, I-No, Ky Kiske, Leo Whitefang, May, Millia Rage, Potemkin, Ramlethal Valentine, Sin Kiske, Slayer, Sol Badguy, Venom and Zato-1.
Among the new content is ‘Stylish Type’, a new mode that is designed to assist new players. This feature not only includes an extra button (i.e. Special/SP) to perform Overdrives and specials, but it allows for connecting normals in sequence to create auto-combos and blockstrings. There is a penalty for using a ‘Stylish’ character, so this feature isn’t perfect. Gamers that use a ‘Stylish’ character can expect their fighter to incur an additional 20% of damage when their opponents attack.
Homing Dash and Burst Overdrive have also received some improvements. For example: Homing Dash now has the opponent fall/tumble as the attacking player pursues them. Plus, the game allows for normals to be cancelled into normals for a limited amount of time. Burst Overdrives can now deal 25% more damage than their counterparts, but only one Overdrive per fighter can be used as a Burst Overdrive (including the cinematic-based Overdrive), among others.
Blitz Shield also includes some enhancements. For example: a successful rejection can now refill the Burst Gauge, while a Crouching Blitz Shield can now be executed by pressing down-forward and any attack button except D (depending on your button configuration). It’s also worth mentioning that Crouching Blitz Shield no longer rejects mid-combos.
The core gameplay mechanics of Guilty Gear have remained the same. Combat still uses the four button attack system pioneered by its predecessors (i.e. Punch, Kick, Slash and Heavy), and the basic move set for every fighter has been retained. The Dust Attack system now has two additional features — Homing Dash and Homing Jump. Homing Dash allows the player to create new corner combos, as the opponent ‘wall sticks’ to a corner. Homing Jump is reminiscent of the GGXX series — characters can perform double-jumps, super jumps, etc.
Online multiplayer has received some graphical enhancements, but its overall functionality has remained the same. After setting up your online profile (which involves selecting a fighter, stage to fight on, etc.) the player is sent to one of the largest regional server maps ever seen in a fighting game.
The Server Lobby is divided between Asia, North America 1 (East Coast), North America 2 (MidWest and West Coast) and Europe. Each Country has ‘Districts’ that can host a total of thirty-two, 64-player lobbies. Logging in to one of these lobbies sends you to a large, interactive room where players correspond using avatars. As far as online matches are concerned, Guilty Gear Xrd Revelator’s netcode provides a stable gameplay experience regardless of the server being used.
Guilty Gear Xrd Revelator’s cel-shaded graphics provide a hybrid form of 2D that is indiscernible from the real thing. It works so well that you don’t realize you’re looking at in-game graphics when a cinematic sequence plays out during an Overdrive. Even the pre-fight sequences have you second-guessing whether you’re watching a cinema or not. In short, the graphics are some of the best ever seen in the series. It should also be mentioned that the soundtrack is classic Guilt Gear, from start to finish. Fans of the GG series are in for a real treat.
Like its predecessors, Guilty Gear XRD -Revelator- is one of those fighting games that cannot be appreciated unless the player invests enough time in all of its available features. On the surface, Xrd -Revelator- appears to be a mere ‘update’ to XRD -Sign-, but that is not the case. What Arc Systems Works released is a stable, well-balanced 2.5d fighter that can easily compete with any game in the genre, Capcom’s Street Fighter V included.
Mike Pittaro
Platform: Playstation 4
Developer: Arc System Works
Publisher: Aksys Games
ESRB: T (Teen)
Price: $49.99
Guilty Gear Xrd -Relevator- Official Website: Click Here
| Review Score | |
|---|---|
| Graphics |  |
| The game is a graphical feast for the eyes, thanks to its manga-style sprites and gorgeous backgrounds. | |
| Sound | |
| A memorable soundtrack plays throughout. | |
| Gameplay | |
| Enhancements aside, XRD Revelator is a well-balanced fighting game with rock-solid controls | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Guilty Gear XRD Revelator is one of the best fighting games currently available for Playstation 4, bar none. | |
