Guilty Gear STRIVE

Guilty Gear: Strive is the next installment of the Arc System Works studio's brawler series that began in 1998. The title is the seventh part of the mainstream series. Strive continues the story of the conflict between protagonist Solem Badguy and his arch-enemy Asuka R. Kreutz.

Mechanics

Like the previous installments in the series, Strive is a classic 2D brawler where two protagonists fight each other in a variety of arenas. Unlike other brawlers such as Tekken or Street Fighter, Guilty Gear: Strive places a large (though slightly lesser than previous installments) emphasis on aerial combat. Each character has access to a special attack that knocks enemies off the ground, allowing you to perform long aerial combos of attacks.

During fights we have to watch out for our health bar and tension bar. It recharges when we play aggressively, attack an enemy or get close to him. Gained tension we can spend on more powerful attacks or so-called Roman Cancel. This technique allows us to temporarily slow down time and forcibly return our hero to his default stance. Roman Cancel can be used offensively to prolong our combos or defensively to interrupt our enemy's combos. In emergency situations we have access to so called Psych Burst, which is a technique that pushes the enemy away from us. However, we can use it only once in a while.

New in the series are dynamic arenas, reminiscent of those in the Dead or Alive series. When we manage to nail the opponent to the end of the board, further attacks can pierce him through the invisible wall at the edge of the stage. The fight then moves to another location.

The basic version of the game features fifteen playable heroes that vary in gameplay style. Some are balanced, some are adapted for ranged combat, and some focus on powerful grappling. Additional heroes are available for purchase in season passes.

Game Modes

Strive includes several single-player and multiplayer modes. Training mode is designed to teach the player the basics of gameplay. Arcade mode allows us to face off against AI-controlled opponents in a series of battles. Mission mode imposes on us goals to develop our skills, such as performing a certain number of grabs or charging up the tension bar. We can also try our hand at survival mode, where we face several enemies in a row without healing between skirmishes. In the story module we can watch a few hours long movie, divided into shorter chapters, presenting the plot of Guilty Gear: Strive.

The game also allows us to fight against other players through local or network multiplayer. The network rankings are shown as a multi-story tower. Depending on our skills, we are assigned to one of the floors, and with each victory we climb higher. Matchmaking selects opponents on a similar floor to us, ensuring that we face players similar to us in skill.

Technical issues

The game boasts nice, three-dimensional graphics maintained in a manga style. Particularly impressive are the detailed backgrounds and lighting effects accompanying the more powerful blows.