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{{see also|Guilty Gear#Gameplay|l1=Gameplay in the Guilty Gear series}}
{{see also|Guilty Gear#Gameplay|l1=Gameplay in the Guilty Gear series}}
{{expand section|date=May 2015}}
{{expand section|date=May 2015}}
The game uses a six-button layout: four of which are responsible for the attacks—punch, kick, slash, and heavy slash—, and the other two for special actions like throws, air dashes, and cancels.<ref name=destru/> A burst gauge is fulfilled as time goes by or when the player receives damage; once the gauge is filled, the player can pe5form a Psych Burst to move away the opponent. It unleashes a blast of energy that, if successfully hits the adversary, completely charges another gauge—the tension gauge. This last allows the player to perform special attacks.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.siliconera.com/2013/08/08/guilty-gear-xrd-sign-retains-old-moves-and-adds-plenty-of-new-ones/ | title=Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- Retains Old Moves, And Adds Plenty Of New Ones | author=Sato | date=August 8, 2013 | publisher=Siliconera | accessdate=May 30, 2015}}</ref>
The game uses a six-button layout: four of which are responsible for the attacks—punch, kick, slash, and heavy slash—, and the other two for special actions like throws, air dashes, and cancels.<ref name=destru/> A burst gauge is fulfilled as time goes by or when the player receives damage; once the gauge is filled, the player can perform a Psych Burst to move away the opponent. It unleashes a blast of energy that, if successfully hits the adversary, completely charges another gauge—the tension gauge. This last allows the player to perform special attacks.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.siliconera.com/2013/08/08/guilty-gear-xrd-sign-retains-old-moves-and-adds-plenty-of-new-ones/ | title=Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- Retains Old Moves, And Adds Plenty Of New Ones | author=Sato | date=August 8, 2013 | publisher=Siliconera | accessdate=May 30, 2015}}</ref>


The game features four main modes: Network Mode, Practice Mode, Battle Mode and Story Mode. In the first one the player can have online matches, through the [[PlayStation Network]] (PSN), which can be ranked or not in world rankings. The Practice Mode contains a regular training mode, a tutorial mode that teachs the basic controls, a mission mode that simulates battle situations, and a challenge mode that is focused on performing [[combo (gaming)|combo]]s.<ref name=mode>{{cite web | url=http://www.guiltygear.us/mode | title=Mode | publisher=Guilty Gear Xrd's official site | accessdate=May 17, 2015}}</ref>
The game features four main modes: Network Mode, Practice Mode, Battle Mode and Story Mode. In the first one the player can have online matches, through the [[PlayStation Network]] (PSN), which can be ranked or not in world rankings. The Practice Mode contains a regular training mode, a tutorial mode that teachs the basic controls, a mission mode that simulates battle situations, and a challenge mode that is focused on performing [[combo (gaming)|combo]]s.<ref name=mode>{{cite web | url=http://www.guiltygear.us/mode | title=Mode | publisher=Guilty Gear Xrd's official site | accessdate=May 17, 2015}}</ref>

Revision as of 01:49, 21 June 2015

Guilty Gear Xrd
Textless cover of the home console versions
Developer(s)Arc System Works Team Red
Publisher(s)Arcade
Sega
PS3, PS4
Director(s)
Designer(s)Daisuke Ishiwatari
Artist(s)Hidehiko Sakamura
Writer(s)
  • Daisuke Ishiwatari
  • Takeshi Yamanaka
  • Yoshito Shoudai
Composer(s)
  • Daisuke Ishiwatari
  • Norichika Sato
SeriesGuilty Gear
EngineUnreal Engine 3
Platform(s)
ReleaseArcade
PS3, PS4
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)
Arcade systemSega RingEdge 2

Guilty Gear Xrd[note 1] (Japanese: ギルティギア イグザード, Hepburn: Giruti Gia Iguzād) is a fighting video game developed by Arc System Works. The fifth installment in the Guilty Gear series, Guilty Gear Xrd was developed using Unreal Engine 3, with cel-shaded graphics in place of the series traditional hand drawn sprites. Following the storyline of the last game in the series, Guilty Gear 2: Overture, it introduced four new characters.

The first Xrd game, Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- was released in arcades on February 20, 2014, and for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 in Japan and North America in December of the same year, with a release in Europe in June 2015. The game has been praised for its cel-shaded graphics and approachable gameplay, but criticized for its non-interactive story mode and smaller roster of characters. An updated version, titled Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator-, was announced for 2015 summer release.

Gameplay

The game uses a six-button layout: four of which are responsible for the attacks—punch, kick, slash, and heavy slash—, and the other two for special actions like throws, air dashes, and cancels.[2] A burst gauge is fulfilled as time goes by or when the player receives damage; once the gauge is filled, the player can perform a Psych Burst to move away the opponent. It unleashes a blast of energy that, if successfully hits the adversary, completely charges another gauge—the tension gauge. This last allows the player to perform special attacks.[3]

The game features four main modes: Network Mode, Practice Mode, Battle Mode and Story Mode. In the first one the player can have online matches, through the PlayStation Network (PSN), which can be ranked or not in world rankings. The Practice Mode contains a regular training mode, a tutorial mode that teachs the basic controls, a mission mode that simulates battle situations, and a challenge mode that is focused on performing combos.[4]

The Battle Mode comprehends an arcade mode, which unveils the game's story after the player defeats eigth opponents, a versus mode, in which the player can have offline battles with a second player or against a CPU, and a M.O.M mode.[4] The last one, which is an acronym for Medal of Millionaire, is a variation of the regular survival mode in which the player earns medals based on performance and evolves through a progression system.[5]

Synopsis

Plot

The game is set in 2187, one year after its predecessor, Guilty Gear 2: Overture.[6]

Characters

The arcade version of the game initially featured thirteen playable characters. Sol Badguy, Ky Kiske, Millia Rage, May, Chipp Zanuff, Potemkin, Venom, Axl Low, I-No, Faust, Slayer, and Zato-1 return from previous installments, while one new character, Bedman, has been added.[7][8] The game also features a new boss character known as Ramlethal Valentine, who was added to the playable roster in arcades via an update.[9] Additionally, the console versions add Sin Kiske from Overture, and new characters Elphelt Valentine and Leo Whitefang, as playable DLC characters,[10] bringing the total roster count to 17.[2] The console exclusive characters Sin, Elphelt, and Leo will be added to the arcade version along with balance changes on a later date.[11] Revelator adds Johnny, who was non-playable in story mode, and new female character Jack-O to the roster.[12][13]

Development and release

The idea of creating a new Guilty Gear came in 2008, but production only started in 2011; in mid-2012, it progressed to a full-scale production, concluding in 2013.[14] Development of the game was handled by an internal Arc System Works team codenamed "Team Red",[15] which consists of 25 members,[14] with series creator Daisuke Ishiwatari as the director.[15] The first trailer for Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- was shown to the public during the annual Arc System Works Festival on May 19, 2013.[16] The trailer demonstrated the 3D cel-shaded graphics—modeled by Softimage[14]—being used in place of the series traditional 2D sprites and cel animation.[16]

Ishiwatari developed the game aiming to reach a wide audience as he plans to make Guilty Gear Xrd a new start on the franchise.[17] As such, he intended to make the gameplay more accessible for newcomer players.[18] A priority to Ishiwatari was to make it a cross-platform game so that PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 owners can play against each other.[15] The Unreal Engine 3 (UE3) was used because of its low price, the ease that non-programmers can edit it directly, and of porting it to home consoles.[14] The game was projected to be visually impacting as a way to attract new players and because of Ishiwatari's guess that it was a fundamental factor on the success of games like Street Fighter 2 and Virtua Fighter 2.[18] 3D camera cutaways, which gives "a more dramatic perspective",[19] were added on the special move scenes to help reach this purpose.[18]

Due to a small amount of time and budget, Ishiwatari had to choose which characters he preferred to be included in the initial roster, with plans to expand it later.[15] Other factors on this decision was also the variety each character added to the gameplay and how they fit on the plot.[18] Each character had to be rendered four times, and each scene had 160mb of textures and 70-80 different shaders on it.[14] The staff did not intend the characters to have physical accuracy, instead they wanted them as close as possible to anime style.[14] The natural lighting of backgrounds were also removed in order to remove shades from characters that made their polygon format evident.[14]

It was released in Japanese arcades on February 20, 2014,[20] on the Sega RingEdge 2 arcade board with support for the ALL.Net P-ras MULTI Ver.2 system,[21] as well as in the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 on December 4 of the same year.[22] It was released in North America by Aksys Games on December 16, 2014,[23] and it was released digitally through PSN in Europe on June 3, 2015 by Sony Computer Entertainment.[24][25] An update version to Sign called Guilty Gear Xrd -Revelator- was announced for 2015 summer release, starting from a location test in June.[12]

Reception

The game has received "generally favorable reviews", holding a Metacritic score of 85, based on 23 critics;[27] for 2014, it was the 16th best rated game for PS4 and the 131st overall in the site.[35][36] Giant Bomb staff chose the game as the Best-Looking Game of 2014, highlighting the camera capacity of "revealing the game's true nature" when it revolves around the scenario during a special move.[37] Geoffrey Thew of Hardcore Gamer elected it the third best game of 2014, commenting that "The characters are as vibrant and wonderful as we've come to expect from the company, and the new graphics are beyond gorgeous ... but it's the fighting mechanics that really steal the show."[38] It was also nominated for Best Fighting Game of the Year at Game Critics Awards, Hardcore Gamer Awards, and IGN Awards, but lost to Super Smash Bros. for Wii U in all them.[39][40][41][42]

Chris Carter of Destructoid praised the "insanely detailed" visuals, the soundtrack, the cross-play between the PS3 and PS4, and although thought the roster to be small, he asserted characters are unique enough to make it good.[2] Electronic Gaming Monthly's Eric L. Patterson complimented it saying "this is the most impressive ... fighting game I've even seen (or played) when it comes to the graphics on display."[28] Patterson also praised the fights, the characters' variety, the "great balance between being newbie friendly and hardcore satisfying", the multiplayer mode, while criticized the overall package as "solo choices are somewhat lacking."[28] Maxwell McGee from GamesRadar dubbed it "unsurprising" and lamented the "several painful absences" of some characters but stated new characters "help fill in these vacancies."[29] McGee also commented that its "art style is clean and striking" but the fact that the story is presented as a single cutscene with no interaction "is, quite frankly, bonkers."[29]

GamesTM reviewer praised the "character depth", its visual that "looks better than a high-budget anime film" but affirmed it is disappointing content-wise, saying "there aren't a whole lot of modes" and calling Story Mode "pointless".[30] Ben Moore wrote for GameTrailers that it is "a full-blown rebirth" to the series and commended the "explosive soundtrack", the "competent, if not exceptional" online mode, while panned the story mode and was mixed to the characters: "despite the high level of quality, the cast still feels rather lean."[5] James Kozanitis of Hardcore Gamer praised the "uniquely interesting" characters but complained about the online mode and elected the story mode the game's Achilles heel. However, Kozanitis stressed that its "solid understanding of core fighting game mechanics" makes it "the installment fans have been waiting for."[32]

Other media

On April 14, 2014, Arc System Works released an extended play containing the arcade opening and ending themes, "Heavy Day" and "Lily", both in regular and karaoke versions.[43] An original four-disc soundtrack containing 73 tracks was released by Arc System Works on March 26, 2015.[44][45] Other related media released include an arcade stick,[46] action figures,[47] key chains,[48] mug illustrations,[49] and badges.[50]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The "Xrd" is pronounced as "Ex Ard"[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Husky, Darry (December 16, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- Review". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d Carter, Chris (December 16, 2014). "Review: Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-". Destructoid. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  3. ^ Sato (August 8, 2013). "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- Retains Old Moves, And Adds Plenty Of New Ones". Siliconera. Retrieved May 30, 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Mode". Guilty Gear Xrd's official site. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  5. ^ a b c Moore, Ben (January 30, 2015). "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- - Review Text". GameTrailers. Defy Media. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  6. ^ Moriarty, Colin (May 29, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd SIGN Officially Coming West for PS3 and PS4". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  7. ^ "Character" (in Japanese). Guilty Gear Xrd official website. Retrieved September 7, 2014. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ Carter, Chris (November 28, 2013). "That mysterious new Guilty Gear character is 'Bedman'". Destructoid. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  9. ^ Yip, Spencer (April 6, 2014). "Ramlethal Valentine Becomes Playable In Guilty Gear Xrd Sign On April 8". Siliconera. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  10. ^ a b Williams, Mike (December 16, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- PS4 Review: Let's Rock (Again)". USGamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  11. ^ Cavalli, Earnest (January 28, 2015). "Guilty Gear Xrd arcade to receive console-exclusive fighters". Engadget. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  12. ^ a b Mangione, Robert (May 28, 2015). "Guilty Gear Xrd Revelator announced". Technology Tell. NAPCO Media. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  13. ^ Sato (June 2, 2015). "Guilty Gear Xrd: Revelator's Jack-O Is A New Female Character". Siliconera. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g "西川善司の「試験に出るゲームグラフィックス」(1)「GUILTY GEAR Xrd -SIGN-」で実現された「アニメにしか見えないリアルタイム3Dグラフィックス」の秘密,前編". 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Aetas. July 12, 2014. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  15. ^ a b c d Yip, Spencer (August 8, 2014). "Discussing Guilty Gear Xrd SIGN's Tech With Daisuke Ishiwatari". Siliconera. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  16. ^ a b Abercrombie, Dana (May 19, 2013). "First Trailer for Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- Released Today". DualShockers.com. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  17. ^ Sato (August 15, 2013). "Arc System Works's Aims For A Fresh Start With Guilty Gear Xrd –SIGN-". Siliconera. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  18. ^ a b c d "『GUILTY GEAR Xrd -SIGN-(ギルティギア イグザード サイン)』石渡太輔氏インタビュー! 家庭用で挑む新たな試みとは?". Famitsu. June 11, 2014. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  19. ^ Motomoura, Junya C. "GuiltyGear Xrd's Art Style: The X Factor Between 2D and 3D" (PDF). Arc System Works. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  20. ^ Carter, Chris (February 12, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd Sign launches in February in Japan". Destructoid. Retrieved July 6, 2014.
  21. ^ "新基板に対応した「初音ミク Project DIVA Arcade Future Tone」がプレイアブル出展。「GUILTY GEAR Xrd -SIGN-」もプレイできた「SEGA PRIVATE SHOW 2013」レポート". 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Aetas. May 19, 2013. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  22. ^ Yip, Spencer (August 5, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd Sign Set For December 4 In Japan". Siliconera. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  23. ^ Stewart, Sam (October 16, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd –SIGN- Releasing On PlayStation 4 And PlayStation 3 December 16". Game Informer. GameStop. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  24. ^ Salamanca, Gail. "Guilty Gear Xrd ~Sign~ hits PS3 & PS4 next month". Playstation.com. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  25. ^ "Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-". Pan European Game Information. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  26. ^ "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- for PlayStation 4". Game Rankings. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  27. ^ a b "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  28. ^ a b c Patterson, Eric L. (December 31, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd Sign review". Electronic Gaming Monthly‍. EGM Media. Retrieved January 3, 2015. {{cite web}}: zero width joiner character in |work= at position 26 (help)
  29. ^ a b c McGee, Maxwell (December 18, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd Sign review". GamesRadar. Future plc. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  30. ^ a b "Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- review". GamesTM. Imagine Publishing. February 14, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  31. ^ Cavalli, Earnest (December 23, 2014). "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- review: Technical knockout". Joystiq. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  32. ^ a b Kozanitis, James (December 17, 2014). "Review: Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
  33. ^ Jenkins, David. "Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- review – unreal fighter". Metro. DMG Media. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  34. ^ Bee, Aevee (March 15, 2015). "Guilty Gear Xrd - SIGN Review: Sincerely Outrageous". Paste.
  35. ^ "Best PlayStation 4 Video Games for 2014". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  36. ^ "Best Video Games for 2014". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  37. ^ "Giant Bomb's 2014 Game of the Year Awards: Day One". Giant Bomb. CBS Interactive. December 26, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  38. ^ Thew, Geoffrey (December 30, 2014). "Editor's Choice: Geoffrey's Top Games of 2014". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  39. ^ "2014 Nominees". Game Critics Awards. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  40. ^ "2014 Winners". Game Critics Awards. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  41. ^ "Best Fighting Game". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  42. ^ "Best of 2014 – Day Seven: RPG, Fighting, Racing, Platformer". Hardcore Gamer. December 19, 2014. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  43. ^ "GUILTY GEAR Xrd -SIGN- アーケード版OP/ED - EP". iTunes (in Japanese). Apple Inc. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  44. ^ "「GUILTY GEAR Xrd -SIGN-」のサウンドトラックCDが3月26日に発売". 4Gamer.net (in Japanese). Aetas. February 19, 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  45. ^ "Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- Original Sound Track". ebten.jp (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  46. ^ "Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- Arcade Stick". ebten.jp (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  47. ^ "Figure 2014 ソル=バッドガイ" (in Japanese). Embracejapan. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  48. ^ "ギルティギア イグザード サイン デフォルメ アクリルキーホルダー12 ザトー=ONE". ebten.jp (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  49. ^ "ギルティギア イグザード サイン デフォルメ マグカップ03 ミリア=レイジ". ebten.jp (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  50. ^ "GUILTY GEAR Xrd -SIGN- BIG缶バッジ ファウスト" (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved May 17, 2015.