Now you can enjoy a taste of FEXL on your favorite mobile devices!
This April Fools, exactly two years after we learned of ARIKA’s Fighting EX Layer project on April Fool’s Day 2017, company President and CEO, Akira Nishitani released an update video on the latest developments with the title. With Sharon and Terry Bogard recently being released as the most recent pair of post-launch DLC characters, their focus has now shifted to the next planned free fighter, Area, who is set to be voiced by Rie Hikisaka.
However, despite being able to unveil a new in-game screenshot of the giant-armed tech warrior, it appears that her development has hit a bit of a snag, as she has now been delayed from her previously-planned release at the end of May, to later in the summer, possibly June or July, though Nishitani notes that the company may not be able to release her at all.
“I’m not even sure if we can release her or not, and even though our backs are against the wall, it would be very rude to Hikisaka-san if Area didn’t make it into the game, so we have to do our best.” Akira also noted that he sadly cannot give a definitive answer about her status at the moment.
However, Nishitani then unveiled a new version of FEXL, Fighting EX Layer alpha, which is now available to download for free on iOS and Android mobile devices, giving interested players a taste of FEXL action on the go. Currently, this version sports only four characters: Allen Snider, Darun Mister, Blair Dame, and Skullomania. Though the rest of the full game’s roster, save for SNK’s Terry Borgard, is greyed out, indicating that they could be slowly added to the mobile version overtime with updates.
Players can only play single-round battles against the CPU, similar to the Kumite mode in the main title, and Training Mode, though there are 15 Gougi Decks to choose from. There are also no voice clips whatsoever at this time. This seems like a way to test the waters of the mobile gaming market, both to see the extent of their development capabilities on the platform, as well as potentially measuring the audience before diving into a more fully-fledged product.
Source: ARIKA