Author: Ian "iantothemax" Walker

These days, players expect characters to get some sort of benefit from being hit, whether it’s meter to amplify their specials or unleash a super. While taking damage is rarely the best course of action in a fighting game, Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-‘s Raven welcomes the pain.

According to new details from Famitsu, the Guilty Gear 2: Overture boss is something of a masochist that gets stronger the more he’s attacked. Getting hit during a unique attack called “I Want It Here” fills up a separate gauge that powers up Raven’s attacks and, at times, changes their characteristics entirely.

Click to view slideshow.

Other than that, Raven specializes in long-range attacks, and focuses on controlling the match at mid-screen. More than any other fighting game character, players will need to manage Raven’s health wisely in order to get the most out of him in competition.

Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- launches for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 on May 26 in Japan, June 7 in North America, and June 10 in Europe. More details on Raven’s gameplay can be found here.

Source: Famitsu via Siliconera, greatfernman

It’s no secret that yesterday’s Street Fighter V launch didn’t go off without a hitch. Players were immediately beset by issues as the servers opened their gates to the community at large, including but not limited to the inability to find matches and create battle lounges. Late last night, Capcom took the servers offline in order to perform necessary maintenance, which was followed up this morning with an update straight from the developers.

While sporadic problems still persist, Capcom insists that things should be getting better. A hotfix was applied last night to improve battle lounge stability, and now that Street Fighter V’s servers have officially launched in major regions across the world, connectivity issues should be less frequent.

That said, there’s still a number of updates to be made, especially with the PC version. Capcom is looking into adding Direct Input support for PlayStation controllers in a future patch, as well as expanding key rebinding, language, and resolution options.

Be sure to visit Capcom-Unity by following the link below for the full post-launch address, and keep an eye on SFV Server for future updates.

Source: Capcom-Unity

With an upcoming appearance at the C3 Expo in Hong Kong, SNK Playmore has revealed another handful of King of Fighters XIV characters. While all of their previous announcements have dealt with returning cast members, this latest group provides us with our first glimpse of a mysterious newcomer named King of Dinosaurs alongside fan favorites Maxima, Clark Still, and Terry Bogard.

The masked fighter is referred to as a “heel” or “rudo” wrestler with an evil streak, and producer Yasuyuki Oda hints that someone may be hiding beneath the terrifying tyrannosaurus head. As you can see in the trailer above, King of Dinosaurs makes great use of his prehistoric features by munching on opponents’ heads and whipping them with his tail.

SNK also shared previews of two new stages: Guanajuato Dynamite Ring and Derelict Church. The former is featured prominently with King of Dinosaurs, expanding on his background as a luchador.

Nothing here really confirms or discredits our rumored roster. King of Dinosaurs throws a bit of a wrench in the works, but it’s entirely likely that he’s the “non-human species” that serves as the final boss. Others have also posited that he may be a separate persona of Tizoc, another professional wrestler that first debuted in Garou: Mark of the Wolves and made subsequent appearances in King of Fighters 2003 and King of Fighters XI.

Whatever the case may be, we should receive more footage of these characters in action over the weekend, so stay tuned.

Source: PlayStation Blog via Gematsu, tip via NightmareSteam

As fighting games continue to grow, so do the ways in which you can bling out your arcade stick. If you’ve been feeling a little lackluster in that department lately, never fear, for Sanwa Denshi will soon unleash two new series of products.

The first is a collection of metallic buttons and joysticks that come in both gold and silver flavors. The Hatsuden lineup, on the other hand, is all about lights, and features buttons that illuminate with pressure.

Click to view slideshow.

Details concerning price points and release dates have yet to be finalized, but Sanwa plans to show these puppies off this weekend at Japan Amusement Expo. Stay tuned for more information.

Source: Arcade Shock

It’s been half a year since Mad Catz community and sponsorships manager Mark “MarkMan” Julio said that Evo 2015 would be his last year with the organization, and it appears as if that prediction has come true, just not in the way everyone expected.

Things have been rough at Mad Catz as of late. Earlier this month, it was announced that several members of executive leadership had resigned ahead of layoffs that would cut staff by 37% in an effort to keep the business afloat. Julio was one of the numerous employees affected by these cuts.

Anyone remotely familiar with Julio’s work in the community knows he practically radiates love for fighting games. Everything he has done in his tenure with Mad Catz was to improve our scene, from providing readily available arcade sticks to supporting fighting game tournaments across the globe. He truly deserves all the respect and gratitude in the world, and if there’s any silver lining in this series of events, it’s that he’ll be able to brighten wherever he lands with that same passion.

Speaking with 4Gamer, Julio mentioned that, as far as he knows, the longtime Mad Catz trio of Daigo Umehara, Hajime “Tokido” Taniguchi, and Kenryo “Mago” Hayashi are still contracted with the organization. “I wish them the best in their future endeavors and thank them for their hard work, dedication and support over the last few years,” he said.

In all honesty, it feels weird wishing Mark luck in whatever future path he embarks on because he’s more than certain to find success wherever he goes, so we’ll just say thank you. Be sure to give him some love the next time you see him at a tournament.

Sources: MarkMan, 4Gamer, featured image c/o Mad Catz