The day is finally here for those PC warriors. Closing the console/computer gap relatively quickly for Arc System Works standards, the latest edition of ASW’s 2D fighting game saga, BlazBlue: Central Fiction, is now purchasable on Steam.
The BlazBlue: Central Fiction Steam page lists the game at $39.99 USD with a 10% discount until May 3rd. Furthermore, those who own a previous title on Steam get an additional 10% off. Central Fiction also includes a soundtrack and a digital Memorial Book. All the DLC content is included, such as the colors and add-on characters Mai and Es.
One of the developers working on the Steam version has tweeted a few hints:
One cause for concern, however, are reports in Steam reviews citing that the port isn’t very good on the technical side. Several reviewers talk about trouble with windowed mode or dual screens, lower framerates, hard to see or misaligned text, and an inability to set Confirm/Cancel buttons, among others. Since Chronophantasma Extend was considered a good port generally, hopefully some patches will smooth out the early issues with CF.
The last Super Steam Xrd Exhibition League match brought incredible hype to the audience, but before we look back at the previous week, we already have a new set of Daredevils looking to prove something. Sway is looking to serve some hot mix-ups and dynamic combos as kung-fu artist/chef Jam Kuradoberi, while www.keeponrock.in (yes, that’s a website link to his Guilty Gear match database, use it!) plans on some dizzying Bedman plays. Hotashi will showcase his prowess with a Call-of-Duty Elphelt, while Kami hopes to score corner pins as Zato=1.
First up will be Sway vs Keeponrockin’, followed by Hotashi and Kami.
Hotashi
On the match: “Very comfortable. I play against Zato=1 fairly often, so I don’t feel like there’ll be any surprises for me when the match comes. The character is easily overwhelmed once defending, but it’ll be dangerous if I get mixed up. But, that’s just the way the game (and the match-up goes). I’m most focused on the neutral. Eventually, one of those mixups will open me up, so I can’t get too worried about that.
“I haven’t been practicing very much lately, but I still hope that my strategy holds up. I hope to control how Zato summons Eddie in neutral, and punish responsively while not giving up too much ground. If Eddie is kept controlled or killed during neutral, then I can close the distance and end the round quickly.
“In neutral, I feel as though Elphelt has the upper hand. Grenade can kill Eddie as he travels on the ground, so the grenade can “wall out” Eddie’s approach, so to speak. Rifle can punish bad Eddie summons or poorly placed drills, but Zato can easily punish this stance by spending 25% on an airdash YRC. I will do my best to maximize the number of times I punish drills and avoid having the distance closed in on me helplessly. It’ll be interesting to look at the number of times this worked for both me and Kami. Zato doesn’t really have a great way to force a knockdown in neutral besides Drill, as long as I don’t make any poor decisions or corner myself.”
On his opponent: “Gutter trash.”
On his own playstyle: “Aggressive-defensive. I try and goad the opponent into poor approaches or losing patience by playing on the other side of the screen while micromanaging my switches between pulling grenade, using the rifle, and protecting myself from approaches with the shotgun. In my opinion, this works against characters or players who are unable to threaten Elphelt at certain angles. However, I’m also able to switch my game up if this is seen through.”
Kami
On the match: “Anytime I play any type of important game or set, I always have the same thought, ‘I should win this match.’ I come from a sports background where losing is never an option and it’s creeped its way into my personality and playstyle, because I train so hard I feel that I should never lose and if I do lose it was due to my own mistakes.”
On his opponent: “I have a lot of respect for Hotashi, he helped change my mind on many issues I was having about traveling and other things. On the game side of things, He has an unorthodox playstyle that frustrates many and does a lot of things very well. In the end, he’s still gonna have to hold this L I give him. I think Hotashi is a definitely a top-level player, who has accomplished a lot in a short time and I appreciate the things he’s told me.”
On his own playstyle: “I like to consider myself someone who plays in a matter that beats my opponent, I can be highly technical or extremely aggressive. I am always looking for that one mistake my opponent makes to capitalize on, Zato helps a ton with that one mistake part. The biggest factor when I play is me. Once I start to feel myself there’s usually no stopping me.
“Finally, I’d just like to shout out Silva and everyone else involved with these matches, things like these keep the game exciting and let people know about newer players like me while also bringing fresh eyes to the scene. The only question is, why wasn’t I here sooner?”
Keeponrockin’
On the match: “I’m pretty excited, but a little bit anxious. This match and the upcoming tournament Combo Breaker are going to be my last events with Bedman before REV 2 releases and turns my character upside-down, so I want to show everybody my progress and maybe even a few tricks that won’t be around for long.”
On his opponent: “Sway and I first met at a Frosty Faustings where we played Faust mirrors in casuals. Jam wasn’t even out yet and I definitely did not know I was going to switch to Bedman at that time! We’ve maybe played two times over netplay after that so I don’t think I have a good grasp of what he’s capable of. I went to look for his match videos, but there aren’t a lot of them. Go win some tournaments, Sway!”
On his own playstyle: “And as for my playstyle, I can’t really say, because it depends on the moment and character. I can be defensive or super aggressive. It mostly changes depending on what I feel like I can get away with during situations.”
Sway
On the match: “I’m a little nervous. I’m typically very bad in long sets and lose momentum very easily, so this will be a challenge. While my goal is to win, I’d be happy if I’m just able to execute what I practiced and not look like a dummy .”
On his opponent: “Rockin’ is awesome. We used to play Faust together, and I think we both switched off for the same reason, and we’re both way better for it. He did great at Frosty Faustings and we played a set or two after that were in his favor, I believe. His pressure is strong and so is his mix-up game. No one can sleep on him. I certainly won’t, so he better come in swinging.”
On his own playstyle: “I think I’m very humble about my style (except when I’m joking about how my mix-ups are causing global warming). I don’t think I do anything exceptionally well, but don’t feel like I’m heavily lacking anywhere. I study the game a lot and do my best to have answers for every situation. I think everyone’s going to see good play from both sides.”
Now that we know a little about our Daredevils, the stage is set for more hype FT7s. Tomorrow, tune in to Silva_hime’s Twitch channel at 8:00 PM ET/7:00 PM CST/5:00 PM PDT. Killey and ch_tenpai!! will commentate.
Last week’s SSXrdEL match was quite the upset! Especially if you read the interviews. Read up on that and check out the set below.
Famitsu magazine revealed that Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[st] is coming to PlayStation 3 and 4–as well as the Vita–on July 20th. We now have a gallery of screenshots that showcase a little bit of Story Mode (apparently called Chronicle Mode) as well as Enkidu, the newcomer.
The screenshots below tease some dialogue from Chronicle Mode. We see several of Enkidu’s attacks, including what’s possibly his “Infinite Worth” super move. The stage shown in the background also seems to be new. One of the screenshots also teases a type of “Challenge Mode” that teaches combos, which should be a welcome addition. Mika is shown there, another new character who’s available in arcades.
Are you pumped for July 20th? That’s also Yuzuriha’s birthday, so mark your calendar twice.
Wager on swagger over substance. BlazBlue: Central Fiction certainly has enough flexibility in its combo system to show off a little more; Kagura Mutsuki, who first appeared in Chronophantasma, may have fallen from graces a bit–thus, he’s a rarely used character. However, dedicated Kagura players from the Discord community came together to–if nothing else–display their prowess with the character.
Below you can see “The Black Knight Project”$$ the editing is quite impressive in this one, too, so it’s very much worth a watch. Kagura’s Drive lets him combo with various stance attacks, and activating Overdrive frees him from all restrictions, even letting him dash-cancel those moves. Therefore, it’s easy to see how complex and creative his combos can get, thanks to good mobility in his Drive moves, like cross-ups and slides.
Enjoy the video below, and kudos to the Kagura Discord community for an awesome combo video.
This is region parity like we rarely ever get to see: European publisher of several Arc System Works confirmed that the latest entry in the Guilty Gear series, Xrd REV 2, is simultaneously releasing on consoles in Europe and North America. PQube has announced May 26th as a release date.
A new European Guilty Gear website has popped up, detailing new features in REV 2–such as added stages, Baiken and Answer, rebalancing of the cast, more story content, and so on. The site points to Amazon to preorder Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2, though the copies seem “out of stock” at press time. European players also have an option to purchase a Limited Edition of REV 2.
Expect to see REV 2 in stores on May 26th in both North American and Europe, while Japan gets the game on May 25th. There is also a yet unannounced REV 2 demo coming–most likely as a pre-order bonus.
After our Europe detour last week, we’re switching focus to North America once again. The Super Steam Xrd Exhibition League is set to provide more exciting sets between skilled players, with commentary. We have an I-no, Kum Haehyun, Dizzy Kiske, and Faust coming up.
The Daredevils this time are: Spectryn vs. Voguekun, and XAQshinor vs. Zinac. Let’s learn a little more about them.
Spectryn
On the match: “Well, my thoughts are simple, really: just to keep everything simple and keep a calm head. I don’t think it should be too hard to do.”
On his opponent: “Voguekun is an OK player, and he can do good, but the way he plays at least in my view seems too wild to master or achieve higher heights for a character like Haehyun. Personally, I’m not afraid or worried about much that he can do to stop me.”
On his own playstyle: “And as for my playstyle, I can’t really say, because it depends on the moment and character. I can be defensive or super aggressive. It mostly changes depending on what I feel like I can get away with during situations.
Besides doing good or bad potentially, I think it’s good for people to know that Connecticut does have a scene for anime, and that I will be helping, or at least trying to get them better. This is a chance to show them what type of player I am and give exposure to our scene here. But I have to heavily thank TSB/NY scene for helping me improve!
Voguekun
On the match: “I’m not sure who has an easier time in Kum vs. I-no. Haehyun is still relatively new with few players that main her, and I find my opinions on the character’s strengths shifting around all the time when there’s no established understanding of her match-ups. Kum has a lot of cheap ways to take rounds for free, all of which I take advantage of constantly. Against I-no there are a few specific ones I that saw Spectryn deal with relatively well, so I expect a set that goes to at least ten games. The move that will make or break this matchup for Spectryn is HCL (Horizontal Chemical Love), as it has to potential to absolutely dominate Kum in neutral if used wisely, or undo I-No completely if used carelessly.
On his opponent: “I don’t know Spectryn very well. I chose to accept his challenge because I have no reason not to, as it’s pointless to deny a set if it isn’t a hassle and both players are close in skill. If I had to guess, I think that he wants to fight me because I’m loud, flippant, and I pop-off. Regardless of how this perception affects my standing in the scene, I respect every player as a competitor and extend that respect to him. It’s fun to butt heads and rival with someone.”
On his own playstyle: “The US Guilty Gear scene likes to label me as wild and careless, and to some degree that’s true. But anyone who has played me in long sets, especially Dallas players whom I play weekly at our locals, can tell you that I’m more eager to trick you, something I picked up from years of Starcraft, than I am to press wake-up buttons. For the past 11 months, Kum has been the first and only character that I’ve used to learn Rev. It just so happens that Kum likes to coinflip with her high health and high damage, which has no doubt bled into my understanding of the game in a way that it might not have if I’d picked Sol or Ky to learn GG with.”
XAQshinor
On the match: “I think it will be an interesting match, both characters want to fill the screen with either projectiles or large/active normals, so I think some of those interactions and how we deal with them will be cool to see. Round start and before I can put things on the screen, Faust definitely has the edge, but it isn’t insurmountable and it’s actually a pretty fun matchup in my opinion.”
On his opponent: “I don’t know Zinac very well personally, but I know he’s a longtime GG and Faust player, and I know he has a strong grasp on the character. I also know he’s very knowledgeable about the game so I don’t expect him to be caught by surprise by anything weird that Dizzy may be capable of.”
On his own playstyle: “I guess I would describe my playstyle as calculated lame or guerrilla tactics style, hit-and-run, something along those lines. Dizzy is very momentum-based and her mobility is second to none. I try to use a playstyle that brings those strengths to the foreground, so I don’t like doing a lot of random or unsafe things. There is usually a purpose behind most things I do, and I typically try to play as safe as possible.”
Zinac
On the match: “I wanted to participate in this league for a while, because exhibitions are fun to watch and want people to see my style of Faust play.”
On his opponent: “XAQ was a really strong Dizzy in Accent Core. He may have even been the best in the US at some point. So I expect a challenging match from him. He’s experienced so won’t fall for simple tricks, and I have to expect he’s well prepared.”
On his own playstyle: “My style of Faust is definitely about creating momentum for myself. I look for any opportunity to swing a match in my favor. So I spend a lot of time planning out my strategy well ahead of a match.”
The stage is set for tonight’s Super Steam Xrd Exhibition League matches. As usual, tune in to Silva’s Twitch channel. The action begins at 9:00 PM ET/8:00 PM CST/6:00 PM PDT. Commentary will be provided by doren2k and Mynus–so expect a lot of insight on I-no.
Under Night In-Birth players have been eagerly awaiting an announcement regarding the current arcade version, and we finally know that UNIEL:Late[st] is coming to consoles this summer. Famitsu magazine posted a scan of their coverage, breaking the news that another new character is joining the roster: Enkidu.
Enkidu is a martial arts fighter who purposefully gets bitten by the Void to become an In-Birth. There’s an initial translation of the page which runs through Enkidu’s story background as well as some of his special attacks:
A quick translation from Famitsu. Enkidu's background and the explanations for some of his moves. #unistpic.twitter.com/7p544TrMCk
Additionally, according to Tokkan, this version of UNIEL is getting a proper Story Mode, called “Chronicle Mode,” with reportedly about ten or more hours of content.
Ah, so UNIST on console includes a story mode called "Chronicle Mode" that's about 10+ hours of content.
Great news for those who were holding out on a PC version of Arc System Works’ latest installment in the BlazBlue series: Central Fiction, as rumored, is indeed releasing on Steam, and it’s much sooner than we expected. The PC port by H2 Interactive is coming out on April 26th.
The BlazBlue: Central Fiction Steam page is available and displays some information. This digital release includes some bonus content: the original soundtrack and the Memorial Book. Other than that, there’s nothing particularly surprising revealed so far. BBCF does include netplay, just like PC Chronophantasma Extend. As for DLC characters, the description says they “join to bring the total to 35 characters,” so it seems that Es and Mai Natsume are possibly included for free. Price details are unknown.
Get pumped with the short Steam promotional video below, and jump into the foray by purchasing Central Fiction for PC on April 26th.
It’s no secret that Tager used to be the worst character in BlazBlue. Given how unbalanced certain characters were back in Calamity Trigger, playing the grappler was a struggle. Over time, however, as we approached Central Fiction, the hunky robot gained more and more tools at his disposal. While it may be hard for him to get a first hit in neutral, Tager’s setups can undeniably end the opponent in mere seconds.
Moustached Villain’s new evil creation is a Tager combo video. Set to the ridiculous Lucky Star theme, the last thing anyone would want is to be on the receiving end of these combos and setups. Whether he goes for damage or resets, these impressive sequences will make you respect the character once more. Sit back and watch some borderline-humiliating setups, as well as hilarious gravity manipulations with other members of the cast.
For more Tager swag, check out an additional video by Moustached Villain.
After studying your own character and getting a firm grasp on the complex mechanics of Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- (and the upcoming REV 2), the never-ending learning process next involves matchup knowledge. Picking up specific tools and understanding when an opponent will use certain attacks from their repertoire is key to getting better at Guilty Gear. LordKnight came up with a new video series that will tackle this specifically.
The first one looks at Sol Badguy, Guilty Gear’s flagship character. LordKnight goes over Sol’s tools, pointing out how powerful Gunflame YRC is at “resetting” the neutral and pausing the game for a bit while throwing out a wall. Sol has fairly straightforward tools, but people can play him very differently. Some are more solid, some attack more randomly, so LordKnight recommends facing many Sols to get a better grasp. His detailed overview shows round-start options, whiff punishing, and much more.
View the full session below to study up on the Sol Badguy matchup.
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