Author: Luke "Woocash" Siuty

At the end of yesterday’s Evolution 2016 Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- finals, the creator of the game, Daisuke Ishiwatari, graced the stage to make a series of announcements. He revealed the first footage of Dizzy (who is available now to download from PSN for free) and explained the future of -REVELATOR-.

Two patches are coming, and version 1.03 already hit users like Jam’s Ryuujin with major changes for some of the cast, in particular Sin, Johnny, and Elphelt. Those received the hard end of the balance stick, while Jam, Haehyun, and Venom got considerbale improvements to their toolset.

Other than that, there are many changes to hurtboxes across all characters.

NikkiSlash compiled an English translation of the changes on Pastebin.

[Sol Badguy]

-Crouching Hurtbox
Hurtbox Increased upwards

– Hurtbox while getting hit
Hurtbox increased

– Hurtbox on the ground/crumple
Hurtbox OTG and during crumple increased

– 6HS
Bug where Sol wouldn’t get CH while active fixed

– Air Throw
Recovery upon touching the ground increased by 4F

=====

[Ky Kiske]

– Hurtbox on the ground/crumple
Hurtbox OTG and during crumple increased

– 3HS
Time to cancel unto Special Move increased by 4F

– j.S
Hitbox increased downwards

– Split Ciel
Stagger duration increased by 2F

=====

[May]

– Crouching Hurtbox
Hurtbox increased upwards

– 6HS
Upon holding the button, it automatically charges to Maximum

– j.HS
Damage increased from 35 to 38

– j.D
Damage increased from 33 to 35

– S Applaud
Wall Stick from dolphin ride decreased by 4F in order to make it equal to other versions

=====

[Millia]

– Crouching Hurtbox
Hurtbox increased upwards

– Dash
Hurtbox more even during movement

– Iron Saber
Upon using right next to the opponent, if it does not hit, the move ends

– HS Tandem Top
Upon using Red RC, the projectile no longer follows Millia

=====

[Zato-1]

– Dash
Hurtbox more even during movement

– Hurtbox on the ground (with the back on the ground)
Hurtbox increased

=====

[Potemkin]

– Crouching Hurtbox
Hurtbox decreased

– Throw
Causes Ground bounce, allowing combos with RC

=====

[Chipp]

– Hurtbox Standing/Crouch
Hurtbox mode more even

– Hurtbox while getting hit
Hurtbox on the front increased

– 6P
CH state lasts only until the active frames end

– Throw
Causes Ground bounce, allowing combos with RC

=====

[Faust]

– Hurtbox on the ground (with the back on the ground)
Hurtbox increased downwards

– Going My Way (follow-up version)
Damage increased from 12 to 14

– Hop
Movement duration reduced from 18F to 16F

– During Pogo, P
Untechable Time increased from 28F to 32F

– During Pogo, K
Untechable Time increased to 54F from 60F

– During Pogo, S
Untechable Time increased to 28F from 32F
Untechable Time of the charged version increased from 40F to 46F, knocks up the opponent further

=====

[Axl Low]

– Haitaka no Kamae
No longer able to cancel stance after the 6th hit

=====

[Venom]

– 6P
Active Frames increased from 4F to 7F
Added Jump Cancel
Recovery reduced by 3F

– 5HS
Special Cancel window increased by 3F

– j.HS
Untechable Time increased from 14F to 16F

– Ball Summon
Tension gain increased from 50 to 75

– Stinger Aim
Tension gain increased from 150 to 250

– Carcass Raid
Tension gain increased from 150 to 200

– QV
Tension gain increased from 150 to 200

– Mad Struggle
Tension gain increased from 150 to 200

– Throw
Blitz Shield bug after Throw fixed
Burst bug after Throw fixed

=====

[Slayer]

– Helter Skelter
Now has throw invul upon hitting the ground
Upon using YRC the projectile stays active

=====

[I-No]

– j.236K
On CH, launches opponent away and bouncer higher

– j.236S
On CH, launches opponent away and bouncer higher

– Dead Angle Attack
Throw invul decreased from 38F to 33F

=====

[Bedman]

– Throw
Throw range reduced making it equal to Sol (and other characters)

=====

[Ramlethal Valentine]

– 6S/6HS (with the swords equipped)
Time to be able to use again the swords after they attack or Ram defends reduced to 38F

– PK4K
Last hit is now cancellable on whiff

– Slide Detruo
CH bounces up equal to normal version

=====

[Sin Kiske]

– 2S
Damage reduced from 32 to 27

– 6HS
Damage reduced from 42 to 38

– 2D
Prorate 90% added

– j.6HS
Damage reduced from 44 to 36

– Hunger animation
No longer able to Purple RC

– Special Moves
All moves except “Maybe I’ll hit something” and “Leap” Tension Gain reduced from 150 to 100

– Beak Driver
1º hit damage of normal version reduced from 46 to 36
Recovery increased by 10F
Charged version damage reduced from 76 to 66

– Air Beak Driver
Damage reduced from 50 to 40

– Elk Hunt
Prorate increased from 90% to 85%
Recovery increased by 2F

– Eat
On 25F, fills up 1000 points
On 43F, fills up by the same amount as previous version

– R.T.L.
Damage reduced from 60 to 50
If a hit whiffs, Sin is no longer able to do the follow up

=====

[Elphelt Valentine]

– Air Throw
Ground Bounce lowered

– Berry Pine
Hurtbox increased (easier to be knocked away by the opponent)
Direction the grenade flies upon being hit is now based upon opponent’s character position

– Berry Pine (self damage)
Elphelt can now block the explosion
Explosion knocks up Elphelt further
Prorate decreased from 50% to 80%

– Roll (Shotgun K)
Strike invul reduced from 16F to 10F

– c.S
Hurtbox increased upwards

– f.S
Hurtbox increased forward

– 2S
Hurtbox increased upwards

– 2HS
Hurtbox increased upwards (before being able to low profile)

– 6HS
Hurtbox increased forward

– j.S
Prorate added: 85%

– Miss Confille
Tension Gain of Reload reduced from 150 to 50
Tension Gain of Perfect Reload reduced from 200 to 100
Tension Gain of Shot reduced from 400 to 200

– Miss Travailler
Tension Gain of Reload reduced from 100 to 50
Tension Gain of Shot reduced from 200 to 100

– Launch (Shotgun S)
Attack level reduced from 3 to 2
Hurtbox increased upwards

– Shot (Shotgun HS)
Normal Version (close range): Damage reduced from 35 to 30
Charged Version (close range): Damage reduced from 60 to 55

– Bridal Express
Attack level reduced from 4 to 3

– Air Bridal Express
Recovery upon touching the ground increased from 3F to 7F

– Hurtbox on the ground (backside up)
Hurtbox fixed and increased

=====

[Leo Whitefang]

– Standing Hurtbox (while blocking)
Hurtbox increased upwards

=====

[Johnny]

– Guts
Reduced from 4 to 3

– Dash
Tension Gain reduced from 30 to 15

– 6P
Recovery increased by 3F

– 6K
Attack level reduced from 3 to 2

– f.S
Hurtbox increased forward

– 2S
Recovery increased by 5F
Hurtbox increased forward

– 5HS
Damage reduced from 42 to 38
Hurtbox increased forward

– 2HS
Damage reduced from 48 to 42
Hurtbox increased forward

– 6HS
Damage reduced 65 to 52
Hurtbox increased forward

– 2D
1º hit damage increased from 25 to 30
2º hit damage reduced from 25 to 20

– j.S
Hurtbox increased

– j.D
Damage reduced from 44 to 36

– Mist Stance
No longer gain Tension upon entering Mist Stance

– Mist Finer (all)
Tension Gain changed:
Lv1 = from 480 to 100
Lv2 = from 960 to 150
Lv3 = from 1080 to 200

– Mist Finer High (Lv1)
Dano increased from 29 to 30

– Mist Finer Lv3 (all)
Grounded Version: Damage Reduced from 70 to 60
Aerial Version: Damage Reduced 60 to 55

– Baccus Sigh
Upon hitting Mist Finer while the opponent is blocking with Baccus Sigh, causes stagger
Prorate increased from 70% to 60%
Bug where the effect wasn’t removed upon Johnny getting hit fixed

=====

[Jack-O]

– f.S
Recovery increased from 16F to 20F
Hurtbox increased

– 2S
Recovery increased from 18F to 22F

– Ghosts
Now has a cooldown upon a Ghost being killed to spawn another
Tension Gain next to the Ghosts reduced from 5 to 3
No longer gains Tension during the cinematics

– Servants
Hurtbox increased

– Throw Ghost
Attack Level reduced from 4 to 2

=====

[Jam Kuradoberi]

– Crouching Hurtbox
Hurtbox while being hit increased upwards

– 6K
Knocks away less when hit
CH state ends when the active frames do
Special Cancel window increased by 8F

– 2S
Special Cancel window increased by 7F

– 2HS
Special Cancel window increased by 2F

– 6HS
Special Cancel window increased by 4F

– 2D
Knock up the opponent further

– Throw
Number of hits during combo does not change the height the opponent is knocked up

– Charge
Charge time for 1 stock reduced from 44F to 41F
Charge time for MAX stock reduced from 86F to 77F
Stock does not go away if Jam gets hit during Charge after 41F

– Ryuujin (Power-up)
Ground Version: Damage increased from 75 to 80
Invul increased from the moment she leaves the ground until 1F after the attack activates

– Kenroukyaku
Normal version is Invul until activation
Power-up version in the air is Throw Invul
Normal version has prorate 90%

– Hamonkyaku
Knocks up the opponent further
Hitbox increased upwards

– Hyapposhinshou
Hurtbox during dash decreased downwards

– Senrishinshou
Hurtbox during dash decreased downwards

– Pao-Saishinshou
Bug during Overdrive animation fixed

=====

[Kum Haehyun]

– 6P
Recovery reduced by 3F
Knocks up on normal hit

– 6HS
Untechable Time increased from 38F to 48F
Rolling time on CH increased

– Throw
Opponent stays in OTG state longer

– Air Throw
Opponent stays in OTG state longer

– Arakan Sanzenshou (236236HS)
Forced Prorate on 2º hit removed
Prorate of 60% added on 2º hit
Forced Prorate of 60% added on 1º hit

– Shinkyuu Choudengan (236236S)
Time active increased from 180F to 240F
Harder to fill up Tension during that period

=====

[Raven]

– Glide
No longer possible to Air Throw during the movement

– Schmerz Berg (236P)
Hitbox increased downwards

– Koko ni Saretai
Raven can’t get hit until the animation is over

– Getreuer
Stun rate adjusted

Source: Pastebin

Fans of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue have a lot to look forward to this weekend thanks to the latest announcements from Aksys Games. The North American publisher is raising the competitive stakes at Evo with impressive pot bonuses and more.

The Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- tournament, which has just over 900 entrants, is receiving a $10,000 pot bonus from the company and the developer, Arc System Works. Furthermore, the Toushinsai qualifier, which will be held at the Aksys Games booth, is also receiving an additional $5,000 prize.

If that’s not enough to get you excited, Aksys also announced that Daisuke Ishiwatari and Toshimichi Mori, developers behind the two games, will be in attendance. There will also be a playable build of the upcoming BlazBlue: Central Fiction.

Not going to be there yourself? Don’t worry, Jyosua will be streaming footage from the Aksys Games booth all weekend.

Tune in this coming Sunday to watch the Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR- finals at 1 pm PDT.

Source: Aksys Games

The previously teased heroine of Xblaze: Code Embryo, Es, stars in Arc System Works’ latest trailer for BlazBlue: Central Fiction.

This time, we get a much better look at her combos at work, in particular. We get to see how her attacks chain together and even mix up into an overhead. As for her Drive, it makes Crests appear on the screen after her attacks, which she can utilize to buff follow-up moves. There’s also footage of her Distortion Drives and her Exceed Accel, which is a new technique added in Central Fiction.

Es is the first downloadable content character for Central Fiction.

The console-exclusive Es joins the playable cast of 32 characters. She will be available with the Japanese release on October 6th of this year, and later this Winter in North America and Europe.

Source: Arc System Works, with a tip from Tony

When it comes to Guilty Gear, the Evolution Championship Series is not just a test to see which player outshines the rest; it’s also a reunion of sorts. Though the distance between the island of Japan and North America hasn’t shrunk at all, maybe the same can’t be said about the skill gap. Will the Japanese triumph once again at the Las Vegas crowning tournament, or will a player from another country upset their dominance and earn worldwide respect?

Usually, console releases lag far behind the arcade, which gives Japanese competitors an innate advantage. Arc System Works slightly changed this flow with an “early access” PlayStation 4 demo of Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-. While even that extra month or so is not that meaningful of a timeframe, it at least gave valuable preparation time for new characters like Johnny, Jack-O’, and Jam. Raven and Kum Haehyun, the two console-exclusive entrants, will also have a chance to display their tech. -REVELATOR- has been out in arcades since August 2015, though other than a few system changes, there aren’t drastic modifications to the cast. It’s not like Dizzy is coming out right before Evo, right (ahem, Street Fighter V)?

Moreso than the demo, in other ways, there’s been more communication than before between the two scenes. Thanks to MajinObama, we have English commentary on premiere exhibitions streamed by Joniosan. GodsGarden regularly streams on YouTube, usually showcasing top players like Machabo, who frequently explain how to beat certain characters. Short of an actual “Fighting Game Player Wiki,” which Japanese players actually have, it’s easier than ever for international fighters to find resources and communicate thanks to services like Twitter and Discord.

So Who’s Coming?

An online resource lists 87 Japanese players (Gear players are marked with ギル) confirmed for Evolution. Two notable names that are not on the list are Karinchu and Ain. As MajinObama stated during an interview with Shoryuken, work and other life reasons can get in the way of traveling abroad, even if it’s for a tournament as important as Evo.

Jonio, Samitto, Machabo, Rion, Nage, Kazunoko, Nakamura, Koichi, and FAB are probably the more famous names on the list.

FAB is a legendary Potemkin player, and watching him bury unprepared players should provide some of the most hype at this year’s Evo. Potemkin is a rare breed, so that’s all the more to FAB’s advantage, not to mention frame-perfect execution and other miracles he performs on a regular basis. It’s also worth keeping an eye out on 310, a Venom player known for crazy setups.

The players who are tying up with characters considered particularly strong, like Sin and Johnny, are Dogura, Machabo, and Jonio. Machabo in particular presents himself as a potential winner, though it was Dogura who had the opportunity to gain experience at Community Effort Orlando 2016, the biggest US event leading up to Evo. HM|Dogura not only triumphed but started to use Johnny in addition to Sin, a monstrous combination. On a more intriguing note, GGP|Kazunoko fought against him as Raven. Raven’s had a short run since he’s a console exclusive character, so Evo will be a stage that helps players decide their thoughts on the immortal masochist.

Can’t forget about Ogawa, the winner of the last year’s Evolution. No Woshige this time, however.

What about the players from other countries and the US?

While the Japanese players dominated CEO, that event and Combo Breaker 2016 point to some standouts, most notably Kid Viper (Johnny), PAG|Lost Soul (Elphelt), Faulty Defense (Sin), and PG|MarlinPie (Zato-1). Those players also happen to use very strong characters in the game, so the odds are in their favor in many matchups.

Lost Soul had an amazing set against MarlinPie at Combo Breaker, which definitely contributed to the Japanese players’ recognition of Lost Soul, who set up a Wiki page for him. Elphelt has a terrifying reputation in the States, and interestingly, it’s not quite the same in Japan. Perhaps Lost Soul will change that even more with this tournament. Faulty Defense also fought Kid Viper at that tournament.

Reunion

Obviously, there are many more great players from US, Canada, Colombia, and Korea, among other countries. While the above listed can be seen as “favorites,” there’s certainly room for surprises. Upsets can come from a lesser-known player, a new console character like Raven, or a fighter considered less powerful. Heck, FAB has good chances of getting far despite using a character easily killable by Sin. What’s going to be exciting to see is a check of skill between Japan and the rest of the world. This event is going to tell us a lot about how far apart the scenes are.

Furthermore, the highest placing North American player qualifies to play at Toushinsai 2016, a Fall tournament in Japan. Aksys Games will also run a separate Toushinsai Qualifier tournament, so two people have a chance to step up.

Who are you speculating to win this year’s Evolution? Will it be Japan? Who’s your favorite player?

And will Dizzy be as strong as Johnny?

Source: Kakuge Checker, Aksys Games, Godsgarden

As Arc System Works is gearing up for a console release of BlazBlue: Central Fiction, they released a brand new console promotional trailer.

The first part recaps some of the plot from the first three games, and then shows a lot of new footage. There are many fully-animated scenes, which could possibly be Story Mode scenes or from the not-yet-revealed console opening.

This first promotional video ends with a quick look at Es, who will be a launch DLC character. She’s the protagonist of XBlaze–Code Embryo.

Dustloop user Tokkan provided translation of some of her moves from a recent Famitsu article:

The Wheel of Fate begins turning once again on October 6, 2016, while North American and European fans can expect the localizations of BlazBlue: Central Fiction sometime this winter.

Source: Arc System Works, Dustloop

Following up on announcements from Aksys Games regarding BlazBlue: Central Fiction’s console release in North America, it turns out that European fans will also get the game by the end of 2016. Publisher PQube, who has taken care of other ArcSystem Works titles like Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, is carrying out the release of the latest in the BlazBlue fighting game series.

The newest iteration expands the cast to over 30 with newcomers like Hibiki Kohaku, Naoto Kurogane, Nine, Es, and Izanami. New system mechanics include an Active Flow which buffs damage and burst regeneration, and a character-specific Exceed Accel attack.

This release will include the new Speed Star and Alliance modes, as well as an expansive, approximately 40-hour long story mode with adventure game components.

Check out the announcement trailer below.

Source: Gematsu, with a tip from Tony

Ibuki fans, rejoice–before the kunai-wielder drops into Street Fighter V, those looking to play her can at least start visualizing executing her moves, thanks to a new video from AXETB.

This video breaks down every single move of the ninja, starting from neutral normal attacks. It then goes through her aerial moves, command normals, V-Skill, and V-Trigger, the latter having her throw a bomb on the stage.

Check out the full video below, which also showcases useful ways to execute tech pressure and an extensive section on combos.

Ibuki is set to arrive later this June, along with the Street Figther V Story Mode update.

Source: AXETB, with a tip from John K.