Guilty Gear Strive – Second Open Beta Planned, Online Lobby Improvements Detailed

Arc System Works’ Guilty Gear Strive has a new volume of Developer’s Backyard available where various details from the first open beta are discussed. The most popular character across all regions turned out to be Ramlethal Valentine, though Giovanna and Sol Badguy also ranked high. A second beta test is also being planned with players’ feedback in mind, though a release window has yet to be determined.

Versus Mode was highly rated in the open beta due to its rematch option, though it didn’t see much play time (which the developer attributes to the pandemic). The response to Tutorial Mode was mixed due to its lack of explanations. “Our intent for the Tutorial Mode in Guilty Gear Strive is to show the player that they can enjoy fighting games without having to study. We intentionally left out explanations of game mechanics and the different uses for each attack button. In our previous games, players new to the fighter genre would need to put in some practice in order to complete the tutorial.”

The developer noted matches in the Rank Tower’s first floor where players didn’t use special moves or every mechanic. Though it will “brush up on the finer aspects of this mode,” it felt that this tutorial style to be “successful.” Mission Mode will allow for trying Wall Breaks and Roman Cancels so new players can learn more there.

The Online Lobby is currently being focused on with Arc System Works outlining some fixes that it has planned:

• Changing to a system where players select a visible area where they want to have a match.
• After winning a match, the player stays where they are in a battle-ready state unless their rating changes.
• Adding a rematch option.
• Expanding the area in each lobby, adding an option to hide the News display, and adding a dash movement for avatars.

Guilty Gear Strive is slated to release on June 11th for PS4, PS5 and PC. Deluxe and Ultimate Edition owners on consoles will receive access on June 8th and can play all characters, modes and Story Mode chapters.