The story is set in a world where magic has replaced almost every aspect of modern-day technology. But through its dire consequences leading up to the creation of a race of magic-infused creatures known as "Gears", the world has nearly become a post-apocalyptic environment due to Crusades’ effects on the world. But even though the world is still recovering, much work is still needed to be done and the mysteries behind the creation of the gears have yet to be resolved.
The story mostly focuses on Sol Badguy, a brash bounty hunter and die hard Queen enthusiast who, feeling guilty of his past creations which in turn, results in him becoming a gear, decides to make up for his own actions through fighting them whilst keeping his own identity a secret. However, his own reluctance to help others, as well as his selfish actions, often attracts the attention of Ky Kiske, his own rival and former comrade, who tries to get into fights with him whenever annoyed. Throughout the story, Sol enacts his own vengeance upon That Man, who is mainly the cause behind most of the series conflicts, through killing him.
As the series progresses, much of his past is revealed, along with his connections with That Man, as well as his long lost fiancée, Aria. With it, Sol begins to realize that his own past is what deeply conflicts him the most, and through his past rivalries with Ky, as well as his relationships with the other characters, helps to overcome the enemy that he sorely sought to destroy in the first place.
A recurring theme throughout the franchise is redemption, with many of the character’s story arcs revolve around attempting to clear their name and is also presented as a religious motif mainly related to Christianity. Other recurring themes reflect upon real world issues, such as the destructive consequences of wars, racial prejudice, and the dangers of unchecked scientific progress.
Third game in the franchise to use English and Korean dubs (Korean dub added in Ver. 1.05), marks the first time to have finally credited the dubbing’s voice actors and both dub languages selectable.[9]
Guilty Gear consists primarily of one-on-one competitive battles. Players are tasked with depleting their opponent's life gauge by utilizing attacks unique to each playable character. In the case of timed matches, the player with the most remaining life when time runs out is the victor of that round. The series' emphasis on speed and technicality and introduction of unique movement options such as an "air dash" would ultimately become the foundation for the "anime" subgenre of fighting games.
Guilty Gear Isuka prominently allowed up to four simultaneous players in battle, as well as the option to divide the characters into teams. It also eschewed the typical multiple-round format in favor of each player having a limited stock of "souls". Depleting a player's life gauge decreased their stock of souls and temporarily incapacitated them, and each remaining soul allowed a player to return to battle with a full life gauge. They would be defeated for the rest of the match if their life gauge and souls were both exhausted. These features have not returned for subsequent games.
Each game in the series includes a "Tension Gauge" that fills as the player performs offensive maneuvers, such as approaching the opponent or attacking them. Portions of the Tension Gauge can be expended to perform various techniques. Each character has at least one Overdrive, special attacks that can deal extensive damage to an opponent or bolster aspects of the user, like speed or attack power. "Faultless Defense" allows players to prevent "chip damage," damage received from normally guarding against attacks, at the expense of the Tension Gauge. Guilty Gear X and later titles introduced more advanced techniques involving the Tension Gauge, such as the "Roman Cancel", allowing players to immediately stop the remaining animation of an attack, and "Dead Angle Attacks", counterattacks performed while a player is guarding.
The Tension Gauge is also tied in with the usage of "instant kill" techniques, which are high-risk attacks that are difficult to connect but instantly inflict death on the opponent regardless of the amount of life remaining. In Guilty Gear, these attacks ended the entire match if they successfully hit the opponent, but this was toned down in later games by ending the round instead. Failing to connect with the technique penalizes the user by removing the Tension Gauge and its related uses for the rest of the round.
Guilty Gear X2 introduced a "Burst Gauge" that slowly fills during the progression of a match. When completely filled, players can perform a "Psyche Burst" in an attempt to quickly stop an opponent's offense, even knocking back the opponent if they are close enough. This mechanic has also appeared in some form in other Arc System Works games, such as BlazBlue and Persona 4 Arena, as well as other fighting games such as Skullgirls.
Many characters also feature their own unique mechanics that differentiate them from each other. For example, Zato-1 utilizes a shadow-like symbiotic creature named Eddie that is able to detach itself and be controlled separately for a period of time, allowing complex tandem attacks between the two. Venom can set out weaponized billiard balls on screen that can be projected in various directions depending on how the player strikes them with certain attacks. Johnny carries a limited set of coins that can be thrown at the opponent. Though the coins themselves deal little damage, each successive hit strengthens his "Mist Finer" technique to incredibly powerful levels.
In addition to the Guilty Gear video game series, other products were also released. Two novelizations of Guilty Gear X were written by Norimitsu Kaihō, illustrated by Daisuke Ishiwatari, and published by Enterbrain: Lightning the Argent[a], and The Butterfly and Her Gale[b], on January 20, 2001 and on August 24, 2002.[31][32] A manga titled Guilty Gear Xtra, a collaboration among Daisuke Ishiwatari, Norimitsu Kaihō, and Akihito Sumii, was serialized in Kodansha's Magazine Z on September 22, 2003.[33] Studio DNA and Enterbrain also published comics anthologies.[32][34]
Several drama CDs were published; Scitron released a series of two drama CDs—Guilty Gear X Vol. 1 and Vol. 2—between October 24, and November 24, 2001,[34] and two series of drama CDs based on Guilty Gear X2 were released by Team Entertainment: Red and Black—a series— were released in 2003 between July 16, and August 20.[32] Another series of drama CDs, Night of Knives, was published in three volumes between October 20 and December 22, 2004.[35][36] Also action figures, guidebooks, and a trading card game series based on Guilty Gear were released.[32][34]
On February 11, 2017, Arc System Works announced a collaboration with Tecmo Koei's Team Ninja to release an Arc System Works Costume Set consisting of the costumes of some characters from the BlazBlue and Guilty Gear series in March 2017 for Dead or Alive 5: Last Round.[37]Guilty Gear cosmetics are unlockable in the PC version of Them's Fightin' Herds for players that also own Guilty Gear Xrd Rev 2.[38][39]
An anime series, Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers, was announced in June 2024, and is scheduled to premiere in 2025. Its story will continue the events of Guilty Gear Strive.[40][41]
Reception and legacy
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: Guilty Gear is no longer a "cult" series after the mainstream success of Guilty Gear Strive. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(March 2024)
The Guilty Gear series is considered a cult classic among video game fans.[59][60][61][62] The series has often been remarked upon for its visual elements, fighting engine, soundtrack, and the variety of designs of the characters and attacks.[63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71]X's Dreamcast version has the highest score of the series as compiled by review aggregator GameRankings (89.33%),[72] while X2 for PlayStation 2 occupies that position according to the other major aggregator, Metacritic (87).[44] On the other hand, the lowest score is given to Guilty Gear 2: Overture from both GameRankings (58.19%)[73] and Metacritic (56/100).[51]
Guilty Gear is considered by several sources to be the greatest 2D fighting game.[74][75][76]GameSpot said that "Guilty Gear is one of the few non-Capcom or SNK 2D fighters to make any sort of impact on the genre",[77] while Eurogamer stated: "If 2D beat-em-ups are moving toward extinction, they really are ending on a high note with stuff like this."[78] Its sequels were also well received. GameSpy said "Guilty Gear X is hands-down the best 2D fighting game to date",[79] and Guilty Gear X2 was described by About.com as "easily the best 2D fighter to come around in a long time."[80]
In 2012, Complex ranked Guilty Gear at number 47 on the list of the best video game franchises, commenting: "Where other fighters were moving toward realism and more down to Earth physics and combos, Guilty Gear was content to turn those notions on their head, paving the way for the more chaotic fighters we're seeing today."[81]Yahoo! Voices' editor S.W. Hampson included Guilty Gear among the 10 best fighting game franchises of all time, praising the series's evolution along the years, the "distinctive visual flair" of its 2D sprites, and the "well-defined story lines", adding "its identity is among the most unique in the world of beat-'em-ups."[59]
In an interview with Dexerto, creator Daisuke Ishiwatari said that Guilty Gear Strive was made to change the direction of the series completely. Arc System Works CEO Minoru Kidooka commented that while the game represented a big departure for the series, the company is happy with their new expanded audience.[87]
^Dunham, Jeremy; Sulic, Ivan; Lewis, Ed (July 14, 2004). "Dirty Dozen: Hidden Gems". IGN. Ziff Davis Media. Retrieved August 3, 2013. In fact, in many ways Guilty Gear X2 is one of the prettiest games on the PS2. Not necessarily because of its technology or its art style [...], but because of how well all of its visual elements come together. What truly makes it fantastic, though, is its fast and furious fighting engine and strong opportunity for strategy. In short, it's everything a 2D fighter should be.
^Ingenito, Vincent (December 7, 2012). "Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus Review". IGN. Ziff Davis Media. Retrieved August 3, 2013. Much like the guitar virtuosos providing the game's stellar soundtrack, Guilty Gear players are known for their uncompromising technical prowess. [...] Controls are responsive, and the wide array of mobility options and flashy moves for each character can be appreciated within minutes of picking up the controller. [...] For as varied as the 25 characters look, their play styles are even more divergent.
^Goldstein, Hilary (September 10, 2004). "Guilty Gear X2 #Reload". IGN. Ziff Davis Media. p. 2. Retrieved August 3, 2013. What really separates Guilty Gear from the rest of the crowd are the absolutely bizarre characters. [...] each character is a very distinguishable entity. [...] There are more than 20 of these characters and they are all just as interesting
^Gouskos, Carrie (April 18, 2006). "Guilty Gear XX Slash Import Hands-On". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on August 5, 2013. Retrieved August 3, 2013. Guilty Gear's strength is undoubtedly the unique characters and their sometimes-bizarre move-sets, [...] Guilty Gear's personality is still abundant in Slash, from the constant reference and innuendo to heavy metal in-character names, move names, and the soundtrack to the sleek animations and appearance. [...] it's certainly a unique-looking game, which, when combined with the difficult-to-master game mechanics, makes it quite interesting to play through.
^Kasavin, Greg (September 8, 2006). "Guilty Gear Judgment Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 3, 2013. The over-the-top anime stylings of the Guilty Gear series. [...] The underlying gameplay itself is still good. [...] Guilty Gear's slick, well-animated 2D graphics and head-banging guitar rock soundtrack translate well to the PSP
^Sell, Chris (December 30, 2004). "Guilty Gear X2 Reload Review". PALGN. Archived from the original on October 31, 2013. Retrieved August 3, 2013. The special combos are incredible and range from fairly simple to very advanced. The payoff is always rewarding both in damage and in insane visuals.
^Turner, Benjamin (February 5, 2003). "Reviews: Guilty Gear X2". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. p. 1. Archived from the original on May 21, 2009. Retrieved August 1, 2013. At the game's core is a very solid fighting engine that's been refined since the last game.
^Turner, Benjamin (February 5, 2003). "Reviews: Guilty Gear X2". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. p. 2. Archived from the original on May 21, 2009. Retrieved August 1, 2013. Groundbreaking and triumphant. Lesser words just don't do justice to the superior graphics and general aesthetics of Guilty Gear X2. X2 is easily the most beautiful 2D game yet crafted, and should prove to anyone with a working cerebrum that 2D is not inferior to 3D [...] High-resolution graphics would be fairly pointless if the actual art were mediocre, so it's a good thing that Guilty Gear X2 has some of the coolest character designs ever seen in a game. [...] The hard-rocking soundtrack is almost as impressive.
^Nelson, Randy (November 11, 1998). "Guilty Gear". IGN. Ziff Davis Media. Retrieved August 3, 2013. If you consider yourself a fighting connoisseur, it comes highly recommended. No true fan of the genre should be without a copy.
^Goldstein, Hilary (September 10, 2004). "Guilty Gear X2 #Reload". IGN. Ziff Davis Media. p. 3. Retrieved August 3, 2013. Guilty Gear X2 #Reload isn't the perfect fighting game, it's not even the best fighter on Xbox. Still, it's at the top of the food chain for 2D games.
^Fudge, James (December 22, 2001). "Reviews: Guilty Gear X (PS2)". GameSpy. IGN Entertainment. p. 1. Archived from the original on February 18, 2005. Retrieved August 3, 2013. Guilty Gear X is hands-down the best 2D fighting game to date. [...] The three key factors that brought me to this conclusion are eye candy, fast and furious fighting and interesting (albeit over-the-top) characters. [...] As with most sequels GGX brings a number of new things to the table, like extra moves, improved graphics and a few new token characters.
